A Journey Round John: Tradition, Interpretation and Context in the Fourth Gospel

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In A Journey Round John Wendy E. S. North considers a range of themes relevant to the interpretation of the Fourth Gospel. First, the relationship between the Gospel and 1 John. North explores the value of the Epistle as a means of identifying traditional material the evangelist knew; on which basis she appeals to 1 John to account for the form of Jesus prayer in chapter 11. Second, Johns Christology in which North looks to Johns cultural roots in monotheistic Judaism to understand his capacity to align Jesus with God. Third, the crucial issue of the Jews in John, where North clarifies the data by observing a narrative logic in Johns use of the expression. Fourth, North identifies Johns anticipated eschatology as a consolation strategy aimed at a readership struggling under life-threatening circumstances in the absence of Jesus. Finally, North looks at John and the Synoptics, and demonstrates how evidence drawn from the Gospel itself can serve to indicate whether or not John composed directly on the basis of the Synoptic record. This collection draws together a number of ground-breaking studies from over thirty years of work on the Fourth Gospel, presenting a coherent development of thought on this crucial Christian text.

Reviews

North is not afraid to take on difficult questions or to arrive at unique conclusionsthe result is a journey through three decades of scholarly work from the mind of one of our fields most celebrated Johannine scholars. * Religious Studies Review *
North is a meticulous writer and, alongside her interaction with scholars old and new, her work is a model of close attention to the text and careful reasoning This always stimulating collection should bring the wider attention to her work that it deserves. * Journal for the Study of the New Testament *

Author Bio

Wendy E. S. North is a widely published Johannine scholar. She gained a PhD from Bangor University, UK, in 1997 and has taught at the Universities of Hull and Durham, UK. She is currently an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham.