Abstract
The washing of feet is one of the most famous biblical narratives recorded in the Gospel. While the narrative has received different interpretations, ‘knowledge’ has been identified as a significant theme. This article presents a sociological interpretation of this narrative through the lens of social representation theory. Furthermore, it reconstructs the passage and demonstrates a sociological interpretation of knowledge leading to an understanding of knowledge as service. I argue that the narrative functions as a communicative mechanism, through which a shared conception and social meaning of knowledge are established as a common ground for a shared identity among Jesus’ disciples.
Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article presents an interpretive reading of a biblical text by using a theoretical lens from the fields of sociology and social psychology as an analytical instrument. This implies that the social meaning of biblical narratives can be unveiled through an interdisciplinary dialogue and conversation between biblical and theological studies and the social sciences.
Keywords: foot washing narrative; biblical narrative; knowledge; social representations; sociological interpretation; the Gospel of John.
Introduction
The washing of feet is one of Jesus’ most popular actions and one of the most famous biblical narratives ever recorded in the Gospel. In many Christian denominations and churches, the spiritual value and message of foot washing, as recorded in John 13:1–17, is celebrated on Holy Thursday during the Easter circle of the Holy Week. Although there is no consensus on the primary meaning of the Johannine foot washing, for many biblical commentators and scholars, Jesus’ action provides a symbolic meaning and example of humility (Brown 1988; Köstenberger 2007), a sacramental significance of baptism, eucharist and penance (Hultgren 1982; Thomas 1990), a sign of eschatological hospitality (Hultgren 1982), an act of empowerment (Cooreman-Guittin 2021; Prior 2017), and a moral example and ethical paradigm (Hartog 2022).
Apart from the above interpretations, as noted by Hochstedler (2016), knowledge is a significant theme in John 13:1–17 that offers an interpretative key for understanding the symbolic meaning of the washing of feet. This article does not intend to seek and present the ultimate meaning and develop an exegesis of the foot washing narrative. While focusing on knowledge as a key theme in John 13:1–17, this article takes a different turn by reading the Johannine foot washing narrative from a socio-psychological perspective within the theoretical framework of social representations. In this context, the foot washing text is treated as a work whose primary function is to mediate meaning and the possibilities of human existence (Schneiders 1981). The following research questions guide my analysis and discussion. What is the symbolic meaning and iconic quality of knowledge embedded in the metaphoric actions of Jesus narrated in John 13:1–17? To what extent does the washing of feet function as a means of communication between Jesus and his disciples? In response to these questions, this article presents the theme and structure of John 13:1–17, the key features of the theory of social representations, the understanding of the washing of feet through the lens of social representation theory, and the social meanings of knowledge. In doing so, I intend to reconstruct the popular biblical passage and narrative of foot washing through the lens of social representation theory and demonstrate a sociological interpretation of knowledge leading to a new understanding of knowledge as service in our contemporary society.
The theme and structure of John 13:1–17
Knowledge is a critical theme that runs throughout John 13:1–17. Based on this thematic importance, Hochstedler (2016:401) envisions a threefold division in the structure of the Johannine narrative of foot washing: Jesus’ knowledge (v. 1), the foot washing (vv. 2–11) and the disciples’ knowledge (vv. 12–17). The first verse of John 13:1–17 sets the stage for the foot washing narrative with a statement of Jesus’ knowledge of the hour of his imminent death. In this stage setting, Jesus’ knowledge is linked to two reference points: his life-giving relationship with his Father and his love for his disciples. Reflecting on the significance of Jesus’ relationship to the Father and love for his disciples, Gaffney (1965) concludes that knowledge in the Gospel of John signifies both an intellectual flavour and a relational aspect of the will, affection and devotedness. Following a similar interpretation, Hochstedler (2016) argues that in the Gospel of John, the idea of knowledge signifies the identity of Jesus as knowledge is centred around Jesus. Therefore, the first verse of this passage provides a clear declaration that ‘Jesus knew’. The source of Jesus’ knowledge is his relationship with the Father, from which the love of God flows to humankind. In this context, Hochstedler (2016) asserts:
Jesus is the one who knows, in contrast with those around him who alternate between various levels of knowing and not knowing, and their knowledge or lack thereof is almost always about Jesus, his identity, his actions, his words and his location. (pp. 401–402)
To be a disciple means to participate in the knowledge of Jesus. Participating in the knowledge of Jesus means entering into a relationship with Jesus.
The second part of the passage is the foot washing event (vv. 2–11). It is worth noting that the foot washing event is situated within the context of Jesus’ knowledge and the historical horizon of ‘the hour’ of his imminent death. This is to say that our understanding of the foot washing narrative should be developed around the notion of Jesus’ knowledge. In other words, the actual event of foot washing and the meaning attached to the event can be understood as a symbolic approach to metaphorically describing Jesus’ knowledge. Here, the foot washing narrative articulates a dialectic of event and meaning (Schneiders 1981). Therefore, as the event progresses, several acts are described in detail in verses 4 and 5. The acts include getting up from the meal, taking off his outer clothing, wrapping a towel around his waist, pouring water into a basin, washing his disciples’ feet and drying them with the towel wrapped around his waist. The importance of Jesus’ actions described in these two verses lies in the symbolic metaphor of knowledge embedded in those actions. Following these detailed actions, the same section of this passage shows a dialogue between Jesus and Peter. This dialogue again provides a strong contrast as Jesus is represented as the one who knows and Peter as the other who does not know. This contrast is highlighted in the text as it offers an embedded command for a decision to participate in the knowledge of Jesus. It could be argued that the foot washing demonstrates Jesus’ knowledge and love flowing from his relationship with the Father. Refusing to be washed implies a refusal to be in a relationship with Jesus. In simple terms, it is a refusal to be a disciple.
The third part of the passage, verses 12–17, includes an existential experience of the disciples, namely, a transitional experience in which the disciples transitioned from the ‘not-knowing’ stage to a condition of ‘knowing’. This means that the feet washing reveals a rite of passage among the disciples to participate in ‘Jesus’ knowledge’. Therefore, verse 17 highlights the disciples’ knowledge as Jesus confirmed by saying, ‘Now that you know these things …’. The whole process shows the agential dynamics among the disciples. Before the feet washing, the disciples did not seem to have any agential power. The foot washing facilitates an agency that presents to them a phase of knowing or knowledge. The feet washing and the actions demonstrated by Jesus facilitate a process for the disciples to understand the significance of taking part in the knowledge of Jesus.
The theory of social representations
The previous section focuses on the structure of John 13:1–17 and a summary of the idea of knowledge and its theological significance. As I explained the structure of the passage, I highlighted the metaphoric aspect of the feet washing and the detailed actions shown by Jesus. In order to understand the figurative aspect of this passage and the discourse of knowledge that is embedded in the foot washing narrative from a sociological perspective, in this section, I briefly present the theory of social representations that I use as a theoretical lens in understanding the idea of knowledge demonstrated in the Johannine feet washing narrative.
Social representation was coined and formulated as a theory by Serge Moscovici in 1961. The social representation theory underlines the importance of communicative mechanisms as social infrastructure and significant resources for a collective meaning-making process ‘resulting in common cognitions which produce social bonds uniting societies, organizations and groups’ (Hoijer 2011:1). According to Moscovici (1973):
[A] social representation is a system of values, ideas and practices with a twofold function: first, to establish an order which will enable individuals to orientate themselves in their material and social world and to master it; and secondly to enable communication to take place among members of a community by providing them with a code for social exchange and a code for naming and classifying unambiguously the various aspects of their world and their individual group history. (p. Xiii)
For Moscovici, social representations ‘impregnate most of our established social relations, the objects we produce or consume, and the communications we exchange’ (Duveen 2001:4). The theory also sheds light on the ‘symbolic forces that drive collective behavior’ of people in coping with and making sense of a crisis or a potential crisis (De Rosa et al. 2021). Therefore, Moscovici (1963:251) considers social representation as the collective elaboration ‘of a social object by the community for the purpose of behaving and communicating’. The process of naming and understanding the social object is necessary as the representation shapes and directs how community members (should) behave and communicate. In short, social representation theory underlines communicative actions that facilitate a strategic meaning-making and symbolic coping process among community members when they face a particular social object, context or crisis.
According to Jovchelovitch (2019), social representations are both a theory and a phenomenon. It is a theory because it provides concepts that articulate how knowledge is produced and transformed through the processes of communication and social action. At the same time, it is a phenomenon because it refers to:
[A] set of empirical regularities comprising the ideas, values and practices of human communities about specific social objects as well as the social and communicative processes that produce and reproduce them. (p. 45)
The idea of communicative actions and processes is central because representation exists in the context of a social network, is elaborated through an act of communication and is also shaped by the discourses of values that exist within the network (Duveen & De Rosa 1992). Strategic meaning-making and symbolic coping are central to social representation in these communicative actions. This is because ‘social representation emerges whenever a group’s identity is threatened or an event or phenomenon disrupts the life-course of the social group leading to a possible unfamiliar terrain’ (Wagner et al. 1999:97). Or as pointed out by Moscovici (1981:187), social representation ‘stimulates and shapes our collective consciousness, explaining things and events to be accessible to each of us and relevant to our immediate concerns’.
In social representation theory, strategic meaning-making and symbolic coping involve two complementary communicative mechanisms and processes: anchoring and objectification. Anchoring is a communicative strategy and a strategic communication for making sense of unfamiliar events or experiences by connecting the unfamiliarity to past familiar events, experiences or objects. It functions as a familiarisation practice. Here, connecting the unfamiliar new experience to past experiences allows a meaning-making process among community members to reach a public understanding of the unfamiliar crisis they face (De Rosa & Mannarini 2021). In this context, anchoring evokes the collective memory of past experiences and events to familiarise the group members with the current unfamiliar experience, object or crisis (Hoijer 2011; Moscovici 1981). Anchoring becomes a communicative process of making the unknown known by strategically locating the new, unfamiliar experience within a familiar social experience that allows us to compare the experiences and make sense of them (Faimau, Sello & Nkhukhu-Orlando 2023). It takes place by naming the unfamiliar phenomenon and attributing it with various characteristics and categories so that it can be communicated among members of the group (Wagner et al. 1999).
Objectification is another communicative mechanism and symbolic coping strategy. According to De Rosa and Mannarini (2021:377), ‘objectification is the process through which abstract concepts are given concreteness, so they become understandable and close to people’s experience’. This means that abstract ideas or concepts are materialised through objectification into familiar and visible references by representing them through objective realities that we can relate to in the physical world. The abstract concept is produced and reproduced through a concrete image, icon, familiar object or metaphor. In other words, these familiar objects stand for the abstract concept or the new phenomenon. As such, ‘objectification captures the essence of the phenomenon, makes it intelligible for people and weaves it into the fabric of the group’s common sense’ (Wagner et al. 1999:99). Through objectification, the unfamiliar becomes familiar, and the abstract becomes physical, visible and tangible. Therefore, one could argue that social representation theory seeks to understand how people and their communities produce knowledge that is deeply entangled with their lifeworld and lived experiences (Jovchelovitch 2019).
The foot washing narrative in the Gospel of John offers an abstract idea of knowledge. The narrative also presents a critical environment that requires a coping strategy among the disciples of Jesus. The theory is relevant in reading the foot washing narrative in several ways. Firstly, the theory offers a lens for understanding how the abstract idea of Jesus’ knowledge is communicated to and recognised by the disciples of Jesus. Secondly, the theory provides a tool for unpacking the symbolic coping mechanism embedded in the foot washing narrative. Thirdly, the theory helps analyse how foot washing becomes a metaphor that shapes and directs the behaviour of Jesus’ disciples as they face an unknown crisis.
The washing of feet as social representation
Social representation theory highlights a community’s strategic meaning-making and symbolic coping process when a crisis or a new event threatens the collective identity and future outlook. The foot washing narrative begins with a strong statement: ‘Jesus knew that the hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father’. In a simple term, the verse can be understood as the time for Jesus’ death had come. Sociologically speaking, this statement implies an unknown crisis that will soon have to be faced by Jesus’ disciples. This unknown crisis has consequences, as it has the potential to threaten the identity of Jesus’ disciples. A coping strategy is necessary because the death of Jesus would give a new identity to the disciples as the disciples of a suffering teacher and a dead prophet and a new outlook for their community as a community with no future. The coping mechanism is meant to shape the behaviour of the disciples and give them a positive outlook and new identity after the unexpected crisis of the death of their teacher and Lord.
Interestingly, as Jesus declared that ‘his hour had come’ and that the disciples would have to go through a life-changing crisis, he opted for foot washing, a cultural practice known very well by the disciples, to teach them one last time about the art of authentic discipleship or the moral compass of being an authentic disciple. The notion of discipleship is central to Christianity. For Christians, the idea of discipleship underlines the importance and centrality of understanding and participating with Jesus in his way, message and deeds. Johannine discipleship emphasises a commitment to experience community with Jesus because the underlying theme of discipleship is the unity and mutuality in communion with Jesus. The foot washing discourse underlines the centrality of the community as ‘a fellowship of disciples engaged in learning, obeying, remembering and studying the traditions about Jesus’ (Rand 1991:313). Therefore, discipleship implies a transformative decision to follow Jesus, learn what he said and what he did and be his witness (Walker 2016). As such, the whole foot washing narrative can be considered a defining moment for Jesus to prepare his disciples as they face an unexpected major identity crisis and an unknown experience. Here, foot washing is used as a mechanism to communicate a disciple’s identity formation. Using the lens of social representation theory, it can be posited that anchoring occurs when Jesus uses foot washing, a familiar experience to the disciples, to talk about an unfamiliar experience they will soon go through and how they should cope with it. Connecting the disciples to foot washing, a social experience and traditional practice they are familiar with implies a command and moral guidance that the disciples must follow as they embrace a new identity following the unfamiliar crisis and unexpected experience they would soon go through. Here, the foot washing event is not simply an excellent example of humility but also a prophetic action that aims at articulating the orientation and direction for the disciples to follow (Schneiders 1981). This is why, in verse 14, Jesus underlines this command: ‘So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet’.
The central theme of the foot washing narrative is Jesus’ knowledge. The narrative draws a clear line to highlight the idea that ‘Jesus knew’ and the ‘disciples did not know’, as clearly demonstrated in the exchange between Jesus and Peter from verses 6–11. Knowledge, however, is an abstract concept. The social representation theory proposes the idea of objectification as a strategic approach to unpack and understand an abstract idea. Objectification involves producing and reproducing concrete images to reveal the hidden and uncovered meanings of abstract ideas. Through objectification, the abstractness of an idea or concept is materialised. In general, it is clear that Jesus revealed the meaning of knowledge by washing the disciples’ feet. But how does objectification take place in the foot washing narrative in the Gospel of John? In what ways is the concrete idea of knowledge revealed in this biblical narrative? The foot washing event begins with a flow of several episodic and transitional actions that are well depicted in verses 4–5 and 12. This includes ‘getting up from the table’, ‘taking off his outer robe’, ‘tying a towel around himself’, ‘pouring water into a basin’, ‘washing the disciples’ feet’ and ‘wiping the feet with the towel tied around him’. When the foot washing ended, the narrative described in detail Jesus’ actions: ‘putting on his robe’ and ‘returning to the table’. What is surprising is that the towel tied around him was never removed. Since foot washing is a tradition that the disciples are familiar with, the actions of Jesus would not be a surprise. Nevertheless, the detailed description of Jesus’ actions offers a metaphoric explanation of the real and substantive meaning of knowledge. If Jesus is known by his deeds, the disciples should also be known by their deeds. Therefore, the whole foot washing scene evolves around the idea that ‘to know means to serve’ or ‘knowing Jesus means serving others’. In essence, knowledge cannot be separated from service because it is entangled with a context, community and way of life. Service becomes the projection of knowledge into the social world (Duveen 2001). Discipleship is, therefore, closely linked to the readiness to serve. This is demonstrated symbolically through Jesus’s metaphoric action of not removing the towel tied around him after the foot washing. According to Brown (1988), the central meaning of the foot washing scene lies in the humility and self-abasement of Jesus. Through this foot washing event, Jesus took the disciples through a journey from ‘not knowing’ to ‘knowing’. In the end, the disciples ‘know’ by seeing Jesus’ actions.
The actions of Jesus described above are concrete images that Jesus produced to explain what knowledge is. In other words, Jesus’ knowledge is objectified or materialised through his actions, culminating in washing the disciples’ feet. The concreteness of Jesus’ actions reveals a critical aspect of the foot washing narrative: knowledge begins with concrete experiences, particularly the experiences of social relationships among human beings, rather than abstract ideas. Through the foot washing experience, Jesus leads the disciples to discover the being inside them and develop a communion with others through communication and service (Tayko 2023). As already stated, the foot washing event was a transitional experience for the disciples. Interestingly, in this transitional experience, Jesus offered a statement of and an explanatory approach to what knowledge means. This theme is important because the identity of Jesus’ disciples can only be understood through their participation in the identity of Jesus’ knowledge, his relationship with God and his love for the disciples (Hochstedler 2016).
Within the theoretical lens of social representation, the washing of feet is clearly used as a metaphor to characterise a message that group members (the disciples) should refer to as they enter an unfamiliar terrain. The unfamiliar will be a familiar terrain when the message embedded in the foot washing metaphor is understood and embraced as a critical value for the group’s existence. The metaphor becomes a social resource that channels a detailed explanation of the threatening context, on the one hand, and the group’s existence after the unfamiliar experience, on the other. As a vital social resource, washing the feet enhances a collective memory among the disciples and reinforces the importance of knowing Jesus by serving others. Indeed, representations are historically situated because they emerge out of a context of social relationship that is usually emotional, social and cultural (Jovchelovitch 2019). Therefore, the foot washing narrative exploits the human potential and capacity to be resourceful and devote oneself to humanity at large. It is a known social condition that is available and known among the disciples. In line with the social representation theory, objectification relies on the social conditions, traditions and cultures with which group members are familiar. Through the episodic actions of Jesus, the unfamiliar phenomenon that the disciples faced is explained, elaborated and made intelligible. This means that objectification delimits the unknown and explains it in detail. For the disciples, ‘knowledge’ now becomes a new social object. This new social object added to the group’s circle defines the group’s uniqueness. The new object thus becomes ‘a means of understanding and communication in everyday life’ among the disciples (Wagner et al. 1999:100). This is to say that as social representation, washing the disciples’ feet becomes a communicative action (Habermas 1991; Jovchelovitch 2019) that should manifest in everyday practices following the unexpected experience that threatened the existence of the disciples.
Social meanings of knowledge
The previous section highlighted the anchoring and objectification of knowledge through the episodic actions of Jesus prior to and after the foot washing. As already mentioned, at the heart of the foot washing narrative is a symbolic proposition that ‘to know is to serve’. In addition, the setting of the foot washing narrative is unique as it takes place within a community and in the context of the relationship between Jesus and his disciples. Because the embodied meaning of the foot washing is meant for all the disciples, arguably the foot washing event establishes a shared conception of knowledge and its social meaning in terms of serving one another. This shared conception is very important because it is part of and for the community. One of the main contributions of the foot washing narrative is that it links knowledge to a person, persons, communities, cultures and histories. This is critical because the knowledge revealed through foot washing will be taught from generation to generation in different social contexts and cultural frameworks. For the disciples, like history (Jovchelovitch 2019), knowledge has a subject in Jesus and those they will serve. As such, knowledge becomes a collective social object whose meaning is determined collectively in and for a community. In this sense, the shared conception of knowledge provides a common ground for communication and co-action among the disciples or members of the community. This means that knowledge is, by nature, social and symbolic (Jovchelovitch 2019:45) because its production and expression cannot be separated from human relationships and the community that benefits from it. Or as argued by Duveen (2001):
[K]nowledge is always produced through interaction and communication, and its expression is always linked to the human interests which are engaged. Knowledge emerges from the world in which people meet and interact, the world in which human interests, needs and desires find expression, satisfaction or frustration. (p. 2)
As already explained, the Gospel of John 13:1–17 has three main parts: Jesus’ knowledge (v. 1), the foot washing (vv. 2–11) and the disciples’ knowledge (vv. 12–17). There are many definitions and categories of knowledge. However, given the centrality of knowledge in this narrative, the foot washing clearly provides a new understanding of the idea of knowledge. As such, each part of the narrative offers a particular type of knowledge. Because the first part focuses solely on Jesus as the centre of knowledge and how becoming a disciple means participating in the knowledge of Jesus, this type of knowledge can be termed ‘ideational knowledge’. Ideational knowledge is centred around ideas and concepts. Gaining ideational knowledge involves conceptualising and mapping abstract ideas and relating them to various social realities (Hoz 2009). As such, when the foot washing event ended, Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Do you understand what I have done for you?’ This question requires the disciples to unpack the meaning-making process and have the capacity to map the ideas and ethical guidance demonstrated through washing the disciples’ feet. Therefore, the foot washing narrative does not only place Jesus as the centre but also the source of knowledge. In this context, the idea of discipleship and being in a relationship with Jesus flows from Jesus. The narrative provides a roadmap for the art of discipleship. For the disciples, having ideational knowledge is about understanding the roadmap and what it means to be in a relationship with Jesus. Jesus becomes the maker and the marker of the disciples’ knowledge about him.
The foot washing event from verse 2–11 shows a close relationship between Jesus and his disciples. The narrative demonstrates an interpersonal relationship between Jesus and his disciples. The type of knowledge offered in this foot washing scene can be referred to as relational knowledge, as it links Jesus to his disciples and the disciples to Jesus and among one another. At the centre of the relational knowledge is a crucial point; before the disciples have the relational knowledge, they belong to a community, a culture and a history of discipleship. Jovchelovitch (2019:48) proposes that, ‘belonging, not knowing, is where we all start from…and this belonging frames the knowledge we construct from the outset’. Relational knowledge banks on dialogic approach, conversation and exchange of ideas. This is to say that knowledge is generated through dialogue and conversation. Relational knowledge, therefore, relies on dialogic and conversational thinking as it involves a creative struggle for meaning-making and meaning-formation (Chimakonam 2021). Relational knowledge also considers the sociality of knowledge based on the idea that the knower is social because she or he is socially positioned and interdependent on with the source of knowledge (Pohlhaus 2012). This is to say that knowledge emerges through meeting, communication and interaction among people; it is a product and expression of human passions, interests, needs and desires (Duveen 2001). In the context of the narrative under discussion, foot washing presents the disciples’ situatedness, particularly their social positions as Jesus’ disciples, on the one hand, and their interdependence on Jesus as the source of knowledge that they need to make sense of what is taking place in the world, on the other. Therefore, the whole foot washing narrative demonstrates a close conversation between Jesus and the disciples. As the narrative tells us, a dialogue took place when Jesus responded to the queries raised by Simon Peter in verses 6–10 and when the foot washing ended. But even in silence, as Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, his actions became a form of dialogue and conversation with his disciples. The foot washing provides a panoramic view of a symbolic presence as well as a metaphysical absence of Jesus, who is always in dialogue and conversation with his disciples.
In the previous section, I suggest that what is interesting about the foot washing narrative is that from verses 1–11, Jesus was represented as ‘the knowing Jesus’, and the disciples as ‘the not-knowing disciples’. The foot washing event, however, became an eye-opener as the event transformed the disciples from ‘the not-knowing disciples’ to ‘the knowing disciples’. The disciples came to knowledge through Jesus’ knowledge. The foot washing narrative becomes a socio-psychological activity through which the disciples as a group or community construct an understanding of social life as disciples through the guidance of their teacher. Therefore, verse 17 is declarative: ‘Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them’. The whole narrative is clearly emancipatory; therefore, the type of knowledge revealed in the text is emancipatory. Emancipatory knowledge focuses on values that inform human attitude, behaviour and relationships. In emancipatory knowledge, knowledge becomes a social and critical force aiming at unpacking various social conditions as well as liberating and serving humanity (Chinn & Kramer 2017; Ng, Rowland & Kinsella 2020; Swartz 2022). Knowledge does not circle around abstract ideas but is meant to transform and change the world. Knowledge becomes situational as it reflects on the social reality and how one responds to such a reality. In this context, knowledge constitutes ‘a reflection of situationality’ because it ‘is embedded in a social milieu’ (Hassani 2020:195). Emancipatory knowledge offers a critical pedagogy that helps people to realise their historical conditions and embark on a journey of liberation that will give them a new identity and new meaning in life (Hassani 2020; Ng et al. 2020; Sant 2021). The Johannine narrative of the washing of feet clearly characterises the passion and death of Jesus with service (Schneiders 1981). This means that the foot washing was intended as a calculated act to make a statement about the importance of service and sacrifice. In other words, knowledge would be knowledge if it is about service and sacrifice. This statement is important because, as Jovchelovitch (2010) notes:
[K]nowledge statements are never too far away from statements about being; our epistemic constructions are inseparable from the multitude of voices with which we engage as we develop a sense of self and knowledge of the object-world. To know the world is to be in the world for the world. (pp. 3–4)
While revealing the social meanings of knowledge, the foot washing event offers an art of communication through which the cultural practice of foot washing is used as a metaphor to emphasise the importance of service and sacrifice among Jesus’ disciples. Through this narrative, Jesus creates a new system of understanding knowledge not as a means for gathering information but as a spiritual formation that revolves around service and sacrifice. The narrative, therefore, offers a discipleship model that anchors on love, service, humility and sacrifice that governs the relationship between the server and the served. As suggested by Schneiders (1981):
[I]n service the server lays aside … his or her own project, goal, good, or at least convenience for the sake of fostering the good of the other. The finality of the served is allowed … to take priority over the finality of the server. In its most extreme form, theferefore, it would consist in the server’s laying down his or her life for the sake of the served. (p. 84)
Through the lens of the social representation theory, one might contend that in the narrative of foot washing, the anchoring process took place when the unexpected unfamiliar event that the disciples would soon face was linked to the Passover Festival that the disciples are familiar with. Here, the unfamiliar is absorbed into the familiar context of everyday cognition (Duveen & Lloyd 2013). The Passover Festival includes evening meals that symbolise the unity of Jesus and his disciples as one family and community. Jesus’ interpretation of knowledge as service might be a new idea that is difficult for the disciples to understand. Through objectification, the foot washing event, a familiar cultural practice, is used to objectify the abstract idea of serving one another as a sign of authentic discipleship. The notion of service is explained through a material culture that the disciples could easily observe and understand. Understanding the whole narrative through the lens of social representation theory is important as social representation involves the reorientation of behaviour and identity (De Rosa 2013). In this context, foot washing provides a material infrastructure that (will) functions as a reminder for the disciples of Jesus. Feet washing, therefore, evokes the collective memory of the disciples that centred around their relationship with Jesus the teacher and how such a relationship should be expressed following the death of Jesus. As such, while the death of Jesus may present to them a label of being the disciples of ‘a dead prophet’, the foot washing reminds them of what would be their new identity after the death of their teacher – the disciples of a living teacher.
The washing of feet narrative takes place in a setting of the relationship between a teacher and his disciples in which the cultural practice of foot washing is used as a means of teaching. Although the setting is different, universities have become inclusive centres of research, teaching and learning practices in our contemporary world. The social meaning of knowledge has been central in the vision and mission of universities. Modern universities have been established based on the idea that universities are ‘focal points for moral culture, and … the spiritual life of the nation…’ (Habermas 1987:9), as they provide a space for communicative interaction concerning societal problems. The core principle guiding modern universities’ operations is the centrality of three related pillars: teaching and learning, research and service. As such, the performance of professors is generally assessed by using indicators developed around teaching and learning, research and community service. This is normally informed by the idea that research informs teaching and learning, and the value of research can only be measured insofar as it serves society by solving various societal problems. Scientific productivity is not an isolated exercise because the primary purpose of research is knowledge production, and there is no research beyond the scope of societal problems. Therefore, the universities’ social responsibility clearly underlines the foot washing narrative’s core message that to know means to serve.
Conclusion
The main objective of this article is to present a sociological interpretation of the Johannine foot washing narrative in John 13:1–17 through the lens of the theory of social representations. Knowledge is a critical theme in this Johannine passage. However, knowledge is an abstract concept. The narrative of foot washing unpacks the abstractness of knowledge and reveals its meaning and moral orientation. The theory of social representations offers an approach to the production of social knowledge by highlighting the socio-cognitive process of making the unfamiliar familiar and turning abstract ideas into concrete objects. This process is meant to establish a code for social exchange to govern a community and enable communication among its members. Through the lens of the theory of social representations, the foot washing biblical narrative can be understood in two ways. Firstly, the foot washing becomes a communicative strategy and a strategic communication to make the unfamiliar familiar and offers a coping mechanism to shape the behaviour of Jesus’ disciples and give them a positive outlook and new identity after the unexpected crisis of the death of Jesus, their teacher and Lord. Secondly, the foot washing is a critical event as it produces and reproduces concrete images (objectification) to reveal the hidden and uncovered meanings of knowledge or participating in the knowledge of Jesus as service. Indeed, at the heart of the foot washing narrative is a symbolic proposition that ‘to know is to serve’. This means that service becomes the projection of knowledge into the social world, the code of social exchange and the new identity among Jesus’ disciples. As such, I argue that the foot washing narrative provides a dialectic of event and meaning and functions as a communicative mechanism and a socio-prophetic influence, through which a shared conception and social meaning of knowledge are established to provide a common ground for a shared identity and co-action through service among members of a community.
Acknowledgements
Competing interests
The author declares that they have no financial or personal relationships that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article.
Author’s contribution
G.F. is the sole author of this research article.
Funding information
The author received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Ethical considerations
This article followed all ethical standards for research without direct contact with human or animal subjects.
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and are the product of professional research. The article does not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any affiliated institution, funder, agency or that of the publisher. The author is responsible for this article’s results, findings and content.
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