The statement that best signifies the recent monograph by Andrew J. Byers is, “For the fourth evangelist, there is neither a Christless church nor a churchless Christ” (book jacket, front matter, preface [xiii], and introduction [14]). It's a good line, and aptly punctuates both the essence of Byers’ project as well as his contribution to the scholarly discussion of the Johannine literature. Although it is the product of Byers’ doctoral work under the direction of Francis Watson at Durham, this is not his first monograph, which he shows in the general readability that shines through careful exegesis and discussion of scholarly trends.
After the introduction, which lays out the “Johannine vision of community,” the volume is divided into three parts, exploring (1) the “narrative ecclesiology of the Prologue” (four chapters); (2) the “narrative ecclesiology of the Shema” (two chapters); and (3) “John's narrative ecclesiology of participation and deification” (four chapters), followed by a concluding synthesis. As this structure suggests, Byers understands the Prologue as the gateway into the Gospel through which the evangelist introduces his essential theology, Christology, and, Byers submits, ecclesiology.
In part 1, Byers studies the Prologue (1:1-18) from different angles to support the overarching claim that it serves as much as an introduction to Johannine ecclesiology as to theology and Christology (27). Chapter 2 draws out a dyadic theology that is both unity and plurality and culminates in laying the foundation for a participatory ecclesiology. Chapter 3 explores the Prologue's presentation of divine-human filiation by way of disambiguation and intercalation that allows for paired “becomings” and integration of the Incarnation with the re-formation of God's people. Chapter 4 focuses on the ecclesial function of John the Baptist, while Chapter 5 shows how the “ecclesial narrative script” set forth in the Prologue plays out across the Gospel, with attention to John 8–10.
In part 2, Byers offers a reinterpretation of the ubiquitous “oneness” motif of the Fourth Gospel. He argues that the Johannine understanding of “oneness” develops primarily, though not exclusively, through midrash of the “Great Shema” of Deuteronomy 6:4-9 alongside the messianic and national hopes of Ezekiel 34 and 37 (105). Chapter 6 focuses on the groundwork for this argument through a review of both the scholarly discussion and the role of the Shema in first-century Judaism. He concludes that “Christology compels theological as well as ecclesial innovation” and John found just such utility in the Shema (127). Chapter 7 transfers this argument to a closer study of the Gospel, homing in, once again, on John 8–11, but finding the climax of the “oneness” motif in John 17. Here is where Byers sees the interplay of the Shema with Ezekiel 34 and 37, producing a “high ecclesiology” whereby the possibility of this new community enjoying an integrated divine status is introduced (152).
Part 3 culminates Byers’ particular contribution of theosis as central to John's narrative ecclesiology. He claims that across the Gospel there is an ecclesiological move from association to participation—“that they may be one as we are one” (17:11)—so that it is “worthy of the term ‘deification’” (155). Chapter 8 introduces the notion of the Fourth Gospel as background to later patristic developments of theosis, while Chapter 9 turns to the nature of Johannine theosis as Jewish, narrative, and communal, and, thus, fundamental to its ecclesiology. Chapter 10 returns to the “ecclesial narrative script” to explore the role of deification in Johannine characterization through encounters with Jesus as the “I AM.” Chapter 11 brings in the Spirit-Paraclete to establish both an ultimately triadic theology as well as a character who “divinizes beyond the narrative” (224) and points to developing ecclesiology.
Typical “dissertation hangover” is found in this monograph, including repetition and occasional strong focus on “the state of the question” such that the author's own constructive argument gets a bit lost. That said, the synthesis provided in the conclusion solidifies that Byers’ unfolding of John's narrative ecclesiology coupled with his supposition of “theosis” as fundamental to the goal of Christ's church further develop paths for understanding both the Fourth Evangelist's initial purposes and his lasting impact.
