{"product_id":"the-gospel-of-john-hugo-mndez-9780197686126","title":"The Gospel of John: A New History","description":"The biblical Gospel of John casts itself as a memoir of \"the disciple whom Jesus loved\"--a mysterious figure who allegedly watched Jesus die on the cross and stepped in his empty tomb. But in this engaging and groundbreaking study, Hugo M?ndez argues that the text is something else: a gospel written by a single disguised author that pioneered an entire library of falsely authored works in its wake. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe author of John believed that Jesus was a divine being who came to earth to transform humans into divine beings. To encourage others to embrace this startling vision, that author composed a Gospel rich with invented materials-one in which Jesus communicates the author's views through so many cryptic dialogues and symbolic gestures meant for readers to decipher. And to make this revisionary portrait of Jesus plausible, the author disguised his identity, attributing his Gospel to an invented, shadowy disciple gifted with supernatural insight and able to retrieve lost memories of Jesus. In this respect, the Gospel of John is comparable to the so-called apocryphal gospels produced in the second century--works such as the\u003cem\u003e Gospel of Thomas \u003c\/em\u003eand the \u003cem\u003eGospel of Judas.\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCritically, M?ndez also argues that the invention of this eyewitness was not a self-contained event, but the genesis of a new and vibrant literary tradition. As the enigmatic disciple of the Gospel was folded into the same collective memory as Peter and Paul, his identity became a viable mask for other authors with different motivations. And in time, many such writers--among them, the authors of 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Revelation, the \u003cem\u003eApocryphon of John\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem\u003eEpistula Apostolorum\u003c\/em\u003e-co-opted this invented eyewitness, repurposing him for new agendas and weaving countless new afterlives for him. \u003cem\u003eThe Gospel of John: A New History\u003c\/em\u003e traces this arc, showing how a single act of disguised authorship inspired a rich literary tradition and dramatically shaped twenty centuries of Christian culture.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Hugo M?ndez\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0197686125\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780197686126\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 07\/23\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover","brand":"Hugo M?ndez","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":46867272040703,"sku":"9780197686126","price":34.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_72d76eba-bafc-4696-bca2-02e538464546.jpg?v=1747454337","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-gospel-of-john-hugo-mndez-9780197686126","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}