Introduction

Abstract

Abstract The introduction explores the various methodological problems involved in studying the Gospel of John and the idea of Incarnation, and introduces the various readers of the Gospel engaged in this study: early Christian writers (the ‘School of John’ as they were called by J.B. Lightfoot), modern exegetes, and Michel Henry. The methodological issues are addressed by way of Quentin Skinner’s ‘mythology of doctrine’, Hans-Georg Gadamer’s ‘effective history’, and Herbert McCabe’s questioning of the coherence of the idea of ‘pre-existence’ as it relates to ‘incarnation’. Of particular concern is the way in which systematic theological reflection has become detached from the exegetical practices in which theology developed, to be combined with a very different practice of reading Scripture, resulting in a loss of coherence and a different understanding of key ideas, such as Incarnation and the Passion (meaning the Crucifixion and Resurrection) and the relationship between them. Finally, the introduction argues for the need to bring together the different readers engaged in this volume so as to undertake the task of theology.