Whence and Whither A Narrative Perspective on Birth a[nwqen 171 abbreviated in the notion of birth a[nwqen. The fact that knowledge is due to this required transformation forms a point of departure for comprehending both misunderstandings and irony in the Gospel. Readers without this transformation will fail to understand. This demonstrates the importance of this dialogue for the entire story. The scholarly debate on birth a[nwqen has been too limited to the lexical alternatives (anew/again or from above). Arguments for both alternatives can be gleaned from John’s Gospel (48). John explores here the ambiguity of the Greek term, and this article suggests that the implications of birth a[nwqen must be drawn from the entire story, and in particular the Christological cipher of the whence and whither of Jesus. This language, which abbreviates or codifies the kernel of John’s Christology, hardly appears by accident in 3,8. Accordingly, the precise meaning of a[nwqen should take into consideration the Johannine style of progressive unfolding of topics. A lexical approach hardly accounts for this. ou[tw" ejstivn in 3,8 involves a comparison which looks beyond the analogy of the wind. In commenting on birth a[nwqen in John 3, Udo Schnelle says that: “…Christus und die Seinen sind ihrem Ursprungsort nach wesens- verwandt” (49). Otfried Hofius protests vehemently: “Der Vierte Evangelist ist kein Gnostiker!” (50). The German “wesensverwandt” is misleading here, but some suggevneia between Jesus and the believers is suggested. This is implicit in the required transformation and the principle of likeness. It is certainly a question how far one can take this “likeness”. To be “born from above” establishes a new connection with the Son of God, who is from above, but it by no means eliminates all distinctions between people and Christ. People see the light, but they themselves do not become the light in the same way as Christ is. The believers are ascribed an identity from above, but this does not mean that they have descended from above; that is reserved exclusively for the Son of Man. They participate in the sphere above while still being in the world. Although their identity is heavenly, it is only Christ who (48) For an overview of opinions held, see e.g. JULIAN, Jesus and Nicodemus, 82-84. (49) U. SCHNELLE, Antidoketische Christologie im Johannesevangelium. Eine Untersuchung zur Stellung des vierten Evangeliums in der johanneischen Schule (FRLANT 144; Göttingen 1987) 201; see also his Das Evangelium nach Johannes (THNT 4; Leipzig 2000) 69. GREESE, “Unless One is Born Again”, 689 similarly speaks of “becoming like Christ”. (50) HOFIUS, “Das Wunder der Wiedergeburt”, 43, n. 50.