John, one of the twelve apostles, wrote the Gospel that bears his name, the epistles of I, II, and III John, as well as the book of Revelation. In the Gospel of John, he is referred to as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” John and his brother James, fishermen, were sons of Zebedee. They were fishermen who left all to follow Jesus. He, Peter, and James were witnesses to some events that the other disciples were not. Of all the apostles, John alone was at the foot of the cross as Jesus died and was one of the first witnesses of the resurrection. He and Peter worked together in the early parts of the book of Acts to establish and confirm the early Christian movement. According to some traditions, John was the bishop of the church in Ephesus before being exiled to Patmos, where he wrote the book of Revelation. It is said that he taught Polycarp who later became the bishop of Smyrna; Scripture Reading: John 21:19-25.
Collect – O MERCIFUL Lord, we beseech thee to cast thy bright beams of light upon thy Church, that it, being illumined by the doctrine of thy blessed Apostle and Evangelist Saint John, may so walk in the light of thy truth, that it may at length attain to life everlasting; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
