In general, Matthew Greek corrected and followed Mark's text, but at times he went back to the earlier gospel and on these occasions his style, unlike anything in Mark, becomes both original and archaic. For the Sayings, he referred to the earlier gospel in order to record many that Mark omitted, adding to them from the wealth of Sayings in the Supplementary Collection. Hence, the impressive blocks of material, each built round some central theme, which make his gospel the remarkable thing it is. But these were not his only sources.

The author had access to some information not so generally available, and this is not for his narratives but also for the Sayings: this accounts for the material which is peculiarly his own, notably in the narrative of the Infancy. By setting out to supplement the primitive Aramaic gospel, Matthew Greek clearly did not aim at being a mere translation of it, but at the same time he only developed it according to its own spirit and purposes. The Church has recognised that his work was inspired by accepting his Greek gospel as canonical.

Luke undertook something similar but used a completely different approach. There are three points to notice: - 1 - Like Matthew he also took from the primitive gospel tradition many Sayings that Mark omits, though unlike Matthew he preferred to omit Sayings that would have little interest for his readers who were pagans by birth; moreover, since the Sayings in Luke are derived through channels independent of Matthew Greek they often assume forms in the gospel noticeably different from those they assume in Matthew's.

- 2 - Luke is more careful than Matthew to preserve the order given by his sources: thus, side by side with 'Marcan' sections, in which he follows the second gospel almost exactly - Luke 4:31-6:19, 8:4-9:50, 18:15-21:38 - he places the Supplementary Collection which he inserts en bloc in a special section that he presents as an ascent to Jerusalem. - Luke 9:51-18:14 - Luke resembles Matthew since, like him, he also has drawn on special sources but he has done this to a greater extent.

These special sources of his he discovered by careful enquiry - Luke 1:3 - to them he owes not only his narrative of the Infancy but many passages that enrich the gospel: the good Samaritan, Martha and Mary, the parables of the prodigal son, of the Pharisee and the publican, etc, which occur for the most part in Luke's Central Section - Luke 9:51-18:14 - and it is not impossible that this combination of the Collection with the material he has been at pains to find for himself was a stage of Luke's editorial activity independent of, and perhaps prior to, his use of Mark.

The literary process just outlined respects and makes use of the broad data from tradition but is able to fill in details. It does not however make it possible, any more than tradition does, to assign an exact date to each of the Synoptics with complete certainty: at a guess however, the intervals required for the development of the oral tradition would make it probable that the primitive Aramaic gospel and the later Supplementary Collection were composed between the years 40 and 50. This early date would be definite if it could be proved that Paul's Letters to the Thessalonians, written about 51-52, made use of the first gospel's Apocalyptic Discourse.

If Mark wrote towards the end of Peter's life (according to Clement of Alexandria) or shortly after Peter's death (according to Irenaeus) the date of his gospel would be c.64; in any case it should be dated before 70 as it does not seem from this gospel that Jerusalem has yet been destroyed. Matthew Greek and Luke are later than Mark but their precise date is more difficult to determine. The existence of Luke's gospel is presupposed by the Acts - Acts 1:1 - but the date of Acts is itself uncertain (cf. Introduction to Acts) and can provide no criterion. It is true that neither Matthew Greek nor Luke suggests that the destruction of Jerusalem has already taken place (not even - Luke 19:42-44, 21:20-24 - which employ cliches from the prophetical books to describe an event that cannot have been hard to foresee) but this is not decisive.

If neither of them knew of the destruction, then they would have to put before 70, but if they deliberately aimed at scrupulously preserving the archaic quality of their respective literary sources, then their works might quite well have been composed after the destruction, say about A.D. 80. In any case, the apostolic origin, direct or indirect, together with their involved literary formation confirm the historical value of the Synoptics, and not only that but at the same time help us to understand the nature of that historical value, and since the gospels stem from an oral preaching that goes back to the beginnings of the primitive community, their guarantee in this way would ultimately rest on eyewitness.

Neither the apostles themselves, however, nor any of the other preachers of the gospel message and tellers of the gospel story ever aimed at writing or teaching history in the modern technical sense of that word; their concern was sacred and theological: they preached to convert and edify, to infuse faith, to enlighten it and defend it against its opponents. For this purpose they could and did appeal to solid evidence that could be checked, and this appeal was demanded quite as much by their own sincerity as by their anxiety not to leave any loopholes for hostile argument.

Those who finally composed the gospels, collecting the evidence and putting it into writing, had the same objective fidelity, and equal respect for their sources of information as it suggested by the simple and archaic quality of their work. In this there are no theological developments characteristic of subsequent decades (cf. Paul for example) much less is there any trace of the sort of extravagant legends that are frequent in the apocryphal gospels. The three Synoptics may not be history books but they do set out to give us historical fact.

This does not mean that each of the events or............

WELCOME TO SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE READER'S COMMUNITY.

The Lord Jesus Christ, promised to us that our mission on this earth is really and utmost important for our own salvation.

"I tell you solemnly, there is no one who has left house, wife, brothers, parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God who will not be given repayment many times over in this present time, in the world to come, Eternal Life." - Luke 18:28-30 -

'Why do you call Me, "Lord, Lord" and not do what I say?'

"Everyone who comes to Me and listens to My words and acts on them - I will show you what he/she is like. He is like a man who when he built his house dug, and dug deep, and laid the foundations on rock; when the river was in flood it bore down on that house but could not shake it, it was so well built.

But the one who listens and does nothing is like the man who built his house on soil, with no foundations: as soon as the river bore down on it, it collapsed; and what a ruin that house became!" - Luke 6:46-49 -

HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS (VICAR OF CHRIST) TO THEOLOGIANS: DON'T DO THEOLOGY AWAY FROM PEOPLE. "A THEOLOGY THAT HELPS EVERY CHRISTIAN PROCLAIM THE SAVING FACE OF GOD IS NECESSARY."

FOR POPE FRANCIS (VICAR OF CHRIST), THE THEOLOGIAN ISN'T JUST A SIMPLE SCHOLAR OF GOD, BUT RATHER MUCH MORE. HE OR SHE IS A SCHOLAR AT THE SERVICE OF A PEOPLE, THE CHURCH, TO WHICH HE OR SHE BELONGS AND IS NURTURED BY. THERE'S NO ROOM FOR INDIVIDUALIST THEOLOGIANS WHO COMPETE AMONGST THEMSELVES TO SEE WHO KNOWS MORE.

BEFORE MEMBERS OF THE ITALIAN THEOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION, THE POPE SAID THEOLOGY MUST BE USED TO HELP EVANGELIZE.

HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS (VICAR OF CHRIST),

"A THEOLOGY THAT HELPS EVERY CHRISTIAN PROCLAIM AND SHOW IS NECESSARY; ABOVE ALL, THE SAVING FACE OF GOD OF THE MERCIFUL GOD, ESPECIALLY IN LIGHT OF SOME UNPRECEDENTED CHALLENGES THE HUMAN BEING FACES TODAY."

POPE FRANCIS MET WITH THE ORGANIZATION IN HONOR OF ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY. THE ASSOCIATION WAS CREATED WITH THE GOAL OF HELPING PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL. - ROMEREPORTS.COM DECEMBER 29, 2017 -

HENCE, I EARNESTLY AND PROFOUNDLY BELIEVED THAT AS FAR AS SPIRITUALITY IS CONCERN. IT CAN ONLY COME FROM GOD, THE AUTHOR. THUS, THERE IS NO SUCH THING, AS COPYRIGHT, OR IT IS PRODUCED OR WRITTEN BY ME OR IT IS MINE; THE WORD OF GOD, THE SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE.

"I STILL HAVE MANY THINGS TO SAY TO YOU BUT THEY WOULD BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU NOW. BUT WHEN THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH COMES, HE WILL LEAD YOU TO THE COMPLETE TRUTH, SINCE HE WILL NOT BE SPEAKING AS FROM HIMSELF, BUT WILL SAY ONLY WHAT HE HAS LEARNT; AND HE WILL TELL YOU OF THE THINGS TO COME.

HE WILL GLORIFY ME, SINCE ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. EVERYTHING THE FATHER HAS IS MINE; THAT IS WHY I SAID: ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE." - JOHN 16:12-15 -

ALL WRITERS, PERTAINING TO SPIRITUALITY WERE DEFINITELY QUOTED OR TAKE FROM HERE AND THERE, WHICH MAY BE ON AND FROM SOME OTHER WRITERS ARTICLES, BOOKS, BLOGS, OR SITES, ESPECIALLY THE "WORD OF GOD" THE SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE. BUT IN REALITY, IT IS FIRST USED ALREADY, PERHAPS, LONG, LONG TIME AGO.

"THIS DISCIPLE IS THE ONE WHO VOUCHES FOR THESE THINGS AND HAS WRITTEN THEM DOWN, AND WE KNOW THAT HIS TESTIMONY IS TRUE. THERE ARE MANY OTHER THINGS THAT THE LORD JESUS CHRIST DID; IF ALL WERE WRITTEN DOWN, THE WORLD ITSELF, I SUPPOSE, WOULD NOT HOLD ALL THE BOOKS THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE WRITTEN." - JOHN 21:24-25 -

JUST AS GOD ORIGINALLY INSPIRED THE SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE. GOD HAS USED THIS MEANS TO PRESERVE HIS 'WORD' FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. BUT BEHIND THE WRITING LAY PERIODS OF TIME WHEN THESE MESSAGES WERE CIRCULATED IN SPOKEN FORM. (ORAL TRADITION) THE STORIES OF THE PATRIARCHS WERE PASSED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION BY WORD OF MOUTH BEFORE THEY WERE WRITTEN. (WRITTEN TRADITION)

THE MESSAGES OF THE PROPHETS WERE DELIVERED ORALLY BEFORE THEY WERE FIXED IN WRITING. NARRATIVES OF THE LIFE AND MINISTRY OF CHRIST JESUS WERE REPEATED ORALLY FOR TWO OR THREE DECADES BEFORE THEY WERE FIXED IN WRITING.

THEREFORE, SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE QUOTATION, THAT IS, HOW ANYONE AND I PUT WORD OF GOD INTO SENTENCES OR PUT WORDS INTO SENTENCES. REMEMBER ALWAYS! NO MATTER HOW THE "WORD OF GOD" AND WORDS PUT INTO SENTENCES, IN TRUTH, EVERYONE STARTED AND TOOK IT FROM THE MAIN SOURCE, THAT IS, FROM THE WITNESSES AND FROM THE SACRED SCRIPTURE/HOLY BIBLE; "WORD OF GOD."

"IT IS TRUE, GOD SENT HIS WORD TO THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL, AND IT WAS TO THEM THAT THE GOOD NEWS OF PEACE WAS BROUGHT BY JESUS CHRIST - BUT JESUS CHRIST IS LORD OF ALL MEN. 

YOU MUST HAVE HEARD ABOUT THE RECENT HAPPENINGS IN JUDAEA; ABOUT JESUS OF NAZARETH AND HOW HE BEGAN IN GALILEE, AFTER JOHN THE BAPTIST HAD BEEN PREACHING BAPTISM. GOD HAD ANOINTED HIM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT AND WITH POWER, AND BECAUSE GOD WAS WITH HIM, JESUS WENT ABOUT DOING GOOD AND CURING ALL WHO HAD FALLEN INTO THE POWER OF THE DEVIL.

NOW I, ( SIMON PETER / PETER ) AND THOSE WITH ME, CAN WITNESS TO EVERYTHING JESUS DID THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRYSIDE OF JUDAEA AND IN JERUSALEM ITSELF; AND ALSO TO THE FACT THAT THEY KILLED HIM BY HANGING HIM ON A TREE, YET THREE DAYS AFTERWARDS GOD RAISED HIM TO LIFE AND ALLOWED HIM TO BE SEEN, NOT BY THE WHOLE PEOPLE BUT ONLY BY CERTAIN WITNESSES GOD HAD CHOSEN BEFOREHAND.

NOW WE ARE THOSE WITNESSES - WE HAVE EATEN AND DRUNK WITH HIM AFTER HIS RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD - AND JESUS CHRIST HAS ORDERED US TO PROCLAIM THIS TO HIS PEOPLE AND TO TELL THEM THAT GOD HAS APPOINTED HIM TO JUDGE EVERYONE, ALIVE AND DEAD.

IT IS TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST THAT ALL THE PROPHETS BEAR THIS WITNESS: THAT ALL WHO BELIEVE IN JESUS WILL HAVE THEIR SINS FORGIVEN THROUGH HIS NAME." - ACTS 10:36-43 -

"NOW YOU TOGETHER ARE CHRIST'S BODY; BUT EACH OF YOU IS A DIFFERENT PART OF IT. IN THE CHURCH, GOD HAS GIVEN THE FIRST PLACE TO APOSTLES, THE SECOND TO PROPHETS, THE THIRD TO TEACHERS; AFTER THEM, MIRACLES, AND AFTER THEM THE GIFT OF HEALING; HELPERS, GOOD LEADERS, THOSE WITH MANY LANGUAGES." - 1 CORINTHIANS 12:27-28 -

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Faith . Hope . Love - Welcome donation. Thank You. God bless. 

By bank transfer/cheque deposit:
Name: Alex Chan Kok Wah
Bank: Public Bank Berhad account no: 4076577113
Country: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

I have through years of reading, pondering, reflecting and contemplating, the 3 things that last; FAITH . HOPE . LOVE and I would like to made available my sharing from the many thinkers, authors, scholars and theologians whose ideas and thoughts I have borrowed. God be with them always. Amen!

I STILL HAVE MANY THINGS TO SAY TO YOU BUT THEY WOULD BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU NOW. BUT WHEN THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH COMES, HE WILL LEAD YOU TO THE COMPLETE TRUTH, SINCE HE WILL NOT BE SPEAKING AS FROM HIMSELF, BUT WILL SAY ONLY WHAT HE HAS LEARNT; AND HE WILL TELL YOU OF THE THINGS TO COME.

HE WILL GLORIFY ME, SINCE ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. EVERYTHING THE FATHER HAS IS MINE; THAT IS WHY I SAID: ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. - JOHN 16:12-15 -