Important Dates in the Lives of Jesus and Mary 

(see chapter 7 for details on when the Apostles where chosen). This fits the description of John in the Gospels, 

which portray him as the youngest of the Apostles. On the other hand, Jesus would not have chosen a boy or a 

teenager to be an Apostle, for He Himself, the Living Word of God, did not presume to begin his Ministry 

teaching adults until He was in His adult years. 

    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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