St. John, son of Mary, part II...

When we take a good look at Saint John's life, we see the fantastic privileges he received which led him to become the "Eagle" that Tradition sees him as. John was first a disciple of John the Baptist, then a disciple of Jesus for 3 years. After that he spent about twenty years alone with the Blessed Virgin, the mother of memory, who helped him to mature his thoughts into the surprisingly perceptive and precise gospel that he preached orally for 40 years before receiving the great vision of the Revelation. This last book of the Bible reveals a sharp interpretation of the mystery of Christ through the meditation of the mystery of the Incarnation-a mystery he meditated with Our Lady for many long years.

It was John, the son of Zebedee, the Apostle and Evangelist, who heard from the Cross the words of Christ: "Behold, your mother." But first Christ had said to his mother: "Woman, behold, your son." This was a wonderful testament.

As he left this world, Jesus Christ gave a man, a simple human being to his mother, to be like a son for her: John. He entrusted him to her. And, as a consequence of this giving and entrusting, Mary became the mother of John. The Mother of God became the mother of man.

From that hour John "took her into his own home" and became the earthly guardian of the mother of his Master; for sons have the right and duty to care for their mothers. John became by Christ's will the son of the Mother of God. And in John every human being became her child.

JPII from Homily at Mass in Fatima, May 13, 1982

A Moment with Mary