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Introductory notes and background

The Gospel according to John--traditionally attributed to the disciple of Jesus of the same name, though the precise author is disputed--was probably composed in the last decade of the first century C.E. (around 90-100 C.E.).  It may have originated among of Christian community in Ephesus (in what is now modern Turkey); others argue for a location in Syria.  It was the last of the four canonical gospels to have been written, and its author claims to have been "the disciple whom Jesus loved."  John concentrates on the final years of Jesus of Nazareth's life, from the announcement of his coming by John the Baptist until his death.  The section we are reading runs for Jesus's arrest to the period shortly after his death.

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Questions

(1)  What are the principal narrative elements of this section of the Gospel?  Are any particular themes or motifs repeated?  Which ones?  Why might they have been reiterated within the text?

(2)  The Gospel suggests that its author's community had been "expelled from the synagogues"--that is, that they had been barred from participating in synagogue service because they believed that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah.  How might this text been of consolation to a community feeling itself cut off from the surrounding Jewish community?  What kinds of behaviors does it exhort its readers to pursue?

(3)  How does the tension between seeing and believing play out in the text?