‘The Temple of His Body’

Abstract

Chapter Three opens Part Two of this work, which looks at what it is that is ‘finished’, as Christ affirms with his last word from the Cross in the Gospel of John. This chapter focuses on Christ as the true Temple, erected when his body is lifted up upon the Cross, Building upon the work of Mary Coloe and others, this chapter explores how Christ is presented in the six feasts which structure the narrative of this Gospel, culminating in the Passion and the appearances of the Risen Christ on the first and eighth day. In addition, this chapter also examines the way in which imagery drawn from the Tabernacle and Temple are used to explain Christ’s flesh (John 1:14 and 6), the relationship of this flesh, his glorified body, to the Eucharist and martyrdom, broadening in this way what is meant by ‘incarnation’.