Saint John the Theologian – Serigraph on Naturally Aged Wood – Mount Athos

Description

Serigraph of Saint John the Theologian on Naturally Aged Wood

This stunning serigraph depicts Saint John the Theologian on naturally aged wood from the Garden of the Virgin. His feast is celebrated by the Church on May 8th and September 26th.

Saint John the Theologian is the beloved disciple of the Lord, “the one who reclined on the chest of Jesus.” He is also known as the Evangelist of Love, not only because he frequently writes about love in his texts, but primarily because he lived and expressed it. He loved his Teacher deeply and followed Him through the most difficult moments of His earthly life. When the other disciples were hiding “for fear of the Jews,” John was present during the arrest, the trial, and the Crucifixion, where, at the critical moment under the Cross, Christ entrusted His mother to him.

John honored the Lord’s wish and cared for the Virgin Mary as his true mother until her Dormition. Along with his brother James and Peter, he formed the trio of disciples who were with Christ during the resurrection of Jairus’ daughter, the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, where “He was transfigured before them,” and in Gethsemane, where He prayed before His Passion.

John is the author of the 4th Gospel in the New Testament, the most theological of all, often referred to as the Gospel of Love, as well as three Catholic Epistles and the Book of Revelation.

We know of his life with the Lord through the Gospels of the New Testament. John continued his mission vigorously after the Lord’s Ascension. He and Peter were the first to preach the Lord’s Word to the world after the coming of the Holy Spirit.

Tradition also tells us that John preached the Gospel in Asia Minor, especially in Ephesus. During the reign of Emperor Domitian, he was tortured and exiled to Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Revelation. In his old age, he returned to Ephesus, where he wrote his Gospel.

John lived to be around 100 years old (he peacefully fell asleep around 105–106 AD). What is particularly noteworthy is a phrase he continually repeated to his disciples: “Children, love one another.” When his disciples asked why he always said the same thing, he replied, “Because it is the commandment of the Lord, and when this is done, it is enough.”

According to tradition, the Evangelist John, after receiving divine illumination, predicted that he would soon depart from this life to the eternal and endless one. He gathered his disciples and went out of Ephesus. There, at a certain spot, he instructed that a tomb be opened. Once the tomb was ready, he entered it alive and peacefully fell asleep. This tomb became a source of miracles.

Since the icon is handmade and the wood is processed by hand, there may be slight variations in the wood, but not in the depiction.

The icon is available upon order.

Origin: Mount Athos

Dimensions: 19 x 22.5 x 2 cm