The Nativity of Saint John the Forerunner and
Baptizer of the Lord - June 24
Six months before his appearance in Nazareth to the All-holy Virgin
Mary, the great archangel of God, Gabriel appeared to Zacharias the high
priest in the Temple at Jerusalem. Before he announced the miraculous
conception to the unwed Virgin Mary, the archangel announced the
miraculous conception to the childless old woman Elizabeth. Zacharias
did not immediately believe the words of the herald of God and this is
why his tongue was tied with dumbness and remained as such until eight
days after the birth of John. On that day, the relatives of Zacharias
and Elizabeth gathered for the young child’s circumcision and for the
sake of giving him a name. When they asked the father what name he
wishes to give to his son and being dumb, he wrote on a tablet: “John.”
At that moment his tongue became loosed and he began to speak. The home
of Zacharias was on the heights between Bethlehem and Hebron. The news
of the appearance of the angel of God to Zacharias was spread throughout
all of Israel, as well as of his dumbness and the loosening of his
tongue at thee moment when he wrote the name “John.” The news concerning
this even reached Herod. Therefore, when Herod sent soldiers to slay the
children throughout Bethlehem, he directed men to the hilly dwelling
place of the family of Zacharias to kill John also. However, Elizabeth
promptly hid the child. Enraged, at this King Herod sent his
executioners to Zacharias in the Temple to slay him (for it happened
that it was Zacharias’ turn again to serve in the Temple of Jerusalem).
Zacharias was slain between the court and the temple and his blood
coagulated and petrified on the stone pavers and remained a perpetual
witness against Herod. Elizabeth hid with the child in a cave where she
died soon after. The young child John remained in the wilderness alone
under the care of God and God’s angels.
-from the Prologue from Ohrid (written by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovich)
The Church of St. John the Baptist in Ein Kerem belongs
to the Franciscan monastery
of the same name. Ein Kerem is the town where St. John the Baptist was
born and also the site of the visitation of the Most Holy Theotokos. The
first Church rose here in the 5th century, over the place traditionally
held to be the home of the holy and righteous Zacharia and Elizabeth.
Enlarged by the Crusaders and later used by Arabs as a caravanserai and
stable, the Church was rebuilt and transformed several times.
The latest additions, carried out by the Franciscans, date from the
second half of 19th century and from the thirties of last century. The
most striking part of the pleasantly adorned interior is the Crypt,
which houses the so-called Grotto of the Benedictus (Zacharia’s song in
Luke 1:68-79), considered being the place where St. John the Baptist was
born. A marble star beneath the altar bears a Latin inscription: “HIC
PRECURSOR DOMINI NATUS EST” (Here was born the Precursor of the Lord).
