Apostles Window: St. John the Evangelist

St. John the Evangelist:
 "Love one another, for love is of God" (I John 4:7).

The first window on the east wall, moving left to right, depicts St. John, Apostle and Evangelist.  

Following the tradition of medieval art, he is depicted as a beardless youth; tradition calls him the youngest disciple, but some suggest that the appearance of an androgynous nature helped make him more relatable to women.

According to Christian tradition (which apparently many scholars disagree with today), he was John, the "beloved" apostle, author of the gospel of John, three letters, and Revelation.  

He, along with Peter and James, were the leaders of the early church in Jerusalem.  He is said to be the only apostle to escape martyrdom, being exiled to Patmos in about AD 95, where he wrote the book of Revelation.  He died in Ephesus sometime after AD 98, and a church (now a mosque) was erected over his burial site.

In this window he is presented with his traditional symbols of the chalice and serpent:  this represents an apocryphal story that John was challenged to drink from a poisoned cup to demonstrate his faith; when he blessed the cup, the poison rose from the cup in the form of a serpent.

Much of John's writings focus on God's love -- the memorable John 3:16 is one such example ("For God so loved the world, that He gave his only son...").  Another example is the text presented on this panel:   "Love one another, for love is of God" (I John 4:7)

St. John's Feast Day is celebrated on December 27 in the church calendar.

A 2nd century apocryphal book, The Acts of John, was the resource for many legends about St. John as depicted in medieval art and literature.  This book, for example, records the poisoned chalice incident described above.  There are some later legends about St. John, as well, including one that Edward the Confessor (11th century English king) gave a poor pilgrim a valuable ring, and the pilgrim then turned out to be St. John.  The incident is commemorated in a stained glass window in the Church of St. Edward the Confessor (Westcott Barton, England).  In this representation, St. John also holds the serpent and chalice, and maintains his youthful appearance.

Prayer (from the Lutheran Book of Worship):

Merciful Lord, let the brightness of your light shine on your Church, so that all of us, instructed by the teachings of John, your apostle and evangelist, may walk in the light of your truth and attain eternal life.  Amen.