This messenger is John the Baptist, who appeared in the desert of Judaea. John’s role was to prepare the people for the coming of the Messiah. He did this through telling people to repent as the ...

This messenger is John the Baptist, who appeared in the desert of Judaea. Baptism was a Jewish ritual – people were totally immersed in water to symbolise cleansing. John’s baptism was a ...

The process looks to me about as arbitrary as the way sub sandwiches get named at my local deli. John the Baptist is patron saint of (among other things) bird dealers; spasms and convulsions; Savannah ...