Matthew and Luke sometimes write versions of Marcan pericopae in which they make initial changes, only to lapse into the thought or wording of the original. Clear examples are Matt 14.1–12 ∥Mark 6.14–29 (Death of John); Matt 8.1–4 ∥ Mark 1.40–5 (Leper); Matt 12.46–50 ∥ Mark 3.31–5 (Mother and Brothers); Luke 8.4–15 ∥ Mark 4.1–20 (Sower); Luke 5.17–26 ∥ Mark 2.1–12 (Paralytic) and Luke 9.10–17 ∥ Mark 6.30–44 (Five Thousand), all of which make good sense on the theory of Marcan Priority. ‘Fatigue’ may also suggest a solution to the problem of double tradition material: Luke 9.1–6 (cf. Matt 10.5–15, Mission Charge) and Luke 19.11–27 ∥ Matt 25.14–30 (Talents) both make good sense on the theory of Luke’s use of Matthew.
Nicola Denzey Lewis, Stephen Patterson and John Kloppenborg have written appreciative but critical reviews of the books by Simon Gathercole and Mark Goodacre. This response focuses on several key elements in their critiques: Thomas’s role in second- and fourth-century Christianity; the difference between ‘direct links’ and ‘diagnostic shards’; the analogy of ‘the plagiarist’s charter’; the categories ‘secondary orality’ and ‘scribal culture’; the role played by oral tradition; the argument from Thomas’s genre; the example of the Rich Fool; modelling Christian origins; and questioning the notion of a ‘new Synoptic Problem’.
James Robinson’s narrative of how the Nag Hammadi codices were discovered is popular and compelling, a piece of fine investigative journalism that includes intrigue and blood vengeance. But there are several different, conflicting versions of the story, including two-person (1977), seven-person (1979) and eight-person (1981) versions. Disagreements include the name of the person who first found the jar. Martin Krause and Rodolphe Kasser both questioned these stories in 1984, and their scepticism is corroborated by the Channel 4 (UK) series, The Gnostics (1987), which features Muhammad ‘Ali himself, in his only known appearance in front of camera, offering his account of the discovery. Several major points of divergence from the earlier reports raise questions about the reliability of ‘Ali’s testimony. It may be safest to conclude that the earlier account of the discovery offered by Jean Doresse in 1958 is more reliable than the later, more detailed, more vivid versions that are so frequently retold.
Study of the Synoptic Problem is often thought to be outdated, irrelevant and dull. We know the solution and we ought to spend time on newer, more exciting approaches to the New Testament. Yet one of those newer approaches, the study of the New Testament in film, provides surprising possibilities for Synoptic study by allowing us to explore a more three-dimensional model of Synoptic relationships. Jesus films variously harmonize, epitomize, omit, change and manipulate in a creative interaction with the synoptic texts, the study of which sheds new light on those texts and the relationships between them. This article introduces a fresh way of looking at the Synoptics by focusing on the treatment of the Sermon on the Mount in five Jesus films, and comparing it with Luke's treatment of the Sermon on the assumption that he, too, has a copy of Matthew's Gospel. Luke's handling of the Sermon has several features in common with the Jesus films' handling of the same material, specifically relocation, abbreviation, redistribution, restructuring and the enhancing of dramatic elements. This provides us with a stimulus to re-think the common yet dubious claim that, on the assumption that he knew Matthew, Luke's redaction of the Sermon on the Mount is inexplicable.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.