We aren't in Kansas anymore...or, Welcome to John

Well! If our Bibles didn't have chapter headings, or "book" headings, I bet we would still know that we have arrived in John's Gospel--or at least a very different place than we were yesterday in Luke!

My very favorite professor at the Harvard Divinity School is Helmut Koester. I had the pleasure of taking a seminar with him on the methods of Biblical criticism. I remember him saying, when discussing literary criticism and the Gospels, that if John's Gospel had been found with the Nag Hammadi Library, that we would have assumed it was "just another Gnostic Gospel."

John's Gospel is really, really different. It's the latest Gospel, and its context is after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 CE by the Romans. So much of this Gospel is unique.

If you were not able to take in David Moseley's series on John, I encourage you to listen in here:

John: the Prologue

John pt 1

John pt 2

John pt 3

Wikipedia's offering here includes a decent summary of scholarship on John as well.

There are times when John the Evangelist will seem poetic, other times like he's writing in circles, still others when his writing will come across as outright antisemitic--particularly in most English translation (ie the word transated "the Jews" can also be translated "the Judaeans" --ie anyone living in Judah, regardless of religion or ethnicity.  It's critical to understand the context of John's audience. It's also critical to remember that, however John may present this sacred story, Jesus and his disciples were observant Jews themselves.

What are you noticing about John's Gospel?  Share your thoughts with me, and I'll gladly share them with our fellow readers.

Thank you for being on this journey,

Peace,

Paige+