This
book contains eight conversations on the Gospel of John between the Bible
scholar Yair Zakovitch and Early Christianity scholar Serge Ruzer. The Gospel
of John, the Fourth Gospel, differs considerably from the other three canonical
Gospels, representing an independent writing and outlook. Usually dated to the
end of the first century CE, this composition reflects a particular offshoot of
early Christian identity being defined vis-à-vis both Jewish messianic beliefs
of broader appeal and perceptions current among other groups within the Jesus
movement. Accordingly, the conversations in the book deal with the issues
crucial for understanding John's polemical strategies: Jesus as second Moses (inter alia, when performing wonders); crucifixion and sacrifice of Isaac; Jews
in the Forth Gospel; biblical exegesis employed in John; the Prologue of John
as programmatic introduction and hermeneutical key; and, finally, the author of
John as a diligent editor of an inherited narrative and as a daring innovator
vis-à-vis the Synoptic tradition reflected in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and
Luke. The discussion highlights two intriguing features of the Fourth Gospel:
the first – its complicated balancing act between the desire to present the
claim for Jesus’ messiahship as continuation of biblical expectations and
propagating ideas both daring and innovative; the second – its being a witness
for Jewish beliefs otherwise attested only in much later rabbinic sources. This
turns John into a precious witness both for developments within earliest
Christianity and for trajectories in broader Judaism.
