Saint John

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There have been many saints called John. (For a note on the name, see John.) According to Attwater (1965), there are "sixty-four in the Roman Martyrology alone". The most important, in the sense of being most frequently met in the course of studies, church names and so on are given here, along with one or two of more local interest. (For others, you will have to consult a more detailed Source, such as Attwater or Farmer 2003; or the magnificent Acta Sanctorum ('Doings of the Saints'), published in sixty-eight volumes by the Societé des Bollandistes, Antwerp and Brussels, 1643-present.) The identification of the Saint Johns is made harder by confusions over the Apostle, the Divine, the Evangelist and the Epistolarist, some of whom may be the same as each other - but not demonstrably proved as such. For example, both Attwater and Farmer call the second earliest St John the Apostle and Evangelist, but Peake's Commentary says, with some support, that this traditional belief "remains at least open to question" (§ 735c). The adjective Johannine (~ 'to do with John') usually refers to the Saint John or Saint Johns who wrote in the New Testament: the writer(s) of the Gospel according to John, the three Epistles of John, and the Revelation of Saint John the Divine. These are traditionally identified with the Apostle John, although none of the identifications are universally accepted. Accordingly, separate note have been written for each of the Johns that ordinary students are likely to come across.

(AWE has a note on the name John, with some examples who were not saints, and one on the King Johns.)

John the Apostle
John the Apostle (1st century of the Common Era) was, along with his brother James, called to follow Jesus from their work of mending nets (Mark, I, 19-20), thus becoming two of the Twelve Apostles. They were also known as the "Sons of Zebedee", and "sons of thunder", which may be a reference to their quick tempers. It is traditionally believed that this John is the same as the Evangelist; he has also been identified with the Epistolarist and the Divine. This may be questioned on stylistic grounds. Tradition has it that John the Apostle died in Ephesus.
John the Baptist
John the Baptist (1st century of the Common Era) was Jesus' elder cousin: his mother Elizabeth was related to Mary. John's was a miraculous birth: Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah, a priest, had given up hope of a child. John is a prophet, recognized as such in Islam (where he is called Yahyá) as well as in Christianity: he said of himself that he was "the voice of one crying in the wilderness 'Prepare ye the way of the Lord'". In the course of his ministry, he baptized Jesus in the River Jordan. Later, he denounced King Herod Antipas for incest, and was beheaded when the woman concerned, Herodias, Herod's brother's widow and his niece, persuaded her daughter Salome to ask for John's head on a plate.
John of the Cross
Saint John of the Cross (1542-1591) was a Spanish mystic, theologian and poet. He was born Juan de Yepes Alvarez, and entered the Carmelite order in 1563, taking the name of Fr. Juan de Santo Matía. He was severely punished for his attempts to reform the Carmelites, but managed, with the encouragement of Saint Teresa of Ávila, to found the order of the discalced (~ 'unshod', i.e. wearing sandals rather than shoes) friars. These are the Reformed Carmelites, which - despite John's continuing persecution - survived. He wrote some of the most highly regarded mystical poetry in Spanish literature.
John Chrysostom
Saint John Chrysostom (C, 347-407) was a priest who became Archbishop of Constantinople in 398. He had always been known for his preaching (Chrysostom means 'golden-mouthed' in Greek (χρύσόστομος) and learning. As Archbishop, he showed a puritan streak, and became involved in a conflict with the Empress Eudoxia, and was twice deposed, dying from the strain of travel after his exile. He is venerated as a Doctor of the Church.
John of Damascus
Saint John of Damascus, also known as John Damascene, (c.657–749) was a Christian theologian and monk living in Damascus under Muslim rule. He was a learned man, and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1890, largely on the strength of of his Fount of Knowledge in three parts, of which De Fide Orthodoxa (its Latin title for the Greek ἐκδοσις της ὀρθοδοξου πιστεως laid out the teaching of the Orthodex tradition, and was influential at the Council of Nicaea. He is also honoured for his defence of images against the iconoclasts, with προς τους διαβαλλοντας τας ἁγιας εἰκονας,
John the Divine
John the Divine ('Divine' here is a noun being used in the standard 17th century language of the AV to mean 'theologian', 'man of knowledge of God') is the author of the Book of Revelation in the New Testament. (Revelation was written toward the end of the 1st century of the Common Era.) Although it has traditionally been believed that this John is also the Evangelist, and indeed the Epistolarist as well - and therefore the Apostle - it appears that this is improbable, on stylistic grounds. In the third century, the author of Revelation was said to be John the Presbyter ('the Elder'). He himself says, in the first chapter, "I John,... was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ."
John the Epistolarist
There are three Epistles in the New Testament which are 'Johannine': the First Epistle General of John, The second Epistle of John and The Third Epistle of John, in the translation of the AV. The most common assumption, perhaps, is that they are the work of the Evangelist; but, again, there are stylistic reasons for doubting this. In 2 and 3 John, the writer calls himself 'the Elder', for which the Greek word is Presbyter.
John the Evangelist
John the Evangelist is the author of the fourth Gospel.Traditionally, he is identified with John ther Apostle, but this is not even claimed before the second century. They may well have been different peopole: then, as now, John was a common name.
John of Patmos
The author of Revelation says that he "was in the isle that is called Patmos" (Rev. i,1), where it is suggested that he had been exiled for his faith. Paintings of the author of Revelation are often labelled St John of Patmos.
(Saint John Lateran)
This is not a saint: it is the name of the basilica (church) in the Lateran area of Rome (called after the Laterani, a family of ancient Rome that owned it and built there). The fuller name is The Papal Archbasilica of St. John Lateran (Arcibasilica Papale di San Giovanni in Laterano). Despite its name, the church is dedicated primarily to "Our Saviour" (Jesus), and secondarily to two Saint Johns from the list above, the Baptist and Evangelist. The official name is Archibasilica Sanctissimi Salvatoris et Sancti Iohannes Baptista et Evangelista in Laterano (in Latin). It is the official ecclesiastical seat of the Bishop of Rome, who is the Pope. It is the oldest church in Rome, the mother church of all Roman Catholic churches, the Cathedral of Rome, and the Pope's official church; so it is the most importnt of Christian churches. In 312, the Roman Emperor Constantine allowed the Pope to set up the episcopal chair in a church in the Lateran. The first mention in ancient sources is 313, when a consistory of bishops was held in Domum Faustae in Laterano (~ 'Fausta's house in the Lateran'). (Fausta was Constantine's second wife, who was a convert.) The Popes lived in the Lateran Palace until Clement V (1305–1314) transferred the papal seat to Avignon. After the return of the Pope to Rome in 1377, the Vatican Palace became the papal residence.
St. John Bosco

(1815-1888) founded the Salesian Order.

Saint John of Beverley

John (d. 721) was Bishop, first of Hexham and then of York. A respected teacher, he founded Beverley Minster.

There are also places and families called St John or St Johns.