Nativity Of John The Baptist: Joannes Est Nomen Eius

Child Jesus with John The Baptist by Bartolome Murillo

The liturgical calendar normally commemorates a saint on the date of his or her death, which is the date on which that particular saint joined God in Heaven.  There are only two birthdays that we celebrate other than that of Jesus himself at Christmas: the Nativity of Mary on September 8th, and the Nativity of St. John the Baptist.  The Blessed Mother of course was conceived without sin, and her birth meant that the Ark of the New Covenant, who would carry the Eternal Word Himself in her womb, was now present in the world.  

    John is held to have been cleansed of the stain of original sin in the womb, and was born under miraculous circumstances.  Also, he had a very important role to play before his death, as the Forerunner and Herald of the Messiah. He took up this office which even before his birth, when he leapt in his mother's womb (Luke 1:41) at the approach of Mary, who was pregnant with Jesus.

    The Motet below was composed by Orlando di Lasso in 1604.  It's title, Joannes est nomen eius ("his name is John"), comes from Luke's Gospel.  Here, John father Zechariah had been visited by an angel, who told him that his wife Elizabeth would bear a son, who would be named John.  Zechariah reacted with disbelief, since his wife was beyond the age of child-bearing, and had always been sterile. Because of his lack of faith he was struck dumb, bur regained his voice in the following way:

Now the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to a son. And her neighbors and kinsfolk heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechariah after his father, but his mother said, "Not so; he shall be called John." And they said to her, "None of your kindred is called by this name." And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him called. And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, "His name is John." And they all marveled. And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.  (Luke 1:57-64)