Tonight s Goals JOHN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN. ü compare John to the synoptic gospels. ü identify features of John

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1 Class 4 JOHN Tonight s Goals ü compare John to the synoptic gospels ü identify features of John ú literary characteristics ú pastoral context and resulting theological themes ú John s Christology ü define gnosticism and compare gnostic texts to John s prologue THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 1

2 Ways John Differs from the Synoptics Raymond Brown, Introduction to the New Testament, pp & Murphy pp Jesus preexisted with God as the Word (John 1:1-5) and is conscious of it as a man (John 17:5) John the Baptist does not baptize Jesus; they have simultaneous baptizing missions the public ministry largely takes place in Jerusalem (3 trips), not Galilee the kingdom of God teaching is largely absent Jesus speaks in long discourses rather than episodic narrative and parables, and mostly about himself there are no demonic possessions or exorcisms there are very few miracles, and those include unique ones (Cana, man born blind, raising of Lazarus) Jesus is arrested for reaction to raising Lazarus, not for cleansing Temple there is no trial before the Sanhedrin, Jesus is not accused of blasphemy, and he dies on a different day John s passion narrative exhibits only a 15.5% overlap with Mark s passion narrative John & the Synoptic Gospels No Shared Sources 50 CE Q 60 Mk 70 M L SQ 80 Matthew Luke 90 John John & Incipient Gnosticism John s gospel almost didn t make it into the canon by the (late) date when those decisions were being made, Christians were battling over how to interpret their faith one position, labeled gnostic by its detractors, seemed to separate Christ from this world as the revealer of unique knowledge (in Greek, gnosis / γνωσις) John s gospel, with its prologue about a pre- existent Word and its many long revelatory discourses, seemed more like the gnostics but John also emphasizes the Word made flesh, and was ultimately judged orthodox we ll return to gnosticism later 2

3 An Outline Prologue 1:1-18 The Book of Signs 1:19 12:50 Changes water to wine at Cana 2:1-11 Heals royal official s son at Cana 4:46-54 Heals lame man 5:1-18 Multiplies loaves 6:1-14 Walks on water 6:16-21 Restores sight to blind man 9:1-41 Raises Lazarus from dead 11:1-57 The Book of Glory 13:1 20:31 Epilogue 21:1-25 Literary Characteristics: Your Observations Literary Characteristics: Prologue 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. creation/birth motif word (of God) as agent of creation 3

4 Literary Characteristics: Prologue 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. life and light world as darkness that cannot overcome light Literary Characteristics: Prologue 1:6-9 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. creation/birth Word life and light world in darkness testimony/truth Literary Characteristics: Prologue 1:10-13 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. creation/birth Word life and light world in darkness testimony/truth acceptance/ rejection 4

5 Literary Characteristics: Prologue 1:14-18 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, This was he of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me. ) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father s heart, who has made him known. creation/birth Word life and light world in darkness testimony/truth acceptance/ rejection John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs creation/birth Word life and light world in darkness testimony/truth acceptance/ rejection John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs The Book of Signs Water into Wine at Cana (2:1-11) 2:12-25 Temple cleansing: Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 3:1-21 Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night. Jesus says, No one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 3:22-36: Baptist s testimony to Jesus baptizing 4:1-21: Samaritan woman at the well creation/birth marriage/bridegroom water and wine, my hour Word life and light world in darkness testimony/truth acceptance/ rejection 5

John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs The Book of Signs #1 Water to wine birth, marriage, blood/ water, hour #2 Heals royal son life/death, acceptance/ rejection, hour #3 Heals lame man healing/life,

rejection, Son of the Father #7 Raises Lazarus life/death, light/dark, acceptance/rejection, sign of who he is rejection, Son of the Father #7 Raises Lazarus life/death, light/dark,

6 John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs The Book of Signs #1 Water to wine birth, marriage, blood/ water, hour #2 Heals royal son life/death, acceptance/ rejection, hour #3 Heals lame man healing/life, festival, law, rejection, Son of the Father #4 Multiplies loaves festival, bread, kingship #5 Walks on water question of who he is, do not fear #6 Heals blind man light/dark, testimony, law, rejection, Son of the Father #7 Raises Lazarus life/death, light/dark, acceptance/rejection, sign of who he is John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs The Book of Signs #1 Water to wine birth, marriage, blood/ water, hour #2 Heals royal son life/death, acceptance/ rejection, hour #3 Heals lame man healing/life, festival, law, rejection, Son of the Father #4 Multiplies loaves festival, bread, kingship #5 Walks on water question of who he is, do not fear #6 Heals blind man light/dark, testimony, law, rejection, Son of the Father #7 Raises Lazarus life/death, light/dark, acceptance/rejection, sign of who he is John: A Gospel of Metaphors & Signs In class, we ll explore how the themes from the Book of Signs reemerge and coalesce in the Book of Glory 6

Literary Characteristics: Long Discourses night conversation with Nicodemus (3:1-21) midday conversation with Samaritan woman at well (4:1-42) sabbath debate with the Jews after healing of lame man

7 Literary Characteristics: Long Discourses night conversation with Nicodemus (3:1-21) midday conversation with Samaritan woman at well (4:1-42) sabbath debate with the Jews after healing of lame man (5:1-47) bread of life discourse (6:25-71) light of the world / Abraham as father debate (8:12-59) sheep gate and shepherd (10:1-39) farewell discourse (13:1 17:26) Literary Characteristics: The I AM Sayings Jesus says I am (εγω ειμι) 45 times in John s gospel Absolute statements Samaritan woman at well: I who speak to you am (4:26, not I am he ) To disciples while walking on water I am (6:20, not It is I ) Predicate statements (a metaphor completes the thought) bread of life (6:35, 48; [living] bread that came down from heaven: 6:41, 51) light of the world (8:12) the one bearing witness to myself (8:18) from above / not of this world (8:23) sheep gate and shepherd (10:7, 9, 11, 14) resurrection and the life (11:25) the way, the truth, and the life (14:6) true vine (15:1, 5) Pastoral Context & Resulting Themes THEMES the hour/festivals relation to Judaism blood/wine/water bread acceptance/rejection testimony- law- truth kingship/identity as son relationship to the powers light/dark birth/creation/life/ marriage/healing inner church tensions love/beloved disciple 7

8 Christology: The Divine Revealer Divine: the pre- existing Logos (Word) source of created world restores light to darkened world returns to Father, but sends advocate Revealer: reveals God s and his own identity the only one who can (sheep- gate, way- truth- life) humans may or may not see revealer and followers testify to the truth Unique Johannine titles only- begotten son (1:14, 18; 3:16, 18) the one who comes from above or is sent from the Father lamb of God (1:29, 36; crucifixion timed to Passover slaughter of lambs) equal to God (5:18) I AM (see earlier slide for references) The Gospel Spectrum From Low to High Christology Docetism Gos. Gos. Truth Mary Trimorphic Protennoia Gos. Thomas John Matthew Luke Gos. Ebionites Adoptionism Mark Low Christology emphasis on humanity High Christology emphasis on divinity A Canon Shaped by Theological Debate Definition Time- Frame Criteria CANON is a Greek word for a tool of measurement; in scripture studies a list or catalogue of books that measure up to the standards of the church as authoritative texts 4- gospel limit was in place in some communities by 180 CE; earliest canon that matches our NT is in 367 CE (Athanasius Easter Letter) apostolic, or traceable to one of the apostles in traditional use, or in use from an early period in many churches catholic, or universal in appeal orthodox, or in conformity with emerging mainstream teaching 8

Apocryphal Gospels Gospels Infancy gospels

9 A Canon Shaped by Theological Debate Canonical Gospels Gospels A Canon Shaped by Theological Debate Canonical Gospels Apocryphal Gospels Gospels A Canon Shaped by Theological Debate Infancy gospels Other gospels Adoptionist gospels Docetic & Gnostic gospels Gospels 9

The Debate over Gnosticism The end of the Apocryphon of John and the beginning of the Coptic Gospel of Thomas The Gnostic Texts 19 th - 20 th Century

4 th century copies of earlier gnostic works Gospel of Thomas Manuscript Evidence This gospel survives in 4 witnesses poxy 1 v 3 Greek fragments from separate

10 The Debate over Gnosticism The end of the Apocryphon of John and the beginning of the Coptic Gospel of Thomas The Gnostic Texts 19 th - 20 th Century Discoveries Changed Our Views Oxyrhynchus ,000+ fragmentary Greek mss, some of them Christian Nag Hammadi books with 52 separate tractates 4 th century copies of earlier gnostic works Gospel of Thomas Manuscript Evidence This gospel survives in 4 witnesses poxy 1 v 3 Greek fragments from separate mss found at Oxyrhynchus ( s CE) poxy 654 poxy 655 v A Coptic translation found complete in Codex II from the Nag Hammadi corpus (+ XIII 2; 400 CE) NH II

Gospel of Thomas Logion 56 Jesus said, whoever has come to know the world has discovered a carcass, and whoever has discovered a carcass, of that person the world is not worthy.

11 Gospel of Thomas Logion 56 Jesus said, whoever has come to know the world has discovered a carcass, and whoever has discovered a carcass, of that person the world is not worthy. Gospel of Thomas Logion 114 Simon Peter said to them, Make Mary leave us, for females don t deserve life. Jesus said, Look, I will guide her to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every female who makes herself male will enter the domain of heaven. A Problem that Religions Address How do you account for the presence of evil in the world? Three basic answers Animosity between the gods at creation and ongoing (Mesopotamian mythology) Two Gods one good, one evil (Zoroastrian dualism) One Supreme God with a lesser demiurge who creates this world (Platonic system) 11

12 The Christian Solutions Two Different Adaptations of Plato s Idea Basic Platonic Idea Gnostic Adaptation Orthodox Adaptation Supreme God Demiurge a lesser god who creates this world this world is but a shadow of what is in the mind of the supreme God Creation occurs without the permission of the Supreme God (demiurge = OT God) So God does a workaround, implanting humans with a spirit / soul / spark of gnosis (= knowledge of their true nature or root) Sin is alienation from one s true root Salvation is return to true root, or spark to light The Supreme God created matter through the Logos; the demiurge is Christ While lesser than the Father, he is of the same nature, so evil does not derive from him and world is not evil Sin is both part of the human condition ( original sin ) and due to human choices. Only Jesus is free of it and can free humans from it Why Mary Must Become Male to Become a Spirit Gnosis (knowledge), reason, and spirit are gendered masculine Salvation is about becoming more spiritual Matter is gendered feminine In this view, there aren t two OPPOSITE sexes, but ONE sex the male (normative) sex (the female is thought to be a less- developed male) Is John s Gospel Orthodox or Gnostic? 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be 4 through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; 5 the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 A man named John was sent from God. 7 He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. 9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. 11 He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. 12 But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, 13 who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man s decision but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father s only Son, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified to him and cried out, saying, This was he of whom I said, The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me. 16 From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace, 17 because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father s side, has revealed him. Logos from the Supreme God But is he responsible for an evil material world? present from the beginning Is there an elaborate cosmology? language of light and darkness only a few are in the know incarnation Would this be typical in a gnostic text? How is one saved in John? How is one saved in a gnostic system? 12

13 Concluding Issues The Value of Four Voices Rather than One Concluding Issues Bridging the Gap between Then and Now 13

Gospel of John Manuscript Evidence

Class 5 THE GOSPEL OF JOHN & THE GNOSTIC GOSPELS Gospel of John Manuscript Evidence There are 1,763 manuscripts of John; 17 of these date to the first 300 years of Christian history John 18:37-38 P52 (poxy)