Anti-Judaism in John’s Gospel: Catholic perspectives after Vatican II Council (1962-65 CE)

Five research questions form the framework of this thesis: Is the Fourth Gospel anti-Jewish? Who are ‘the Jews’ in John’s Gospel? Does John’s Gospel reflect conflict between the Johannine community and ‘the Jews’? Is there a supersessionist Christology in John? And can certain hermeneutical reading strategies contribute to an understanding of anti-Judaism in John? In chapter 2 historical contexts underpinning anti-Judaism are discussed. Catholic biblical scholarship before Vatican II Council is outlined, followed by a discussion of Vatican II Council, and a discussion of key Council documents: Nostra Aetate/In Our Time and Dei Verbum/Word of God, which influenced attitudes to the Jews and biblical scholarship respectively. On anti-Judaism, positive or negative answers depend on interpretation of particular contexts and the approach of commentators to the text. The declaration at John 8:44 that the devil is the father of the Jews can be read as part of standard rhetorical language of the time and not as modern hate speech. Examples of negative Jewish characterization from the mid-nineteenth to mid-twentieth century are therefore given in chapter 3. Leading Catholic scholars, Brown, Moloney and Schnackenburg commented negatively on the Jews in their early works but Brown changed his stance in later years. The identity of ‘the Jews’ is explored and, again, context is important. Catholic commentators, particularly Brown, distinguish between the various referents of the term. Chapter 4 then considers the existence of a Johannine community and its contribution to anti-Judaism. Supersessionism and its vestigial presence today, and the contribution of hermeneutics to an understanding of John’s Gospel are discussed. Conclusions are presented in chapter 5 of the dissertation. Catholic exegetes are now part of mainstream biblical scholarship and there is no particular Catholic angle to their contributions to anti-Judaism in John’s Gospel.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

mres

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

masters

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Wales Trinity Saint David

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Norton, Tom

• BS Y Beibl

Dc Identifier Grantnumber

UWTSD

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:3072