John the Baptist

John the Baptist (Hebrew: יוחנן המטביל, Yoḥanan ha-mmaṭbil, Arabic: يوحنا المعمدان‎ Yuhanna Al-Ma'madan, Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ Ioḥanan, Greek: Ὁ Ἅγιος/Τίμιος Ἐνδοξος Προφήτης, Πρόδρομος καὶ Βαπτιστής Ἰωάννης Ho Hágios/Tímios Endoxos, Prophḗtēs, Pródromos, kaì Baptistḗs Ioánnes)^{[3][7][8][9][10]} was an itinerant preacher^[11] and a major religious figure^[12] mentioned in the Canonical gospels and the Qur'an. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus^[13] who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River.^[14] Some scholars maintain that he was influenced by the semi-ascetic Essenes, who expected an apocalypse and practiced rituals corresponding strongly with baptism,^[15] although there is no direct evidence to substantiate this.^[16] John is regarded as a prophet in Christianity, Islam,^[17] the Bahá'í Faith,^[18] and Mandaeism.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John the Baptist
• John the Baptist on www.findagrave.com