Gospel Priority
It used to be thought that the Synoptic Gospels were independent witnesses to Jesus. That idea is untenable, given the large amount of identical or clearly related wording which they contain. We then ask instead, which of these related texts is the earliest, and which derive from it? Many previous investigations have concluded that Mark is the earliest Gospel. We suspect that this conclusion is correct, but it is right to notice some recent and detailed arguments for another order. One alternative proposal puts Mark after Matthew and Luke, and considers it an "epitome" of them (this idea goes back to Augustine, the 4th century Bishop of Hippo in North Africa).
Another argument conjectures a source document ("Q") which is earlier than all three Synoptics. This document is variously defined, but the simplest and most convincing definition is that it consists of material common to Matthew and Luke but not present in Mark. Both these proposals have the effect of privileging certain material in Matthew and Luke (such as the narratives which recount the Virgin Birth of Jesus) which are important to later Church doctrine; they put those doctrines above suspicion as later ideas. There is thus an understandable motive for the theories in question, and to that extent, the theories are intrinsically suspect. We may nevertheless consider them on their merits.
The question comes down to that of Markan Priority, and we here consider some passages whose directionality has been thought to tell both for and against Markan Priority.
- In Favor of Markan Priority
- Omissions From Mark
- Individual Passages
- Challenges to Markan Priority
- The Sanders List
- Other Passages
The end of these considerations is that the tendency of the evidence still supports Markan Priority, and thus leaves our previous findings intact. There are doubtless complications and loose ends, but it seems unlikely that a complete account of Synoptic relations would diverge very far from this picture.
This ends our introductory section, and we now turn to a detailed examination of the structure, and the probable formation history, of each of the four Gospels. It is at this point that our accretion model of text formation begins to come into play.
25 Sept 2005 / Contact The Project / Exit to Synoptica Page
