Prayer for the Enlightenment of Saint John

Merciful Lord, we beseech Thee to cast Thy bright beams of light upon Thy Church, that it, being enlightened by the doctrine of Thy blessed Apostle and Evangelist Saint John, may so walk in the light of Thy truth, that it may at length attain to the light of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

There are many stories relating to St. John.

One legend relates that in Rome an attempt was made to poison him in the sacramental cup, some say by order of Domitian, but the poison issued miraculously from the cup in the form of a serpent, while his enemies fell dead at his feet.

In one the Emperor Domitian had him beaten, poisoned, and thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil, but he miraculously stepped out of the cauldron with no injuries.

In another, after St. John prayed in a temple of Artemis fire rained down from heaven and killed two hundred men who were worshipping the idol there. When the remaining people begged for mercy, he raised the two hundred from the dead and they were all converted and baptized.

Saint John the Evangelist, from The Golden Legend.

Information on St. John at the Ecole Initiative.

This window was made by the Gorham Company. It is signed just to the left of John's feet in the lower part of the panel.