, 1877-09-30
REMAIN ON THE GOSPEL OF ST. JOHN.

ERNEST REaAS has written for the Conttua
/ porary Reric,o an article OH the "Gospel Ac
coraiug to JOHN" He takes the ground, no
| ut all singular in these days, that this book O
the New Testament las been overrated. Th.
simplicity and sincerity of the earlier Cos
pels are not to be found in it. RESAN I'D
vances reasons for believing that the Book o.
JoHS was written, not by the Disciple whon
JESUS loved, but by namesake Of the Apos
tie called the Presbyteros JoASSEs and Ger.
tain AR1sT1oS, who knew by heart many o1
the LORDS discourses. They resided al
Ephesus with JOIN, heard his story of the
life of JESUS, constituted him an oracle, and,
after his death, published what they had
heard from him, with embellishments OF
their own, as the Word of Gop. It
was matter of local pride that
Ephesus should find place within
the canon for the Apostle who had honored
that city by his residence. The friends of
the Apostle, in such n cause, felt themselves
authorized to speak in his name, and to write
twenty-five OR thirty years after JoHS's death
what it was regretted that he himself did not
make permanent during life.
This, in brief, is the theory of RESAn. It
implies certain degree of infdelity, and as
such may shock those who place implicit
confidence in the received version of the
origin and publication Of the Gospels. How
ever this may be, there need be no hesitation
in entertaining his criticisms of the literary
style of the Gospel He finds it wordy aud
inflated, unreal and obscure. =" The
author does not narrnto; he demon
trates." Nothing can be more fatig-
uing than thoco long accounts of mir
acles, and those discussions turning on
misapprehensions, in which the adyersaries
of JESUS play the part of idiots. "A1oreover,
the composition is often mystical. It resem-
b1es the controversies of the ancient Greek
philosophists, which revolye about definitions
in endless mazes; or tho disputes of the
nominaliets, idealists, and realists, which arc
the essence of pure philosophy, and the
source Of everlasting and fruitlcss specula-
ton. Hence arose the doctrine of Gnosti-
cis1n, and the division Of the personality of
JESUS. Many already spoke of the eou
CHR1s1os as of being distinct from the
man named JESUS. 1t became imperative to
oppose to this a tangible Word, and this
was what the new Gospel did" The life of
JESUS as told by JOHN consequently differs
in the gravest manner from the one mar
rated in the writings of Al4Rx, LUXE, and
MATTHEW. The author makes the discourses
OF JESUS formal, and deprives them of
apocalyptic utterances He is obliged to
take refuge in metaphysics. ss This false
position produces at length a fatiguing i'm
preston, and one ends by finding that the Jews
we're e1cusable for not having apprehended
new mysteries presented to them in so OBJ
'cure manner In the Gospel Of JoHS,
JESUS "argues to demonstrate His divinity"
Il One feels that the authors aim is not to re-
port words that we're actually spoken, but to
give authority to his favorite ideas by placing
hem IN the mouth of the Divine Master"
RESAN describes this Gospel in two words |
Is '' metaphysical drama. It was peculiar
, style Of writing which recommended it.
elf to the Greeks. The fresh charm of |
he Galilean Idyl, lit by the sun of the King
LON of GoD, was little appreciated By the
rue Hellenes They necessarily preferred
1ospel where the dream was transported in
the sphere Of distractions, and where the
'eilef In the approaching end of the world
Fas suppressed" judaism is forgotten,
ondemned the Jews are wicked men, enc
nes OF the truth. The author will no long |.