Chairs: Dr Wendy Sproston North and Dr John Tudno Williams
Session 1:
'Divine Humanity in John'
The gospel prologue will be assessed for evidence of a Divine-Humanity Christology.
Session 3:
'"The Jews"' in John's Gospel: Observations and Inferences'
This paper addresses the vexed question of the identity of 'the Jews' in the Fourth Gospel. Following a brief discussion involving John's characteristics as a narrator, this issue is tackled by first observing how he deals with 'the Jews' in relation to other named groups in the Lazarus story and related material. The results of this investigation are then tested on the gospel as a whole. With the identity of 'the Jews' in the gospel narrative thus established, the way is open to suggest a contemporary referent for John's term.
Session 3:
'Metaphorical Material in John's Gospel'
A distinctive kind of metaphorical material in the fourth gospel, sometimes termed "parabolic", has been generally recognised. This paper explores whether such material could be explained in terms of short, proverbial sayings, similar to those in the Synoptic tradition termed "logia" by Bultmann. Reference is made to relevant work of Bultmann's in the Synoptic and Johannine traditions, and there is an attempt to set this work in the context of subsequent wisdom scholarship.
The presence of short, proverbial sayings in the fourth gospel might have implications for understanding the construction of its discourses, and some of its familiar terminology. There may also be clues concerning the tradition that gave rise to this gospel. The paper tentatively explores these issues.