the gospel of john - santa clara university€¦ · §john’s gospel, with its prologue about a...

1

The New TestamentDiocese of San José ILM Program

Winter 2020

Dr. Catherine Murphy

Santa Clara UniversityDepartment of Religious Studies & Graduate Program in Pastoral Ministries

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

2

Tonight’s Goals

ü compare John to the synoptic gospels

ü identify features of Johnú literary characteristicsú pastoral context and resulting theological themesú John’s Christology

ü define “gnosticism” and compare gnostic texts to John’s prologue

§ 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

Ways John Differs from the Synoptics

Raymond Brown, Introduction to the New Testament, pp. 364-5

3

But John & Mark Share Some Interesting Features…

1. Structure emphasizes the passion narrative

% of gospel before entry 63.8% 61.7%

Triumphal entry into Jerusalem Mark 11:1–16:8 John 12:12–21:25

% of gospel in Jerusalem 36.2% 38.3%

Mark John

2. Focus on the revelation of the hidden messiah

% of gospel before arrest 87.2% 84.1%

Arrest Mark 14:43-52 John 18:1-14

% of gospel after arrest 12.8% 15.9%

The Gospel of JohnLiterary 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)

4

The Gospel of JohnLiterary 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”)

§ 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)

Predicate statements (a metaphor completes the thought)

The Gospel of JohnAn 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

5

§ 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

John & Incipient “Gnosticism”

we’ll return to gnosticism later…

The Gospel of JohnThe 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.

6


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


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 darknessdid not overcome it.

life and light

world as “darkness” that cannot overcome light

7


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 indarkness

testimony/truth


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 indarkness

testimony/truth

acceptance/rejection

8


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 indarkness

testimony/truth


The Gospel SpectrumFrom Low to High Christology

Low Christologyemphasis on humanity

High Christologyemphasis on divinity

Mark

Matthew

Gos. Ebionites

Gos. Thomas

TrimorphicProtennoia

Gos. Truth Gos.Mary

Adoptionism

Docetism

Luke

John

9

Is John’s Gospel Gnostic?Compare John’s prologue to this gnostic saying

Gospel of Thomas(a gnostic/heretical gospel)

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.

Logion 56

Gospel of John(our canonical gospel)

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 1:14

creation/birth

Word

life and light

world indarkness

testimony/truth


John Develops Themes through the 7 Signs

10

Sign #1: Water to WineOn the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” [And] Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told them, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him.

creation/birth

Word

life and light

world indarkness

testimony/truth


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

The Book of Signs

Sign #1: Water into Wine at Cana (2:1-11)

creation/birth

Word

life and light

world indarkness

testimony/truth


11

The Book of Signs develops the Prologue’s Themes

birth, marriage, blood/water, hour

life/death, acceptance/rejection, hour

healing/life, law, rejection, Son of the Father

bread, kingship

question of who he is, do not fear

life/death, light/dark, acceptance/rejection, sign of who he is

light/dark, testimony, law, rejection, Son of the Father

1. Turns water into wineCana, near Nazareth (2:1-11)

2. Heals the royal official’s son Cana; boy in Capernaum (4:46-54)

3. Heals a lame man Jerusalem, pool of Bethesda (5:1-5)

4. Feeds 5000Eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee (6:5-14)

5. Walks on waterSea of Galilee (6:16-24)

7. Raises LazarusBethany (11:1-45)

6. Heals man born blindJerusalem (9:1-7)

festival & sabbath

festival & sabbath

The Signs point to the Glorification (the Cross)

birth, marriage, blood/water, hour

life/death, acceptance/rejection, hour

healing/life, law, rejection, Son of the Father

bread, kingship

question of who he is, do not fear

life/death, light/dark, acceptance/rejection, sign of who he is

light/dark, testimony, law, rejection, Son of the Father

1. Turns water into wineCana, near Nazareth (2:1-11)

2. Heals the royal official’s son Cana; boy in Capernaum (4:46-54)

3. Heals a lame man Jerusalem, pool of Bethesda (5:1-5)

4. Feeds 5000Eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee (6:5-14)

5. Walks on waterSea of Galilee (6:16-24)

7. Raises LazarusBethany (11:1-45)

6. Heals man born blindJerusalem (9:1-7)

festival & sabbath

festival & sabbath

12

John: A Gospel of Metaphors & SignsThe Book of Glory

THEMES

13:1

Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father.

the hour/festivals


THEMES

13:13-14, 18b

You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet…. But it is to fulfill the scripture, ‘The one who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.’”

blood/wine/waterbread

13


THEMES

18:3-6

So Judas brought a detachment of soldiers …and they came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. Then Jesus, knowing all that was to happen to him, came forward and asked them, “Whom are you looking for?” They answered, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus replied, “I am he.” ...When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they stepped back and fell to the ground.

kingship/identity as son

light/dark


THEMES

18:25-27

Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him, “You are not also one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?” Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.

acceptance/rejectiontestimony-law-truth

light/dark

14


THEMES

18:37

Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”




THEMES

19:14-15

Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover; and it was about noon. He said to the Jews, “Here is your King!” They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate asked them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but the emperor.”



the hour/festivals

15


THEMES

19:26-27

When Jesus saw his

mother and the disciple

whom he loved

standing beside her, he

said to his mother,

“Woman, here is your

son.” Then he said to

the disciple, “Here is

your mother.” And

from that hour the

disciple took her into

his own home.

birth/creation/life/marriage/healing


the hour/festivals


THEMES

19:31, 33-34

Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken…. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead… one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out.

birth/creation/life/marriage/healing


the hour/festivals

16

§ relation to Judaism

The Gospel of JohnPastoral Context & Resulting Themes

THEMES

§ inner church tensions

§ relationship to the powersbirth/creation/life/marriage/healing




the hour/festivals

light/dark

All of these echo motifs in the Jewish scriptures, adding additional layers of symbolism

§ relation to Judaism

The Gospel of JohnPastoral Context & Resulting Themes

THEMES

§ inner church tensions

§ relationship to the powersbirth/creation/life/marriage/healing




the hour/festivals

light/dark

love/beloved disciple

17

§ 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 of JohnChristology: The Divine Revealer

The Gospel SpectrumFrom Low to High Christology

Low Christologyemphasis on humanity

High Christologyemphasis on divinity

Mark

Matthew

Gos. Ebionites

Gos. Thomas

TrimorphicProtennoia

Gos. Truth Gos.Mary

Adoptionism

Docetism

Luke

John

18

A Canon Shaped by Theological Debate

• apostolic, or traceable to one of the apostles

• catholic, or universal in appeal

• orthodox, or in conformity with emerging

mainstream teaching

• in traditional use, or in use from an early period in

many churches

§ 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)


Gospels

CanonicalGospels

19


Gospels

CanonicalGospels

Apocryphal Gospels


Gospels

Docetic & Gnostic gospels

Adoptionistgospels

Other gospels

Infancygospels

20

The Debate over Gnosticism

The end of the Apocryphon of John and the beginning of the Coptic Gospel of Thomas

The Gnostic Texts19th-20th Century Discoveries Changed Our Views

Oxyrhynchus1895–1930

50,000+ fragmentary Greek mss,some of them Christian

Nag Hammadi1945

13 books with 52 separate �tractates” —4th century copies of earlier gnostic works

21

Grenfell Hunt

Oxyrhynchus

Muhammad Ali Samman, who discovered the

codices

Nag Hammadi

22

Coptic Museum, Cairo

Nag Hammadi

Gospel of ThomasLogion 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.

23

Gospel of ThomasLogion 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 AddressHow do you account for the presence of evil in the world?

Three basic answers

Animositybetween the gods

at creation and ongoing

(Mesopotamian mythology)

Two Godsone good, one evil

(Zoroastrian dualism)

One Supreme Godwith a lesser “demiurge”who creates this world

(Platonic system)

24

The Christian SolutionsTwo Different Adaptations of Plato’s Idea

Basic Platonic Idea Gnostic Adaptation Orthodox Adaptation

Supreme God

Demiurgea lesser god who

creates this world

this world is but a shadow of

what is in the mindof the supreme God

Creation occurs withoutthe permission of the

Supreme God(demiurge = OT God; the

material world is NOT good

So God does a workaround,implanting humans

with a spirit / soul / sparkof gnosis (= knowledge oftheir true nature or root)

Salvation is return totrue root, or spark to light

The Supreme God created matter through the Logos;

the “demiurge” is Christ, and matter is good

While “lesser” than the Father, he is of the same nature,

so evil does not derivefrom 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

“Sin” is alienation fromone’s true root

Why Mary Must Become Male to Become a Spirit

In the ancient world (but not now), matter is gendered feminine

In the ancient world (but not now), gnosis (knowledge), reason, and spirit

are gendered masculine

Salvationis about

becomingmore spiritual

In this view, there aren’t

two OPPOSITE sexes,but ONE sex…

the male (normative) sex(following Aristotle, the female

is thought to be a less-developed male)

25

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.

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.

Logos from the Supreme God

But is he responsible for an evil material world?

26

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.

9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

14 And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us

“This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’”

present from the beginning

Is there an elaborate cosmology?


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.

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.

language of light and darkness

27


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.

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.

only a feware “in the know”


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.

incarnationWould this be typical

in a gnostic text?

28


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.

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.

How is one saved in John?

How is one saved in a gnostic system?

Concluding IssuesThe Value of Four Voices Rather than One

29

Concluding IssuesBridging the Gap between Then and Now

the gospel of john - santa clara university€¦ · §john’s gospel, with its prologue about a...

Documents