Feed My Sheep: The Pastoral and Ecclesial Conclusion to John's Gospel (original) (raw)

he twenty-first chapter of the Gospel of John has been, and remains, controversial. For perhaps the majority of scholars, chapter 21 is seen as an appendix-either a secondary addition by the author or, more likely for most scholars, a later addition by a subsequent editor. 2 As an appendix, it is often treated with implicit quotation marks, suggesting also a secondary importance of its contents. But there is an increasing willingness to consider the unity of the entire gospel, and thus an openness to explore the role that chapter 21 plays in the larger proclamation of the "good news" of the fourth gospel. In this paper, I propose that chapter 21-in particular, Jesus's "feed my sheep" exchange with Peter (21.15-19)-is integrally connected to a number of Johannine themes, especially those developed in the Farewell Discourse section of chapters 13-17. With the dialogue in chapter 21, the evangelist emphasizes a crucial part of Jesus's ministry that is introduced but left somewhat hanging at the conclusion of the Farewell Discourse, namely, the formation of a durable community of believers-the church. John 21 as Epilogue: The Integrity of the Gospel The difficulty with considering John 21 as an addition to the gospel is that, aside from the problem of a subsequent narrative following the "closing statement" in 20.30-31, there is no clear textual evidence for a Feed My Sheep: The Pastoral and Ecclesial Conclusion to John's Gospel 1 Mark A. Matson 1. For those of us who claim the church as the very living "body of Christ," questions about how the church aligns with Scripture are critical. Much depends on the vital leadership exhibited by ministers of the Word, elders, and deacons. Perhaps no other single expression of Jesus better captures the need for vital leadership than the command given to Simon Peter in John 21: "Feed my sheep." Here the role of pastor/elder and minister of the Word are combined with grace and urgency. Paul Watson, along with Kay, has in my experience lived out this command on behalf of his Lord. He has, effectively and sensitively, fed the sheep in his care: as preacher, as elder, as spiritual mentor, as professor, and especially as friend. It is with the deepest respect, and indeed with both philia and agape, that this essay on John 21 is offered for those who might feed the sheep in the church of Christ like Paul has. 2. Almost all commentaries address this in one form or another. Here let me note at least some major voices in the discussion. Rudolf Bultmann, The Gospel of John (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1971) still has a major influence on Johannine interpretation. Bultmann argued for a variety of sources and levels of editing, attributing the final chapter to a later church redactor not connected to the evangelist. Although somewhat dated, Raymond Brown remains a major voice in Johannine studies. In his Anchor Bible commentary, The Gospel According to John, 2 vols. (New York: Doubleday, 1970), as well as his book The Community of the Beloved Disciple (Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 1979), Brown argued for a later formation of the gospel within a community. For Brown, chapter 21 is to be attributed to a redactor, but one well connected with Johannine thought.