Vierstemmig evangelie. De traditiehypothese als oplossingsrichting in de synoptische kwestie

Samenvatting

Different hypotheses have been proposed to solve the synoptic problem. No hypothesis
can give a comprehensive explanation, because we lack full information about the origin
of the gospels. For Augustine, there was hardly a problem, although the similarities
and differences between the first three gospels were well known to him. Since the
Enlightenment, scholars tried to find a solution by postulating literary dependence, but
there were always new difficulties to face so that this route has become more and more
complicated. However, this is not the only direction for finding a solution. A promising
alternative, already proposed by the German scholar J.C.L. Gieseler (1792-1854) and in
recent decades developed by e.g. Bo Reicke, Richard Bauckham and Armin Baum, is
the so-called tradition hypothesis. This hypothesis implies that Matthew, Marc, and
Luke used mainly a common oral tradition in the form of the apostolic preaching in
Jerusalem. Thus, the New Testament canon begins with a gospel for four voices.