Every year on June 24, the Church celebrates the birth of Saint John the Baptist. That alone makes him remarkable. Aside from the Blessed Virgin Mary, John is the only saint whose birth the Church celebrates in the liturgy.

Yet John’s uniqueness began long before his birth.

The Gospel tells us that when Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, the child in Elizabeth’s womb leaped for joy at the presence of Jesus (Luke 1:41). Long before he preached in the wilderness, baptized in the Jordan, or pointed crowds toward the Messiah, John recognized Christ. In a sense, the first person to acknowledge Jesus as the Savior was an unborn child.

John’s entire life would follow that same pattern. He existed to point beyond himself and toward Christ. Even his name reflected God’s plan. Saint John Paul II noted that the name John means “God is benevolent.” Through John the Baptist, God prepared His people for the coming of His Son and revealed His desire to save the world.

The feast of Saint John the Baptist is therefore much more than a celebration of an extraordinary birth. It invites us to reflect on the mystery of the Incarnation and on the man chosen to prepare the way for Jesus Christ.

The Humility of Saint John

Saint John the Baptist, as the last prophet of the Old Testament and the one who inaugurated the New Testament, played a significant role in God’s plan of salvation. The four Gospels emphasize his figure, particularly as the prophet who identified Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, the Anointed One of the Lord. Despite his crucial role in preparing the way for Jesus, Saint John always remained humble and acknowledged the increasing prominence of Jesus in his own diminishing role.

John’s humility is not vague—it is verbal, specific, and almost startlingly direct. When questioned, he answers not with self-promotion but with a kind of reverent self-elimination: “I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie” (John 1:26-27).
 And then, when the right moment arrives, his humility becomes proclamation in John 1:299: “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” 
 In John’s life, then, humility isn’t simply the absence of pride; it is an active re-centering—making himself smaller so that Christ may be seen more clearly.

The Witness to Truth

Even before his birth, Saint John demonstrated his unique connection to Jesus. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph #523,

“St. John the Baptist is the Lord’s immediate precursor or forerunner, sent to prepare his way. ‘Prophet of the Most High’, John surpasses all the prophets, of whom he is the last. He inaugurates the Gospel, already from his mother’s womb welcomes the coming of Christ, and rejoices in being “the friend of the bridegroom”, whom he points out as “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”. Going before Jesus “in the spirit and power of Elijah”, John bears witness to Christ in his preaching, by his Baptism of conversion, and through his martyrdom.”

Pope Benedict XVI noted, the Gospels place great emphasis on Saint John the Baptist, who, as the final prophet of the Old Testament, identified Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. Saint John’s birth is intrinsically linked to the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God, making him a witness to the divine truth.

Embracing the Bizarreness of the Gospel

One of the reasons people can struggle with Saint John the Baptist is that he doesn’t arrive as a sanitized religious influencer. He appears from the wilderness with a kind of holy oddness—clothes that look severe, and food that sounds frankly surprising: “John wore clothing of camel’s hair… and his food was locusts and wild honey.” 

But John’s “bizarreness” is not God’s version of shock value. It is the outward shape of an inward mission. The Church teaches that John is “the Lord’s immediate precursor or forerunner, sent to prepare his way” (Catechism of the Catholic Church #523). In other words: his strangeness (his austerity, his visible repentance, his stark life) functions like a signpost. He is there to prepare hearts so that Christ—not John—becomes the center.

Saint John’s life is meant to point away from itself. As Pope Benedict XVI emphasizes, John recognizes Jesus as the “Lamb of God” and has the humility “to hold up Jesus as the One sent by God, drawing back so that he might take the lead.” That is why the Gospels repeatedly present John answering questions with clarity and restraint: he is not “the Messiah” or “the light,” but the witness. 

Saint Augustine helps explain the spiritual purpose of John’s roughness. When the people ask what they went out to see, Augustine highlights John’s appearance. John wore “rough apparel” and “raiment of camel’s hair.” He did not choose comfort or compromise. Augustine then draws an important lesson. John did not bend to popular opinion. He pointed directly to Christ and declared, “Behold the Lamb of God.” John may seem unusual, but his unusual life served the truth.

This explains why many outsiders find his lifestyle unsettling. It clashes with the spirit of religious accommodation. Pope Benedict XVI connects John’s witness to the courage to reject error and moral confusion. “The Truth is Truth; there are no compromises.” John preached radical conversion. His life matched his message. He could not treat sin as harmless or repentance as optional.

Emulating Saint John

In our own lives, we are called to be like Saint John the Baptist. We are not expected to adopt his peculiar habits, but rather to follow his example of humility and witness to the truth. Saint John’s words, “He must increase while I must decrease,” resonate deeply. They remind us to let go of our pride and self-centeredness, allowing Jesus to take center stage in our lives.

The Humanity of Jesus

A profound illustration of the relationship between Jesus and Saint John can be found in Matthew 14:22-36. This passage, as Pope Benedict XVI highlighted, shows Jesus’ humanity through his experience of grief and loss following the beheading of his cousin and friend, Saint John. Even in moments of great sadness, Jesus sought solace in prayer and demonstrated the power of faith by performing miracles.

As we celebrate the feast of Saint John the Baptist, we remember his humility and courage. He boldly witnessed to God’s plan of salvation. John recognized Jesus as the Messiah and pointed others toward Him. We should do the same. Let us follow John’s example and remain faithful to God’s call. Like John, we must let Christ increase while we decrease. When we make room for Him, His love and grace transform our hearts.

Related Links

Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

Advent and Saint John the Baptist – An Overlooked but Powerful and Necessary Intercessor