Saint John the Baptist, the story of the Precursor

Image of Saint John the Baptist

• Religious image of Saint John the Baptist, the Precursor of Jesus.
• Made of pulp wood.
• Cristal eyes.
• Hand painted with oil paint.
• Image for sale in 30, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 150 and 180 cm.
• Saint John the Baptist is dressed in camel skins.
• The right hand is extended towards the sky and in the left hand it carries a banner with a pennon with the text: Ecce Agnus Dei. This classic representation of Saint John the Baptist is due to the fact that he was the first to call Jesus the Lamb of God (Agnus Dei in Latin).
• At the foot of the image of the Saint there is a lying lamb.
• The image of Saint John the Baptist has been manufactured following the traditional technique of the religious images of Olot.

Birth or Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

Saint Luke is the one who narrates the birth and life of Saint John the Baptist at the beginning of his Gospel

Zacharias, the father of Saint John, was a Jewish priest who served at the temple. Zacharias had taken Saint Elizabeth, the cousin of the Virgin Mary, as his wife. After many years of marriage, already reaching old age, they were a marriage full of love and happiness. Their joy was only limited by one sad fact, they had not been able to have children.

One day in the temple, the Archangel Saint Gabriel appeared to Zacharias. The Angel told him that, after so much time, his prayers and those of his wife would be answered, that they would be parents. The birth of a child would fill her remaining years of life with joy. He also announced that the child would be very special, that he would be the precursor of the Messiah, that they should name him John and that he would convert many people to the true Faith. He would be a child filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb.

The priest had doubts and asked the Angel how it would be possible for them to expect the birth of a child if he and his wife were already old, almost old.

The Angel guaranteed him that his words would be fulfilled because God had said so, and because he did not believe in the happiness that he had granted to Saint Elizabeth and to him, the priest would lose his voice and would not be able to utter a word until the day of his birth. de San Juan.

Nine months after the first appearance of the Angel to Zacharias, Saint Elizabeth gave birth to Saint John. The birth of the child happened just as the Angel had announced.

Saint John the Baptist child

The day of the birth of Saint John the Baptist was a happy day for his parents, friends and relatives.

All the friends had opinions about the name the child should have. Saint Elizabeth, aware of the announcement that the Angel had made to her husband, did not consent to another name for the child other than Juan. Zacarías, who had not yet recovered his speech, supported his wife's decision in writing. In this way the word of God that the Archangel Gabriel had transmitted to Zacharias had been fulfilled. And as announced, Zacharias regained his speech and said: "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel."

The years after the birth of Saint John the Baptist are unclear. The boy's parents are believed to have died shortly thereafter. We do not know for sure if by natural death or by some other event.

In any case, what does seem certain is that the boy, Juan, was orphaned at a very young age. At that moment, the one who would become Saint John the Baptist decided to live in the desert. The child was filled with the Holy Spirit. Juan, despite being a child, already believed that moving away from material possessions and living in the middle of nature would bring him closer to God.

During these years he subsisted on what God saw fit to provide him, as clothing he wore camel skins and ate fruits, honey, roots... Saint John only cared about being closer to God every day through prayer and penance.

The preaching and prayer of Saint John the Baptist, the Baptism of Jesus

After many years of prayer and penance in the desert, John's name began to be known among the people of Jerusalem and Judea. It was said that there was a man who with his knowledge and his prayers managed to make people repent of their sins and change their way of life.

Saint John the Baptist lived near the Jordan River. He used the waters of this river to baptize all those who understood his prayers and were willing to follow his path, the path of God. Many were those who joined the prayers of Saint John the Baptist.

In his preaching and prayers he announced that someone greater than himself would come and baptize them in the Holy Spirit.

One day while he was preaching and teaching his prayers, the Holy Spirit appeared to him. He told him that he would meet Jesus, the Messiah, and that he would recognize him because a dove would perch on his shoulder when they met.

Jesus asked him to baptize him, but Saint John did not agree with that, how could he baptize the Messiah, the son of God. Jesus convinced him that he should. Saint John accepted the word of Jesus as he had always accepted that of the Lord. Saint John, following the prayer he had used on many other occasions, immersed Jesus in the water of the Jordan River. Once Jesus came out of the water, the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descended to stand directly above Jesus. At that moment a voice from heaven was heard saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

The next day Saint John said to all who were with him: "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

Martyrdom and death of Saint John the Baptist

To know the history of the martyrdom and death of Saint John the Baptist we must look in the Gospel of Saint Mark (Saint Mark 6, 17-29).

After many years of preaching and praying, St. John had gained remarkable recognition. One of the people who saw Saint John as a holy man was Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee. Herod respected and enjoyed the teachings of Saint John.

Herod was a powerful man who made decisions without taking into account, on many occasions, moral norms. In this way he decided to live with his brother Felipo's wife, Herodias, his sister-in-law. In this way he began an adulterous relationship.

San Juan had always been a sincere man, a lover of the truth. And even though he knew that Herod was a despotic leader, he publicly denounced that situation without fearing the consequences.

Herod, despite the fact that he deeply respected Saint John, could not allow any of his subjects to speak to him in such a way. Herod chose to imprison the Saint rather than have him killed. He did not want to have the death of such a remarkable person on his conscience.

Herodias was not satisfied with this punishment, she looked for the way that Herod ordered the death of San Juan.

The occasion arose on Herod's birthday. The tetrarch of Judea decided to throw a party in style to commemorate his anniversary. He celebrated a party in which he invited the most outstanding personalities of the region. At this festival Salome, the daughter of Herodias and Philip, presented Herod with a dance.

Salome danced with the grace of the Angels themselves. Herod was so impressed by Salome's dance that he told her that she could ask her for anything she wanted, whatever wish the girl had would be granted. Salome turned to her mother, asked her what she should order. Herodias, being clear about the great opportunity that was presented to her, told her daughter to ask her for the head of Saint John on a platter.

Salome, following her mother's advice, told Herod that she wanted the head of Saint John on a platter. Herod was sad but he had to keep his word. He ordered one of his guards to go to the prison and cut off Saint John's head.