“No Longer in the World” (John 17:11): The Transformation of the Tragic in the Fourth Gospel

Extract

Ancient gospels, canonical and noncanonical, present the resurrection of Jesus with varying degrees of thoroughness and detail. While the Gospel of Peter vividly describes the actual moment that Jesus rises (9.34–10.45), the Gospel of Mark excludes even a postresurrection appearance of Jesus—ifthe common opinion is correct that Mark ends at 16:8. Luke, by contrast, so fully documents Jesus' postresurrection activity that the events extend into the book of Acts. The Gospel of John distinguishes itself from the others as well, not only by uniquely depicting Jesus' postresurrection appearances, but also by portraying Jesus as the resurrected one prior to the crucifixion. Even before he meets Pilate, Jesus proclaims, “I have overcome the world” (16:33). And even before he ascends the cross, Jesus has ascended to the Father and announces, “I am no longer in the world” (17:11). This feature ofthe Fourth Gospel has received various historical, literary, and theological interpretations. The following paper will offer a literary interpretation based ona comparison of the Gospel of John with Greek tragedy. The argument will proceed in two phases, first demonstrating basic connections with the tragic evidence,and then exploring how the Fourth Gospel twists tragic techniques to its own purposes.