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LOGIC OF THE LOGOS Themes and Theology of the Gospel of John Mar Joseph Pamplany ALPHA INSTITUTE OF THEOLOGY AND SCIENCE Thalassery, Kerala, India - 670 101 Ph: 0490 2344727, 2343707 Web: www.alphathalassery.org, Email: [email protected] LOGIC OF THE LOGOS Title: Logic of the Logos Themes and Theology of the Gospel of John Published by: The Director, Alpha Institute, Archdiocese of Tellicherry Sandesa Bhavan, Tellicherry, 670101, Kannur, Kerala Ph: 0490 - 2344727, 2343707 Published on: 15th August 2017 Author Mar Joseph Pamplany Editorial Board: Rev. Dr. Joseph Pamplany Rev. Fr. Joseph Kakkaramattathil Rev. Dr. Jacob Vennayappillil Office Assistance: Mr. Renjith KC Bro. Jibin George Mrs. Jeshitha Vijesh Mrs. Renju Aneesh Design & Layout: Mr. Midhun Thomas Printing: Vimala Offset Press, Thalassery Copy Right: © All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher Contents 1. John and the Synoptics ........................................................ 7 2. Formation of the Fourth Gospel ........................................... 14 3. Literary Style of the Fourth Gospel ...................................... 29 4. Purpose of the Gospel: Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God ............................................................ 43 5. Structure of the Fourth Gospel ............................................ 52 6. Prologue: He Comes to His Own (1:1-18) ............................ 61 7. Journey Preparation: Gathering of the disciples (1:19-51) ...... 78 8. The First Round Trip From Cana to Cana (2:1-4:54) .............. 86 9. The Second Round Trip: Son and the Bread (5:1-6:72) ......... 101 10. The Third Round Trip: The Identity Crises (7:1-10:39) ........ 113 11. The Fourth Journey: The Resurrection and Life (10:40-12:50) ............. 129 12. Farewell: He Loved Hisown to the End (Jn 13:1-17:25)...... 147 13. Another Advocate: Johannine Paraclete Texts ................... 162 14. Passion Narrative: Return to the Father (18:1-19:42) ........... 172 15. Resurrection: We Have Seen the Lord (20:1-29) ............... 207 16. The Epilogue: Feed My Sheep (21:1-25) ............................. 224 Commentaries on the Gospel of John .................................. 232 Logic of the Logos It would be challenging to estimate the impact of John’s Gospel on the history of the Church. Many theologians perceive in the fourth gospel one of the highest and fullest christological expressions of the entire NT. The fourth gospel stands as a literary work of genius, filled with metaphor and imagery, which grips the readers and transports them to the world of the evangelist. John asks his readers to continually reflect on the question, “Who is Jesus?” This christological question is answered from the prologue to the epilogue through the various confessions made by the disciples. The Gospel carries reminiscences of an eyewitness, of one who had personal experience of following Jesus as a disciple. The personal note is obvious all through the gospel, especially in the authorial asides (e.g., 2:19, 24-25; 19:35-37). The evangelist often pauses to remark that the disciples, most likely including himself, did not understand the meaning of some sayings or the significance of some deeds of Jesus (e.g., Jn 2:22; 12:16). The predominant theme in the book of John is the revelation of God to man through his only begotten Son - Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. The opening verses describe Jesus as the Word. He is God revealed to man, so that we might see him and believe. Through this Gospel we witness the everlasting power and nature of the Creator God, offering eternal life to us through his Son, Jesus Christ. In every chapter, Christ’s deity is unveiled. The eight miracles recorded by John reveal his divine power and love. They are signs that inspire us to trust and believe in him. The Holy Spirit is another major theme in John’s Gospel. We are drawn to faith in Jesus Christ by the the parakletos or Holy Spirit. The fourth gospel, from a forensic point of view, is presented as a lawsuit between God and the world. In their pleading the Jews base their arguments on the Law, while Jesus appeals to the witness borne to Him by John the Baptist, His own works, and the Scriptures, and refers also to precedents in OT history and fulfilled predictions. 4 Logic of the Logos The lawsuit reaches its climax in the proceedings before Pontius Pilate in which Christ is sentenced to death. Paradoxically, however, Christ’s death is the means whereby He is glorified and draws all men to Himself (12:28, 32). The first phase of the lawsuit is completed when the first Advocate “ascends” to the Father (20:17) to plead, the case of sinful believers in the heavenly law court (I Jn 2:1; cf. Jn 17:9 ff.). The second phase begins when the Holy Spirit comes to function as the Paraclete on earth (14:16, 26; 16:8- 11). This post-resurrection phase of the lawsuit is developed in chapters 13-21. Without any hesitancy, one may argue that discipleship is the most salient theme in the fourth gospel. As we read the Gospel, we perceive that Jesus did test and try the faith of his disciples, and made his deeds and his words both tests of faith and a means for its growth (Jn 6:60-69). Therefore one can reasonably argue that the fourth gospel could be read as a testimony of discipleship. Narrating the story of the disciples, the gospel engages the reader with a subtle pressure to adopt the viewpoint of the evangelist about who Jesus is, forcing the reader to make a decision for or against Jesus as an either/or which ultimately determines his/her eternal destiny. The disciples continuously stumble in their faith until seeing the risen Lord personally (20:19-29). Thus the gospel attests to the fact that Jesus’ resurrection marked the decisive turning point in the life of the disciples. The Easter narratives in the gospel function as the events of climactic confessions of Jesus’ true identity by the disciples (20:18,25,28). The present text is mainly intended to present the introductory themes of the fourth gospel. At the completion of this work, I must be grateful to Mar George Valiamattam, the metropolitan Archbishop of Tellicherry, my fellow priests and co-workers at Sandesa Bhavan, for their constant inspiration and personal warmth of love. In this attempt I am thankfully obliged to many renowned Johannine scholars, whose writings and thoughts constitute the some and substance of this book. The erudite scholarship of Prof. Dr. James Kurianal, Prof. Dr. Gilbert Van Belle, Prof. Dr. Reimund Bieringer, Prof. Dr. Antony Therath and Prof. Dr. Jacob Chanikuzhy are obvious within the pages of this book. The textual commentaries are owing to a great extend to Bible Gate Way. I express my sincere thanks to Rev. Dr. Shibu Kalarickal, Rev. Dr. Thomas Kochukarottu and Rev. Dr. Augustine Pamplany for their entire and profound rally round in the composition of this book. My colleagues at the Alpha institute, especially Mr. Midhun Thomas, are my constant inspiration in the completion of this text book serial. Mar Joseph Pamplany Alpha Institute of Theology and Science 27 December 2013 Thalassery - 670 101 (Feast of St. John) 5 Logic of the Logos Published for the use of the students of Alpha Institute of Theology and Science 6 Logic of the Logos Chapter 1 John and the Synoptics John differs significantly from the synoptic gospels in theme, content, time duration, order of events, and style. “Only about 8% of it is parallel to these other gospels, and even then, no such word-for-word parallelism occurs as we find among the synoptic gospels.” The Gospel of John reflects a Christian tradition that is different from that of the other gospels. It was rejected as heretical by many individuals and groups within the early Christian movement. However, it was ultimately accepted into the official canon, over many objections. It is now the favorite gospel of many conservative Christians, and the gospel least referred to by many liberal Christians. There had been four major positions regarding the relationship between John and the synoptic: (i) Literal dependence of John on the synoptics, that is John wrote the gospel depending one or more synoptic gospels. (ii) John wrote gospel independent of the synoptic, but the similarity is due to the use of the common sources. (iii) John was literally independent of the synoptic, eventhough he was aware of the syoptics and their tradition. (iv) Recent scholars 7 Logic of the Logos have come with the idea that John wanted to replace the syoptics. However, he overall framework of the fourth Gospel and synoptic, ministry begin with John the Baptist Jesus’ Public Ministry, Passion Narrative and resurrection narrative are also there. Walking on the water, Anointing of Jesus’ feet, entry to Jerusalem, Miraculous catch of fish is the common elements in both. The following are the details: The Similarities among John and the Synoptics Political Context Jesus ministers while Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea from AD 26-36 (Matt 27:2; Mark 15:1; Lk. 3:1; Jn 18:29). Caiaphas is the high priest (Matt 26:3, 26:57; Lk 3:2; Jn. 11:49; 18:13-14, 24, 28). Annas was high priest (Lk 3:2; Jn 18:13, 24). Family of Jesus Joseph is the father of Jesus (Matt 1:18-24; Lk 1:27; 2:4, 16, 22, 39; 4:22; Jn. 1:45; 6:42). Jesus’ mother is mentioned (Matt 12:46-47; Mark 3:31- 32; Lk.