The Gospel of St. John — Reading Notes

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In Category - Theology

Authors: MacRory, Joseph, 1861-1945 Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 2014 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: Bible. John -- Criticism, interpretation, etc. Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

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Words 156,077

Reading time 679 min

Text sections 29

For The Gospel of St. John — Reading Notes, the stored edition analysis reports 156,077 words, 11 hr 19 min estimated reading time, and 29 detected text sections.

The text analysis averages about 18.3 words per sentence, while the detected sections provide another way to judge how the source is divided.

Project Gutenberg metadata also associates the work with “Bible. John -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.,” connecting these edition facts with the source record’s subject description.

Source: Project Gutenberg record #46337

Joseph MacRory's 1897 commentary on the Fourth Gospel, written for Maynooth students, compresses patristic and scholastic exegesis into a compendious format. The excerpts reveal a work focused on defending Johannine authenticity and miracles against rationalist critiques, with close attention to the Greek text and Catholic doctrine.

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nst Authenticity. Evidence in favour of Authenticity. Conclusion. Text. Chapter IX. Chapter X. Chapter XI. Chapter XII. Chapter XIII. Chapter XIV. Chapter XV. Chapter XVI. Chapter XVII. Chapter XVIII. Chapter XIX. Chapter XX. Chapter XXI. Footnotes

[Transcriber’s Note: The above cover image was produced by the submitter at Distributed Proofreaders, and is being placed into the public domain.]

GUALTERUS MACDONALD, D.D.,

Censor Theolog. Deputat.

_Archiep. Dublinen., Hiberniae Primas._

It may be well to state briefly the object and plan of the present work. Some years ago their Lordships the Archbishops and Bishops of Ireland decided to lengthen considerably the course of Sacred Scripture read in this College. As a result of their decision, all our students are now expected to read the whole of the New Testament with the exception of the Apocalypse, together with portions of the Old Testament. This change, while it has the desirable advantage of familiarizing our students with a larger portion of the Sacred Text, obviously renders it impossible that so much time as formerly should be devoted to the study of any one portion. The consequence of this is that it is now impossible for any but the very ablest students to find time to read the longer commentaries, such as those of Maldonatus, Estius, and A Lapide. I was not long, therefore, in charge of the Class of Sacred Scripture, when I became convinced that it would be useful, if not necessary, to provide the students with a more compendious exposition of the portions of Scripture that they are expected to study.

With this object in view, I have not attempted, in the present work, to give an exhaustive commentary on the Fourth Gospel. Such an attempt, indeed, would have frustrated my object. I have tried rather, while omitting nothing of importance, to introduce nothing unnecessary, and to observe throughout the utmost consistent brevity.

I am prepared to hear that some will consider I have passed too lightly over the easier portions of the Gospel. I can only say, in reply, that what I have done, has been done deliberately. Where the meaning of God’s word is sufficiently clear, I consider that it ought to be left to the exercise of the student’s intelligence to find it, and I am strongly of opinion that in such cases a commentator may well be excused from interposing his remarks between the reader and the Sacred Text.

It might seem that the able and learned commentary of Dr. MacEvilly—the only Catholic commentary hitherto existing on this Gospel in the English language—would render such a work as the present unnecessary. But the length of His Grace’s work, like the works of Maldonatus, Estius, and A Lapide, renders it not wholly adapted to the present conditions of our students. Besides, anyone acquainted with the work of a professor will readily realize how important it is, and how desirable, when possible, that students should possess in handy and permanent form the professor’s views. No two men will think alike on all the difficult and intricate questions arising out of the Gospel of St. John; and while I should feel it my duty, if lecturing on the work of another, to impose upon the students of my class the necessity of taking notes, I have hope that the present work will to a large extent obviate such a necessity. His Grace’s work will, no doubt, continue to be used by many of our students in preference to mine, and with all of them it will still hold its place as a useful book of reference.

The Latin Text that I have followed is a reprint from the Latin Vulgate published at Turin in 1883: _Biblia Sacra Vulgatae Editionis, Sixti V. Pontificis Maximi jussu recognita, et Clementis VIII. auctoritate edita. Editio emendatissima, Indicis Congregationis decreto probata, et iterum hoc anno evulgata. Augustae Taurinorum, typis Hyacinthi Marietti_, MDCCCLXXXIII. In only one instance is there a conscious departure from this edition, and that is in verses 3 and 4 of the first chapter, where I have returned to the original punctuation of the Clementine Edition.

The English Text is from the Rhemish New Testament approved by Cardinal Wiseman, and published by Burns and Oates, Limited.

MAYNOOTH COLLEGE, _Ascension Thursday, 1897_.

I.—Authenticity Of The Fourth Gospel.

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Joseph MacRory's The Gospel of St. John (1897) is a commentary shaped by a specific institutional need: the lengthened Scripture course at Maynooth College. MacRory states plainly that he aimed to provide students with a 'more compendious exposition' than the longer works of Maldonatus, Estius, or A Lapide. The result is a volume that moves briskly through the Fourth Gospel, yet pauses to engage with rationalist objections—particularly regarding miracles such as the raising of Lazarus. MacRory's method is to present the Vulgate Latin and a literal English translation verse by verse, then offer explanatory notes that defend traditional Catholic interpretations. The excerpts show a work that is both pedagogical and apologetic, rooted in the conviction that the Gospel's historical claims are verifiable.

Compendious Design and Institutional Context

The preface makes explicit that this commentary was born from curricular reform. MacRory notes that the Irish bishops 'decided to lengthen considerably the course of Sacred Scripture' at Maynooth, making it 'impossible for any but the very ablest students to find time to read the longer commentaries.' His solution was a work that would 'provide the students with a more compendious exposition.' This practical aim governs the book's structure: each chapter opens with the Latin text, followed by an English translation, then notes that are concise but substantive. The excerpts show MacRory frequently citing verse numbers in parentheses, directing readers to cross-references within John's Gospel. The commentary assumes a reader who has some Greek—the title page includes a Greek epigraph from John 20:31—and who is familiar with basic Catholic doctrine. MacRory does not rehearse elementary theology; he builds on it.

Defending Miracles Against Rationalist Explanations

In the section on the raising of Lazarus (John 11), MacRory confronts two rationalist theories: that the story was 'a pure concoction of St. John' and that Lazarus's death was 'merely feigned, a pious ruse.' He dismisses the first by noting that the Synoptic Gospels focus on Galilee, while John's Judean miracles—including the healing of the man born blind—would naturally be absent from them. To the second, he retorts that 'even His Jewish enemies never accused Christ of fraud.' MacRory's argument relies on the crowd's reaction: the Pharisees, convinced the miracle was genuine, 'merely bethink themselves what they will do with Jesus.' He also emphasizes that Jesus prayed publicly before the miracle, 'in order that the people present might believe that the Father had sent Him.' The commentary thus treats the miracle as a historical event with eyewitness testimony, not a theological symbol.

Textual and Doctrinal Anchors in the Notes

MacRory's notes consistently tie the Gospel text to doctrinal claims. In John 11, he writes that the raising of Lazarus is 'a most powerful proof of the Divinity of Christ,' because Jesus called God to witness before performing it. He cross-references John 10:28-30, where Jesus claims to be 'one with the Father,' and John 5:5-9, the healing at the pool. The commentary also includes a separate section on the authenticity of John 7:53-8:11 (the woman caught in adultery), weighing evidence for and against. This shows MacRory's willingness to engage with textual criticism, though his conclusion is conservative. The excerpts reveal a work that is less a devotional aid than a classroom tool, designed to equip students with arguments against contemporary skepticism while grounding them in the Vulgate text and Catholic tradition.

Readers approaching MacRory's commentary should expect a work that is dense with cross-references and focused on defending the Gospel's historicity. It is not a literary or theological meditation, but a professor's lecture notes made public. Those interested in late nineteenth-century Catholic biblical scholarship will find it a clear example of how Irish Catholic educators responded to rationalist criticism while working within the constraints of a lengthened curriculum. The commentary rewards careful reading alongside the Gospel text itself.

That rainy afternoon, MacRory’s dense Greek notes felt like watching someone rebuild a wall, brick by patient brick. When I set it down, my hand drifted to an old volume, Scripture Histories; from the Creation of the World, to the Death of Jesus Christ With a Description of St. Paul's Church, London — Background and Themes, and I found the same stories told simply, like a child’s first map of the same country.