3.1 interpreting the text

Question 1

what is the focus of biblical criticism?

Answer 1

to examine books in the Bible like the gospels to try to shed light on:
– how they came to be written.
– their reliability as sources for the life and teachings of Jesus.
– their purpose

Question 2

What is oral tradition?

Answer 2

• the teachings of Jesus and accounts of the events in his life from eyewitnesses that were passed on by word of mouth among the early Christian communities

Question 3

What is source criticism?

Answer 3

examines where the material within a text came from to establish the original source

Question 4

What is form criticism?

Answer 4

seeks to identify the different ‘forms’/types of writing in the text and the historical context within which they were written

Question 5

What is redaction criticism?

Answer 5

aims to identify how the author shaped their material; the Evangelist is seen as an editor/redactor in the creation of the text

Question 6

what is the synoptic problem?

Answer 6

The question of literary relationship between the first three gospels and the sources each gospel used

Question 7

how did Augustine explain the interdependence between the gospels?

Answer 7

The priority of Matthew

Question 8

what is Griesbach’s synopsis?

Answer 8

– Highlighted the similarities and differences between Matthew Mark and Luke it allowed scholars to see:
– where the evangelist agreed whether all three or two of them
– where material was used by just one of them
– similarities in the actual wording

Question 9

What did Griesbach’s synopsis lead to?

Answer 9

• all used a common source
• either one or two of them used a different source
• all shared common written sources, possibly Greek translations of Jesus’ Aramaic words

Question 10

What is the proto-gospel hypothesis?

Answer 10

• based on the theory that there is a lost gospel

Question 11

Was the proto-gospel matthew?

Answer 11

• Bishop Papias = Mt collected together the sayings of Jesus in Hebrew and Mk and Mt interpreted them the best they could, Mt then translated this into the canonical gospel

HOWEVER:
- this can no longer be verified as the letter no longer exists, neither does the copy of Mt in Hebrew

Question 12

Was the proto-gospel Mk?

Answer 12

• there might’ve been a proto Mk that had less material in it, and that the author later supplemented, and Mt and Mk used this proto version when writing

HOWEVER:
- this doesn’t account for the fact that sometimes Mt and Lk agree against Mk and at other times Mt and Mk agree against Lk

Question 13

What is the two-source hypothesis?

Answer 13

the theory that Mt and Lk used both Mk and Q when writing their gospels

Question 14

Who first proposed the two-source hypothesis?

Answer 14

Weisse in 1836

Question 15

How many verses to Mt and Lk share in common?

Answer 15

about 200 verses, which are mainly sayings and parables of Jesus

Question 16

What priority does the two-source hypothesis support?

Answer 16

Markan priority

Question 17

What is the four-source hypothesis?

Answer 17

in addition to Mk and Q, Mt and Lk also used material from independent sources, known as M and L

Question 18

Who first proposed the four-source hypothesis?

Answer 18

Streeter in 1924

Question 19

What is source M?

Answer 19

228 verses - mainly Jewish-type material, including use of the OT and the birth narratives

Question 20

What is source L?

Answer 20

490 verses - contains 14 parables and reference to Mary, Martha and Zacchaeus(women and outcasts)

Question 21

What is a problem with the four-source hypothesis?

Answer 21

• no evidence for Q or M and L
• instances where Mt and Lk are similar but Mk is different, implying that they knew each other’s texts
• examples where Mk and Lk appear to have copied Mt e.g Jesus teaching the greatest commandment
• Farrer = proposed that Mk was used as source material by Mt, and that Lk used both Mk and Mt

Question 22

Why do scholars argue for the priority of Mk?

Answer 22

• the shortest gospel and omits the birth narrative and Lord’s prayer
• gospel based on the preaching of Peter, so is dated soon after his death 64 CE
• very little unique material, whereas Mt used nearly all of Mk
• evidence that MT and Lk edited Mk e.g the calming of the storm
• Mt and Lk appear to use a better style of Greek
• in Mk, Jesus is often harsher to the disciples

Question 23

Why do some scholars still support the Augustinian view that Matthew was written first?

Answer 23

• external evidence from the Church fathers, e.g. Irenaeus testified that Mt’s gospel was written first
• there are parallel accounts in Mt and Mk it is easier to see that Mk edited Mt rather than Mt edited Mk
• Griesbach argued that Mk was the last as he provided a short summary of the other two gospels

Question 24

What is the purpose of form criticism?

Answer 24

to identify each different type of unit of writing then classify them into the different forms

Question 25

Why is the form of the writing so important?

Answer 25

it shows the importance that a writer would place on a particular teaching/event

Question 26

What is the name for the units of text?

Answer 26

pericopae

Question 27

How many different pericopae are there in the Bible?

Answer 27

• At least 5:
  1. exhortations - wise sayings
  2. tales - longer stories such as miracles
  3. myths - stories
  4. paradigms - brief stories
  5. legends - set an example

Question 28

What is an example of an exhortation in the Bible?

Answer 28

MK 2:23 = ‘Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath’

Question 29

What is an example of a myth in the Bible?

Answer 29

Mt 4:11 = explores deep issues about faith
sitz im leben - the ECC were criticised for worshipping a magician

Question 30

What is an example of a legend in the Bible?

Answer 30

LK 2:41-52 = The boy Jesus at the Temple

Question 31

What did M Dibelieus propose about pericopae?

Answer 31

they had to regarded in terms of their sitz im leben - their situation in life was adapted to fit the needs of the ECC

Question 32

What did Bultmann argue about the Gospels?

Answer 32

we need to demythologise the Gospels to get back to their original meaning and truth about Jesus

Question 33

What are some implications and weaknesses of using form criticism?

Answer 33

• casts doubt on whether it is possible to reconstruct a ‘historical Jesus’
• too dismissive of the reliability of the oral tradition
• presents most passages as fictional or wildly exaggerated

Question 34

What is the purpose of redaction criticism?

Answer 34

to focus on the whole book and attempt to work out how the material has been adapted to fit the authors own understanding of Jesus by focusing on what distinctive things the evangelists bring to their material

Question 35

What are some distinctive elements of Mk?

Answer 35

• messianic secret
• paraousia was imminent

Question 36

What are some distinctive elements of Mt?

Answer 36

• Jesus as fulfilment of OT prophecy
• Jesus as Son of David
• Jesus as a new Moses

Question 37

What are some distinctive elements of Lk?

Answer 37

• salvation history
• Jesus’ message for all people
• paraousia further in the future

Question 38

Where can the evangelists’ individual theologies be seen in the Bible?

Answer 38

The Calming of the Storm
- Mt emphasises discipleship - Jesus reproached the disciples then calmed the storm
- Mk emphasises Jesus’ authority - Jesus stilled the storm then reproached the disciples

John the Baptist
- Mk = John doesn’t recognise Jesus as anyone special and so baptises him (secrecy motif)
- Mt = makes it clear that the baptism is to fulfil scripture (OT prophecy)

Question 39

What are some weaknesses of redaction criticism?

Answer 39

• relies on Q and the 4 source hypothesis
• reliability is thrown into question