La Bibbia: Quattro Vangeli e una questione (Lez. 4)

Fabrizio Demelas, professor of Sacred Scripture at the Pontifical Theological Faculty of Sardinia, presents, in a series of introductory lectures suitable for all, a series of topics focusing on the "book of books." Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:55 How the Four Gospels Were Formed 03:43 The Work of the Evangelist 07:24 The Meaning of Gospel 08:59 The First Gospel 11:40 The Three Synoptic Gospels 12:10 Mark, Source for Matthew and Luke 12:40 The Synoptic Question 15:10 The Gospel of Mark 17:14 The Gospel of Matthew 19:20 The Gospel of Luke 21:07 The Gospel of John To explain how the texts of the Bible were formed, we must distinguish between the Old Testament and the New Testament. We do this for two reasons: A practical reason: the New Testament is written over a span of approximately 50 years, from about twenty years after the death of Jesus until 100 AD; the Old Testament is written over a span of approximately nine centuries, from the first monarchy until 30 BC. A theological reason: CCVII with Dei Verbum teaches us that the act of God, who "in his goodness and wisdom chose to reveal himself in person and to make known the mystery of his will," is realized, "shines forth for us in Christ, who is both the mediator and the fullness of all Revelation." This is why the New Testament is the pinnacle of Revelation and holds a preeminent place in the Christian Bible. Let us begin, therefore, with the New Testament and, in particular, with the books that introduce us to Jesus, with his message and his story of passion, death, and resurrection: the four Gospels. The evangelist Luke, in the first four verses of his gospel, informs us that many have "tried to recount" the events of Jesus' public life as they were reported by direct witnesses. Moved by the same intentions, Luke says he conducted careful research and compiled an orderly text to transmit those teachings. This direct testimony confirms that Jesus sent his followers to preach and, as CVII recalls, some of them and men in their circle began to write down what they remembered. From an oral phase, consisting of preaching, the Gospel quickly transitioned to a written phase. The most ancient tradition held that the first Gospel to find its definitive form was that of Matthew. However, modern scholars have verified a particular feature regarding the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke: their texts can be arranged in parallel columns and read simultaneously, with a single glance; for this reason, the three Gospels are called "synoptic." This reading method has made it possible to verify that 90 percent of the text of Mark's gospel is contained in the other two. Mark, therefore, represents the oldest text, the source from which Matthew and Luke drew. But Matthew and Luke have other material in common that Mark does not possess: therefore, there was a second source from which the two drew. The first gospel to find its definitive form was, therefore, that of Mark. From the content, scholars have deduced that the date of composition must date back to between 65 and 70. The text is anonymous, but the author, according to the indications of Eusebius of Caesarea, was Mark, a disciple of Peter. For this reason, it is believed that the gospel was written in Rome and intended for an audience not from Judaism. Mark's style is sober, concise, at times a little harsh. The plot shows Jesus preaching, from the moment of his baptism onwards, starting in Galilee and then moving to Jerusalem. The Gospel of Matthew, also anonymous, dates back to after 70 AD. Its author is believed to be Matthew the Apostle. The text is intended for a Jewish context. The plot follows that of Mark, with one addition: an account of Jesus' childhood. The text unfolds by presenting five major discourses of Jesus. The longest gospel is that of Luke. Luke also wrote after 70 AD, for Christians of a Greek background. Although he follows the same plot as Mark, Luke adds an account of Jesus' childhood, though different from Matthew's. The Gospel of John stands out from the others. The text was written by "the disciple whom Jesus loved," identified as the apostle John. John uses his own material, with little in common with the Synoptic Gospels, and develops the plot differently. The date of composition is also believed to be later, around 90-95 AD.