Biography of the New Testament

Lecture 2

Sept 14, 2006

 

Read: Perkins - Chapter 1

 

I. Initial Circumstances or Event

The Resurrection of Jesus

 

 

-  Gospels, Jesus' life and teachings

- Witnessed by a wide variety of people: disciples, Pharisees, young / old, rich / poor, prostitutes, scribes, slaves etc.

- Might be a large number of interpretations of original events (different relationships, experiences, worldviews)

 

 

II. Beginnings of Tradition

A. What is Tradition?

 

Has two meanings:

 

1. The act of passing something on

2. The information / creed that is passed on

 

B. People seldom keep their experiences to themselves (tradition)

 

This stage Jesus is a not a phenomenon in the past, but a present reality for believers.

 

Why do people pass on their experiences?

 

1. To keep a historical record

2. Not to tell stories

3. Propaganda (in its good sense) and Propagation

 

- Spreading of information: preaching, missionary, evangelism

 

4. Growing need to order life, shaping of faith

 

C. Point of records / stories an important role in how they are delivered

 

D. Shape of document can often tell us its purpose

 

 

This stage sets the context for Form Criticism, which if not abused can tell us some things about early Christian life.

 

Basic building blocks of tradition are real life experiences of real people.  Desire of writers to communicate, importance of Risen Christ had a great impact on how they communicated their message.

 

Two important things to note:

 

1. People were not simply motivated by past encounters with Christ, Jesus was a present reality.  They believed Jesus was alive and in communication with them.

 

2. Jesus' ministry, death and resurrection was not the end but a new beginning.  Early believers had a deep expectectation of judgment in future motivated them to spread their message.

 

This led to a lesser need to preserve their teachings in the beginning.

 

III. Writing of Documents

Earliest writings not gospels, but Paul's letters (Thes 1) -> written to address problems

 

Not written to remind of past, but to encourage believers as they wait for Christ's return.

 

Gospels seem to be written after, nature of documents indicate time has passed, more to remind of past than address present issues.

 

Different circumstances as needs bring about writing of different New Testament documents.

 

A. Where did Gospel writers get their information?

 

1. Not many literate people, they excelled at keeping oral traditions.

 

2. Already some sort of written collection of Jesus' sayings existed -> the hypothetical Q (quella -> German for source) documents.

 

'gospel' of Thomas is supposedly a list of Jesus' sayings.  So even if Q existed, other purported lists were around.

 

3. Matthew and Luke share a lot of material, in addition to the material they have in common with Mark.

 

4. Probably early writings that detailed Jesus' death and resurrection, all Gospels share this source

 

B. Source Criticism

 

Attempt to get behind New Testament documents, to their sources, possibly even their written sources.

 

If tradition shows, in its earliest form, diverse personalities and perspectives the written documents might also share this diversity.  John distinct from other Gospels.

 

Character reflects purpose of the writings and the author's perspectives.

 

C. Redaction Criticism

 

The science of trying to find out which perspectives in the authoring or editing of the material.

 

IV. Editing the Writings

Can we trust that the texts that we have now are the same as the orginals?

 

a) NT - writings were not written with an awareness that they would be become scripture (prof's opinion)

 

b) Recognized early as valuable to keep for missionary and church governance purposes.

 

Not yet regarded as scripture though. Documents then preserved and copied.

 

Early transmission of NT writings not as solid and unchanging as we might think.

 

Interpolation - word / phrase / paragraph changed after its initial writing.

 

Found in Pauline letters, Pillippians, 2 Cor as expamples.

 

Many changes introduced before regarded as Scriptures.

 

Which Greek manuscript to use?  Context for textual criticism.

 

V. Transmission of Documents

From first time a document is copied for distribution until it was fixed as scripture (centuries)

 

Main methods of transmission: Scribes in a scriptorium or through dictation.

 

Sometimes mistakes were faithfully copied.  Texts were all in caps, no spaces, lines/words deleted & perpeatuated.

 

Errors of diction.

 

Which alternative is original? Many manuscripts are fragments -> using text criticism (even conservative scholars use this.)

 

Print technology and computers also introduce errors.

 

VI.  Collecting the Writings

Documents being spread, act of preserving

 

Became important to collect the writings.

 

Majority of Church rejected attempts to harmonize Gospels in one documents.

 

Also collecting Paul's letters, value to much larger groups of people.

 

Which documents should be copied?  Hard work, time money etc.  Which should be collected together and which should be given wider circulation.

 

VII. Formulation of Canon

Which documents are most valuable, and can we hear God speaking through them?

 

Is Paul, or are the Gospels, reliable?

 

What is the process from individual documents to status as Scripture?

 

Canon means = measure or standard, also Word of God  - list of approved writings, full and authoritative.

 

Early believers Jews, or Gentiles who had joined a Jewish movement.

 

Tanak (Torah = Law, Nebiim = prophets) + Kethubim = Writings.

 

400BC the Law, 200BC the Prophets.  Writings not yet closed.

 

"Apocrapha" rejected at end of 1st century by Rabbis who did not like the clear allusions to Jesus as the Messiah.

 

16th Century Luther to get away from Catholic tradition, got away from Deuterocanonical writings.

 

No dispute right now in New Testament over Canon, none since 4th century.

 

NT Canonization started by Marcion (brilliant heretic because wanted to get rid of Old Testament and did not like OT God.)   Marcion caused significant debate, ended as OT still as Scripture.

 

Next 200 years debate.  Hebrews in Canon because people believed Paul wrote it.

 

A. Criteria of Canonization

 

1. Apostolic authority (not necessary authorship)

 

the book's fundamental consistency with Apostolic tradition.

 

2. Usage

 

how were they used in different churches.

 

3. Providence

 

eg 1 Cor 5:9

 

B. Why Form a Canon?

 

1. Faith community needs a rule of standard.

 

2. Complex process of writing, collecting, evaluating and authorizing as Scripture.

 

3. Canon as means of control, and successful rejection of heresy.

 

4. In 27 books, some diversity, or "range of acceptable teaching".  Closing of canon prevented heterodox views from poisoning community.

 

VIII. Translation

Born in Greco / Roman world.

 

Common language Koine Greek, all NT writings in that language.

 

Language of Roman authority Latin, first translated into Latin (for Western Church) 4th century by Jerome in Bethlehem.

 

Also early translations into Armenian, Syriac, Coptic, Ethopian.

 

15th / 16th century Renaissance, renewed interest in antiquity.  Go back to original languages of Bible.

 

Erasmus, published Greek translations, and led to translations in common languages.

 

All Protestant translations of Bible into English owe a great debt to Tyndale (King James version)

 

English language continued to change.

 

Enlightenment - textual criticism, new manuscript discoveries.

 

1885 English Revised Version.

 

1901 American Standard Edition.

 

1989 NRSV, advances in manuscript, ecumenical, Protestant / Catholic / Jewish, one of most respected.

 

New International Version, Baptist / Evangelical

 

quality of scholarship in textual criticism and translation.

 

Good News Bible in 1966, accessible english.

 

Jerusalem Bible, New Jerusalem Bible (Catholic)

 

1970 New American Bible

 

RSV + NIV render into English what is found in Greek.  Use formal correspondence, close approximation of Greek.

 

New English Bible + Good News dynamic equivilence - render what we think author intended.  paraphrases.

 

Learn philosophy of translation, remember their strengths and weaknesses.

 

Do not put your own ideas into it, eisegesis.

 

Do not rely on just one translation.

 

IX. Key Terms and Concepts

tradition

 

form criticism

 

source criticism

 

redaction criticism

 

apparatus

 

variants - variant readings

 

interpolations

 

scriptorium

 

text criticism

 

Tanak

 

Apocrypha

 

Deuterocanonical

 

Marcion

 

Athanasius

 

canon formation and criteria

 

Vulgate

 

Tyndale

 

formal correspondence

 

dynamic equivilence

 

 

 

 

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