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REDACTION CRITICISM
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1. Bibliog: Collins 196-230, IDBSup
!2. Two Case Studies
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(1) The Parable of the Lost Sheep (Mt 18:1,12-14; Lk 15:2-7)
(a) Mt: to show that not even little ones should be despised
(b) Lk: in justification of Jesus’ fraternizing with sinners
(c) One notes in passing that this raises the historical question. One view is
that Lk is probably more authentic in that Jesus would have faced the
situation described by Lk. Mt on the other hand may reflect the concerns
of a post-resurrection church
(2) The Parable of the Lamp likewise has different meanings
(a) Mk 4:21: revealing the ‘mystery’ (cp. Lk 8:16-17)
(b) Mt 5:14-16: the Christian is the light of the world
(c) Lk 11:33: the mind should not be clouded by prejudice
(d) There arises the same historical question. In this case it may be
impossible to arrive at the parable’s original meaning
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3. The Object of RC (What? Cp. “Redaction” of title): the work of the author, the process
of editing (“editorial process” Collins 198) (focus on the past)
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The Aim of RC (How? Cp. “Criticism” of title)
(1) An evaluation of the work of the author, sc. by the reader (focus on the present)
(2) …with a view to finding out the intention of the author, i.e. “the meaning of the
sacred text as it was intended by the human author” (Fitzmyer Scripture, the Soul
of Theology 23)
Some Definitions
• “the critical study of the process of editing” (IBC I A 1 = Fitzmyer 36)
• “A method of studying the NT that concentrates on the way the principal author
of a work has adapted (“redacted”) earlier materials to his own theological
ends” (IDBSup 738)
• “Redaction criticism is a method of biblical study which examines the intentions
of the editors or redactors who compiled the biblical texts out of earlier source
materials” (ABD 5, 644)
• “Redaction criticism is the study of NT texts that concentrates on the unique
theological emphases that the writers place upon the materials they used, their
specific purposes in writing their works, and the Sitz im Leben out of which they
wrote” (ABD 5, 647)
• “In order to discover the sacred authors’ intention, the reader must take into
account the conditions of their time and culture, the literary genres in use at that
time, and the modes of feeling, speaking and narrating then current. For the fact is
that truth is differently presented and expressed in the various types of historical
writing, in prophetical and poetical texts, and in other forms of literary
expression.” (CCC 110)
Copyright © 2014 Fr. James Downey, OSA & TheTwoEdgedSword.com. All rights reserved.
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RC and FC Compared
(1) FC: Post-WWI;
(2) FC: the period of transmission
(3) FC: communities
(4) FC: identifying literary form
(5) FC: evangelists = compilers
70:44,80)
RC:
RC:
RC:
RC:
RC:
Post-WWII
the final stage (IBC IA3 = Fitzmyer43)
individuals
use of literary form (NJBC 71:28)
evangelists = creative authors (NJBC
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Some Examples
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“Since the meaning of a statement also depends on the sequence, the evangelists,
in passing on the words and deeds of our Saviour, explained these now in one
context, now in another, depending on (their) usefulness to the readers.
Consequently, let the exegete seek out the meaning intended by the evangelist in
narrating a saying or a deed in a certain way or in placing it in a certain way or in
placing it in a certain context. For the truth of the story is not at all affected by
the fact that the evangelists relate the words and deeds of the Lord in a different
order, and express his sayings not literally but differently, while preserving (their)
sense” (SME Instruction Concerning the Historical Truth of the Gospels 9)
“From the results of the new investigations it is apparent that the doctrine and the
life of Jesus were not simply reported for the sole purpose of being remembered,
but were “preached” so as to offer the Church a basis of faith and of
morals” (SME Instruction Concerning the Historical Truth of the Gospels 10)
“Redaction” is “a term that describes the shaping, editing, and placing of
traditional materials by the Evangelist for his own distinctive theological
purposes” (Harrington How Do Catholics Read the Bible? 62)
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the use of Mk by the other two Synoptics
the Lord’s Prayer in Mt (6:7-15) and Lk (11:1-4)
the cleansing of the Temple at the beginning of the Ministry (Jn 2:14-22) or at the
end (Syn) (though a fundamentalist will pose two cleansings)
Mk 10:35-40 ⇔ Mt 20:20-23
Peter “did not know what to say” (Mk 9:6) (“suggesting that Peter was lost for
words” Stevenson 86) ⇒ “He did not know what he was saying” (Lk 9:33)
(“which suggests that Peter spoke without thinking” Stevenson 86) and disappears
altogether in Mt
Mk 11:12-14, 20-24 = Mt 21:18-22 ⇔ Lk 13:6-9
During public ministry, did Jesus make 3 visits to Jerusalem (Jn) or just 1 (Syn)
Genealogies in Infancy Narratives
End of Mt ⇔ End of Lk
Gn 1 (P) ⇔ Gn 2 (J)
Ex 20:9-11 (P) ⇔ Dt 5:12-15 (D)
Copyright © 2014 Fr. James Downey, OSA & TheTwoEdgedSword.com. All rights reserved.
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Towards a Methodology
(1) The Text
• read the text! Obvious, but not always done because we ‘know’ it so well
• language and style (J’s use of Yahweh)
• knowledge of the literary form
(2) The Context
(a) The Immediate Context
• the liturgy supplies the context for the parable of the Lost Sheep
on Tues Wk 19 (Mt 18:1-5,10,12-14)
• likewise for the parable of the Prodigal Son on Sat 2 Lent and 4
Lent C (Lk 15:1-3,11-32)
• but it does not always do this, as with the parable of the Lost
Sheep for the feast of the Sacred Heart Year C (Lk 15:3-10)
(b) The Wider Context
• the universal theme of Lk serves as a key to individual passages,
such as the Lucan Genealogy (3:23-38), the parables of the Lost
Sheep (15:4-7) and the Prodigal Son (15:11-32)
• on the other hand Jon 3:1-10 (Tue Week 27 Year I) does not really
reflect the theme of the book as a whole
• similarly Wk 26 Year 2 uses only the speeches of Job which
cannot convey the flavour of the Dialogue as a whole
(c) The Sitz im Leben of the individual authors
• “it is the explicit opinion of scholars using redaction-critical
methods that the Evangelists had fashioned their material to
correspond to the needs of their time” (Rohde cited Hagner 124)
• “Matthew indeed wrote for the Hebrews the wonderful works of
Christ. And Mark for Italy, Luke for Greece, John the great
preacher, for all, walking in heaven” (Gregory of Nazianzen, cp.
Metzger The Canon of the New Testament 1987 313)
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(3) The Use of Sources
• selection/omission of material (Lk omits the Syrophoenician woman of
Mk 7:24-30)
• modification of the material (Mt 13:58 ⇔ Mk 6:5; Mt 20:20 ⇔ Mk
10:35)
• personal contribution of the evangelist
• non-Biblical sources: Enuma Elish, Code of Hammurabi
Copyright © 2014 Fr. James Downey, OSA & TheTwoEdgedSword.com. All rights reserved.