A Modern Jewish Perspective on the Gospel of John
Jesus, God, "the Jews," and the Devil
Charles David Isbell
- 252 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
A Modern Jewish Perspective on the Gospel of John
Jesus, God, "the Jews," and the Devil
Charles David Isbell
About This Book
Did Jesus really call the Jews of his day children of the devil? Would he label Jews of today the same way? Did the Jews kill Jesus and then violently expel from the synagogue anyone who accepted him as a promised Messiah?The Christian church has found answers to these and other similar questions in the Gospel of John. But Jewish readers are justifiably offended by many of John's answers. The eleven essays offered here present facts everyone should know. They are written by a modern Jewish scholar responding to troubling questions about John raised over a period of more than forty years by his university students, by congregants in synagogues he has served as spiritual guide (rabbi), and by Christian colleagues with whom he has worked throughout his long career. Designed to engage thoughtful readers from every religious background, these essays encourage questions and suggest plausible answers to the problems in John by illustrating the difference between the answers of John and the facts of history. They also compare John's Jesus with the teachings of the modern church about the treatment of "others, " love for all humanity, and the wholeness of body and spirit.
Frequently asked questions
Information
Table of contents
- Title Page
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- I. Opening Questions
- II. Modern Scholarship and The Gospel of John
- III. âThe Jewsâ as the Enemy in the Gospel of John
- IV. John and the Jewish Rejection of Jesus
- V. âExpulsionâ
- VI. Jewish and Christian Responses to Dissidents
- VII. John and the Recent History of Anti-Semitism
- VIII. Preaching John: Homiletical Accommodation
- IX. âSearch the Scripturesâ
- X. The Psalms and the Passion Narratives
- XI. The âI AMâ Sayings of Jesus: Did Jesus Claim to be God?
- XII. Conclusions and Future Directions
- Postscript
- Appendix A: The Shemoneh âesreh
- Appendix B: The Apocalypse of John
- Appendix C: Rabbinic Disagreement
- Appendix D: Early Christian Preaching
- Appendix E: EGO EIMI as Self-Introduction/Identification
- Bibliography