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What was Zechariah’s role in the Jewish priesthood?
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St. John the Baptist
John the Baptist in the Wilderness, oil on panel by Geertgen tot Sint Jans, 15th century; in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin.
Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist, was a Jewish priest who belonged to the order of Abijah. This order was the eighth of the priestly divisions.12
In the context of ancient Jewish priesthood, priests were responsible for officiating at the Temple of Jerusalem and performing various cultic duties. By the time of the Second Temple period, the priesthood was restricted to those claiming descent from the family of Aaron, and these priests were tasked with maintaining the rituals and legal commands of the Torah.3