The Gospel of John Meeting in Conference Room 4:30PM

Class Opening Prayer Read Chapter 1 Reading Sacred Scripture – Historical Critical Why was it written? How was it formed? Closing Prayer

Resources The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church Providentissimus Deus Divino afflante Spiritu The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (NJBC) An Introduction to the New Testament (Brown)

Historical Critical Method The Method in Practice: How? Textual Criticism a small case study: Mk 9:29 + NJB 9c. Cp. RSV (“prayer and fasting” though it has a note) v. NRSV (“through prayer”) Jn 7:53-8:11 + NJB Jn 7u the so-called Comma (“comma” = short clause) Johanneum (1 Jn 5:7-8 + NJB 5d ) Source Criticism Form Criticism Redaction Criticism

Form Criticism Object: What? Aspect: How? Importance: Why? “because the books of the New Testament were written almost two thousand years ago in a culture different from ours, our appreciation of their literary forms is no longer second nature. The method of form-critical study of the New Testament is designed to supply, by the development of a specific technique, an appreciation of the literary forms of the New Testament, sensitivity to which is no longer a spontaneous part of our second nature” (Collins 161)

Redaction Criticism TOMAHAWK “the critical study of the process of editing” “A method of studying the NT that concentrates on the way the principal author of a work has adapted (“redacted”) earlier materials to his own theological ends” “Redaction criticism is a method of biblical study which examines the intentions of the editors or redactors who compiled the biblical texts out of earlier source materials” “Redaction criticism is the study of NT texts that concentrates on the unique theological emphases that the writers place upon the materials they used, their specific purposes in writing their works, and the Sitz im Leben out of which they wrote” FC: period of transmission RC: the final stage FC: communities RC: individuals FC: identifying literary form RC: use of literary form FC: evangelists = compilers RC: evangelists = creative authors

Why was it written? To Create Faith Baptist sect Jews Gnostic Hellenists To Confirm Faith Jn 20:31 1 Jn 5:13

Formation of Text Book of Signs (1 - 12) Book of Glory (13 – 20) Later Additions? Jn 21 8:1-11 5:3b-4 1:1-18

Logos The Logos, as a title for Christ, is found only in the PROLOGUE Jn 1:1,14 1 Jn 1:1 Rev 19:13

Logos in Judaism There is firstly the Biblical concept of the creative word Gn 1; Ps 33:6 (the role of the word of God in creation) Gn 27 (the word of man uttered in blessing or curse cannot be withdrawn) Is 55:10-11 (the word of God continues to be effective) The personification of Wisdom In this context, it should be noted that there is an obvious connection between the word and wisdom, of which the word is an expression. In later biblical texts Wisdom is frequently personified: Prov 1:20-33; 8:22-9:6; Sir 24; Wis 8:3-16 (NJB Prov 8e; Sir 24a). "in the OT presentation of Wisdom, there are good parallels for almost every detail of the Prologue's description of the Word" The personification of the Law. As with wisdom, there is a close connection between the Law and the Word of God (Is 2:3; Mic 4:2). In later rabbinic writings, "the Law is pictured as having been created before all things and as having served as the pattern on which God created the world" (BROWN 523). In this case too, what the Prologue says about the Word can be paralleled by what the OT and Judaism says about the Law.

Logos in Greek Thought There is no doubt that the concept is found in Greek thought for Heraclitus (from Ephesus!) the logos is the rational principle of the universe for the Stoics the logos was "the mind of God...guiding, controlling, and directing all things” (BROWN 520) It is however now generally held that Jn's thought is not derived from the Greek background Nevertheless his use of the idea would prove meaningful in Greek circles

Doctrine of Logos Nature of Logos Existence Relationship Predication Role of Logos Cosmological Soteriological Incarnation of the Logos

Summary of Logos It is clear that the Logos doctrine represents a more developed (high) Christology than is found in the synoptics This however does not necessarily mean a later Christology. It may well be for instance that the Prologue was an early hymn adapted by the author of Jn (cp. Phil 2:6-11; Col 1:15-20) The Logos title does not occur elsewhere in Jn (cp. Rev 19:13; 1 Jn 1:1). This would seem to be because in the body of Jn the author is concerned with the Word-made-flesh rather than with the pre- existent Logos (JBC 63:45)