The Gospels were not publically available until c.150 (Justin)

Gday all,

Here is a follow-on from a discussion elsewhere -

I argue that although the Gospels were probably written c.70 - c.100, their authors and origins are unknown, and they remained hidden and private. They were not publically available until Justin Martyr had his hands on them c.150 (except possibly Aristides' un-named one.)

Here is the evidence - a summary, and a list of the Christian writings from 70-150, by each decade (with a count for each decade) :


Key Evidence :
According to our extant manuscript record -

Gospels 70-100 first written (presumably).
26 books 70-150 (e.g. Didakhe) mention some Gospel details, but show no clear access to Gospels (see below.)
Papias 100-130 is aware of the origins of two Gospel-like writings - by Mark (from Peter), and Matthew.
Aristides 120-130 (or 140) knows of a book called a 'Gospel', otherwise un-named, mentioning a virgin, which was probably available to the public.
Justin Martyr c.150 has several books 'called Gospels', refered to as the memoirs of the Apostles, and the memoir(s) of Peter.
Justin Martyr dies c.163 his pupil Tatian probably inherits the books.
Tatian c.172 produces (probably) the 'FromFour' Gospel harmony, but mentions no authors' names.
Irenaeus 180-190 first to name all four Gospels, possibly based on Papias' and Justin' comments.


Christian Books By Decade 70 - 150 :

70s :
(First war with the Romans, Temple destroyed.)
G.Mark written.

80s (3) :
Colossians, 1 John, James.
G.Luke and G.Matthew written.

90s (5) :
Ephesians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Peter, 1 Clement, Revelation.
G.John written.

100s (2) :
Didakhe, Jude.

110s (1) :
(115-7 Minor Kitos war with the Romans)
Barnabas.

120s (5) :
2 John, 3 John, Apocalypse of Peter, Secret James, Preaching of Peter.
Aristides knows of a Gospel, with some details, apparently publically available.

130s (7) :
(132-5 Bar Kochbar major war with the Romans - Jerusalem, Judea, and the Jews are razed, erased and expelled.)
2 Peter, Titus, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Hermas, Ignatius, Polycarp to Phillipians.
Papias knows origins of two Gospel-like writings.

140s (3) :
Mathetes to Diognetus, Epistle of the Apostles, 2 Clement.

150s (3) :
Ptolemy, Dialogue of the Saviour, Martyrdom of Polycarp.
Justin Martyr - first to have Gospels in hand to quote from.


26 books written from 70 to 150 do NOT show knowledge of written Gospels (counting Ignatius as one.)

Of course, not all of these books could necessarily be expected to mention the Gospels, but they are also silent on most historical details about Jesus Christ - e.g. Justin Martyr is the very first Christian writer on record to mention the Empty Tomb, or Nazareth, or the baptism in the Jordan river. Being un-mentioned by any one of these 26 books is good evidence that the Gospels were generally unavailable to Christians during this time - with the probable exception of Aristides who seems to know of one un-named Gospel which is apparently available.


Possible Objections :

1 Clement.
Does not really quote the Gospels, but merely gave a few SAYINGS attributed to Jesus, which are SIMILAR to what's found in the Gospels. He DID quote scripture, and Paul, many times, often by name.

Barnabas.
Does not quote the Gospels, just has a phrase similar.

Polycarp to Phil.
Does not quote the Gospels, but has some similar phrases.

Ignatius.
He does know a few details of the story (e.g. the very first to mention Mary), and is the very first to claim Jesus Christ was historical. But he does not have any Gospels, nor mention any.

Papias.
According to Eusebius in the 4th century, Papias wrote in early-mid 2nd century that he had heard that :

• Mark had written down recollections of Peter, in Rome, but they weren't in order.
• Matthew had written down the Sayings of Jesus in Hebrew (probably meaning Aramaic)

But he doesn't have the books, he doesn't call them Gospels, and his descriptions do not match our Gospels well - G.Mark is not the recollections of Peter, and it is in order; G.Matthew is not Sayings but a narrative, and it was written in Greek. These are rumours at best, a couple of decades before Justin Martyr got his hands on actual Gospels.

Someone Knew the Gospels.
Yes, the authors knew them, and probably their immediate circle knew them. But they were hidden and unknown - NOT publically available.

Writers Didn't Mention What Everyone Knew.
Ridiculous. How would readers ever learn anything new ? How would writers know what the readers knew ? Anyway - from Irenaeus on, writers like ClementAlex, Tertullian, Origen, and Hippolytus repeat the well-known Gospel details over and over. So do most Christians from then on, so do most Christians to this day - repeating and discussing the Gospel stories is a common favourite topic.


My conclusion is supported by the evidence - the four Gospels were not publically available until c.150 with Justin Martyr the FIRST to have them.


Kapyong

via International Skeptics Forum http://www.internationalskeptics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=313871&goto=newpost