14: How Historical Were the Christian Scriptures?

14.1

Can We Be Sure That the Christian Scriptures Have No Errors?

Actually, we can be sure THAT the Christian Scriptures had errors, specifically what

are known as Scribal Errors. These were errors were made during the process of

copying the scriptures by hand. Most serious collections of the Christian Scriptures

today written in the original language, Koine Greek, contain a list of all available copies

of early sources of the Christian Scriptures and notations are made where any of these

sources disagree with each other. There are surprisingly few serious disagreements

- Minuscules These are texts of the NT written in a kind of cursive format.

Minuscule texts of the NT range in age from the 9th through

16th centuries CE

- Uncials Texts of block, upper case letters usually written on

more expensive material (e.g. vellum). Uncial texts

of the NT range in age from late 2nd/early 3rd

centuries CE through the 11th century CE. Uncial

texts are most often found in a codex (book-like) form

rather than scroll form (common for papyrus)

- Papyrus Fragments The advantage of papyrus is clear. Papyrus was

inexpensive. The downside is that papyrus was not

particularly durable. There are a number of papyrus

fragments of the NT still extant that range in age

from the 2nd century CE through the 8th century CE

There are three general categories of sources that are available for scholars;

14.2

Can We See an Example of a Papyrus Fragment?

Oxyrhynchus PapyriEarly 3rd Century CEUniversity of Penn.

14.3

Codex Sinaiticus: Uncials: 4th Century CE. Most of the Codex canbe found in the British Libraryin London

Note: A codex is a book form of a writing. The word is used to indicate that the writing is not from a scroll

Can We See an Example of an Uncial?

14.4

Codex Ebnarianus: Minuscule 12th Century CEBodleian LibraryOxford

Minuscule writing indicates that a form of handwriting (cursive) was used and not majuscules (all capital letters)

Can We See an Example of Minuscules?

14.5

Can We See an Example of a Modern Greek New Testament?

14.6

What Is the Oldest Complete Christian Bible Source?

The Codex Sinaiticus is the oldest extant manuscript of the Christian Bible. It was

written in the middle of the fourth century CE. It was found at the Monastery o St.

Catherine located on the site of the traditional Mount Sinai

Despite the variations in the texts, some caused by corrections, others caused by

simple copying errors that went uncorrected, the various manuscripts show a

remarkable degree of agreement. The differences that do exist, with the exception of

a passage at the end of the Gospel of Mark, are minimal and do not reflect a

difference in the meaning of any passage

There are a number of other codices that are extant the most known include the Codex

Vaticanus (also from the 4th century CE) so named because it was found in e Vatican

library, the Codex Alexandrinus (early 5th century CE), and the Codex Ephraemi (also

early 5th century CE). The four codices are often called the Great Uncials

The Codex Sinaiticus has been made available for viewing from the internet at

http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/ The /en/ is for English speaking people

Both the Old Testament (derived from the Septuagint) and the New Testament of the

Codex Sinaiticus were written in Greek uncials. Both the OT and NT texts of this

codex have been annotated by a series of early correctors

14.7

http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/

What Is The Oldest Complete Hebrew Scripture Source?

* The Karaite Jewish community is believed to have begun in Baghdad sometime in the 7th or 8th

century CE (though some claim that Karaite Jews lived in Egypt before the 7th century.) They

are like the Sadducees in that they believe that only those things written in the Tanakh are

binding in Jewish Religious Law (Halakah), Unlike Rabbinic Judaism, Karaite Jews do not

believe that the Oral Torah, legal decisions made by the Sanhedrin and codified in the Talmud

play any role in Halakah. Karaite Jews are welcome to read the written Tanakh and form their

own opinions as to its meanings but are advised that the best meaning can be found in the

original intent of the author. There are an estimated 50,000 Karaites in Israel and another 50,000

scattered throughout the world

The earliest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Scriptures written in Hebrew was the

Aleppo Codex. The codex was probably written sometime in the Tenth Century CE

There are many other fragmentary sections of the Hebrew Scriptures some of which

are part of the Dead Sea Scrolls

It was purchased by the Jewish Karaite* community in Jerusalem and was moved from

the city during the Crusades. In the 14th Century CE it was moved to Aleppo, Syria and

remained there until 1947. During the 1948 wars, part of this codex was damaged. As of

this moment, the Leningrad Codex is now the oldest complete source. Of course, the

Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus contain almost full collections of the Septuagint version

of the Hebrew Scriptures

14.8

The Aleppo Codex Like the Codex Sinaiticus, the Aleppo Codex is available for viewing online athttp://www.aleppocodex.org

And, like the Codex Sinaiticus, you can zoom in or out on any section of the text.

ה, ַוְיִהי ד--ַאֲחֵרי מֹות ֹמשֶׁ בֶׁ עֶׁ

ל; ְיהָוה ר ְיהָוה אֶׁ עַ -ַויֹאמֶׁ ְיהֹושֻׁ

ה ֵלאֹמר, נּון-ִבן .ְמָשֵרת ֹמשֶׁ

14.9

http://www.aleppocodex.org/

The Dead Sea Scrolls Online

Portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are also now available for viewing on line. They can be seen at http://www.deadseascrolls.org.il You can view the scrolls by selecting the “Explore the Archive” option

Like many ancient biblical documents, the scrolls made available for viewing are often fragmentary and hard to read. However, even an amateur like me can read these words from Genesis, “the heavens and the earth”.

I have written the Masoretic Text version of the same words are shown below the Dead Sea Scrolls sample

ץ, ֵאת ַהָשַמִים .ְוֵאת ָהָארֶׁ

14.10

What Books Constitute the Christian Scriptures?

Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox versions of the Hebrew Scriptures differ in the

variety of ways outlined in the introduction to this course. There is, however, no

variation (OK, one small but important variation) at all in their version of the Christian

Scriptures

The Book of Revelation (aka The Apocalypse)

- The Letter to the Hebrews by an unknown author

- One by Jude

- One by James

- Two by Peter

- Three by John

- Thirteen by Paul

Twenty-one letters (epistles);

The Book of Acts (Luke, the Sequel)

Four gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John

The Christian Scriptures contain twenty-seven books;

14.11

What Was the Context of the Christian Scriptures?

The Christian Scriptures describe events that took place in the Middle East and beyond around the First century CE. These events centered around Jesus the Christ

• The Temple and the seats of study of the Torah were located in Judea. Education in faith and worship available in the Temple were not as readily available to Galileans. Since Galileans were more exposed to Hellenistic cultures, Judeans considered Galileans less educated in Jewish culture and lazy in religious observance

• Galileans spoke a form of Aramaic that was distinct from the Aramaic spoken in Judea. (Peter’s accent is noticed during the trial of Jesus)

• Galilee was ruled by a son of Herod (Herod Antipas) who had at least a small Hasmonean connection while Judea was under direct Roman rule after 6 CE when Herod’s son Archelaus was banished to Gaul

• Galilee was a land more conducive to farming and fishing and therefore a somewhat wealthier land than the more mountainous Judea

• The men and women who lived in the Jewish communities in Galilee had to travel through Samaria to visit the Temple in Jerusalem (the woman at the well from John’s gospel 4:4-42)

• Galilee, to the North, had been a part of Samaria and the Seleucid Empire before the Hasmonean reunification and so was historically more in touch with Gentile nations than was Judea to the South

14.12

Who Wrote the Gospels?

All of the Christian Scriptures provide information about Jesus but the four gospels provide the greatest amount of information about his life.

- The Apostle John almost identifies himself as the Beloved Apostle in his own Gospel, but his comments are hints, not proofs. In the same part of the Eusebius’ book where he quoted Papias’ comments about Matthew and Mark, he calls John “the Evangelist” indicating that he believed John to be the author of the gospel attributed to him. In that same book, Eusebius tells us that, however, that he is not certain that the Apostle John who wrote the gospel is the same John who wrote the letters and Revelation He knows that there was a respected elder (Presbyter) named John who may have written those works. Irenaeus associates all those works to the Apostle John

- Toward the end of the 100s CE, Clement of Alexandria , in his work The Stromata (Book 5, Chapter 12) confirmed that Luke wrote the gospel attributed to him

- In the mid 300s CE, Church historian Eusebius of Caesaria in his book, The Church History of Eusebius stated in Book 3, Chapter 39, that Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis and disciple of the Apostle John wrote in the late 90s or early 100s CE that Matthew and Mark were the authors of their respective gospels. Justin the Martyr confirmed that Mark was the scribe of Peter about 50 years later.

- Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon (late 100s CE), in his book Against Heresies (Book 3, Chapter 1) was the first person to state that all four gospels were written by the men whose names were attributed to the gospels

- None of the very early gospels had the names of their authors attached to them

14.13

More Information About the Gospels

Three gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, present a common viewpoint of Jesus’ life and tell many of the same stories. For that reason, they are called synoptic gospels. The source of their commonality is still a matter of great debate

A Syrian Christian writing around 150 CE tried to bring the differences in the Gospels

into harmony in his work, The Diatessaron. As the name implies (the name of the book

derives from the Greek word four), he only saw the four gospels as true gospels

Simon Peter said to them: “Let Mary go away from us, for women are not worthy of life.”

Jesus said: “Look, I will draw her in so as to make her male, so that she too may

become a living male spirit, similar to you.” But I say to you: “Every woman who makes

herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Gospel of Thomas:114)

There is very little disagreement that the four gospels were all completed before the second century CE (written before 100 CE). There were many other “gospels” (e.g. the Gnostic Gospels), written long after that, were never used by catholic Christian communities and lack credibility. Here is an example why. The quote below was taken from the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas:

- John’s gospel has a unique point of view and is believed to be the last gospel to be written (@85-95 CE)

- The synoptic gospels are commonly thought by scholars to have been written between 65 and 80 CE. Yet it is also true that none of the synoptic gospels directly mention the destruction of the Temple. This may suggest a date before 70 CE for all three gospels. The debate continues

14.14

Jesus’ Early Life in Scripture

• Jesus’ family traveled south from Nazareth to Bethlehem where Jesus was born during the reign of Herod the Great (@ 6 BCE) to register for a census (or to fulfill a prophecy?: Matt. 2:5 referring to Micah 5:2)

• Luke mentions that, when Jesus was twelve years of age, He accompanied his parents during their annual Passover visit to Jerusalem

• According to Luke, Jesus returned to Nazareth after his circumcision and Mary’s ritual purification in Jerusalem

• According to Matthew, Joseph returned

from Egypt but, out of fear of the new

Herod (Herod Archelaeus), in Judea,

decided to return to Nazareth in Galilee.

• According to Matthew, Joseph fled with the infant Jesus to Egypt to escape Herod’s slaughter of the innocents (between 6 and 4 BCE)

14.15

http://www.bible-history.com/maps/palestine_nt_times.html

Who wrote the Gospels? Mark’s Gospel

• We have already seen in The Church History of Eusebius that Mark’s gospel was

attributed to John Mark (of Acts 12:12 and 1 Peter 5:13) by Papias, a Bishop from

Hierapolis in Asia minor around 120 CE. “When Mark became Peter's interpreter, he

wrote down accurately, although not in order, all that he remembered of what the

Lord had said or done.”

• Mark mentions the names of the sons of Simon of Cyrene (Mk.15:21). This

indicates familiarity with both the man and the events. This is the kind of little detail

that others at the time might check on, so it, too, adds credibility

• Mark’s gospel is a “just the facts, ma’am” kind of document. It’s usage of

Greek indicates someone to whom Greek was a second language. Mark probably

spoke Aramaic as his native tongue

• Justin Martyr @ 150 CE added an interesting confirmation. He quoted from a

passage of what he called the “memoirs of Peter”. The passage that was quoted is

the one where James and John were called Boanerges (sons of thunder). This

passage is found only in Mark’s gospel (Mark 3:17) . Justin’s confirmation of Papias

(linking Mark’s gospel to Peter as its source) gives Papias significant credibility (see

Dialogue With Trypho, Chapter 106)

• Irenaeus, Bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul (modern Lyon, France) writing around 180

CE, echoed Papias’ claim.

14.16

Was There Anything Unique About Mark’s Gospel?

Yes, Mark’s gospel had its own style

* The women encounter a young man in white at the empty tomb who urged them to tell Peter

and the disciples what they saw. The women were afraid. Verses 9 through 20 add

appearances of the resurrected Jesus and a brief reference to his ascension.

• The two oldest manuscripts that have survived (Codex Sinaiticus and Codex

Vaticanus) do not contain verses 16:9-20 * but interestingly, they leave a blank

space perhaps sufficiently large to accommodate the verses

• The language of Mark’s gospel is blunt and direct

• Mark’s gospel has no infancy narrative,

• There is an urgency to Jesus work. Words like quickly and immediately are

regularly used to describe Jesus’ actions (many examples)

• The Apostles and disciples are constantly astonished or amazed by Jesus’

words and deeds (many examples)

• Jesus’ mission is a secret (Mk 3:12, 7:36 and others)

• Mark uses the word ‘gospel’ (εὐαγγέλιον) at the very beginning of his work

14.17

The Blank Space

The Codex Sinaiticus (left) and the Codex Vaticanus (right): Mark 16:2-8 end the

Gospel of Mark in both editions. The first chapter of Luke follows after the space

in the Codex Sinaiticus. These are the only two codices that leave out these

passages. These also are the two oldest codices of a relatively complete set of

scripture

14.18

Who wrote the Gospels? Matthew’s Gospel

• Papias also attributed Matthew’s gospel to the Apostle Matthew (known, too, by his

Hebrew name, Levi). Papias claimed that Matthew’s gospel was originally written in

Aramaic as a collection of the sayings of Jesus.

Matthew put together the sayings of the Lord (logia) in the Hebrew* language, and each one interpreted them as best he could. (Eusebius quoting Papias in is work History of the Church 3.39:14-17)

• Unlike Mark’s gospel, Matthew’s gospel does have an infancy narrative

• Ignatius was Bishop of Antioch in the late 90s to early 100s CE. Antioch was one of

the first and most important cities outside of Jerusalem for Christians. When Herod

Agrippa drove Hellenist Jews out of Jerusalem, (@ 43 CE) many fled to Antioch.

This included a number of Hellenist Jewish converts to Christianity. Ignatius quotes

Matthew’s gospel several times proving that it was available in the 90s CE and fairly

well known even beyond Israel. This fact caused many scholars to think that

Matthew may even have written his gospel in Antioch

• Papias believed that Matthew later translated these collections into Greek as best he

could and arranged them in a gospel narrative. Matthew was born a Jew (Levi) but

worked as a tax collector for the Romans. Many people in Jesus’ time had both

Semitic first names as well as Hellenist first names

14.19

• It was possibly written for a Jewish Christian community in Antioch and may have

originally been written in either Hebrew or Aramaic

Was There Anything Unique About Matthew’s Gospel?

• Matthew’s gospel contains an infancy narrative with a focus on Joseph as the main

actor. Matthew begins with a lineage of Jesus. Along with the narrative of Jesus’

life, the gospel contains five great discourses which many scholars believe were

meant to parallel the five books of Moses, the Torah

1) the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5-7)

2) the Missionary Instructions (Matt. 10)

3) the collection of parables (Matt. 13),

4) Community instructions (Matt. 18)

5) the sermon on the “last days” (eschatology. See Matt. 23-25)

• This gospel seems to mediate between the two extremes of early Christianity; a

total conformity to Jewish Law and a total abandonment of it

• This gospel is quoted in many of the documents of the early Church (Epistle of

Clement of Rome to the Corinthians, the Didache, the letters of Ignatius of Antioch,

the writings of Justin Martyr and more)

• Jesus’ lineage is traced back to Abraham which is just one of many instances in

Matthew’s gospel indicating that Jesus is the Jewish Messiah

14.20

Jesus as the New Moses in Matthew

• If Matthew’s gospel is written to show that Jesus is the new Messiah prophesied by

the Hebrew Scriptures, it makes sense to look for comparisons to the greatest

Messiah in Jewish history, Moses:

• While these comparisons may be somewhat of a stretch (e.g. Pharaoh intending to

kill Moses on the way out of Egypt compared to Herod trying to kill Jesus causing

the flight to Egypt), this trend of seeing NT ‘types’ in OT events became common in

early Christianity.

- Both Moses and Jesus were born under a government hostile to Jews (Egypt and

Rome)

- The governing ruler wants him (Moses and Jesus) dead (Pharaoh and Herod)

- Both are divinely protected

- Both spend time in Egypt

- After leaving Egypt, both go through water (Red Sea, baptism in the Jordan River)

- Both go up to a mountain to deliver God’s law (Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai

and the Sermon on the Mount)

14.21

Who wrote the Gospels? Luke’s Gospel (and Acts)

• Irenaeus of Bishop of Lyon and Clement, Bishop of Alexandria both attribute this

gospel to Luke, a physician (Colossians 4:14) and companion of Paul (2 Tim. 4:11

and Philemon 1:24)

• The Greek in Luke’s gospel seems to be a more learned form of the language

hinting that Greek was the mother tongue of the author of Luke. This adds

credibility to the idea that Luke was indeed a learned man as a physician would

almost have to be

• The Book of Acts mentions neither the destruction of the Temple (70 CE) nor the

persecution of the Christians in Rome by Emperor Nero (@67 CE) but ends very

suddenly with Paul being in Rome (@ 66 CE?). For these reasons, it is logical to

assume that the Book of Acts was written before 67 CE and, therefore, the Gospel of

Luke written before that

• Luke is also considered the author of the Acts of the Apostles. The Book of Acts

follows the Gospel of Luke in that the author addresses both books to a certain man

named Theophilus. Both books also claim to be written as a sort of history; the

Gospel of Luke about Jesus and the Book of Acts about the early church

14.22

Luke’s Gospel

• Attributed to Luke by Irenaeus and Clement of Alexandria. Luke (and Acts) was

written to Theophilus which means either “lover of God” or “beloved of God”.

Theophilus may be the name of an actual person or it might simply be a general term

for “believer”

Was There Anything Unique About Luke’s Gospel?

• Luke’s gospel is the source of two passages used regularly in formal Christian

prayer (the Divine Office), the Canticle of Mary (Lk. 1:46-55) and the Canticle of

Zechariah (Lk. 1:68-79)

• Like Matthew, Luke’s gospel has an infancy narrative but in Luke’s gospel,

unlike Matthew’s gospel, the focus is on the experience of Mary. In fact, Luke

stresses women throughout his gospel. Often, events that happen to a man are

paired with events that happen to a woman. For example, in Luke 1, we have angelic

announcements made to Zechariah and to Mary. In Luke 2, there are the encounters

with Simeon and Anna at the Presentation. In Luke 7, there is the cure the

Centurion’s servant and the son of the Widow of Nain

• For Luke, Jesus was the universal Messiah and Luke traced Jesus’ ancestry not to

Abraham, as in Matthew’s gospel, but to Adam. It is no coincidence that Luke’s

gospel may well have been intended for the Gentile communities established by

Paul

14.23

What Does Synoptic Mean?

It means that the gospels of Mark, Matthew and Luke share a common view regarding

the life of Jesus. Yet there are differences. The question is why are there differences.

• General (though not universal) Scholarly Agreement: Mark wrote first and was

used as a source by Matthew and Luke. This and other synoptic gospel

issues are still the subject of debate

• When Matthew and Luke use material that is unique to each gospel (M and L),

they are simply making their own points

• When Matthew and Luke share the same material with each other, but that material is

not found in Mark, they may be using a lost collection of Jesus’ sayings often

referred to as Q, for Quelle, a German word that means ‘source’

• In the material shared by all three gospels, Matthew and Luke are likely using

Mark as their common source

• Possible Answer – They used each other (and a possible lost source called Q)

as sources with Mark writing first

• Matthew and Luke share a lot of Jesus’ sayings (over 200 verses) with each

other that are not found in Mark. Why the similarities? Why the differences?

• Matthew, Mark and Luke share much of the same material including stories and

sayings. They even have some commonality of order

Facts:

14.24

Speculation vs Fact

Mark Q

Matthew LukeM L

The illustration above tries to simplify the sourcing of the synoptic gospels. It

illustrates the Two Source Theory that claims that Matthew and Luke took much

other material they have in common from Mark and from ‘Q’. The material that they

do not have in common is their own material.

“The existence of Q... remains the best way of explaining the agreements between Matthew and

Luke in material they did not borrow from Mark” (Raymond E. Brown, “An Introduction to the New

Testament”, “The New Jerome Biblical Commentary”)

“ ‘Q’ is a hypothetical document whose exact extension, wording, originating community, strata and

stages of composition cannot be known.” (J.P. Meier, “Jesus: A Marginal Jew”)

This is a perfect example of scholarly speculation. There are a number of problems

with this theory; if Q existed, what community did it represent? Who led the Q

community? What is the theology of the Q community? Where was Q written? How

do we know that what is called ‘Q’ wasn’t simply an oral collection of Jesus’ sayings?

14.25

Attributed to John by Irenaeus of Lugdunum in Gaul (Lyon). Irenaeus claims that he

learned this information from Polycarp, a bishop of Smyrna who was himself a disciple

of the beloved apostle

Who wrote the Gospels? John’s Gospel

John is believed to have written his gospel later than the synoptic writers. John’s

gospel also fails to mention the destruction of the Temple but that may be simply due to

the fact that John’s gospel is more interested in explaining who Jesus was rather than

being an historical account of what Jesus did and said (although there is certainly a lot

of that in John’s gospel)

The “beloved disciple” stood at the foot of Jesus’ cross with Mary, Jesus’ mother.

Christian tradition from around 100 CE identifies John as the person with whom Mary

spent her last years on earth

There is some degree of self-identification within John’s gospel in that the gospel

constantly refers to the “disciple whom Jesus loved” and that disciple new things

that only a first-hand witness could know

14.26

John’s Gospel

Was There Anything Unique About John’s Gospel?

• John’s gospel is the most theological of the four gospels and is often recommended

as the starting point for anyone who is interested in reading the New Testament for

the first time

• There are clear examples of editing; (John 14:31 followed by a hiatus for a

discourse then resumed at John 18:1, John 20:31 followed by John 21:1-25)

• The gospel is divided into three parts; 1) the Prologue (John. 1:1-18). Some believe

that the prologue was a hymn or a creedal statement about the person of Jesus.

John makes no claims about Jesus’ human ancestry but stresses from the very

beginning His divine ancestry as Son of God (some humorously refer to this as

Jesus’ pre-infancy narrative), 2) the Book of Signs (John 1:19 – 12:50), and 3) the

Book of Glory (John 13:1-20:30)

• Attributed to John by Irenaeus who claims John wrote this gospel in Ephesus near the

end of his life. Irenaeus claimed to have learned this from Polycarp (Bishop of

Smyrna), a disciple of the beloved apostle. There has been some debate that this

gospel was written by John the Presbyter, also a well-respected member of the

Christian community at Ephesus mentioned by Papias, rather than John the Apostle.

While some scholars may attribute the letters of John `and the Apocalypse to the

Presbyter, there is little debate that the Gospel was written by John the Apostle

14.27

Who Does John Say Were Jesus’ Apostles?

Matthew:

Simon Peter

Andrew

James (Z)

John

Philip

Bartholomew

Thomas

Matthew

James (A)

Thaddeus

Simon of Cana**

Judas Iscariot

Mark:

Simon Peter

Andrew

James (Z)

John

Philip

Bartholomew

Thomas

Matthew

James (A)

Thaddeus

Simon of Cana**

Judas Iscariot

Luke:

Simon Peter

Andrew

James (Z)

John

Philip

Bartholomew

Thomas

Matthew

James (A)

Judas of James*

Simon the Zealot

Judas Iscariot

John:

Simon Peter

Andrew

James (Z)

John

Philip

Bartholomew

Thomas

Matthew

James (A)

Jude

Nathanael of Cana**

Judas Iscariot

Note: (Z) = James, son of Zebedee James the Greater

(A) = James, son of Alphaeus/Clopas/Chalpai? An unknown James? In any case, James

the Lesser

* of James can mean “brother of James” or “son of James”** Some believe that this word should mean ‘zealot’ not ‘of Cana’

The short answer is, “He doesn’t”. John’s gospel mentions a number of Jesus’

apostles but, unlike the Synoptics, John does not provide a list of “the twelve”

14.28

How Is The Gospel of John different from the Synoptic Gospels?

There are several clear differences found between the synoptic gospels and the

gospel of John;

4) The Synoptics choose the scene of the Last Supper to teach the Eucharist.

Jesus is the spotless lamb whose blood is shed and whose flesh is eaten at

the Seder meal. John had already taught the Eucharist in Chapter 6. John

used the Last Supper to stress the need for Christian humility and service to

others (Washing of the Feet)

3) The day of the Last Supper is different in John than in the Synoptics. In the

Synoptics, the Last Supper was a Seder meal and therefore was eaten during

the evening of the Passover. Jesus was then tried and crucified on the day of

the Passover and had to be buried before the Sabbath began. In John, the Last

Supper was eaten on the evening of the Preparation and Jesus was tried and

crucified on Preparation Day and had to be buried before the Passover began

2) In the Synoptic gospels, Jesus journeys south to Jerusalem once during His

public ministry, at its culmination. In John, Jesus moves back and forth

between Galilee and Jerusalem during His public ministry (cleansing of the

Temple early in John but late in the Synoptics)

1) In the Synoptic gospels, Jesus’ identity as the Son of God is gradually

revealed. In John’s gospel, Jesus is identified as Theos and Logos from

the very outset

14.29

When Do the Gospels Say the Last Supper Took Place?

Preparation Day Passover Day

JOHN: “Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the praetorium.-- It was morning. And they themselves did not enter the praetorium, in order not to be defiled so that they could eat the Passover. (John 18:28) So, in John, the evening meal the night before and the trial itself took place on Preparation Day (14 Nisan). Jesus died in the daylight portion of that day.

AM AMPM PM

Last SupperBetrayal Trials

TrialsCrucifixionBurial beforePassover

AM

Sabbath Day

PM PM

Preparation Day Passover Day Sabbath Day

AM AMPM PM AM PM PMAM

Last SupperBetrayal Trials

TrialsCrucifixionBurial beforeSabbath

SYNOPTICS: “On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (14 Nisan) when they sacrificed the Passover lamb,* his disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover (15 Nisan)?” (Mark 14:12) Jesus died during the daylight hours of the Passover

Lamb KilledIn Temple

14.30

http://usccb.org/bible/mark/14#49014012-1

Who Really Wrote the Gospels?

• Most scholars who belong to the historical-critical school, believe that the

gospels were all written late (80-120 CE) and that their true authors are unknown.

• Another side simply looks at the evidence at hand. The Book of Acts was written

later than the gospels. The Book of Acts fails to mention the destruction of the

Temple so it was likely written before 67 CE. The later passages written of Acts

was written while Paul is in Rome but fails to mention the persecution of Christians

by Nero. All these facts point to Acts being written before 67 CE. This points to all

the synoptic gospels being written before that.

• What is the true answer? No one knows for certain. Once again, though, we have a

choice. Do we believe ancient sources some of who knew the Apostles, or do we

look to the tools of modern critics who live twenty centuries after the events?

• Other groups, as exemplified by the Jesus Seminar (a group of scholars led by

John Dominick Crossan) doubts almost everything about the gospels. This group

looked at each passage of the gospels and voted on wat Jesus actually said, was

likely to have said, probably didn’t say it, definitely didn’t say it. They color-coded

each passage according to the outcome of the vote). This side agrees with the later

dating of the gospels

• There is a debate within this school of thought as to whether each gospel was

written by a single author or whether each gospel developed from a community

established, perhaps, by the person to whom the gospel was attributed. Since the

mid-1990s, the historical-critical school has had some serious competition.

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What the Gospels Are (and Are Not): Part One

The best way to think of the gospels can be found in a passage written by a Roman

Christian named Justin around 150 CE. He had written a defense of Christianity (and a

defense of his life) to the Emperor of Rome, Antoninus Pius, his sons and the Roman

Senate. In Chapters 65-67 of his defense (First Apologia), he describes the manner in

which Christians worship. This passage also shows why some Romans accused early

Christians of being cannibals.

“And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the countryside gather

together in one place, and the memoirs of the apostles (NT) or the writings of the

prophets (OT) are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the

one presiding verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things.

Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended,

bread and wine and water are brought,... For not as common bread nor common drink

do we receive these; but since Jesus Christ our Savior was made incarnate by the word

of God and had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so too, as we have been taught,

the food which has been made into the Eucharist by the Eucharistic prayer set down by

him, and by the change of which our blood and flesh is nurtured, is both the flesh and

the blood of that incarnated Jesus.... the presider in like manner offers prayers and

thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is

a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given,

and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons.”

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What the Gospels Are (and Are Not): Part Two

• As it became increasingly clear that Jesus would not be returning within the lifetime of the Apostles, those who were with Jesus were urged to commit to writing the things that they remembered about Him while they were still alive

• In all cases, the gospels were written precisely as Justin says, as memoirs. They contain memories of Jesus’ words and deeds that had been passed among the Christian communities in worship services and in prayer gatherings for years. They were later committed to writing to make sure they were preserved for future generations once it became clear that there would be future generations

• John’s gospel, attributed most commonly to the beloved disciple but, by some, to a well-known presbyter of the same name, was written last and reflects that fact by its deep theological insights into Jesus

• Luke’s gospel, often attributed to the companion of Paul mentioned in Paul’s epistles (e.g. Col. 4:14), seems to have been written by someone not familiar with nor concerned about Jewish Christian issues

• Matthew’s gospel is believed to have been written for the Christian community in Antioch, the capital of Roman Syria. This gospel contains the most beautiful version of the Sermon on the Mount

• Mark’s gospel is believed to be the memoirs of Peter as given to his “son” John Mark while in “Babylon”, a code word for Rome (1 Peter 5:13)

14.33

Did the First Christians Ban Some Gospels? The Diatessaron

You may have heard of “other” gospels (e.g. the Gnostic gospels) that claim to be written by those who accompanied Jesus. We have already seen a passage from The Gospel of Thomas, There were many other “gospels”. Unlike the standard four gospels which were written within a generation or so of Jesus’ death and resurrection, the earliest of these “other” gospels were written one or two generations later.

• In the end, the Church, to its credit, did not recognize Tatian’s work. The Church, believing that the four gospels were written by people who were contemporaries of Jesus and who had experienced him directly, allowed the four gospels to speak for themselves, contradictions and all. This same credit can be given to those who put the Torah into written form centuries earlier

• There is no mention within traditional Christianity of the acceptance of the Gospel of Thomas or other “gospels” written decades later

• As early as 150 CE, Christians recognized only the four gospels attributed to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John as true gospels.

• The best argument in favor of four gospels being the standard number accepted by

early Christians, comes in an unexpected way from a Syrian Christian named

Tatian. Tatian, a Roman who lived in Syria in the second century CE, attempted to

take the four gospels and edit them into a single, harmonious narrative. This work

of Tatian was called the Diatessaron which comes from a Greek expression that

means “out of four”. Tatian’s work was used for a brief time in the Christian

churches of his native land, Syria. It was an interesting attempt to harmonize the

four gospels and it can be found online via almost any search engine

14.34

Review of Events In the Holy Land During the Life of Jesus

• Herod the Great died shortly after Jesus’s birth (@ 6-4 BCE). He was replaced as

ruler of Judea by a son, Herod Archelaus. Two other sons, Herod Antipas and Philip

were made Tetrarchs of regions around Judea.

• At some time around 33 CE (best estimates are either 30 CE or 33 CE), the Romans

executed Jesus by crucifying him

• Pontius Pilate was appointed as the Roman procurator of Judea in 26 CE

and remained in that post until 36 CE

• Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Galilee, divorced his wife and married the divorced wife

of his half-brother Philip (not the same Philip as the above-mentioned Tetrarch).

John the Baptist’s public objection to this marriage ultimately led to John’s

execution

• Caesar Augustus (Octavian) died in 14 CE. He was succeeded by Tiberius Caesar

• After about ten years of continued unrest in Jerusalem, Herod Archelaus was

banished to Gaul (6 CE) and Judea became a Roman Province under the rule of

Roman Syria. Roman procurators were put in charge of Judea

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