Jesus' farewell discourse, "otherness," and the construction of a Johannine identity

Abstract

This study explores the nexus between intertextuality and identity through an analysis of the Johannine letters. Jonathan Z. Smith's observations on "otherness" and identity provide the theoretical background for the claim that the construction of an "other" is an integral component in the process of self-definition: identity is forged through the establishment of binary formulae that highlight difference. The Johannine epistles create metonymical and topographical/cosmographical binarisms in order to distinguish certain "others" who no longer participate in community life. Moreover, the letters draw on the traditions contained in the Fourth Gospel's Farewell Discourse (13:31-17:26) in an attempt to establish a distinctive Johannine identity. Through this "rereading," the author both exhorts his audience to remain true to the group's formative teachings and attempts to heighten his own status by echoing the final words of Jesus.