This Christian stained
glass graphic window is centered in an icon of St. John the Baptist. John the
Baptist was the son of Zachary, a priest of the Temple in Jerusalem, and
Elizabeth, a kinswoman of Mary who visited her. He was probably born at
Ain-Karim southwest of Jerusalem after the Angel Gabriel had told Zachary that
his wife would bear a child even though she was an old woman. He lived as a
hermit in the desert of Judea until about A.D. 27. When he was thirty, he began
to preach on the banks of the Jordan against the evils of the times and called
men to penance and baptism " repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is close at
hand". He attracted large crowds, and when Christ came to him, John recognized
Him as the Messiah and baptized Him, saying, "It is I who need baptism
from You". When Christ left to preach in Galilee, John continued preaching
in the Jordan valley. Fearful of his great power with the people, Herod
Antipas, Tetrarch of Perea and Galilee, had him arrested and imprisoned at
Machaerus Fortress on the Dead Sea when John denounced his adulterous and
incestuous marriage with Herodias, wife of his half brother Philip. John was
beheaded at the request of Salome, daughter of Herodias, who asked for his head
at the instigation of her mother. John inspired many of his followers to follow
Christ when he designated Him "the Lamb of God," among them Andrew
and John, who came to know Christ through John's preaching. John is presented in
the New Testament as the last of the Old Testament prophets and the precursor
of the Messiah. His feast day is
June 24th and the feast for his beheading is August 29th. For a more in depth
study of St John the Baptist go to www.newadvent.org
and type in St. John the Baptist.
The
menorah and the cross at the bottom of the window symbolize the old and the New
Testament. St John the Baptist was
bridge connecting the old and the New Testament. The shell between the menorah
and the cross is a traditional symbol for baptism.