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Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke: A Fresh Assault on the Synoptic Problem, Part III (Ad Navseam, Episode 203)

This week Dave and Jeff wrap up their discussion of John Wenham's fascinating, scholarly tour de force on the synoptic Gospels. Dealing with chapters 8 to 12, the conversation focuses on further considerations for Mark's Gospel, Ancient Testimony to Luke's Gospel, and these three, essential and concluding points: 1. How were the Gospels written? 2. Jesus-Tradition Oral and Written 3. When Were the Gospels Written? The answers might surprise you, based on patristic evidence, internal evidence, Qumran scroll evidence from 1972 – shedding light on Mark 6:52ff. – and the remarkable attestation in II Corinthians 8.8, that Luke is the brother who is "praised by all the churches for his service to the gospel." Wenham makes a persuasive argument that this refers to the composition of the third synoptic, and thus we have these dates according to the traditional form: Matthew was written before 40 A.D., in Hebrew; Mark was written no later than 45 A.D. in Rome; and Luke was written as early as 55 A.D. You won't want to miss these exciting conclusions.
Also, be sure to check out our giveaway of the brand-new collected works of Aristotle by Hackett publishing, our sponsor. You can find it at this link.

Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke: A Fresh Assault on the Synoptic Problem, Part II (Ad Navseam, Episode 202)

This week Jeff and Dave continue their discussion of John Wenham's arguments against the hypothesis of Markan priority and the Q document as explaining the many similarities in the synoptic Gospels. Here they pick up with "external evidence" in chapter 5, after a concluding look at the internal evidence. Wenham argues in chapters 5 and following for the priority of Matthew, reestablishing the reliability of Papias and other church fathers like Irenaeus and Origen, in the overwhelming testimony that Matthew was first, and wrote Ἑβραΐδι διαλέκτῳ. Does this mean in a Semitic language like Hebrew or Aramaean – the traditional interpretation – or is the understanding commonly attributed to Eusebius correct, that Matthew wrote "in a Semitic style", but not necessarily in the Hebrew language? The arguments are complicated, and require very careful attention to sort the wheat from the chaff. Was Peter the inspiration for Mark's gospel? Was Peter in Rome, and if, so when? Come along for a careful look at a perennially interesting and pressing question, namely the relationship between the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Also, be sure to check out the giveaway of the brand-new collected works of Aristotle by Hackett publishing, our sponsor. You can find it at this link.

Your Native Tongue Holds a Special Place in Your Brain (Gurgle, Episode 6)

Listen up, polyglots and hyperpolyglots: this one is for you. And for the rest of us, ever wonder what it's like to speak multiple languages, or even more than 10? Jeff and Dave come gurgling back in with a quick take on this fascinating article by Natalia Mesa over at science.org (link). Meet Vaughn Smith who, when not cleaning carpets in Washington D.C. or preparing to turn 50, tries out one of the 24 (that's right) languages he speaks fluently. And when members of this 1% of the world's population, the super-accomplished in multiple languages, undergo an fMRI or two, it turns out there are some surprising effects as the Bible or Alice in Wonderland is read in their mother tongue. So put down Duolingo (Vigintilingo?) and tune in for a quick look at this most unusual topic. It's bite-sized fun!

Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke: A Fresh Assault on the Synoptic Problem, Part I (Ad Navseam, Episode 201)

This week the guys dive into John Wenham’s intriguing 1992 book Redating Matthew, Mark and Luke: A Fresh Assault on the Synoptic Problem. As they unpack the dense argument, see how Wenham challenges the generally accepted order of the synoptic gospel accounts (supposedly Mark and the mysterious “Q” come first) as well as the generally accepted “late” dates for each (beginning in the 60s-70s at the earliest).  Using close comparative readings as well as placing the texts in a strict historical context, Wenham builds a case for the traditional, patristic chronological order of the gospels as well as dates much closer to the events of the life of Christ. So, get your pericopes in order and be prepared to rethink everything you thought you knew about “oral tradition.”

Gag Reflex: Our Second, More Abysmaler, Clip Show (Ad Navseam, Episode 200)

Has it finally come to this? Again? Can't you guys come up with any new material? Well, no. Everybody needs a little time away, the fans will say, from each other. Even list'ners need a holiday, far away, from each other. So, that's what you're getting. Jeff and Dave kick back and let the fans do most of the work for this one. Thanks to all the contributions from a host of loyal listeners, the guys get a break this week to pursue their early-birding, lucubrating, and other sidelines, as well as spending time with their bevy of besties: Lazy Steve, Remote Ron, Ratio "Mark" Hellweg, Slideshow Bob, Local Will, Saswatch, The Abdominal Snowman, The Already But Not Yeti, Embryonic Mark, and the Garnier Fructis representatives. If you don't like inside jokes and running gags, maybe tune out at about minute 47.38. Or, stay until the end (and show up next episode for more substantive content). Thanks for listening!

Eye Can't Get No Satisfaction: Polyphemus and Galatea in Theocritus' Idyll XI (Ad Navseam, Episode 199)

"Whiter than cottage cheese", "bright as an unripe grape"? This is some world class woo-pitching, and Polyphemus the one-eyed wonder has high hopes that such romantic language will win fair Galatea, sea nymph extraordinaire, to his hirsute side. He may not be much to look at, monobrow and all, but the Cyclops boasts that he comes with many benefits: great musical skill, a cheez whiz packed man cave, and 1000 head of cattle. As Theocritus the famous Syracusan poet tells the tale, should we take it as farce? Or, is the song a serious philosophical inquiry into the healing nature of poetry? Join the guys this week as they take a close look at Idyll XI, an awkward, adolescent love song that the Alexandrian poet composes for that shaggy Cyclops as a backstory, before he encountered Odysseus. The insights of Brooks Otis, Erling Holtsmark, Robert Schmiel, and yes, Dronebrella, set the stage. So, cue your mixtape with Air Supply or Survivor, pray for gills, and don't miss this one!

The Golden Age of the Classics in America by Carl Richard, Part IX (Ad Navseam, Episode 198)

This week the guys wrap up their look at Richard's trenchant book with his final chapter on the classics and American slavery. Richard teases out how both pro-slavery factions (John C. Calhoun, Thomas Dew, George Fitzhugh) and abolitionists (William Lloyd Garrison, Frederick Douglass) marshaled Greco-Roman thinkers to support their respective causes. The South argued that the flourishing of the arts and thought in Athens was a result of the elite classes being freed from work by the slave population, while the North saw slavery as Athens’ biggest flaw. What do Plato, Aristotle, and Cicero have to say about it all? Did they believe that some swaths of humanity were naturally servile? And, what does “natural law” suggest? Tune in and find out. There's plenty of room here for all of us to learn, even the Twainees.
 

Did St. Paul Speak Latin? and, The Forms You Really Need to Know: Souter and Mahoney (Ad Navseam, Episode 197)

Dave and Jeff this week tackle two fascinating articles in a portmanteau of Classical learning (Sahoney-Mahouter). First up, it's the 1911 article by famed philologist and New Testament scholar Alexander Souter. Examining the evidence, and building a cumulative argument, Souter argues that the Apostle Paul in all probability could speak the language  of Rome's seven hills. But how strong is his case, and where might it be vulnerable to pushback? Then after halftime, Anne Mahoney (Tufts Univ.) leads the show back on to the gridiron for some computer-aided analysis of what Greek and Latin forms are indispensable as to frequency, and which are more of a purple unicorn that can safely be shelved until the third or fourth semester. For language gurus, you won't want to miss the surprises here: vocative outranks dative? Present and perfect tense verbs constitute almost 75% of all Latin verb forms? Quid rei est? And, be sure to send in your own audio clips for episode 200 to join the fun.

H.I. Marrou’s A History of Education in Antiquity, Part XVII (Ad Navseam, Episode 196)

All you Marrou fans out there may have been wondering, "Where did that fabulous Frenchmen go"? After all, this little podcast has not covered H.I.'s theme since April 1 of the current year. Fitting date? Don't be fooled, Jeff and Dave have not given up on all things ancient education, and this week the guys return to Part II, Chapter IX. In this portion of the larger section, Classical Education in the Hellenistic Age, Marrou is dealing with what he entitles "Lesser Forms". How was the ephebia structured, and how did the architectural forms change to match this? What did the typical syllabus contain, and what of the formation of a canon? What is the connection between thinking great thoughts and walking? Should you look out for roving hygienists in your neighborhood, and can you earn a certificate or award for φιλοπονία (love of industry)? The disscussion next moves on to the "birdcage" center of ancient learning, the Museum (Alexandria, et alia), where MacArthur Fellowship recipients complained about the sluggish wifi and were feted by the Ptolemies. But we digress. Stick around for the closing bit on medicine and vo. tech, and think about sending us your own reflections for episode 200!

Ma, ma, ma, my, Pomona! (Et Alii) in Two More Ovidian Vignettes (Ad Navseam, Episode 195)

The guys are back to Ovid this week for another pair of vignettes. First up it’s the tragic, would-be love affair between little-known Trojan prince Aesacus and his would be wooed Hesperia. Like Eurydice, Hesperia forgets her little galoshes, and is struck down by a deadly snake in the grass before Aesacus can catch her. Aesacus can’t handle it and goes full Greg Louganis, until the gods turn him into a diving bird. What is Ovid saying here about fate and love's destructive power? Then its on to Pomona who turns down every “prom-posal” till Vertumnus, the sylvan Cicero, gives it a go. Even then it’s no picnic…he’s forced to become his own “wing man”…er, woman? What’s the message? Stop chasing, fellas, and up your disguise and persuasion game? Tune in and find out. Also, don't miss the on-air drawing for the Plato prize.