The First and Second Finding of the Head of St. John the Forerunner

Some days I get on the wrong track. I try to keep a daily remembrance of the Saints commemorations for each day. Sometimes my brain just does not take on what day it is, and I begin celebrating a saint's day early or a day late or think that I have missed a favorite saint's feast day. Weird the way my head can't take in things sometimes. I have to admit that I had a lot of ideas circling yesterday.

At any rate yesterday was the commemoration of the First and Second Finding of the Head of St. John the Forerunner. I thought I had missed it the day before and here it was yesterday. It seemed like the icon of St. John was giving me a curious look...(which it seems to me sometimes icons do). It was kind of a sad look, like "what is going on?!".

I found a reproduction of an icon a few years ago that is very powerful and one that has moved me greatly many times. This is an intriguing history as well. Here is the story:

After the Beheading of The Holy Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John (August 29), his body was buried by disciples in the Samarian city of Sebaste, and his venerable head was hidden by Herodias in an unclean place. St. Joanna (June 27), the wife of King Herod's steward Chuza (Luke 8:3), secretly took the holy head and placed it into a vessel and buried it on the Mount of Olives on one of Herod's properties.

After many years, this property passed into the possession of a government official who became a monk with the name of Innocent. He built a church and a cell there. When they started to dig the foundation, the vessel with the venerable head of John the Baptist was uncovered. Innocent recognized its great holiness from the signs of grace emanating from it. Thus occurred the First Finding of the Head. Innocent preserved it with great piety, but fearful that the holy relic might be abused by unbelievers, before his own death he again hid it in that same place, where it was found. Upon his death the church fell into ruin and was destroyed.

During the days of St. Constantine the Great (May 21) , when Christianity began to flourish, the holy Forerunner appeared twice to two monks journeying to Jerusalem on pilgrimage to the holy places, and he revealed the location of his venerable head.

The monks uncovered the holy relic and, placing it into a sack of camel-hair, they proceeded homewards. Along the way they encountered and unnamed potter and give him the precious burden to carry. Not knowing what he was carrying, the potter continued on his way. But the holy Forerunner appeared to him and ordered him to flee from the careless and lazy monks, with what he held in his hands. The potter concealed himself from the monks and at home he preserved the venerable head with reverence. Before his death he place it in a water jug and gave it to his sister.

From that time the venerable head was successively preserved by devout Christians, until

the priest Eustathius (infected with the Arian heresy) came into possession of it. He beguiled a multitude of the infirm who had been healed by the holy head, ascribing their cures to the fact that it was in the possession of an arian. When his blasphemy was uncovered, he was compelled to flee. After he buried the holy relic in a cave, near Emesa, the heretic intended to return later and use it for disseminating falsehood. God, however, did not permit this. Pious monks settled in the cave, and then a monastery arose at this place in the year 452. St. John the Baptist appeared to Archimandrite Marcellus of this monastery and indicated where his head was hidden. This became celebrated as the Second Finding. The holy relic was transferred to Emesa, and later to Constantinople. (From the OCA site, Feasts and Saints)

And here is the reproduction of the icon that I find so moving. Even though a day late...may St. John bless us all!