Getting the Gospels: Intro 2

So how do we know that the Gospels faithfully represent the words and teachings of Jesus?  How do we know that his followers—as sincere and as well intended as they were—didn’t’ ‘misremember’ (to quote the great wordsmith, Roger Clemens)?  Obviously, numerous NT scholars believe exactly that: Jesus’ followers didn’t always record his words accurately.  I’m of a different opinion and here’s why. 

 All scholars recognize that Jesus—at bare minimum—was a first-century Jewish rabbi with disciples.  There are 2 unassailable implications from this.  First, as a Jewish rabbi, Jesus would have intended his disciples to memorize his teaching.  Second, by virtue of choosing to become Jesus’ disciples, his disciples would have sought to memorize his teaching.  Stop there.  That actually says a lot.  When I’ve taught at universities, for example, I—as a professor—have NEVER expected my students to memorize my (fantastic) teaching; and if they did memorize anything, it would only be because of an exam.  Students wouldn’t memorize my (amazing) teaching just for the heck of it.  But Jesus’ disciples memorized his teaching just for the heck of it!  And he expected them to.

 Not only that, all scholars also recognize that memorization was the fundamental means of learning in Ancient Near Eastern cultures.  Memorizing stuff was very much the norm, and consequently, the capacity to memorize lots of material was great—much greater than today.  Because memorization was the norm, Jesus, as a Jewish rabbi, would have used a lot of repetition and drilling in teaching his disciples, and the disciples for their part would have practiced the same. 

 Additionally, scholars know that Jesus was an itinerant preacher.  That means that he traveled from village to village preaching to the inhabitants of those villages.  What that means is that his disciples would have heard Jesus preaching the same messages over and over again (doubtless with a few variations thrown in).  As a preacher, that’s 1 of the things I like about preaching at a new church/place: I don’t have to write a brand new sermon—I can simply preach an old one!  The sermon is old for me (and for my poor wife!) but new to those folks.

 Furthermore, as a Jewish rabbi who expected his disciples to memorize his words, Jesus taught in such a way as to make the memorizing of his teaching easier.  For example, he taught in rhyme, he used alliteration, poetry, and catchy phrases or phrasings (these mnemonic devices are even more apparent in the Greek text of the NT).  So let’s stop to think about that for a minute.  Which of the following is easier to memorize word-for-word?

 “Roses are stereotypically crimson in colour, while the hue of violets is indigo; carbohydrates taste sweet, and I also find you very charming” OR “Roses are red, violets are blue; sugar is sweet, and so are you”? 

 Obviously the second would be easier to memorize word-for-word b/c it’s shorter, and b/c it rhymes—and poetry is easier to memorize than prose.  In fact, let’s go with this some more.  Think of a song that you liked and sang (at least in private) that’s 10 years old: maybe for you that song would be “Crash and Burn,” or “Then the Morning Comes,” or “I Need to Know,” or maybe, just maybe, even “Oops! … I Did it Again.”  Because you loved that song and listened to it over and over, you had the lyrics memorized.  And now, 10 years later you still know the lyrics of that song without having had to sing it every morning for the last 10 years; and I bet many of you could say that of songs that are still in your memory after a whole lot longer than just 10 years!  That’s how easy and effective memorization can be when you’re memorizing something you love and something that’s designed to be memorable.

 But on top of all of this, b/c the disciples were disciples—“learners” in the Greek—of a rabbi, they almost certainly kept rough, private notes of Jesus’ teaching—the way students take notes in lecture (most students, anyway).

 So now let’s come back to the question: how do we know that Jesus’ disciples faithfully and accurately recorded his words and teachings?  In light of what I’ve just recounted—something that virtually all scholars recognize—it doesn’t seem like such a difficult prospect after all, does it?  And notice, I haven’t even tried to appeal to the Christian doctrine of divine inspiration.