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Studying the Gospels in University. Common assumptions of Christians and Non-Christians. The difficulty of open mindedness Created in a world profoundly different from our own world Reading the Bible as act of worship is different from analysing it in classroom. Problems with Study of Gospels.
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Studying the Gospels in University • Common assumptions of Christians and Non-Christians. The difficulty of open mindedness • Created in a world profoundly different from our own world • Reading the Bible as act of worship is different from analysing it in classroom
Problems with Study of Gospels • Written between about 70-100 • Translation from Aramaic to popular Greek (koine) • Proclamation of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John vs. their presentation of Jesus as usually relunctant to speak of himself in exalted terms
Problems of Interpretation • Simplicity of Gospels is deceiving. • Questions about dating, authorship, and geographic location. • Each Gospel has disctinctive and facinating features. Each offers an INTERPRETATION of the life of Jesus. • Determining who the Historical Jesus is not as easy as it might seem.
Motives of Gospel Writers • Beginning of Gospels and John 20:30-31 • Gospel (euangelion, “good news”), commonly denotes public proclamations about the Roman Emperor • Only literary genre invented by early Christians, history or biography? • Stanton: dual perspective of Gospel Writers