Historical , Week 2, Page 1 of 9

Three Stages of Tradition.1 Week 2, Lecture 5 2

What are the sources? The historian’s question. Historians like as many sources of information as possible about the person they are studying. This is the first step not only in historical-Jesus research; it is the first step in all historical research.

We begin with the NT. There are other sources which mention Jesus. These include writings by pagans and Jews. They also include writings by Christians: apostolic Fathers & apocryphal . We will look at them eventually. The major source for the knowledge of Jesus are the four canonical Other parts of the NT contain minimal amounts of historical information about Jesus.

1964, PBC Instruction on the Historical Truth of the Gospels3 Official Catholic Teaching for over 55 years [2020]. Many mainline / mainstream Protestant Churches also -- the majority in America through about 1950. This approach to the Gospels is less common among evangelical Christians -- the majority in the Bible Belt. This document posits three stages of development of the gospel4 tradition.

Stage 1: Words & Deeds of Jesus. These are words actually said by Jesus, and deeds actually done by Jesus, during the time of his public ministry. There was no stenographer at the ! -- or anywhere else that Jesus ministered They were transmitted orally for decades before they were written down. Think of stories that you hear from the old folks at family reunions. (Remark of Dr. Scott’s wife.)

Stage 2: Preaching / Teaching of the Early Church. ca. 30 - 70 A.D. Let’s not be too “clerical” about this (to use a term anachronistically). Suppose the son of a pagan slave woman is sick . . . What happened during Stage 2? Selection / Amplification / Changes (more on this shortly)

Stage 3: The Writing of the Evangelists It is impossible to date the Gospels exactly. This is part of the difficulty of the historical study of Jesus. There is considerable debate about the details of each Gospel. In introductory lectures I try to give the general consensus of “centrist” scholars.

1 The main sources for this lecture and the next one are chapter 2 (Sources: Canonical Books of the NT) of Volume 1 of Meier’s Marginal Jew and pages 105-11, 114-126 of Johnson’s Real Jesus, “What’s Historical about Jesus?” A website worth checking out is Catholic Resources, by Fr. Felix Just, S.J. https://catholic-resources.org/ . Fr. Just (pronounced “yoost”) is a respected member of the Catholic Biblical Association of America. On his site you will not find “internet trash,” my description for 99% of the information available about the Bible on the internet. You will find links to many of the official Catholic documents I mention on this website. 2 I have decided to number the lectures throughout the course consecutively. Lectures 1-4 were given in Week 1. 3 The text is available in: Joseph A. Fitzmyer, A Christological Catechism: Answers, new revised and expanded edition (Paulist Press, 1991), pages 153-162. His expert introduction and commentary is found on pages 119-152. Similar, but less detailed, information is found in paragraph §19 of Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum), the text of which is found on pages 163-164 of the Christological Catechism. 4 There are two different systems regarding capitalizing the word “gospel.” Either is acceptable, but it is not acceptable to use both systems in the same paper or essay. The first way is the simplest: The word “gospel” is never capitalized. Never capitalize it, and you will never be wrong! I follow the second system, used by the Catholic Biblical Association. “Gospel” is capitalized whenever it refers to a book, whether that book is in the NT or is one of the apocryphal Gospels; but it is not capitalized when it refers to a message. Examples: The is in the NT; the Gospel of Thomas is not. Paul’s gospel was that salvation is by faith. , Week 2, Page 2 of 9

I steer a line between 1) fundamentalists and others who assert that Gospels were written by eyewitnesses 2) scholars who assert that the apocryphal Gospels are earlier and more historical than our canonical Gospels. I think the best introduction to this material is found in An Introduction to the NT by Raymond Brown.5 Gospel-writing, approximately 70-90 A.D.

The scholarly consensus is that Mark wrote first, approximately 70 A.D. -- the year the Romans destroyed Jerusalem. Raymond Brown thinks between 68-73 is most likely.6 Matthew and Luke apparently wrote about 10-15 years later.7 John probably wrote between 80-100 A.D. It is likely that John 21 is a later addition, written approximately 100-110.8 It is also likely that John 7:53-8:11 (The Woman Caught in Adultery) was written in the 2nd century Most scholars think that Mark 16:9-20 (the “Longer Ending” of Mark) was written by a scribe decades later. C. E. B. Cranfield thinks it added before the middle of the second century (i.e., before 150 A.D.).9

Examples of “Selection” in Stage 3. Matthew & Luke do not use all of Mark’s Gospel Neither one of them uses the story where the family of Jesus thinks he is “out of his mind” (Mark 3:21).10 Neither one of them uses the story where it takes Jesus two tries to cure a blind man (Mark 8:22-26). We can catch Matthew and Luke “red handed” in their “selections” from Mark. However, they have additional materials not in Mark -- and we cannot determine how much of those they left out.

Did Mark & John “Select?” Furthermore, we have none of the sources for Mark or for John. However, we would be naïve to think that Mark and John did not “select” from materials available to them. John states that if he wrote all the things that Jesus did the whole world could not contain all the books! (John 21:25)

Example of “Amplification” in Stage 3. Peter’s Confession Mark 8:29-30, RSV Luke 9:20-21 Matthew 16:16-20 . . . Peter answered him, . . . And Peter answered, . . . Simon Peter replied, "You are the ." "The Christ of God." "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth 21 shall be loosed in heaven." 30 And he charged them But he charged and commanded them 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one about him. to tell this to no one, to tell no one that he was the Christ.

5 Raymond E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament, Anchor Bible Reference Library (Doubleday, 1997). There are, of course, other good introductory works on the NT. I will not attempt to list them here. 6 Raymond E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament, Anchor Bible Reference Library (Doubleday, 1997), p. 127. 7 Brown, Introduction, pages 172, 226. 8 Brown, Introduction, p 334. 9 C. E. B. Cranfield, The Gospel according to St. Mark, The Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary, 4th revised reprint, (Cambridge, 1959) 472. Daniel Harrington & John Donahue (The , Sacra Pagina, vol. 2 [Liturgical Press, 2002] 463) place the longer ending “in the second century,” i.e., before 200 A.D. 10 This is the NAB translation. The RSV “tones it down” out of reverence. Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 3 of 9

More Examples of Matthew’s “Amplification.” Do Not include in Lecture Mark Matthew 1 demoniac 2 demoniacs a “crowd” follows Jesus “crowds” follow Jesus Jesus feeds 5,000 Jesus feeds 5,000 plus women & children

Changes: Example 1 Cursing of the Fig Tree -- Matthew Cursing of Fig Tree, :14, 20-21. Serves as a frame to 13:15-19, the “cleansing” of the Temple Those in the Temple are not “bearing fruit.” The frame highlights this. :19 gets rid of the frame. When Jesus curses the fig tree it melts immediately. [I’m melting!] One of Matthew’s editorial tendencies is to “improve” .

Luke’ Modification of the Fig-Tree Story Gentle Luke omits the story of Jesus cursing the fig tree. In 13:6-9 (part of the journey to Jerusalem) Luke has a parable no other author has. It is about a fig tree that is not bearing fruit. The parable ends with a warning. The message is the same; the literary form is different. What was a “ story” in Mark and in Matthew has become a parable in Luke.

Changes: Example 2, Walking on the Sea. Luke does not have this story. John’s version does not appear to be literarily dependent on Mark. Matthew adds14:28-31, the story of Peter Walking on the Sea (till he has a little faith trouble). There is nothing like this in Mark -- or in John’s independent version. One of Matthew’s editorial tendencies is to highlight the importance of Peter. This is one of the reasons why it has been the favorite Gospel of the Roman Church.

Matthew changes the ending. Mark 6:51-52, RSV Matthew 14:32-33 51 And he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, 52 for they did not understand about the loaves, [omission] but their hearts were hardened. saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." Matthew’s editorial tendency: present the disciples as ideals to be imitated. Here he omits Mark’s editorial statement concerning their lack of understanding of Jesus. He changes their hardness of heart to a profession of faith in Jesus as Son of God.

Examples of Editorial Changes in Baptism Story: Do Not Include in Lecture Mark Matthew & / or Luke Only Jesus hears the voice The crowd hears the voice [John: no heavenly voice, only John the Baptist speaks] Only Jesus sees the Spirit Spirit appears “bodily” (Luke) JB simply baptizes Jesus. No problem! JB protests (Matthew) JB is already in jail (Luke 3:20) when Jesus “is baptized”! -- by whom?

Bottom Line: Everything in the Gospels is not from Stage 1. Red-Letter editions of the NT. While a believer can be confident that every statement attributed to Jesus comes from God a historian cannot be confident that Jesus actually said everything written in red letters. The same principle applies to deeds attributed to Jesus by the Gospel writers.

Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 4 of 9

Scholarly Question: Is This Authentic? A scholar who asks such a question is not asking whether a story is true. She or he is asking whether or not the story goes back to Stage 1. I often say: “All of the Gospel stories are true whether they happened or not.” For a believer who is a theologian the question is: “In what way is this story true?”

The Development of the Gospels. Week 2, Lecture 6

Implications of Last Lecture The Liberal Error: No relationship between Stage 1 and Stage 3. The Fundamentalist Error: Stage 3 = Stage 1. What I am reading in the Gospel is exactly what Jesus said & did. Centrist Position: Development AND continuity.

Somebody has copied! Suppose I give a 5-page essay assignment: “My Understanding of Jesus as I Begin This Course.” Suppose also that the essays of 2 students contain paragraphs that are practically identical, word-for-word! What am I to conclude? 1) That these word-for-word similarities “just happened” to occur to each student independently? 2) That one student has copied at least part of the work of the other student? 3) That both students have copied from the same work, perhaps some book or on-line article? If you understand that for most teachers, options 2 & 3 are more probable than option 1 you understand what scholars call the Synoptic Problem.

The Synoptic Problem11 Since the 2nd century Christian scholars have noticed that Matthew, Mark, and Luke are very similar. By contrast, John is quite different from those three. (More details on this in the next lecture). Matthew, Mark, & Luke are so similar that they can easily be view side-by-side. The scholarly word for “side-by-side” viewing is “synoptic.” These 3 are called the . I gave you a couple of “synoptic” views of passages in the notes for the previous lecture.12 Matthew, Mark, and Luke contain so many verbally identical passages that scholars are convinced: Somebody has copied from somebody else! The problem is: who has copied from whom? Quite a few hypotheses have been proposed. Here are the most famous ones.

The Griesbach Hypothesis can be diagrammed thus: Matthew Luke Mark Matthew wrote first. Luke used Matthew as his major source. Mark wrote a “Reader’s Digest” version

Here is a diagram of the Farrer-Goulder Theory Mark Matthew Luke Mark wrote first. Matthew uses Mark; writes improved version. Luke is last Specifically, Luke, seeing what Matthew has done, decides he can do even better, independently.

11 We could do an entire course on “The Synoptic Problem.” For those wanting more information, there is a good article in the New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Raymond Brown also has a chapter on this in An Introduction to the New Testament. 12 A book that shows all of the parallel passages in the Gospels is called a “Gospel synopsis.” Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 5 of 9

“Independently” is important because it explains: 1) Why their stories of the birth of Jesus are so very different. (more in the next lecture) 2) Why their stories of the resurrection are so very different. (ditto) 3) Many of the other important differences in their Gospels. (ditto)

The theory accepted by the great majority of NT scholars is called the Two Source theory. Meier will presuppose this theory when making historical analyses in the next 5 volumes of his work.

Mark Q [Quelle]

Matthew Luke Mark wrote the first Gospel. Matthew and Luke used Mark as a source. They had a second source, in addition to Mark. It contained mostly sayings of Jesus. Matthew tends to group these by theme. Luke tends to make them part of his 10-chapter narrative of the Journey to Jerusalem.13 This theory was invented by German scholars. The German word for “Source” is Quelle. If American or British scholars had come up with the theory, we would call it “S” for “Source” instead of “Q.” When Q was first proposed, many scholars objected to a document that contained almost nothing but sayings. How could there be a “Gospel” without miracle stories, without the cross and resurrection? In 1945 the Gospel of Thomas was discovered at Nag Hammadi in Egypt. It consists of 114 sayings of Jesus!14

Two Source Theory, Expanded In addition to what they copy from Mark and Q, Matthew & Luke each have material unique to their Gospels. These “minor sources” are called “M” (for Matthew’s special source) and “L” (for Luke’s special source). This can be diagramed thus: Mark Q [Quelle]

M L

Matthew Luke

Fitzmyer’s Remark on Synoptic Problem After discussing the various solutions to the “Synoptic Problem” Fitzmyer concludes: Only a naïve fundamentalism would still insist on the synoptic gospels as products solely of independent oral tradition.15

13 In Mark & Matthew it takes Jesus one chapter to go from Galilee to Jerusalem. Most of Luke 9-19 is devoted to this journey. 14 The main Christological problem with Thomas is that all of the says are portrayed as being the words of the “living” Jesus -- i.e., of the risen Jesus. The Gospel of Thomas assigns no value at all to the human life of Jesus, nor to his death on the cross -- only his teaching -- isolated from his life -- is valued. More on this in a future lecture. 15 Fitzmyer, Christological Catechism., p. 10 Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 6 of 9

Johannine Tradition Perhaps some of this goes back to the son of Zebedee whose brother was named James. This does not mean this Gospel was written by a fisherman. Rather, he might be the “ultimate source” of some of the material.

Beloved Popular piety tends to identify him with the son of Zebedee. In fact, the BD is never clearly designated in the Gospel. Some scholars argue that the BD is purely a symbolic figure. He stands for the “ideal Christian.” Sandra Schneiders has argue that is the BD. Lazarus is the only male the 4th Gospel states “Now Jesus loved . . . Lazarus” (11:5) The same verse also states that Jesus loved Martha and “her sister” (Mary of Bethany, not Mary Magdalene).16 Brown argues (vs. Bultmann) that the BD was a real person. Since he is never part of the ministry in Galilee, it is unlikely he was one of the 12. Brown thinks he was a disciple of Jesus who lived in Jerusalem.

The 4th Gospel went through Several Editions John 20:31 was the original ending. Chapters 1-20 were written by “the Evangelist” Chapter 21 is a later appendix. It is often called an “Epilogue.” Chapter 21 was written by “the Final Redactor.” Commentators note that the author of the epilogue has a different perspective than the author of John 1-20.

Summary. In this lecture we have examined “Stage 3” more closely. The common view of scholarship is that no Gospel was written by an eye-witness. When we celebrate the feast of “Matthew, Apostle & Evangelist” we celebrate 2 saints. The member of the Twelve named Matthew An anonymous third-generation Christian whose Gospel received its name in the 2nd century. When we celebrate the feast of “John, Apostle and Evangelist,” we could be honoring 4 different saints! The son of Zebedee The Beloved Disciple The Evangelist, who wrote John 1-20 The Final Editor, who added John 21.

The Nature of the Gospel Material. Week 2, Lecture 7

Main Source: A Christological Catechism Fitzmyer, Joseph A. A Christological Catechism: New Testament Answers. New Revised and Expanded Edition. Paulist Press, 1991. ISBN 8091-3253-2. 17

Question 1. Do the Gospel Stories Present an Accurate Factual Account of the Teaching and Deeds of Jesus of Nazareth? Those who remember The Baltimore Catechism: what would the answer be?

Fitzmyer’s Answer The Question is on page 7. Fitzmyer begins his discussion there, and ends it on page 11.

16 A weakness of the argument that the BD was a woman is that all pronouns and adjectives that refer to the BD are masculine. (See John 19:26, where the word “son” is applied to the BD; also 20:2l; 21:7,20). However one scholar has told me that if the feminine forms had been used, the Church would have only three Gospels in the NT. I am not convinced, but she might be right. 17 https://www.amazon.com/Christological-Catechism-New-Testament- Answers/dp/0809132532/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Fitzmyer+Christological&qid=1600723631&s=books&sr=1-1 Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 7 of 9

Fitzmyer begins by noting “the question is complicated.” (Did you ever read that in your Baltimore Catechism?) The very question is the question of a modern (post-Enlightenment) historian. Fitzmyer’s answer is that from this perspective the answer is: “meager indeed!”18 He then outlines many problems that face those who want to write “history” from the Gospels.

Some Peculiarities of John (1) How many trips did Jesus make to Jerusalem? Several! Contrast the Synoptics. Jesus makes only one trip to Jerusalem, and it results in his death.19 When was the Temple cleansed? At the beginning of the ministry. Contrast the Synoptics, where it is portrayed as the climactic event that brings about his death. Characteristic Activities -- There are no exorcisms in John! John’s portrait of Jesus is much more exalted than the Synoptics. The Johannine Jesus does not mess with “little assistant demons.” He battles “The Prince of this World” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11).

More Differences between John & The Synoptics When did Jesus die? The day after the Passover lambs were slain (synoptics). The was a Passover meal. The day the lambs were slain (John). The Last Supper was not a Passover meal. What immediately precipitated the death of Jesus? The “cleansing” of the Temple (synoptics). That was back in chapter 2 in John. The raising of Lazarus, dead for 4 days. This story is not found in Matthew, Mark, or Luke. The 4th evangelist is “up front” that his purpose in writing is not to record history. . . . these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:31, RSV)

Thoughts on “Dramatization.” There is much “dramatization” in the 3-Stage process that gives us our written Gospels. Dramatization is not falsification. Dramatization makes the truth memorable! For Gospel writers the most important truth is who Jesus IS right now: the risen Lord of the Church.

Differences among the Synoptics How many petitions in the Lord’s Prayer? 5? (Luke) or 7? (Matthew) How many did Jesus pronounce in his famous sermon? 4? (Luke) or 8? (Matthew) Most Christians can recite from memory Matthew’s version of the Lord’s prayer. Even those with a doctorate in scripture have trouble with Luke’s version! Did Jesus make exceptions for divorce? Mark & Luke: no! Matthew: yes (twice!) Does Jesus mention the possibility of women divorcing their husbands? Mark: yes Matthew & Luke: no

Infancy Narratives: Where is the first home of Mary and Joseph? In Luke it is in Nazareth. When they go to Bethlehem, the try to get into an inn, but there is no room! In Matthew (2:11) they have a house in Bethlehem. Matthew’s problem is to explain how they got to Nazareth! After Herod is dead, the angel tells him he can move back from Egypt. But Herod’s son is reigning, and Joseph is afraid. So he moves the family from Bethlehem to Nazareth.

18 Fitzmyer, Christological Catechism, page 7. 19 We will discuss the Lucan tradition that Jesus went to Jerusalem as a boy when we look at the Infancy Narratives. Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 8 of 9

A scholarly Christmas Creche In most crèche scenes, Lucan shepherds meet Matthean Magi -- who arrived several years later! They go via Jerusalem to the house in Bethlehem. Because it has been a while since they saw the star, Herod orders the death of all babies under two years old. The has been at this house for quite a while since Jesus was born! The Gospels get “blurred together” in popular piety. Their inspired, artistic differences are hard to remember. Brian Schmisek’s solution.

Resurrection-Appearance Narratives There are no “resurrection” narratives in the NT. There are empty-tomb narratives. There are resurrection-appearance narratives. Mark contains no resurrection appearance narrative -- only the promise of an appearance in Galilee.20 All of the resurrection appearances to the Twelve recorded by Luke are in Jerusalem. In Matthew the only resurrection appearance to the male disciples is on a mountain in Galilee.

Women and the resurrection. Did women see the risen Jesus? It depends on which Gospels you read! Matthew and John record appearances of Jesus to women. Mark and Luke record only that the women saw angels.

What about the differences in the Beatitudes, Lord’s Prayer, and different versions of parables? Yes, it is possible that Jesus said different things on different occasions. Perhaps he said one version of the Lord’s Prayer on the Sermon on the Mount And another version on the way to Jerusalem when his disciples said “Teach us to pray.”

What about things said only once? The voice at the baptism In Mark & Luke the voice is speaking to Jesus. YOU are my beloved Son. In Matthew the voice is speaking to the crowd. THIS is my beloved Son. In the 4th Gospel there is no heavenly voice at the . Only the proclamation of JB! The words of Institution occur 4 times. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and 1 Corinthians. The words are not identical in any two of them. (what we say on Sunday is not identical with any of the 4 scripture passages).

Points to Ponder: On the one hand . . . If the early Church was not concerned to have 2 different versions of the Lord’s Prayer 4 different versions of the Words of Institution Does a historian have the right to have high confidence that the exact words of Jesus are preserved elsewhere? Fitzmyer’s conclusion: The upshot is that, when one considers the synoptic gospel stories from the viewpoint of accurate, factual recounting, they can scarcely be judged to be prime examples of such writing.21

On the Other Hand . . . The Gospels are not complete fabrications. There is a tradition that underlies both the synoptics and John. The purpose of the evangelists was not “to record facts;” it was to promote faith! I have already quoted John 20:31. A similar expression of purpose is found at the beginning of Luke

20 Recall: Mark 16:8-20 was not written by Mark; it was written by a scribe several decades -- perhaps a century-- after Mark wrote. 21 Fitzmyer, Christological Catechism, p. 9. Historical Jesus, Week 2, Page 9 of 9

Luke 1:3-4 I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received. (NAB)

All Gospels are written with 20-20 hindsight -- in view of the Resurrection Belief in the resurrection imbues every sentence of the Gospels. If Christians did not believe that God raised Jesus from the dead, there would be no Gospels! For historians, this post-resurrectional insight is a “problem.” The post-resurrectional glory of Jesus gets read back into his ministry. From the historian’s point of view, this is an “anachronism.”22 But we are even more anachronistic than the Gospel writers! Can you tell the story of Jesus without once using the word “divine?” For most Catholics this is very difficult. But think of this: Mark did it! Matthew did it! Luke did it! John did it! No Gospel calls Jesus “divine.” Well, that helps you to understand what the evangelists did. Just as it is hard for us to talk about Jesus without saying “divine” It was hard for them to write about Jesus without including his post-resurrectional glory. For believers this historical “problem” is the greatest asset of the Gospels! It’s why we read them! The post-resurrectional insight of the evangelists allows us to see more clearly than those who were there! They did not really “see” the meaning of everything Jesus did; They did not really understand who Jesus really was until after the resurrection.

Conclusions Some scholars, Protestant & Catholic, have concluded that historical knowledge of Jesus is simply impossible. Meier and Fitzmyer (and many “centrist” Catholic scholars) think this evaluation is too pessimistic. The Gospels can be used for historical research about Jesus. However, they have to be use with caution.

Future Classes There are some other sources about Jesus from the ancient world. Are there better sources than the Gospels? How do we know what comes from Jesus? We are going to spend several weeks looking at what non-Christian sources have to say about Jesus. Then we will examine the “rules” for determining “How do we know what comes from Jesus?”

22 Recall my example in a previous lecture of the “anachronism” in the opening scene in The Bridges of Madison County. The 1950’s pickup truck is driving through fields with round bales of hay! But back in the 1950’s there were only square bales!