Messages 2007
John comments on his Gospel and his childhood.
January 17th, 2007
Santa Cruz, California
Received by FAB
I am here, John.
You have the thought, if I was just a lowly fisherman, how could I have written a Gospel?
Well, as you well know, Jews have always placed much importance on education, and so, I was educated in reading and writing as a child, and I was able to study, to a limited extent, some of the writings that eventually became the Bible, that is, the Old Testament.
I did not begin my Gospel with “In the beginning was the Word,” at least in the sense in which it has been interpreted. I did say that God was in the beginning. The “Word,” or “Logos” in Greek, acquired an interpretation in harmony with Greek thought, but not being Greek, and therefore not being acquainted with Greek thought, I in no way gave this interpretation.
As you have learned, my original Gospel got lost, and much was added and taken away.
How could people interpret my Gospel in relation to Greek culture, when that culture was alien to me? No, my Gospel was written in the context of Jewish culture, the only culture I was acquainted with.