Otherness and Identity in the Gospel of John

In this book, Sung Uk Lim examines the narrative construction of identity and otherness through ongoing interactions between Jesus and the so-called others as represented by the minor characters in the Gospel of John. This study reconfigures the otherness of the minor characters in order to reconstruct the identity of Jesus beyond the exclusive binary of identity and otherness. The recent trends in Johannine scholarship are deeply entrenched in a dialectical framework of inclusion and exclusion, perpetuating positive portrayals of Jesus and negative portrayals of the minor characters. Read in this light, Jesus is portrayed as a superior, omniscient, and omnipotent character, whereas minor characters are depicted as inferior, uncomprehending, and powerless. At the root of such portrayals lies the belief that the Johannine dualistic Weltanschauung warrants such a sharp differentiation between Jesus and the minor characters. Lim argues, to the contrary, that the multiple constructions of otherness deriving from the minor characters make Jesus’ identity vulnerable to a constant process of transformation. Consequently, John’s minor characters actually challenge and destabilize Johannine hierarchical dualism within a both/and framework.   

“Lim’s revised Vanderbilt dissertation reads the Fourth Gospel through the lens of postcolonial criticism. ... For those not invested in literary deconstruction and postcolonial criticism, Lim’s work may be challenging. But beyond the methodological questions and assumptions, there are important insights for all readers of the Gospel ... .” (Kent E. Brower, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, Vol. 45 (5), 2023)

“This book will appeal to and benefit readers interested in studies of character and characterization and postcolonial biblical readings of John’s Gospel. … L. is to be commended for this study, which aims to reclaim the suppressed voices of marginalized people in terms of gender, ethnicity, and religion. … Readers will appreciate L.’s articulation of and advocacy for an interpretative approach that can lead to respect, tolerance, and inclusion of difference in our increasingly globalized yet fragmented world.” (Vien V. Nguyen, The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, Vol. 84 (4), October, 2022)

“This volume brings to Johannine Studies an alternative reading, grounded in postcolonial studies, of the ideological framework as well as of character relations. Instead of the standard view of a dialectical framework signified by numerous oppositions, Lim advances a framework marked by ambiguity. Instead of the received view of characters as insiders or outsiders with respect to Jesus within this framework, Lim argues for a broad spectrum of positions within such ambiguity. The result is an approach to the Gospel in a different key, yielding a collapse of the traditional dialectical framework and the liberation of characters from their traditional encasement. This is a highly creative and highly sophisticated exercise, offering a view of the Gospel as a quite complex construction within the imperial-colonial framework of the Roman Empire.” (Fernando F. Segovia, Oberlin Graduate Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity, Vanderbilt University, USA)

 

 

“This is an insightful book. The author persuasively argues that minor characters in John such as Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman, and the mother of Jesus are by no means marginal figures but rather major characters who play a pivotal role in radically diminishing the power structures that sustained the Jewish and Roman authorities who dominated the Fourth Gospel. Anybody interested in postcolonial biblical criticism, Johannine writings, and minority hermeneutics will benefit enormously from this thoughtful work.” (R. S. Sugirtharajah, Emeritus Professor of Biblical Hermeneutics, University of Birmingham, UK)

 

 

“Framed by a compelling hermeneutics of otherness and a concluding call for the acceptance of others as part of the formation, performance, and transformation of the identity of the self, this sterling study proffers a sophisticated interpretive framework and a careful series of readings that reveal the major roles of the so-called minor characters in the Fourth Gospel. Anyone interested in reading John otherwise beyond the narrow binaries that prohibit a solidarity of differences will find this provocative study both compelling and irresistible.” (Abraham Smith, Professor of New Testament, Southern Methodist University, USA)

 

 

“How might the complexities of race/ethnicity in the Gospel of John be related to the complexities of race/ethnicity in contemporary cultures? Sung Uk Lim provides a theoretically sophisticated and exegetically resourceful model for connecting these temporally distant yet interconnected realities. This is a book I am eager to debate with my students.” (Stephen D. Moore, Edmund S. Janes Professor of New Testament Studies, Drew University, USA)

 

 

 

“Sung Uk Lim interprets John’s Jesus as a multi-faceted, hybrid character. Jesus is both colonized and colonizing, imperial and anti-imperial, included and excluded, with multiple racial-ethnic and political identities. This book is a welcome addition to Johannine studies in light of recent postcolonial and gender theories.” (Susan E. Hylen, Associate Professor of New Testament, Emory University, USA)

 

 

 

 

Sung Uk Lim is Assistant Professor of New Testament at the College of Theology and United Graduate School of Theology, Yonsei University, South Korea.