Ecclesiology and theosis in the Gospel of John / Andrew J. Byers, University of Durham.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Byers, Andrew J., 1974- author.

Series:

Monograph series (Society for New Testament Studies) ; 166.

Monograph series (Society for New Testament Studies)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Bible. John--Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Bible.

Bible. John.

Church.

Deification (Christianity).

Genre:

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

Physical Description:

xvi, 277 pages ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge New York : Cambridge University Press, 2017.

Summary:

"For the author of the fourth Gospel, there is neither a Christless church nor a churchless Christ. Though John's Gospel has been widely understood as ambivalent toward the idea of 'church', Andrew Byers argues that ecclesiology is as central a Johannine concern as Christology. Rather than focusing on the community behind the text, John's Gospel directs attention to the vision of community prescribed within the text, which is presented as a 'narrative ecclesiology' by which the concept of 'church' gradually unfolds throughout the Gospel's sequence. The theme of oneness functions within this script and draws on the theological language of the Shema, a centerpiece of early Jewish theology and social identity. To be 'one' with this 'one God' and his 'one Shepherd' involves the believers' corporate participation within the divine family. Such participation requires an ontological transformation that warrants an ecclesial identity expressed by the bold assertion found in Jesus' citation of Psalm 82: 'you are gods'." -- Publisher's description.

Contents:

The Johannine vision of community: trends, approaches, and 'narrative ecclesiology'

The inclusive divine community: the prologue's reinterpretation of God and God's people

The ecclesiology of filiation and the incarnation

Characterizing the prologue's ecclesiology: the ambiguation and assimilation of John the Baptist

The prologue's 'ecclesial narrative script': ecclesiology as story arc

The Shema as the foundation for John's theological use of 'one': identifying and addressing reservations

The Shema, John 17, and Jewish-Christian identity: oneness in narrative development

The fourth gospel and deification in patristic writings

Johannine theosis: deification as ecclesiology

Characterizing Johannine theosis: divinized characters within the narrative

Narrative pneumatology and triadic theology: the spirit-paraclete as the character who divinizes beyond the narrative

John's narrative ecclesiology of deification: a synthesis.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781107178601

1107178606

OCLC:

987581092