Reader’s Guide: “The Word for Today” Saturday, February 22, 2014 Read John 7:53-8:11 If we look forward in John’s gospel we make an interesting discovery. The conversation that we have been following in chapter 7 continues in chapter 8:12. It is apparent that this is the same conversation. The same themes are addressed and the context is the Feast of Booths. We can be nearly certain that the episode in John 7:53-8:11 has been inserted into the story that flows from chapter 7:52 into chapter 8:12. In fact the episode related in John 7:53-8:11 is not found in any of the oldest manuscripts of John’s gospel. Only relatively late manuscripts contain this episode. Some of them insert this story after John 7:36. Still others insert the story at the very end of John’s gospel following John 21:25. And still others insert the story into Luke’s gospel following Luke 21:38. All of this makes us certain that this story was not part of John’s original gospel even in its final form. That does not mean that we should ignore this story. It does mean that it will contribute nothing to our understanding of John’s gospel itself, but the story is in the Bible as we have it today and thus it is God’s Word. We simply need to interpret it on its own. It is an independent tradition not attached to any gospel. Two questions need to be addressed. The first is, “Why would some later scribe, probably a century or so after John’s gospel had been in circulation, insert this story here? Why did others insert the story where they did? How did this story get associated with Luke’s gospel?” All these questions are impossible to answer with any degree of certainty. To attempt to answer these questions would be to enter into pure speculation. We will just need to live without answers. The second question is to think about the meaning of this story. The story itself fits rather nicely with the other controversy stories we find in the synoptic gospels which take place in the final week of Jesus’ ministry in Jerusalem – the Temple Controversy story. This story sounds like one of them. So that context will be helpful in interpreting this story. The religious leaders are attempting to trap Jesus. John never uses this language in the speaking about the relationship between Jesus and the religious leaders. The synoptic gospels do. This is one more reason why we should think of this story as not belonging to John. That’s probably why at least one scribe attached the story to Luke’s gospel at the end of the Temple Controversy stories in Luke. The religious authorities are seeking to trap Jesus and they think perhaps they have the perfect test case. A woman has been caught in the very act of adultery and the penalty according to the OT is that she should be stoned to death. In a way typical of the synoptic gospels controversy stories Jesus is placed in a dilemma. Either Jesus will condemn her to death and thus implicate himself in the same injustice that now reigns among the religious leaders. Or Jesus will release her which would be to go against the Law. We have noticed in the synoptic gospels how Jesus cleverly avoids the traps of his opponents – most often doing so with questions. Here Jesus also avoids the trap. In the presence of those who would trap him he gives no answer. Instead he engages in an act that has escaped interpreters. Jesus writes something in the sand. What Jesus writes is never revealed. To think that we can figure out what Jesus wrote is to move into pure speculation. Once Jesus has written in the sand he invites those who were seeking to trap him to cast the first stone at the woman. None do. In fact the all slink away. Jesus is left with the woman and now we do get Jesus’ answer – he releases her. This story presents us with a whole host of important questions. First of all, given the nature of the relationship between men and women at that time, we are left wondering just how responsible this woman was. Men owned women. Men were in control. Was this woman a willing participant in the adultery or not? We tend to view her negatively, but should we? Perhaps she was a victim. Even in our own time women tend to be blamed for bad and abusive behavior on the part of men. “She had it coming. She led him on.” Excuses like that abound. We can’t be sure this woman is as guilty as we likely imagine. Second, where is the man? Why is the man not held responsible? When we begin to think about it there is a dark element to this story that exposes the injustice of that time – and ours. There is good reason why Jesus released this woman. Jesus chose not to participate in the injustice of the situation. This little story is important because it confronts both our own expectations and those of that time. Most of the time “cut and dried” answers are insufficient. While the story does not belong to John’s gospel we can be thankful that it was preserved. Why and how this piece of ancient tradition was preserved and eventually inserted into an “accepted” gospel is a fascinating example of the way in which many of the traditions were maintained. God saw a use for this little story and so we have it in our Bible.