A big, big house(hold): John 14:1–7 as a response to Roman imperial violence

Abstract

In antiquity, the entire Roman Empire itself was imagined as a household, with its inhabitants obedient children to their symbolic father, the emperor. The language and the literary context of John 14:1–7 suggest significant interplay with this way of conceptualizing the empire. The Fourth Gospel imitates imperial structures with its household imagery, in which God takes the place of “Father” and believers as “children.” The community of believers is thus imagined as an alternative household to Caesar’s empire, one with its own unique values and priorities. In this article, I suggest that Johannine believers are engaged in imperial negotiation by imagining themselves as an alternative household living under threat of imperial violence. Whereas traditional interpretations of John 14 that equate “my Father’s house” with “heaven” suggest an escapist strategy, in which believers will one day be whisked safely out of their imperial context, this interpretation suggests a more nuanced strategy of negotiating imperial power from within. The divine response to the threat of imperial violence is to establish a beloved household of God.