Johannine literature is the collection of
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
works that are traditionally attributed to
John the Apostle
John the Apostle ( grc, Ἰωάννης; la, Ioannes ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ;) or Saint John the Beloved was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Generally listed as the youngest apostle, he was the son of Zebedee a ...
,
John the Evangelist
John the Evangelist ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης, Iōánnēs; Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ; ar, يوحنا الإنجيلي, la, Ioannes, he, יוחנן cop, ⲓⲱⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ or ⲓⲱ̅ⲁ) is the name traditionally given t ...
, or to the
Johannine community
The term Johannine community refers to an ancient Christian community which placed great emphasis on the teachings of Jesus and his apostle John.
Their particular Christian practices, rituals, and theology may be referred to as Johannine Christ ...
. They are usually dated to the period , with a minority of scholars such as
John AT Robinson offering the earliest of these datings.
List
![St](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/St._John_the_Evangelist_%28Rabbula_Gospels%29.png)
Johannine literature is traditionally considered to include the following works:
* The
Gospel of John
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...
* The
Johannine epistles
The Johannine epistles, the Epistles of John, or the Letters of John are three of the catholic epistles of the New Testament, thought to have been written between 85 and 100 AD. Most scholars agree that all three letters are written by the same ...
** The
First Epistle of John
The First Epistle of John is the first of the Johannine epistles of the New Testament, and the fourth of the catholic epistles. There is no scholarly consensus as to the authorship of the Johannine works. The author of the First Epistle is te ...
** The
Second Epistle of John
The Second Epistle of John is a book of the New Testament attributed to John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the author of the other two epistles of John, and the Gospel of John (though this is disputed). Most modern scholars believ ...
** The
Third Epistle of John
* The
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...
Authorship
Of these five books, the only one that explicitly
identifies its author as a "John" is Revelation. Modern scholarship generally rejects the idea that this work is written by the same author as the other four documents. The gospel identifies its author as the
disciple whom Jesus loved
The phrase "the disciple whom Jesus loved" ( grc, ὁ μαθητὴς ὃν ἠγάπα ὁ Ἰησοῦς, ho mathētēs hon ēgapā ho Iēsous, label=none) or, in John 20:2; "the other disciple whom Jesus loved" ( grc, τὸν ἄλλον μα ...
, commonly identified with
John the Evangelist
John the Evangelist ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης, Iōánnēs; Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ; ar, يوحنا الإنجيلي, la, Ioannes, he, יוחנן cop, ⲓⲱⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ or ⲓⲱ̅ⲁ) is the name traditionally given t ...
since the end of the first century.
[Eusebius of Caesarea, ''Ecclesiastical History'' Book iii. Chapter xxiii.]
Scholars have debated the
authorship of Johannine literature (the Gospel of John, Epistles of John, and the Book of Revelation) since at least the third century, but especially since the
Enlightenment. The authorship by
John the Apostle
John the Apostle ( grc, Ἰωάννης; la, Ioannes ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ;) or Saint John the Beloved was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. Generally listed as the youngest apostle, he was the son of Zebedee a ...
is rejected by many modern scholars.
See also
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Apocryphon of John
The ''Apocryphon of John'', also called the ''Secret Book of John'' or the ''Secret Revelation of John'', is a 2nd-century Sethianism, Sethian gnosticism, Gnostic Christian pseudepigrapha, pseudographical text attributed to John the Apostle ...
*
Second Apocalypse of John
The ''Second Apocalypse of John''The conventional title is from , but prefers ''Apocryphal Apocalypse of John'', used ''First Apocryphal Apocalypse of John'' and gives ''Apocalypse of Saint John the Theologian''. is a pseudographical Greek ...
References
Sources
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Bibliography
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*Bellinzoni, Arthur J. (25 February 2000)
''The Early Christian Community: From Diversity to Unity to Orthodoxy'' Lecture delivered to the
Wells College
Wells College is a private liberal arts college in Aurora, New York. The college has cross-enrollment with Cornell University and Ithaca College. For much of its history it was a women's college.
Wells College is located in the Finger Lakes reg ...
Faculty Club.
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{{Gospel of John, state=expanded
1st-century Christianity
2nd-century Christianity
Biblical criticism
New Testament content