The Gospel of John (Sacra Pagina Series, Volume 4) [Hardcover]

Francis J. Moloney (Author), Donald P. Senior (Author), Daniel J., S.J. Harrington (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1998

No other book of the New Testament has attracted as much attention from commentators as the Fourth Gospel. It has stirred minds, hearts, and imaginations from Christianity's earliest days. In The Gospel of John, Fr. Francis Moloney unfolds the identifiable "point of view" of this unique Gospel narrative and offers readers, heirs to its rich and widely varied interpretative traditions, relevance for their lives today. The Gospel of John's significance for Christianity has been obvious from the time of Irenaeus. It was also fundamental in the emergence of Christian theology, especially in the trinitarian and christological debates that produced the great ecumenical Councils, from Nicaea to Chalcedon. What sets this scholarly commentary on the Fourth Gospel apart from others is Moloney's particular attention to the narrative design of the Gospel story. He traces the impact the Johannine form of the Jesus story has made on readers and explicates the way in which the author has told the story of Jesus. Through this he demonstrates how the Gospel story articulates a coherent theology, christology, and ecclesiology.   Sacra Pagina is a multi-volume Catholic commentary on the books of the New Testament. The expression "Sacra Pagina" ("Sacred Page") originally referred to the text of Scripture. In the Middle Ages it also described the study of Scripture to which the interpreter brought the tools of grammar, rhetoric, dialectic, and philosophy. This series presents fresh translations and modern expositions of all the books of the New Testament. Written by an international team of respected Catholic biblical scholars, it is intended for biblical professionals, graduate students, theologians, clergy, and religious educators. The volumes present basic introductory information and close exposition, with each author adopting a specific methodology while maintaining a focus on the issues raised by the New

Product Details

• Hardcover: 616 pages
• Publisher: Liturgical Press (April 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814658067
• ISBN-13: 978-0814658062
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

88 of 91 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Masterful commentary on John's Gospel, April 16, 1998

By 

Kevin (Belmont, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel of John (Sacra Pagina Series, Volume 4) (Hardcover)

Australia's leading Catholic biblical scholar, Francis Moloney, is the latest contributor to Liturgical Press' acclaimed series of New Testament commentaries, `Sacra Pagina'. The series is being written by an international team of Catholic biblical scholars under the general editorship of Daniel J. Harrington SJ.

Fr Moloney's contribution is the commentary on the Gospel of John, a subject on which he is a world authority. His expert publications on John range from the `Johannine Theology' article in `The New Jerome Biblical Commentary' through to an innovative three-volume scholarly commentary on the Gospel of John being published by Fortress Press.

Which begs the question, why do we need another commentary on John from Professor Moloney? The answer lies in the distinctive approach adopted by the `Sacra Pagina' series.

Produced with the needs of clergy, preachers, biblical professionals, graduate students, theologians, and religious educators in mind, the volumes present detailed, substantial exposition of the biblical texts, based on the best of modern Catholic scholarship while not bogging the reader down in the minutia of academic debates and references.

Moloney's volume is indicative of the well-structured nature of the books in the series. It begins with an introductory chapter that concisely examines general matters such as the Gospel's authorship and structure, as well as its theological contribution and contemporary significance.

The body of the commentary follows, the text broken down into major sections and subsections, according to the perceived intention of John's author. For each section, the book begins by presenting the text of John under consideration in English translation (Moloney uses the RSV with some alterations, including inclusive language; some other volumes have original translations). This is followed by the `Interpretation', which is the core commentary, and in turn by the `Notes'. The latter are where one finds the arguments for the particular positions adopted in the commentary, as well as presentations and evaluations of alternative points of view. Each section ends with a list of references and suggested further reading.

The beauty of this approach is that readers can easily access the level of commentary that they wish or require. Indexes of scripture texts, other ancient writings, and authors are also included.

Moloney's distinctive approach is to focus on the narrative design of John, aiming to trace the impact the Johannine form of the Jesus story makes on a reader, which brings its readers to a point of decision.

As with the other `Sacra Pagina' volumes, the intention is to present the best of Catholic biblical scholarship, but also never to lose sight of the faith context, to continue to see the scripture as `sacred page'.

Francis Moloney SDB is Foundation Professor of Theology at Australian Catholic University and was recently reappointed by Pope John Paul II to the International Theological Commission for a third five-year term, making him one of the commission's longest-serving members. [Book of the Month Selection, John Garratt Catholic Book Club.]

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Volume in the SACRA PAGINA series, March 9, 2005

By 

Timothy Kearney (Haverhill, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel of John (Sacra Pagina Series, Volume 4) (Hardcover)

Many people have discovered the SACRA PAGINA commentaries and find these volumes both thorough and accessible for use. The volumes include an introduction to the overall work. The work itself is then exegeted. The author usually presents his/her own translation, an overall summary, and a line by line commentary. An extensive bibliography is included after each section which makes it ideal for students. Its ease of use makes it a valuable tool for preaching. Francis Moloney's commentary of John follows the same format as the other volumes in this series. It also follows the series reputation for excellence.

Moloney's approach to John's Gospel somewhat rejects what has commonly been believed about John's Gospel. Because so many of the stories seem somewhat disparate, it had been believed that the gospel was a collection of unrelated stories about Jesus. Moloney refutes this claim and sees John's Gospel as having a narrative unity and the stories and conflicts of the gospel reflect the concerns of the Johannine community. Therefore it is important to read his introduction prior to using this commentary. In the introduction includes what a reader should expect. He discusses the pertinent information about Johannine literature as well the controversies surrounding the author of this Gospel (Was the "Beloved Disciple" actually the Apostle John?) and information about the Johannine community. He also devotes some time to the use of the way in which the gospel's author uses the term "the Jews" and discusses the importance of sensitivity in using this work, something especially important as far as Jewish Christian relations would be concerned.

People who select this commentary will have to spend some time getting accustomed to it. It is organized in an orderly manner, but unlike other SACRA PAGINA commentaries, particularly Luke Timothy Johnson's volume on Luke and Daniel J. Harrington's commentary on Matthew, John's Gospel is less straightforward which requires a different approach in studying. Moloney's central themes resurface throughout the work so being familiar with his perspective is important. When Moloney's point of view is understood, readers discover one of the bets commentaries on John's Gospel available, and certainly the one of the finest Catholic commentaries that is both true to the gospel and offers a pastoral perspective as well.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Catholic Commentary - Tough Field, February 17, 2009

By 

Reader From Aurora - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gospel of John (Sacra Pagina (Quality Paper)) (Paperback)

Francis Moloney's `The Gospel of John' is an installment in the recent Sacra Pagina series of Catholic biblical commentaries. This series seeks to combine modern critical analysis with Catholic tradition.

With respect to strengths, Moloney is a well-known Australian scholar and his writing is of a high academic quality. The book's layout is also helpful; small sections of text, followed by analysis, end-notes and finally recommendations for further reading. Though my preference is have notes at page bottom (to minimize flipping back and forth), given the book's structure the end-note approach is effective.

While I enjoyed the text, Moloney's tone and style were distracting at times. On the issue of style, it is a perennially difficult task to strike the right balance between readability and academic rigor in biblical commentaries. That said, however, the text has a choppy feel, characterized by excessive references, sub-divisions and outlines. While with regard to tone, many of Moloney's assertions strike me as too definitive. For example, in analyzing John 11:33 he states that Jesus' emotion (tears) is a result of anger - while this is possible, it has often been interpreted as a more nuanced combination of frustration and empathy. The point is not that Moloney's assessments are wrong - in fact, I think he is correct in much of his analysis - it is rather that they are too bold.

Overall this is a solid commentary. Perhaps the biggest challenge it faces in getting an audience is the tremendous amount of outstanding Gospel of John commentaries that are available. For readers interested in this subject, I recommend Brown (Catholic) or Carson (Reformed).