St. John the Evangelist on the Greek island of Patmos, with his eagle; he's called "the evangelist" to distinguish him from John the Baptist; he's the reputed author of the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation; he's said to have written Revelation on Patmos, after being exiled to Patmos by the Roman authorities.
John the Apostle (c. AD 6 – c. 100) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to The Bible. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome and brother of James, son of Zebedee, another of the Twelve Apostles. Christian tradition holds that he outlived the remaining apostles—all of whom suffered martyrdom (except Judas Iscariot— who ultimately died from hanging himself for betraying Jesus).
The Church Fathers generally identify him as the author of five books in the New Testament: the Gospel of John, three Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation. The Gospel according to John differs considerably from the synoptic gospels, likely written decades earlier than John's Gospel. John probably knew and undoubtedly approved of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but these gospels spoke of Jesus primarily in the year following the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist.
James and John were the cousins of Jesus and their mother Salome was sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
James and John both held prominent positions for not only being the first of the disciples to be called but also because of their relationship to Jesus among the Apostles. Jesus referred to the pair collectively as "Boanerges" (translated "sons of thunder") being that although their nature was of a calm and gentle manner, when their patience was pushed to its limits their anger became wild, fierce and thunderous causing them to speak out like an untamed storm. At one point John and his brother James wanted to call down fire on a Samaritan town, but Jesus rebuked them. [Lk 9:51-6] John survived longer than James by more than half a century after James became the first Apostle to die a martyr's death.
Jesus sent only John and Peter into the city to make the preparation for the final Passover meal (the Last Supper).[Lk 22:8] At the meal itself, the "disciple whom Jesus loved" sat next to Jesus. It was customary to lie along upon couches at meals, and this disciple leaned on Jesus. Tradition identifies this disciple as Saint John[Jn 13:23-25]. After the arrest of Jesus, Peter and the "other disciple" (according to Sacred Tradition, John) followed him into the palace of the high-priest.
John alone among the Apostles remained near Jesus at the foot of the cross on Calvary alongside myrrhbearers and numerous other women; following the instruction of Jesus from the Cross, John took Mary, the mother of Jesus, into his care as the last legacy of Jesus. After Jesus' Ascension and the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, John, together with Peter, took a prominent part in the founding and guidance of the church. He is with Peter at the healing of the lame man in the Temple. With Peter he is also thrown into prison.
Before Jesus ascended, he charged John with watching over the newly established Church. He was then established as a pillar at the Church of Jerusalem. While dying on the cross, he asked John to take care of Mary, his mother. John was the only apostle present at the crucifixion.
In 54 AD, Mary the mother of Jesus died and was buried and so John fulfilled his duty of caring for her until the very end. It was said that when they opened the tomb her body was gone. Catholic tradition says she rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven with both body and soul intact in what is called the Assumption of Mary, however others say her body was taken away lest it become an idol.
It is traditionally believed that John was the youngest of the apostles and survived them. He is said to have lived to an old age, dying at Ephesus sometime after AD 98.
The Qur'an also speaks of Jesus's disciples but does not mention their names, instead referring to them as "helpers to the work of God".
In art, John as the presumed author of the Gospel is often depicted with an eagle, which symbolizes the height he rose to in his gospel.
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