Celebrating the Birth of John the Baptist

In the Liturgical Calendar of the Catholic Church, few people are celebrated more than once.  Placing the many feasts of the Blessed Mother aside, only Saints Joseph, Peter, Paul, and John the Baptist have more than one feast on the calendar.

St. Joseph is celebrated twice.  On March 19 we celebrate the Solemnity of St. Joseph, the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and patron of the Universal Church.  On May 1, we celebrate the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker.

The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul is celebrated June 29.  Together they are celebrated as founders of the church of Rome, where both would bear witness to Christ in their martyrdom.  Peter has his own separate feast, the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, celebrated February 22, to honor the spiritual authority of the Pope and the unity of the Church.  Likewise, St. Paul has his own feast, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, celebrated on January 25, which recalls his dramatic vision of the risen Christ on the road to Damascus.

But what about John the Baptist?  Besides Jesus and the Blessed Mother, John the Baptist is the only saint whose birthday we celebrate.  John the Baptist holds a profoundly important place in the Catholic tradition as the precursor to Jesus’ ministry.  As such, the church celebrates the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist on June 24, and The Beheading of John the Baptist on August 29.

The Nativity of John the Baptist

The Nativity of John the Baptist is celebrated on June 24.  The date is significant because Luke tells us that when Mary was visited by the Archangel Gabriel, the angel informed her that her cousin Elizabeth, John’s mother, was in her sixth month. (See Luke 1:36.)  So, Elizabeth is six months into her pregnancy when Mary is beginning hers.  Mary’s annunciation is celebrated on March 25 and nine months later, Jesus is born on December 25.  John the Baptist’s birthday is June 24, three months after Mary was told she would be the mother of the messiah.  The feast occurs near the summer solstice, thus symbolizing how John’s light diminished as Christ, the Light of the World, began his ministry.  As the Baptist himself says referring to Jesus, “He must increase, and I must decrease.” (John 3:30)

But even before the birth of the Baptist we see that John is already fulfilling his God-given mission by bearing witness to the true identity of Jesus.  We see this in his prophetic leap in the womb when Mary greeted his mother, Elizabeth.  This was John the Baptist, filled with the Holy Spirit, recognizing the presence of God even before his birth.

In many ways, the story of the birth of the Baptist is not just a preparation for the coming of Christ, it is a foreshadowing of the events of Jesus’ birth with many linguistic and thematic parallels.  The following chart shows only some of the parallels between the birth of John and the birth of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke.

The Meaning of the Infancy Parallels

The Church maintains that the infancy narratives are inspired accounts that communicate authentic historical truth.  Therefore, the parallels between the birth narratives of John the Baptist and Jesus should not be understood as mere coincidence nor as examples of literary creativity, at least not in the deceptive sense.  Rather, these parallels function as profound theological affirmations embedded within the inspired text.

According to Catholic teaching, the evangelists composed their gospels under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in such a way that God is the principal author while the human writers remain true authors who employed their own literary abilities and their own historical sources. (see Dei Verbum 11) Within this framework, the parallels between John and Jesus are neither accidental nor merely artistic devices; they are intentional elements of divine revelation.

Within these infancy parallels, the sacred author illuminates the relationship between John and Jesus within the plan of salvation.  John is presented as the divinely appointed forerunner whose mission prepares the way for the Messiah, while Jesus is revealed as the fulfillment of God’s redemptive promises.  The parallels, therefore, serve a theological purpose: they demonstrate the continuity of God’s salvific plan while simultaneously emphasizing the unique identity, mission, and supremacy of Jesus Christ.

The Significance of John’s Birth

The birth of John the Baptist marks the transition between the Old and New Testaments.  John may be seen as the “prophetic hinge” who closes out the old covenant and anticipates the coming new covenant.  His life fulfills prophecies of Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 3:1 (see Mark 1:2-3), which foretold of a messenger who would prepare the way of the Lord.  John’s miraculous birth through an elderly couple, signifies God’s power and fidelity to His covenant as God brought forth the prophet who would announce the arrival of God’s anointed one.  On this feast of John the Baptist, may we be as joyous as John who leaped in his mother’s womb and who pointed to Jesus as the Messiah.