Today is the feast day of St. John the Baptist. John was the cousin of Jesus. He paved the way for his cousin by living in the wilderness where he preached and prophesied that a savior greater than he would soon come. John is the one who was said to be "crying in the wilderness." Unlike most other saints his feast day does not mark his day of death but his birthday. As the feast of Christ is celebrated near the Winter Solstice to align Christ with the symbol of the waxing Sun, St. John the Baptist's feast comes just after the Summer Solstice. He rules over the waning Sun, and paves the way for its rebirth. As patron of Midsummer, St. John has absorbed all the Pagan magical practices associated with this period. For example, the Celtic Midsummer bonfires came to be called "the Fires of St. John." This is the time to gather the Midsummer magical herb called St. John's wort, also known to Voodoo practitioners as High John the Conqueror.