Symbols and Spirituality: Reflecting on John's Gospel

In this book, Michael has achieved a remarkable marriage between a serious and accurate reading of the text of the Gospel itself, a close familiarity with contemporary scholarship, and the eminently human, yet symbolic, religious and spiritual world in which we all live each in our own way. My own scholarship tends to reflect my rather business-like and organised approach to all aspects of my life. I have always been enriched and touched by the work of those who have a deeper sensitivity to the symbolic, especially as it is used to communicate the profundity of the Johannine message. I have learnt much from reading Schneiders, Koester and Lee. But I have learnt even more from reading Michael Winstanley s careful use of the Johannine text, and the scholarship that surrounds it. Michael adds a further element to his exploration of John s Gospel - himself! With great courage he shares some of his most treasured experiences, his strengths and his weaknesses, and indicates, with sensitivity, how the symbolic world of the Gospel of John speaks to our hidden yet disclosed symbolic experiences. We do not all share the experiences of Michael: we are not all passionate walkers in the Lake District or climbers in the mountains of Wales! Some of us, of course, may share his interest in a glass of red wine! But that is the point. From another geographical world, and from another personal history, I find myself in Michael s delightful sharing of his deepest experiences. Symbols and Spirituality speaks to anyone who wants to know how the sacred text of the Gospel of John, so treasured within the Christian tradition, has spoken to the minds and hearts of Christians for two thousand years. It is an invitation to reflect on the literary and theological skill of perhaps the Church s greatest theologian. It is a challenge to allow that Word to speak to us in the every-day situations of life. It is an invitation to a better understanding of myself, of ourselves, and of our relationships, as individuals and communities, with God and with one another. As always with Michael Winstanley s writing, this book is a delight to read. Every sentence has been thought through, and every image carefully sculptured. This book tells us that the Christian life is an ongoing response to the never-ending love of God because the meaning and communicative potential of the symbol is never exhausted. Beyond our initial Yes to Jesus, we continue to be challenged to deeper understanding, firmer commitment, greater love, and richer life. Francis J. Moloney, SDB