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In what ways does John's Gospel differ from or resemble Gnostic teachings?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Some scholars believe that the community in which John's Gospel was written, was a mildly Gnostic Christian community and that the Gospel was originally much more gnostic in flavour than the version we have today. Looking especially at 1 John, written in the same community, it appears that the community split after disagreement over theology, shortly after the Gospel was written. One group joined a separate community that followed a Christian belief more aligned to the synoptic gospels, while the other group joined a probably more definitely Gnostic community. The group that joined the 'centrist' community altered its Gospel to remove much of the more obvious Gnostic content of that Gospel. This hypothesis is supported by the extent to which the Gospel seems to have been reworked.
The passion story in John's Gospel differs significantly from that in the synoptic gospels, and contains much more striking symbolism of Jesus as the paschal lamb. John shows evidence of having been influenced by Hermas' Pastor, a known Gnostic work. It also parallels the Gospel of Thomas in some areas - Thomas was also a Gnostic gospel.
'Light' was a Gnostic concept related to spirituality. Both John's Gospel and 1 John frequently refer to Jesus as the Light, for example:
John 1:4: In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
John 1:5: And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
John 1:7: The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
John 1:8: He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
John 1:9: That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
John Glyndwr Harris (Gnosticism: Beliefs and Practices) says that the current of ideas that runs through Johnprobably reflects a diversified mix of different aspects of Judaism, Hellenism, Roman and pagan philosophy, as well as gnosticism.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
John's Gospel differs from Gnostic teachings by emphasizing the divinity of Jesus and the need for belief in Him for salvation, while Gnosticism often downplays Jesus' physical existence and stresses secret knowledge for spiritual enlightenment. However, both share a focus on spiritual truths and the concept of light overcoming darkness, though they interpret these ideas in different ways.
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Another answer from our community:John differs from the synoptic Gospels because it is not just listing events in the life of Jesus and reporting His teachings. John is more thematic in nature and provides more theological discourse on the person and work of Christ. John also focus' on events in Judea rather than the Galilean ministry. The synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke are called such because they contain a brief review, summary or synopsis of Jesus' life and teachings. John is recognized as somewhat different with a lot less detail in terms of coverage of events but a much greater degree of theological detail focused around people's reactions to Jesus work and teachings and ensuing discussions. Thus John's different structure which is more theological and not a summary of all Jesus said and did is classified as non-synoptic.Another answerThere are four gospels in the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Three gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, are called the synoptic gospels because they agree moderately well on the life and teachings of Jesus, although each is a little different from the other two.John's Gospel is quite a good deal different from the other gospels. Some scholars believe that John was originally written in a Gnostic community and was subsequently edited to remove some of the more clearly Gnostic material, although the gospel still has a Gnostic flavour. John is the only gospel that states Jesus to be God and to have been pre-existing. John also contains a good deal of material that is not in the other gospels, including a much longer account of the appearances of the risen Jesus. Although some say that this gospel is concerned with themes rather than the chronological order of events, it is nevertheless true that events are certainly placed in a different sequence compared to the other gospels.Scholars have noted that the events in the mission of Jesus, as described by the synoptic gospels, could have taken place in as little as one year, but the events described in John's Gospel would require four years. John appears to differ from the other three gospels in several ways. For example, in John the ministry of Jesus seems to last several years, whereas in the other gospels it appears to be limited to about one year. Also, John give an important role to the un-named "disciple whom Jesus loved", but the other gospels don't even mention such a person. Also, in John, Jesus performs several major miracles that aren't recorded in the other gospels, such as the resurrection of Lazarus and the changing of water into wine at the wedding in Cana. John depicts Jesus somewhat differently than the other gospels do. Some people have said that this is because John tries to show the spiritual side of Jesus, whereas the other gospels mainly try to show his human side.
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