"In Scripting Jesus, famed scholar of early Christianity L. Michael White challenges us to read the gospels as they were originally intended—as performed stories of faith rather than factual histories. White demonstrates that each of the four gospel writers had a specific audience in mind and a specific theological agenda to push, and consequently wrote and rewrote their lives of Jesus accordingly—in effect, scripting Jesus to get a particular point across and to achieve the desired audience reaction."The gospel stories have shaped the beliefs of almost two and a half billion Christians. But the gospel writers were not reporters—rather, they were dramatists, and the stories they told publicly about Jesus were edited and reedited for the greatest effect. Understanding how these first-century Christians wanted to present Jesus offers us a way to make sense of the sometimes conflicting stories in the gospels.
"One gospel's version of events will be at odds with another. For instance, in Jesus's birth narrative, there is no mention of a stable in Matthew or Luke, but then there are no wise men in Luke and no shepherds in Matthew. Jesus has brothers in some gospel accounts, and sisters in others, and their naming is inconsistent. Depending on which gospel you are reading, the disciples shift from bumbling morons to heroes of faith. Miracles alter or disappear altogether, and whole scenes get moved around. Such changes from one gospel to the next reveal the shaping and reshaping of the basic story in the living world of the first followers of Jesus."
Then there's The Making of Paul: Constructions of the Apostle in Early Christianity. Richard Pervo is a significant figure in the study of Acts, and an independent thinker when it comes to challenging received wisdom.
"The influence of the apostle Paul in early Christianity goes far beyond the reach of the seven genuine letters he wrote to early assemblies. Paul was revered —and fiercely opposed— in an even larger number of letters penned in his name, and in narratives told about him and against him, that were included in our New Testament and, far more often, treasured and circulated outside it. Richard Pervo provides an illuminating and comprehensive survey of the legacy of Paul and the various ways he was remembered, honored, and vilified in the early churches. Numerous charts and maps introduce the student to the "family" of Pauline and anti-Pauline Christianities."Sadly, you probably won't find them featured on the shelves of your local Christian bookstore, where you're more likely to find the latest sickly grunge from some big-name, tithe-farming television evangelist. Happily, both are available on Amazon.
I find that a very reasonable explanation of the Gospels.
ReplyDeleteAnd as performances we shouldn't be surprised that there may have also been local agendas at work, much as we would see in any Hollywood movie or Broadway play. Art is never exists separately from the culture in which it is created.
The first book sounds really interesting. The book of Mark has always been understood to be a story that was to be heard, not read.
ReplyDeleteI make sense that the other Gospels should be performed also. Hearing a story performed makes a dramatic difference to reading it on paper.
Max McLean has been performing Mark for many years. To hear it performed you quickly understand the humor, the satire, and the pathos involved.
Of course this gets the literalists all up in a hissy-fit because to them God only spoke in King James English and everyone knows there is no humor in the lives of literalists.
"The gospel stories have shaped the beliefs of almost two and a half billion Christians. But the gospel writers were not reporters—rather, they were dramatists, and the stories they told publicly about Jesus were edited and reedited for the greatest effect."
ReplyDeleteVery nicely-put. Gavin, have you come across a (gasp here's that word) theology book in your studies, that combines this outlook, with the added viewpoint of placing the canonical Christian texts, within the much larger corpus of ancient Middle Eastern literature of the time?
I push the Early Christian Writings website a lot, but I was wondering if there was a book beside The Gnostic Bible (that doesn't really consider the canonical texts, bar the Johannine ones, in a Mandaean context), that I can recommend, for an overview of the idea. (And, for my own edification, as well.)
Thanks in advance!
(Was that nice enough? LOL)