The sun., 1883-10-28


| and who In tho authors eyes Is indistinguish.
able from the malefccnt errors Of Docetism is in
| very truth. hardly dstinguishablef from himself.
| How manv times. indeed we curse ourselves
| in tho curses we launch at othersl Tho per.
| sonnity OF Jesus had become. Ia the bosom OF
| his Church. the subject OF fiery controversies.
| On the sido 1t was impossible tn
| resist tho torrent which swept everybody
| toward tho bodest hyperboes concerning the
| divinity Of the founder; on the other hand 1t
| was matter OF great import to uphold tie hui
man character Of Jesus. and to withstand tho
tendency which drew great many Christians
toward the sickly idealism out OF which Gnos,i-
| cism was presently to spring. Some talked
| about the .Eon Christos rs il it woro dis
| tinct being from the man called Jesus.
| with whom 1t had been associated for
q certain period. but whom It had aban-
doned at the moment OF the cruci.
flxion. That was what Ccrinthus had said.
| that was what Basilidos was already affirming.
| To this 1t was Indispensable to oppose tanGi-
| BILE Word. and this was what the new Gospel
| did. The Jesus whom 1t breaches is. from GER
tain points Of view. more historical than tho
| Jesus OF other evanGelists. and nevertheless
| he Is a metaphysical archetype. pure conccp-
tion OF transcendental theosophy. Our artistic
sense Is shocked at such combination: but
| theology has not the same requirements
| as aesthetics. The Christian conscience which
| so often during the preceding century had bent
| it's wings in trouble concerning the idea thnt it
ought to form Of Jesus. had found at last Its point
| OF rest. In the beginning was tho Word. and
| the Word was with God. and the Word was God.
| The same was in the beginning with God. All
things were made by Him. and without Him
| was not anything made that was nnde. In
Him was life. and the iiew the light OF man;
and the light shineth in darkness. and the dark
ness comprehendedi it not"
| There was a man sent from God whose
| name was Ohm. The same came for u witness
| to bear witness of the light that nil men through
| him might believe. He was not that light. but
was sent to bear witness OF that light"
Now. at that time came into the world the
true light which liGhteth every man. The Word
was in the world (the world which was made by
| Iiim), and the world knew Him not. Ile came
| unto His own. and His own received Him not;
but as many as received Him. to them gave lie
| power to become the sons of God-to them.
that is to say. who believe on HIS name. which
| were born not OF the blood nor Of the will of
| the flesh. but of God"
And the Word was made flesh and dwolt
among us land we beheld His glory. the glory
as of the only begotten OF the Father full OF
grace and TRUTH
What follows is no less astonishing. Wehave
before us q life OF Jesus which diyerges in the
sharpest way from that which is recounted in
| the writings of Mark. OF Luke and of tho
pseudo Matthew. 1t is evident that these three
| Gospels and the others of Il like general
tenor were little known in the Roman province
OF Asia. or at all events possessed but little
| authority there John. when alive. had doubt
| less been accustomed 10 narrate tho life OF
Jesus upon a plan altogether different from the
narrow Galilenn framework which the tradi-
tionists of Batanea had fashioned and
which served as pattern to those that
came after them. He knew that large
part of the active work of Jesus had been per.
formed at Jerusalem: he was familiar with
persons and with details that the first bogra-
piers knew nothing Of. or had neglected. As
to the sayings OF Jesus which had been
| handed down in the Galilean tradition. the
Church at Ephesus. if it were acquainted with
| them at all. let them sink into species OF OBJ
livion. In conformity with the spirit of their
time. men no more hesi,Hted to lend to Jesus
utterances destined 10 found this or that doc
trine. than the authors Of tho Thora and tho
old prophets in general scruped to make God
speuk tho language of their own passions.
Thus came into being the fourth Gospel. n
writing OF no value II our object is to learn how
Jesus talked. but superior to the Synoptic Cos.
pels in respect of tho arrangement Of the
facts. The sojournings OF Jesus Mt Je-
rusnlem; the institution Of the Eucharist
which. according to our author. resulted
junction pronounced at a given moment: the
anticipated agony of Jesus. which is not re.
fcrred as it elsewhere is to the evening of the
day before his death; multitude of cir
cumstances relating to the Passion. to
1.-The resurrection. and to the Suviour's life
after lie was risen; certain other peculiarites
as. for instance. what relates to Cana. to the
Apostle Philip. to the brothers Of Jesus. AMI
the mention of Ciopns member Of Jesus's
mil OH l.,
John historical! superiority over Mark. ana
over the pseudo Matthew. 4 large part OF
these pecuiiarities may have come from the
recitals of tho Apostle John himself. which
We're treasured up in memory Others tool
their rise in n tradition that neither Mark mol
he who under tho name of Matthew CON.
pieted Marks version wcro acquainted with.
On several occasions. indeed where the pseudo.
John departs from the text Of the Synoptic mar
rative. it displays curious condolences with
Luke and with the Gospel according to the He-
brews. Moreover. certain features of thu
fourth Gospel nre encountered in Justin
and in the pseudo-Clemcntine romance.
though. for all that. neither Justin nor
the author Of tho romance seem to
nave known anything Of the fourth Gospel.
There was then outside OF the Synoptics,
collection of traditions and sayings really
made. and. SO to speak, floating in the air.
which are partially represented in the fourth
Gospel; and 20 treat this Gospel as n wholly
artificial composition. without any groundwork
| OF tradition whatsoever. is to msconceive its
character as seriously MS when We insist upou
/ regarding il rs n record made ut first hand
nn' original from tho beginning to the end.
That part ~ the fourth Cos pol which Is trul,
artificial and devoid Of traditional foundation
Is the discourses that put in the mouth o.
Jesus. Tho critic should place these dis
courses on tho snno footing as the dialogues ir
winch Socrates is made to figure by Plato
nhrr" hi" Two striking ON missiuns in dom
W" neither meet with single purnb" MR..
ing" hi'"rh.fpiic u'trrance without regnrhtc
q" ending nl ihe world and the coming ol ,Ip
Messiah. You perceive that the hopes of a
speedy thnhierclap in the clouds hnv" los,
| portion OF their vivacity. According tc
,he fourth Gospel. the true return Of Jesus after