I'm reading a book on the portrait of "James, the Lord's brother" in the New Testament and in early church tradition. The book focuses on James's relationship with Paul, which is fitting, since Galatians provides us with our only first person account of an encounter with "James, the Lord's brother." The book is well written and the author is in conversation with leading scholars in the field of New Testament studies. It was published by Fortress Press in 2015.
The author of the book, V. George Shillington, is listed here: https://anabaptistwiki.org/mediawiki/in ... hillington
Has anyone else here on this forum come across Shillington's book on James?
"James and Paul"--The book by V. George Shillington
Re: "James and Paul"--The book by V. George Shillington
Chapter 4, a study of John's gospel, is titled tellingly, "Withholding the name of the disciple Jesus loved."
Shillington makes an interesting argument that the anonymous "disciple Jesus loved" may have been his blood brother, James. I see on Wikipedia that identification of the beloved disciple has been argued by Tabor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disciple_ ... r_of_Jesus
But Shillington's argument is all his own, as far as I can tell, and a weighty argument it is. His mother's role at the wedding at Cana and the scene of "dwelling" with his brothers suggest to Shillington that Jesus and his unnamed mother and brothers were close. To make his case, he suggests that John 7:5 was an non-authorial interpolation. He congratulates the NRSV for putting the verse in parentheses:
John 7:5 NRSV
(For not even his brothers believed in him.)
The scene at the cross, according to John's gospel:
"Near the cross of Jesus stood His mother and her sister, as well as Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, here is your son.” Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home."
Shillington comments:
"The striking aspect of the narrative scene is, of course, the transfer of responsibility. In that society, and in some societies still, the eldest son was responsible for the well-being of his widowed mother. Jesus had that responsibility while he lived. In this scene, while his earthly life is passing from him, Jesus commits the care of his mother to another son, and asks his mother to accept this son in the same way she had related to Jesus, her firstborn son."
Shillington makes an interesting argument that the anonymous "disciple Jesus loved" may have been his blood brother, James. I see on Wikipedia that identification of the beloved disciple has been argued by Tabor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disciple_ ... r_of_Jesus
But Shillington's argument is all his own, as far as I can tell, and a weighty argument it is. His mother's role at the wedding at Cana and the scene of "dwelling" with his brothers suggest to Shillington that Jesus and his unnamed mother and brothers were close. To make his case, he suggests that John 7:5 was an non-authorial interpolation. He congratulates the NRSV for putting the verse in parentheses:
John 7:5 NRSV
(For not even his brothers believed in him.)
The scene at the cross, according to John's gospel:
"Near the cross of Jesus stood His mother and her sister, as well as Mary the wife of Clopas and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, here is your son.” Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home."
Shillington comments:
"The striking aspect of the narrative scene is, of course, the transfer of responsibility. In that society, and in some societies still, the eldest son was responsible for the well-being of his widowed mother. Jesus had that responsibility while he lived. In this scene, while his earthly life is passing from him, Jesus commits the care of his mother to another son, and asks his mother to accept this son in the same way she had related to Jesus, her firstborn son."
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