The custom of celebrating the feast of St. John the Apostle on December 27 goes back to the early days of the Church. This is somewhat surprising since the fourth evangelist does not give any hint of the events surrounding the birth of Jesus at Bethlehem in his Gospel. Instead the Fourth Gospel opens up with a hymn to the eternal word who was with God “in the beginning.” This might serve as an additional reminder not to become nostalgic about the shepherds and angels and magi and all the rest. It is God breaking into creation that needs to stay as the focus of our reflection during the Christmas season. St. John thinks not in terms of the events two millennia ago but of eternity.
