I awoke this morning to the lights not working – good start. At least the alarm clock worked….;-) A quick check of the fuse box and all was well – a quick transition between light and darkness.
This week’s New Testament passage from the Gospels comes from John – I thought we were in Year B and were to focus upon Mark’s Gospel? Patience…John doesn’t get a year to themselves. We are looking at John 1:1-18. It’s a well known set of words, speaking of the ‘Word’, the logos, the divine reason. Hence, it’s very poetical, but what could it really mean?
It’s called the Prologue
The Prologue is the first of four parts of this Gospel. It does not run parallel with the other Gospel prologue found in Luke, for their is no explanation of purpose for the author. Here the Prologue summarises the core elements of the Gospel and relates it in context to the eternal God, not of merely this world, but the cosmos, God’s created order. Often when we read of the ‘world’ in the New Testament it actually refers to that Cosmos: are we too focussed upon ourselves, our world? And in our Cosmos there’s plenty of light and darkness.
It conveys the themes of the incarnate logos; Jesus as the source of life, of light, and of truth [1]. Well that was all too evident at Christmas with the birth of the Saviour: all those Advent Candles. John the Baptist also shown a light at Jesus.
Gnosticism?
Some scholars would suggest that the Gospel was first appreciated by Gnostic readers. This Gnosticism was the knowledge of the heart, a divine spark, given specifically to those anointed people. Ehrman describes it succinctly here. Again linking back to light and darkness. So within the Prologue we may find the interpretation of the Jewish creation account portrayed with a Platonist perspective, striving to know what is good. It subtly permits those Christians with a Greek background, without familiarity of Jewish background, to understand the theology imparted within the Gospel.
Inclusion?
Philo drew inspiration from Stoic philosophy, seeking to use logos, linking it with personification and therefore God’s logos as God’s son [2]. This is well accepted these days. Nevertheless the Prologue can also justify inclusive language. The logos is deemed to relate to the offspring of God, without connection to time, but which replaces Wisdom which has been previously revealed within creation [3]; however, it is noted that the word Wisdom is feminine in both the Hebrew and Greek. So within verse 14 of the first chapter we note “and we saw his glory, glory as of an only son of a father”. Here, Lindars [4] suggests that a faulty translation would cause issue with the interpretation in that glory, in this verse, would mean reflection. Just as with a parent and child we see that likeness without the need to state gender implicitly.
So not a Him but a Hymn?
It’s style is rhythmical prose, a hymn to the Logos. It’s opening statement an intrinsic link to the story of creation within Genesis, which is then followed in verses 4-5 with life and light. Interestingly, possibly to defy the dualists, the author does not refer to any other spiritual being other than God, we merely have light and darkness. Here we also see the divinity of Christ – a key point within the Gospel of John – through the use of the lamp of John and the (real) light of Christ [5] – or was that a link to Gnosticism?
The incarnation is described giving substance to Jesus being human and divine. Critically, contravening Hellenistic-Jewish theology, the author identifies the logos with the human Jesus (John 1: 14). Swiftly, here we find a blow to then current philosophy’s of the day, Ebionism and Docetism, for God incarnate (Immanuel) is here with us. It finds links with Moses of the past, to John of the present and Jesus, the eternal.
So What?
It’s a revealing few verses that we might well gloss over, smothered in the rich poetry of this Gospel. There’s far greater meaning, given it was written some 90 odd years after the birth of Christ, from a community of believers not in Jerusalem. It’s a stop-really?-discover passage, rather than one in which we skim read.
There’s light within the darkness to be found here.
May you all find light within 2021 from within the darkness that was 2020. Note that we can still utilise those skills gained within 2020 for our benefit though! {Check out my last post}
Cover Image from FaithMemphis.org
References:
1 J.N. Sanders & B.A.Mastin, A Commentary on the Gospel According to St John, (London : Adam and Charles Black, 1968, 1977), p. 5.
2 Barnabas Lindars, SSF, John, (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990, 1996), p.47.
3 Proverbs 8: 22-31; Ecclesiasticus 24; and Wisdom 7:22-8:1
4 Barnabas Lindars, SSF, John, (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1990, 1996), p.17.
5 N. Sanders & B.A.Mastin, A Commentary on the Gospel According to St John, (London : Adam and Charles Black, 1968, 1977), p. 75.