The Gospel of John and the Religious Quest: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives

The Gospel of John and the Religious Quest argues that at its origin the Fourth Gospel was part of a dialogue with various religious traditions, and that to this day it is being used in active dialogue with those who live in traditions other than the Christian.

In the first part of the book, Johannes Nissen analyzes a number of texts selected both for their central importance to John's theology and for their special relevance in today's religious quests and encounters. These texts focus on John's images of Life--water, bread, light, way, and tree--but also treat concepts that are crucial to the Fourth Gospel--Word, Truth, and Love.

In the second part, Nissen focuses on significant issues for current readers of the Gospel: the relation between incarnation and inculturation; models for dialogue with other religions; images of Christ; truth and love as criteria for dialogue; and the experience of faith in the light of the Fourth Gospel.