Originally posted by psstein
View Post
The traditional authors of the canonical Gospels — Matthew the tax collector, Mark the attendant of Peter, Luke the attendant of Paul, and John the son of Zebedee — are doubted among the large majority of mainstream New Testament scholars. However, the public is often not familiar with the complex reasons and methodology that scholars use to reach definitive and well-supported consensuses about critical issues, such as assessing the authorial traditions for ancient texts. To provide a good overview of the majority opinion about the Gospels, the Oxford Annotated Bible (a compilation of multiple scholars summarizing dominant scholarly trends for the last 150 years) states (pg. 1744):
“Neither the evangelists nor their first readers engaged in historical analysis. Their aim was to confirm Christian faith (Lk 1.4; Jn 20.31). Scholars generally agree that the Gospels were written forty to sixty years after the death of Jesus. They thus do not present eyewitness or contemporary accounts of Jesus’ life and teachings.”
Source: https://adversusapologetica.wordpres...f-the-gospels/
---Biblical historian Gary Greenberg disagrees with you:
"Matthew, Mark, Luke and John did not write the Gospels says biblical historian Gary Greenberg in his latest book, Who Wrote the Gospels? Why New Testament Scholars Challenge Church Traditions. At least, not the Matthew, Mark, Luke or John of Church tradition, he adds. Controversial as this view is, he notes that it is widely accepted among New Testament scholars. Yet few members of the lay public know about this modern scholarly consensus, let alone why scholars hold these views."
Source: http://ggreenberg.tripod.com/bookpages/gospelspage.html
---Robert Funk, John Crossan, and Robert Eisenmann disagree with you:
Tradition holds that the Gospel of Mark was written by Mark the Evangelist, as St. Peter's interpreter.[64] Numerous early sources say that Mark's material was dictated to him by St. Peter, who later compiled it into his gospel.[67][68][69][70][71] The gospel, however, appears to rely on several underlying sources, which vary in form and in theology, and which tell against the story that the gospel was based on Peter's preaching.[72] Most scholars believe that Mark was written by a second-generation Christian, around or shortly after the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Second Temple in year 70.[73][74][75]
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histor...of_the_Gospels
---Burton Mack, JD Crossan, Robert Funk:
"The first written account of the ministry of Jesus, the Gospel of Mark, was penned in about 65 to 80 CE, 30 or more years after Jesus was allegedly executed.
Tradition has it that the author of Mark was John Mark, an associate of Peter the Apostle. Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 323 CE) quotes Papias of Hierapolis (c. 130 CE) as hearing from one "presbyter" that Mark had written Peter's memoirs - something generally called "hearsay" in legalese, and not overly reliable, nearly 300 years after the fact. Also, several late second-century sources indirectly allude to John Mark's association with Peter. These claims have long been challenged by scholars, primary because John Mark was a known Palestinian Jew.
Setting "tradition" aside, modern linguistic scholarship on the Gospel actually suggests that Mark has two sources/authors, one dating from the 60s, and a second, possibly an editor, dating from the 80s or 90s[5] It should be noted that one passage often cited as being added is the passage about Jesus' resurrection, suggesting that the original author of Mark may have been part of a church that had not yet invented the Resurrection Story[6][7][8]. The author of Mark has long been seen as a collector and compiler of stories and theological ideas.[8] Biblical scholars generally state that the author of Mark had not seen or heard his stories directly, but was compelled to include legend, rumor, and history in his work.[6][7][8][9] It is fairly well accepted among historians and biblical scholars that the errors regarding Palestinian geography and customs, as well as the author's need to explain Jewish law and ideas, indicate the author of Mark is not a Palestinian Jew.[6][8]
The language, theology, and style of Mark suggest that Mark was written for the Gentile, not for practicing Jews.[6][9][8]"
Source: http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Authors..._New_Testament
Comment