Parish of Wonersh with Blackheath
Matthew 11:11
"I tell you the truth: Among those that
are born of women there has not
risen anyone greater than
John the Baptist: yet he who is least in the kingdom of
heaven is greater than he”
John 1:23
“John replied in the words
of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling
in the desert, Make straight the way for the
Lord”
.
On 24th June the church remembers John the Baptist, the first century preacher and martyr. Our church in Wonersh is dedicated to John the Baptist
He is the patron Saint of Parish Priests, Tailors, Teachers.
St
John the Baptist was the son of Zachariah (Zechariah), a Temple priest, and
his mother was Elizabeth cousin of Mary. John was born when his mother was
advanced in years, and after the foretelling of his birth and the choice of his
name by an Angel and his birth, we hear nothing of him until he began his
mission of preaching and baptizing in the river
John was a lot like an Old Testament prophet; he lived simply on locusts and honey in the wilderness, and his message was one of repentance and preparation for the coming of the Messiah and His Kingdom. He went on to baptise Jesus, at Jesus’s firm request. John’s great desire was that Jesus “must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30)
John denounced the incestuous union of Herod Antipas and his
niece and brother’s wife Herodias. He
was imprisoned and when Herod’s daughter Salome demanded John’s head, he was
executed without trial c30 at a prison near the
When John saw Jesus he said that Jesus was the “Lamb of God”, and he is the only person to use this expression of Jesus. He is depicted in art as lean and ascetic, with a rough robe and carrying a lamb or with a lamb near him, and a tall staff often ending in a cross; or carrying his own head.
Have a look at sermons about John the Baptist by James Cooke and John the Baptist by Ian Scott-Thompson.