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hilarycotter
Guest
I heard he was 13, are there any sources for this?
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Joe_Kelley
Guest
About 3 months before John’s birth - Luke 1:44.
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hilarycotter
Guest
I meant the Apostle, not the Baptist!
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Joe_Kelley
Guest
Sorry, the Apostle didn’t even occur to me - a senior moment.
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Ron_Conte
Guest
I estimate that John the Apostle and Gospel writer was approx. in his late teens when He began to be a disciples of Christ during His pubic ministry. This is based on a number of sources giving his approx. age at death and the approx. year of his death.
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DaveBj
Guest
He was certainly the young whippersnapper of the group, but any attempt to discern his age would be pure guesswork. My own personal guess is that he was about 10 years younger than Jesus.
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Joe_Kelley
Guest
The idea that he was in early to mid-teens is supported by the traditional portrayals of him as beardless. It is also supported by the fact that the Romas allowed him to approach the cross. I think they kept all adult males at a distance less they try a rescue.
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Ron_Conte
Guest
Let me revise my previous post. John was probably in his early twenties when he became an Apostle.
According to Saint Jerome, John died in the 68th year after the year of Christ’s Passion. According to Saint Epiphanius, John was 94 years old at the time of his death. If so, then John was about 26 years old at the time of Christ’s Passion (68 years earlier), and was about 23 when he became an Apostle. This fits the description of John in the Gospels, which portray him as the youngest of the Apostles. It is difficult to confirm Saint Epiphanius’ assertion the John lived to the age of 94. However, John could not have died much younger than the age of 94. If John had died even at the age of 89, he would have been barely 21 years old at the time of Christ’s Passion and would have been only 18 when chosen as an Apostle. If John had died at the age of 84, he would have been only 16 years old when Christ died and only 13 when chosen as an Apostle. For this reason, the assertion that John died in his mid-nineties must be correct, at least to a good approximation.
According to Saint Jerome, John died in the 68th year after the year of Christ’s Passion. According to Saint Epiphanius, John was 94 years old at the time of his death. If so, then John was about 26 years old at the time of Christ’s Passion (68 years earlier), and was about 23 when he became an Apostle. This fits the description of John in the Gospels, which portray him as the youngest of the Apostles. It is difficult to confirm Saint Epiphanius’ assertion the John lived to the age of 94. However, John could not have died much younger than the age of 94. If John had died even at the age of 89, he would have been barely 21 years old at the time of Christ’s Passion and would have been only 18 when chosen as an Apostle. If John had died at the age of 84, he would have been only 16 years old when Christ died and only 13 when chosen as an Apostle. For this reason, the assertion that John died in his mid-nineties must be correct, at least to a good approximation.
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