June 24: Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
“I am ‘the voice of one crying out in the desert”
Saint John the Baptist is the only person, along with the Virgin Mary, whose birth is celebrated by the Church with a solemn feast. According to tradition, John was born in Ain Karem, and his coming into the world is considered the first visible sign of the beginning of the messianic times.
His birth was miraculous, as his mother Elizabeth was barren, and it all began with the announcement of the Angel Gabriel to his father Zechariah, who at first did not believe the words of the heavenly messenger.
The name "John," which means "God has shown mercy," already foreshadows his mission. This name was chosen by divine will and given to the child on the day of his circumcision, when Zechariah, regaining his speech, proclaimed the hymn of the Benedictus.
The feast of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, celebrated on June 24, has very ancient origins. Saint Augustine (354–430) also mentions it, confirming that it was already observed in his time.
In the 4th century, the Church fixed the date of Jesus’ birth at the winter solstice (December 25). To remain faithful to the Gospel account, the birth of John the Baptist was placed six months earlier, at the summer solstice (June 24), when the days begin to shorten. The Church Fathers saw in this a symbolic confirmation of John's words about Jesus: “He must increase; I must decrease.”
According to the teaching of the Church Fathers, John was freed from original sin even before birth, when Mary, pregnant with Jesus, visited Elizabeth. At that moment, John leapt in his mother’s womb, recognizing the presence of the Savior. The Archangel Gabriel had said that John would be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb. Thus, by God’s will, John was prepared from before birth for the role of prophet of the Most High. Indeed, he was the one who prepared the people for the coming of Jesus, preaching conversion and the forgiveness of sins in the spirit of the prophet Elijah.
John's public ministry began around the year 27–28 A.D., as described in the Gospel of Luke. It was preceded by a period of solitude in the desert, where he lived in prayer and penance to strengthen his spirit. In this way, John became a bridge between the Old and New Testaments.
John the Baptist was the last and greatest of the prophets, because he was the only one to directly point out the Messiah, saying: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sin of the world!” He recognized Jesus as the Savior at the moment of His baptism in the Jordan River, when he saw the Holy Spirit descend upon Him—just as had been revealed to him from heaven as a sign for identification.
In one of his homilies given on this very feast, Saint Augustine explained the role of John the Baptist in the history of salvation with a symbolic comparison: the voice of Zechariah, John’s father, is loosed at the birth of his son, just as the veil of the temple is torn at the death of Jesus. Zechariah regains his speech only when John is born—the “voice” announcing the coming of the Lord. Had John spoken only about himself, his father would not have begun to speak again. Zechariah’s tongue is loosened because the voice that prepares the way for the Word has been born.
Indeed, when John begins his mission, he is asked who he is, and he replies: “a voice of one crying out in the desert” (Mark 1:3). John is therefore the voice crying out to prepare the way of the Lord. Jesus, on the other hand, is called the “Word” - that is, the Word of God - existing from all eternity. John is the temporary voice, while Christ is the eternal Word, present from the beginning of time.