Editing John the Evangelist (section)

==In art==

John is traditionally depicted in one of two distinct ways: either as an aged man with a white or gray beard, or alternatively as a beardless youth like John the Apostle.<ref name=HallJerousek>Sources:
*James Hall, ''Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art'', (New York: Harper & Row, 1979), 129, 174-75.
*Carolyn S. Jerousek, "Christ and St. John the Evangelist as a Model of Medieval Mysticism", ''Cleveland Studies in the History of Art'', Vol. 6 (2001), 16.
</ref><ref name=BritannicaOnline>{{cite encyclopedia |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]] |title=Saint John the Apostle |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-John-the-Apostle |access-date=4 August 2017 |location=Chicago}}</ref> The first way of depicting him was more common in [[Byzantine art]], where it was possibly influenced by antique depictions of [[Socrates]];<ref>
Jadranka Prolović, "Socrates and St. John the Apostle: the interchangеable similarity of their portraits" ''Zograf'', vol. 35 (2011), 9: "It is difficult to locate when and where this iconography of John originated and what the prototype was, yet it is clearly visible that this iconography of John contains all of the main characteristics of well-known antique images of Socrates. This fact leads to the conclusion that Byzantine artists used depictions of Socrates as a model for the portrait of John."</ref> the second was more common in the art of [[Medieval art|Medieval Western Europe]] and can be dated back as far as 4th-century Rome.<ref name="BritannicaOnline" />

In medieval works of painting, sculpture and literature, Saint John is often presented in an androgynous or feminized manner.<ref>
* James Hall, ''Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art'', (New York: Harper & Row, 1979), 129, 174-75.
* [[Jeffrey F. Hamburger]], ''St. John the Divine: The Deified Evangelist in Medieval Art and Theology.'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002), xxi-xxii; ibidem, 159-160.
* Carolyn S. Jerousek, "Christ and St. John the Evangelist as a Model of Medieval Mysticism", ''Cleveland Studies in the History of Art'', Vol. 6 (2001), 16.
* Annette Volfing, ''John the Evangelist and Medieval Writing: Imitating the Inimitable.'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 139.
</ref> Historians have related such portrayals to the circumstances of the believers for whom they were intended.<ref>
* [[Jeffrey F. Hamburger]], ''St. John the Divine: The Deified Evangelist in Medieval Art and Theology.'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002), xxi-xxii.
* Carolyn S. Jerousek, "Christ and St. John the Evangelist as a Model of Medieval Mysticism" ''Cleveland Studies in the History of Art'', Vol. 6 (2001), 20.
* Sarah McNamer, ''Affective Meditation and the Invention of Medieval Compassion'', (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010), 142-148.
* Annette Volfing, ''John the Evangelist and Medieval Writing: Imitating the Inimitable.'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 139.
</ref> For instance, John's feminine features are argued to have helped to make him more relatable to women.<ref>
* Carolyn S. Jerousek, "Christ and St. John the Evangelist as a Model of Medieval Mysticism" ''Cleveland Studies in the History of Art'', Vol. 6 (2001), 20.
* Annette Volfing, ''John the Evangelist and Medieval Writing: Imitating the Inimitable.'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), 139.
</ref> Likewise, Sarah McNamer argues that because of John's androgynous status, he could function as an 'image of a third or mixed gender'<ref>
Sarah McNamer, ''Affective Meditation and the Invention of Medieval Compassion'', (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010), 142.
</ref> and 'a crucial figure with whom to identify'<ref>
Sarah McNamer, ''Affective Meditation and the Invention of Medieval Compassion'', (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010), 145.
</ref> for male believers who sought to cultivate an attitude of [[affective piety]], a highly emotional style of devotion that, in late-medieval culture, was thought to be poorly compatible with masculinity.<ref>
Sarah McNamer, ''Affective Meditation and the Invention of Medieval Compassion'', (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010), 142-148.</ref>

Legends from the "[[Acts of John]]" contributed much to medieval iconography; it is the source of the idea that John became an apostle at a young age.<ref name="BritannicaOnline" /> One of John's familiar attributes is the [[chalice]], often with a snake emerging from it.<ref name="Hall1979">James Hall, "John the Evangelist", ''Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art'', rev. ed. (New York: Harper & Row, 1979)</ref> According to one legend from the Acts of John,<ref>J.K. Elliot (ed.), ''A Collection of Apocryphal Christian Literature in an English Translation Based on M.R. James'' (New York: Oxford University Press, 1993/2005), 343-345.</ref> John was challenged to drink a cup of poison to demonstrate the power of his faith, and thanks to God's aid the poison was rendered harmless.<ref name="Hall1979" /><ref>J K Elliott, "Graphic Versions: Did non-biblical stories about Jesus and the saints originate more in art than text?", ''Times Literary Supplement'', 14 December 2018, pp. 15-16, referring to the El Greco painting.</ref> The chalice can also be interpreted with reference to the [[Last Supper]], or to the words of Christ to John and James: "My chalice indeed you shall drink."<ref>{{Bibleverse|Matthew|20:23}}</ref><ref name="CathEnc">Fonck, L. (1910). [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08492a.htm St. John the Evangelist]. In ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' (New York: Robert Appleton Company). Retrieved 14 August 2017 from New Advent.</ref> According to the 1910 ''Catholic Encyclopedia'', some authorities believe that this symbol was not adopted until the 13th century.<ref name="CathEnc" /> There was also a legend that John was at some stage boiled in oil and miraculously preserved.<ref>J K Elliott, "Graphic Versions: Did non-biblical stories about Jesus and the saints originate more in art than text?", ''Times Literary Supplement'', 14 December 2018, pp. 15-16, referring to a thirteenth-century manuscript in Cambridge known as the Trinity College Apocalypse.</ref> Another common attribute is a book or a scroll, in reference to his writings.<ref name="Hall1979" /> John the Evangelist is symbolically represented by an [[eagle]], one of the creatures envisioned by Ezekiel (1:10)<ref>{{bibleverse|Ezekiel|1:10}}</ref> and in the Book of Revelation (4:7).<ref>{{bibleverse|Revelation|4:7}}</ref><ref name="CathEnc" />