Nativity of St. John the Baptist

by Fr. John Granato  |  06/23/2024  |  Words from Fr. John

My Dear Friends,

Tomorrow, June 24th, we celebrate the solemnity of the birthday of St. John the Baptist, six months and one day before Christmas, the birthday of our Savior. Our Lord (December 25th), our Blessed Mother (September 8th), and St. John the Baptist are the only three birthdays on the liturgical calendar that we commemorate and celebrate. Interestingly, the birthday of our Blessed Mother is only considered a feast, a lower rank than a solemnity, while St. John the Baptist and our Lord are both solemnities. Yet, the conception of our Blessed Mother (December 8th) and the conception of Jesus (March 25th) are both solemnities.

In the US, we celebrate the Immaculate Conception and the Nativity of our Lord both as Holy Days of Obligation, while the birth of St. John the Baptist and the Annunciation are not, but in other countries these two solemnities are holy days of obligation for the people of those countries. Of course, it makes perfect sense for us to commemorate and celebrate the conceptions of Mary and Jesus since life begins at the moment of conception.

All other saints on the liturgical calendar are usually commemorated around their death or some other special occasion, for example St. John Paul II is celebrated on the day he became pope. (This is because he died on April 2nd, so every year this day could fall during Holy Week or in the Octave of Easter. If it falls during Holy Week or the octave, it would not be celebrated that year). As Catholics, even though we celebrate the majority of the saints ’ days on or around their death, we commonly call these days the birthday of the saint, for we are born unto eternal life at the moment of our death. In a sense, it is the birthday of the saint when we commemorate the death of the saint. And we also celebrate the day of death of the three of whom we celebrate their natural birthdays as well. On August 29, we celebrate the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist. On August 15, we celebrate the dormition of Mary, also called by Catholics the Assumption. And of course we celebrate the death of Jesus on Good Friday.

Tonight, on the vigil of the birthday of St. John the Baptist, we will follow the traditional lighting of a bonfire in the parking lot of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church. All are invited for smores, fried dough and games. God bless.