{"id":25,"date":"2011-08-29T10:39:37","date_gmt":"2011-08-29T14:39:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/?p=25"},"modified":"2011-08-29T10:39:37","modified_gmt":"2011-08-29T14:39:37","slug":"the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html","title":{"rendered":"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

On August 29, in the Liturgical Calendar of the catholic Church, we memorialize the martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist.<\/p>\n

Two millennia after his illustrious mission as the harbinger of Christ, we readily accept, as we should, his prophetic role in the revelation of God’s plan of salvation and the advent of the Gospel.<\/p>\n

Yet, how might we have seen John if we had been his contemporaries?<\/p>\n

Would we have so readily accepted him, or might we have rejected him as a fanatic or extremist?<\/p>\n

Let’s face it: John was peculiar. He dressed like a cave man, ate insects and railed at politicians for their fornications.<\/p>\n

He sequestered himself in the desert where he tirelessly initiated converts fleeing the sinful pollution of the cities.<\/p>\n

He proclaimed the end if the people failed to repent and he used vivid and mystical imagery.<\/p>\n

In the popular “media” of the day, he was portrayed as a nut and dangerous fanatic.<\/p>\n

John embodied what I call “the legacy of unpopular methodology”. By standing apart, boldly calling out evil doers without regard to their prestige or rank, by challenging his own co-religionists, John made himself terribly “unpopular”.<\/p>\n

At the end, he publicly and relentlessly criticized the personal behavior of the most powerful politician in Judea, Herod. As a result he was arrested and executed as a traitor.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Today we tend to reject those who similarly publicly decry sin and heresy. Street preachers, prophets and clerics who confront sinful policies, bad behavior and false ideologies are decried as trouble makers, fanatics and dangerous “extremists”.<\/p>\n

Saint John the Baptist was a simple man, not a member of the elite. He was stirred by conscience and the Holy Spirit to call a spade a spade, and throw convention to the wind.<\/p>\n

He paid dearly for it, and as Christians we inherit the abundant fruit of his daring investment.<\/p>\n

That is the ultimate blessing of his unpopular methodology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On August 29, in the Liturgical Calendar of the catholic Church, we memorialize the martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist. Two millennia after his illustrious mission as the harbinger of Christ, we readily accept, as we should, his prophetic role in the revelation of God’s plan of salvation and the advent of the Gospel. Yet,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,24,26,25,11,22],"tags":[6,27,28,30,29],"class_list":["post-25","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-martyrs","category-prophetic","category-prophetic-ministry","category-prophets","category-saints","category-st-john-the-baptist","tag-fr-paul-schenck","tag-john-the-baptizer","tag-martyrdom","tag-prophetic","tag-saints-2"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist - The New Evangelization<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist - The New Evangelization\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On August 29, in the Liturgical Calendar of the catholic Church, we memorialize the martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist. Two millennia after his illustrious mission as the harbinger of Christ, we readily accept, as we should, his prophetic role in the revelation of God’s plan of salvation and the advent of the Gospel. Yet,…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The New Evangelization\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2011-08-29T14:39:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/files\/2011\/08\/John-the-Baptizer-2.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Deacon Keith Fournier\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist - The New Evangelization","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist - The New Evangelization","og_description":"On August 29, in the Liturgical Calendar of the catholic Church, we memorialize the martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist. Two millennia after his illustrious mission as the harbinger of Christ, we readily accept, as we should, his prophetic role in the revelation of God’s plan of salvation and the advent of the Gospel. Yet,…","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html","og_site_name":"The New Evangelization","article_published_time":"2011-08-29T14:39:37+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/files\/2011\/08\/John-the-Baptizer-2.jpg"}],"author":"Deacon Keith Fournier","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html","name":"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist - The New Evangelization","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/files\/2011\/08\/John-the-Baptizer-2.jpg","datePublished":"2011-08-29T14:39:37+00:00","dateModified":"2011-08-29T14:39:37+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/#\/schema\/person\/909624e873e50d92ecdd9d770939b3ce"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/files\/2011\/08\/John-the-Baptizer-2.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/the_new_evangelization\/files\/2011\/08\/John-the-Baptizer-2.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/2011\/08\/the-feast-of-the-beheading-of-john-the-baptist.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/","name":"The New Evangelization","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/#\/schema\/person\/909624e873e50d92ecdd9d770939b3ce","name":"Deacon Keith Fournier","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/a31\/a31a3d7bdef162866a3fb2de941a42b3x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/a31\/a31a3d7bdef162866a3fb2de941a42b3x96.jpg","caption":"Deacon Keith Fournier"},"description":"Deacon Keith Fournier is the Editor in Chief at Catholic Online, one of the largest integrated Catholic Media Networks on the World Wide Web. He is a widely recognized voice in the Catholic and broader Christian community. He is a member of the Clergy of the Diocese of Richmond, Virginia. In his fifteenth year of service as an ordained Catholic Deacon, he is currently assigned to St Stephen Martyr Parish in Chesapeake, Virginia. He is also authorized to serve the Liturgy of the Greek Byzantine Melkite Catholic Church. Deacon Fournier and his wife Laurine have been married for 34 years and have five grown children and six grandchildren. Deacon Fournier holds his Bachelors degree in theology and philosophy from the Franciscan University of Steubenville (BA), his Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Theology from the John Paul II Institute of the Lateran University (MTS), his Juris Doctor Law Degree Law (JD) from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and is a PhD candidate in Moral Theology at the Catholic University of America where he is currently writing his Doctoral Dissertation. Deacon Fournier also holds two honorary Doctorates, a Doctor of Laws (L.L.D. 1994,Honoris Causa) from St. Thomas University - Given for pro-life legal contributions, and a Doctor of Divinity Degree (D.D. 2005, Honoris Causa ) from the National Clergy Council and the Methodist Episcopal Church for his contributions to authentic ecumenical efforts toward Christian unity. Attorney Fournier is a constitutional lawyer who appeared as co-counsel in cases before the United States Supreme Court on Pro-Life, Religious Freedom and Pro-family issues. He served as the first Executive Director of the American Center for Law and Justice for seven years. He then served as a public policy activist for the causes of life, marriage and family issues for a number of years. He has extensive experience in nonprofit and for profit leadership. He has taught at the College level and served in Academic administration. He was a Dean of Students and the Dean of Evangelization at the Franciscan University of Steubenville in Steubenville, Ohio. Deacon Fournier is, above all, a communicator. His faith informs his passion to share the fullness of life which he has found in the heart of the Catholic Church. He has written eight books on matters of faith, family and the Christian life and is widely published in the broader Christian community on matters of life, faith, family, and cultural and social issues. He hosted two daily national radio programs, Purpose for Living, and Millennial Moment. He hosted several television series on Christian family and contemporary faith issues on EWTN (Eternal Word Television Network). He is actively involved in preaching and teaching in the Catholic Church and the broader Christian community. In addition to serving as the Editor in Chief of Catholic Online, Deacon Fournier is the John Paul II Fellow and special counsel for the National Pro-Life Center in Washington, D.C. and is the president of Third Millennium, LLC, a communications and consulting company. He views his role on Beliefnet as an opportunity to share his Catholic Christian faith in what he calls a new areopagus. The areopagus is referred to in the 17th Chapter of the Acts of the Apostles in the Christian New Testament. Also called Mars Hill it was there where the Apostle Paul shared the Christian faith with the early Greeks in their temple.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/author\/deaconfournier"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/91"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25\/revisions\/29"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/the_new_evangelization\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}