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The Beloved Disciple as Ideal Author

St Mary's College, St Andrews, Fife, Scotland KY16 9JU

The portrayal of the beloved disciple in the Fourth Gospel does not support the common view that he represents the ideal disciple. Rather he is portrayed as the ideal author. His special intimacy with Jesus, his presence at key events in the story and his perception of their meaning qualify him to be the ideal witness to Jesus and therefore the ideal author of a Gospel. Whereas most of his appearances are as a character in the narrative, whose role in the narrative qualifies him to become its author, in 19.35 he appears as the author of the Gospel, addressing his readers. Since 21.21-23 would have made his identity clear to the first readers of the Gospel, his anonymity in the Gospel is not intended to conceal his identity, but is a literary device which serves to distinguish the author, as a character in the narrative, from other characters.

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