Jesus As Witnessed By the Disciple He Loved: A commentary on the gospel of John, by Alan Asay

Author: Alan Asay. Review by Joanna Godfrey Wood.

The gospel of John has often been called the ‘Quaker gospel’, mainly, perhaps, because of its many references to light, which chime with much Quaker theological conversation today. Early Quakers were greatly inspired by this gospel, and it gives each new generation of Friends much food for thought. Alan Asay, who as a young man changed his field of study from New Testament Greek to the law, promised himself that he would one day return to John’s writing. Fifty years later, ‘It is as wonderful as I remembered’, he tells us.

The book uses the work of the Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung to motivate us to look inward as well as outward, as Jung suggests – something we also see in the way of George Fox. Alan helps us, in our reading of John, to enhance our understanding of these things and have a richer experience of biblical writing generally.

It is a wonderful book, in which the author invites us, as a group of the ‘willing’, to explore the gospel with him. Several other thinkers are referenced along with Carl Jung, and Alan makes good use of his own experience of Quakerism. What an adventure it is! Alan works diligently through the gospel, translating directly from the Greek, so that we get his personal version and vision. All this serves to give the gospel of John a fresh pair of eyes, and new possibilities.

Alan explains the stories, words and phrases that the gospel contains, along with the different interpretations of them. Bit by bit, gradually, he picks the gospel apart. It is fascinating, for example, to see that the gospel writer himself – ‘the disciple Jesus loved’ – uses terms that Alan calls ‘bellringer’ words, such as ‘father’ and ‘truth’. These are repeated over and over again, he says, building up a sort of poetic effect. We may not necessarily understand such words and phrases by ‘thinking’, but instead intuit their meaning over time, meditatively, without necessarily being conscious of the process.

Other important sources, particularly Alan’s ‘gentle Friend Isaac Penington’, are also highlighted, nudging us towards differences of opinion and translation. It is interesting that Jung had very little contact with modern Quakers and did not necessarily know of Penington’s writings, even though their ideas seem to coincide time and again, harmonising and adding new Light perfectly. Alan provides a useful section on the writer’s ‘key words’ at the back of the book.

He offers his work under such headings as ‘Meaning and resonance’ and ‘Reflection’. These offer us a myriad of fascinating, thought-provoking discussion points. You don’t have to be a theologian, a Jungian expert or an experienced Friend to gain great things from this offering. Everything is clearly explained in accessible language – though it is certainly quite a lot to get one’s head around in places. As we move through the book, however, Alan reassuringly encourages us to ‘stare into space’ and think about our own interpretations (‘what canst thou say?’), either individually or as participants in study groups.

So Alan writes in a very friendly, accessible manner, and he holds us tenderly as we make our tentative explorations with him, as he makes many enlightened suggestions along the way. It’s an academic book, but one need not be an academic to appreciate it. Those of us who may just want to gradually acquaint ourselves with these ideas will find much on offer.

The explanation of Jung’s archetype of ‘God’ is particularly helpful, as is the reminder of early Quaker findings about the Light. In his foreword, Murray Stein reminds us that the figure of Christ, who John called the light, ‘is a symbol, and symbols express something largely unconscious and in need of further elaboration in consciousness’. Alan suggests, following the good advice of George Fox, that we might try to elaborate and understand these symbols – and hence the Bible itself – while guided by Spirit, rather than the intellect alone.

Perhaps for some readers, this book will be a first dip of the toes in the waters of the gospel of John, or even the Bible, or even of Quakerism, and the author gives several valuable tips as to how this might be done. Again he reminds us that we can read with an intuitive eye, rather than a scholarly one. This, he says, is a well-practised approach, beloved by Friends, and to be heartily recommended. In a group of seekers – and as one reads this, one becomes part of that group – the richness afforded in an atmosphere of trust can bring out insightful findings to share with each other, so that we can open our souls towards God (or should I say ‘the God archetype’?).

Alongside the sense of building up a gradual understanding, however, there are some heart-stopping thoughts and musings. Take for example this phrase from the first chapter of John: ‘receive from his fullness grace in return for grace’ (1:16). Here, Alan discovers ‘an opening into the darkness and the numinous shines out from it as if responding to the light (consciousness) passing through the opening’. Such richness makes it well worth the effort of spending slow time with this book and it offers many such rewards for the careful reader.

One excerpt that caught my eye was the reflection on ‘Glorify your name’ (12:27). This section looks into the phenomenon of numinous experiences. Here, Alan talks touchingly about his memory of a relative trying to summon up a ‘spiritual’ experience for a group of teenagers. He pinpoints the very thing that makes this experience impossible – trying to force a spiritual experience into existence. Such a vivid illustration makes the idea come alive in a very real way. I found the whole concept very easy to relate to – though of course our experiences of ‘helpful’ adults, and examples of the numinous, will be different for each of us.

This book will serve as an invaluable guide for all those wanting to get to grips with the various meanings and interpretations of the gospel of John. It takes on board the work of Jung, Penington and others – and, as you’d expect, all with a Quaker slant. It is suitable for experienced Friends as well as those new to our tradition, but also for all seekers. It is a very welcome addition to the body of work on the gospel, useful for anyone committed to seeking in the Light. And it is very ‘now’, aligning with modern religious thinking, Quaker and otherwise.

As one Friend at the recent book launch in Friends House said, this work is indeed ‘a commentary for our time’.

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Comments

Another excellent Quaker book on the Gospel of John is David Johnson’s ‘Jesus, Christ and Servant of God’ (2017; Inner Light Books).

By markrdibben@gmail.com on 4th April 2024 - 9:14

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