Saint John the Baptist

"No one can receive anything except what has been given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said [that] I am not the Messiah, but that I was sent before Him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens to Him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. So this joy of mine has been made complete. He must increase; I must decrease."
- Saint John the Baptist, John 3: 27 - 30

Today is the Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist. John was the son of Elizabeth, one of Mary's relatives, and Zechariah, who was a priest of the Temple in Jerusalem. John was probably born near Ain-Karim, which is southwest of Jerusalem. The Archangel Gabriel was sent to Zechariah to tell him that Elizabeth would bear a son despite her old age. John lived as a hermit in the desert of Judea until about 27 A.D. When he was around 30 years of age, John began preaching on the banks of the Jordan River against the evils of the time and called the people to penance and baptism. John attracted large crowds and had great power with the people. When Jesus came to be baptized by John, John was able to recognize Him as the Messiah and baptized Him, saying, "It is I who need baptism from You". After Jesus left to preach in Galilee, John continued to preach on the banks of the Jordan. John inspired many of his followers to follow Jesus Christ when he recognized Him as the Messiah. John and Andrew, who had been among the followers of John, came to know Jesus through John's preaching and later became Apostles of Christ. Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Perea and Galilee, had John arrested and imprisoned at Machaerus Fortress on the Dead Sea because John denounced his adulterous marriage with Herodias, the wife of his half-brother Philip. John was killed on request of Salome, the daughter of Herodias, at the instigation of her mother. John is presented in the New Testament of the Bible as the last of the Old Testament prophets and the precursor of the Messiah. His feast day is on June 24th and the feast for his beheading is on August 29th. 

Saint John the Baptist, pray for us!

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Picture Of And Information About Saint John the Baptist Taken From:

http://www.wikipaintings.org/en/titian/st-john-the-baptist

http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=152

http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saintofday/