Aproximacions sociològiques a l'estudi de la comunitat de l'evangeli de Joan

A sociological approach to the Gospel of John arose from the historical studies,bringing with it terms such as ‘sect’ and ‘anti-language’ to characterize the socialgroup that made up the Community of John and his language that was differentfrom that of the Synoptics. Synchronic literary methods have had an impact onsociological exegesis and raise doubts about the historiographical reconstructionsthat speak, for example, about ‘sect’ or ‘anti-language’, and even about a communitybehind the text, preferring to speak about interpretative communities interactingwith the text. Furthermore, studies in the theory of reception demonstrate theimportance of the sociological context of the interpreter for understanding theirconclusions. The chief tension is still between historico-critical interpretations onthe one hand and literary ones on the other. Synchronic methodologies have helpedto attenuate the classical historico-critical positions while retaining some of theirmore important discoveries, such as the need to speak of a community behind atext, the usefulness of having a two-level of reading certain passages (J. L. Martyn),and the traumatic event of the expulsion from the Synagogue which influences thelanguage and theology of the Fourth Gospel.