Brill The Legacy of John: Second-Century Reception of the Fourth Gospel (Supplements to Novum Testamentum (Wipf & Stock Publishers)): 132 (Novum Testamentum, Supplements, 132)

This volume investigates the early, second-century reception of the Fourth Gospel. This is an era when its fortunes are surrounded by silence and mystery. It was assumed, until quite recently, that Gnostic and other so-called heterodox groups were the first ones to appreciate this gospel, and hence the mainstream Christians avoided using it until Irenaeus rescued it for the church. Lately, this view has been challenged by several scholars for several reasons. The contributions in this volume, written by leading specialists in their respective fields, offer an approachable, fresh, comprehensive and up-to-date view of the second-century reception of John's Gospel, in a situation where new understandings about various forms of early Christianity and its multiformity have started to emerge. Review "The book is a fine collection of twelve essays on several second-century texts and their relation to the Fourth Gospel. The editor mentions in the very dense introduction the need to 'abandon the old division between "orthodox" and "heterodox" forms of Christianity as misleading and anachronistic. [...]All in all, this is indeed an exciting volume, which offers a wealth of information and stimulating discussions on the relation of the Fourth Gospel to indeed a large spectrum of second-century texts. Equipped with a learned introduction from the editor and three indices at the end, it is surely a useful instrument for all who are looking for different perspectives on the presence of John in the second century." - Dan Batovici (full review) "Ce recueil de textes est d'une très grande qualité, ce qui n'est guère surprenant lorsque nous prenons connaissance des auteurs qui y ont contribué. ... Cet ouvrage donne ... un très bon aperçu de l'étendue de l'influence du quatrième Évangile au deuxième siècle." - Steve Johnston, in: Laval théologique et philosophique "Dieser Band ... zeigt eine Vielzahl von aktuellen Forschungsfeldern auf und bietet, davon ausgehend, eine Reihe von Denkanstößen. Darin ist sicherlich seine große Stärke zu sehen." - Stephan Witetschek, in: Biblische Zeitschrift 55/2011-2 "There is much good scholarship and accurate reasoning in this [volume]." - M.J. Edwards, Christ Church, Oxford, in: Journal of Theological Studies, October 2013 From the Back Cover This volume investigates the early, second-century reception of the Fourth Gospel. This is an era when its fortunes are surrounded by silence and mystery. It was assumed, until quite recently, that Gnostic and other so-called heterodox groups were the first ones to appreciate this gospel, and hence the mainstream Christians avoided using it until Irenaeus rescued it for the church. Lately, this view has been challenged by several scholars for several reasons. The contributions in this volume, written by leading specialists in their respective fields, offer an approachable, fresh, comprehensive and up-to-date view of the second-century reception of John s Gospel, in a situation where new understandings about various forms of early Christianity and its multiformity have started to emerge. About the Author Tuomas Rasimus, Ph.D., Th.D. (2006-7), earned his doctorates from a joint degree between Université Laval and University of Helsinki. He has published articles related to Gnosticism, New Testament and Neoplatonism, and is the author of Paradise Reconsidered in Gnostic Mythmaking (Brill, 2009).