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The STUDIA UNIVERSITATIS BABEŞ-BOLYAI issue article summary
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Abstract: Jesus – „The Lamb of God”, in the witness of John the Baptist (Jn. 1,29) – a Perspective over Johannine Christology. In this study I tried to put in writing some reflections regarding John the Baptist’s witness to Jesus Christ: “Behold! The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn 1,29). Taking into account R. Brown’s statement, namely “John unfolds for us here on the lips of John the Baptist a whole Christology” (see footnote 1), I have analyzed this syntagma from 3 points of view: a. Jesus – the Lamb as the Suffering Servant (by regards to Deutero-Isaiah texts - 42, 1-4; 49, 1-6; 50, 4-9; 52, 13 şi 53,12); b. Jesus – the Lamb as the apocalyptic lamb; c. Jesus – the Lamb as the paschal lamb. The goal of this analysis is to identify the sense that John the Evangelist has intended to give to this proclamation when he recorded it in his Gospel. This messianic title appears two times in the Fourth Gospel (1,29.36) and corresponds in the same time to one of the great Christological attributes that underlines the Joahannine Theology. As for my own assessment represented in this analysis I have pointed out, like a considerable part of Exegetes, the sacrificial meaning of the expression “Lamb of God” referring to the symbolism of the Old Testament Paschal Lamb. Once Christians began to compare Jesus to the paschal lamb, they started to use in their cult and life of the Church sacrificial language as “Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (I Cor 5,7). In this sense, Christ crucified and risen, became for the Christians their Paschal Lamb, their Passover. This might also have been the Evangelist’s purpose when he recorded in his narrative such Baptist’s witness to Jesus. In fact, such kind of interpretation of the statement “Lamb of God” confers to johannine Christology more real support by pointing out the genuine meaning of Jesus sacrifice than to put it out in a metaphorical and speculative theological range. Keywords: Jesus, Lamb of God, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, sacrifice, Paschal Lamb. |
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