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Author Topic:   Book of Matthew - Serious or Satire?
arachnophilia
Member (Idle past 1343 days)
Posts: 9069
From: god's waiting room
Joined: 05-21-2004


Message 16 of 19 (286014)
02-12-2006 6:11 PM
Reply to: Message 13 by purpledawn
02-12-2006 11:34 AM


Re: genealogies
Considering that the author of Mark didn't have a birth story,
it should also be noted that infancy gospels are quite common. matthew might be adopting/mocking one of them -- whereas luke might have toned that bit down a little because there is little to no agreement in such infancy gospels. and i'm not totally sure they were around or at least popular when mark was written. either way, it would be a separate source .
Since Matthew's author pulled his information either from Mark or the same source as Mark, either the story of the demons was not real and the author had no problem changing the numbers or the author deliberately increased the number (as he did several times in his work) so that people understood his work was not a serious biography.
i'm not just trying to be obtuse here, but i really don't get this. i can understand why the double of donkey is funny, but i don't see the possession.


This message is a reply to:
 Message 13 by purpledawn, posted 02-12-2006 11:34 AM purpledawn has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 17 by purpledawn, posted 02-12-2006 6:49 PM arachnophilia has not replied
 Message 18 by purpledawn, posted 02-12-2006 8:21 PM arachnophilia has not replied
 Message 19 by doctrbill, posted 03-02-2006 11:34 AM arachnophilia has not replied

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3457 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 17 of 19 (286022)
02-12-2006 6:49 PM
Reply to: Message 16 by arachnophilia
02-12-2006 6:11 PM


Re: genealogies
quote:
i'm not just trying to be obtuse here, but i really don't get this. i can understand why the double of donkey is funny, but i don't see the possession.
It is hard to say what struck the funny bone in the first century.
Humor is another one of those things that culture and time can affect.
One of those "You had to be there" kinda things.
This message has been edited by purpledawn, 02-12-2006 08:19 PM

"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz

This message is a reply to:
 Message 16 by arachnophilia, posted 02-12-2006 6:11 PM arachnophilia has not replied

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3457 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


Message 18 of 19 (286040)
02-12-2006 8:21 PM
Reply to: Message 16 by arachnophilia
02-12-2006 6:11 PM


Gadara Swine
Did some more reading. Notice in Matthew the name of the region is Gadarenes and in Mark and Luke it is Gerasenes.
I looked in Strong's and Gerasenes has a Hebrew origin, but for Gadarenes it just says it is another name for Gerazenes. This map has Gergesa close to the Sea of Galilee and Gadara further away to the southeast. I haven't found anything consistent on these two places or groups.
So again Matthew uses a different name than Mark and Luke.
Why did he use a different name? It may have meant something at the time, unfortunately we'll never know.
Like I said, hard to know what was humorous a few thousand years ago.
ABE: Map Link
This message has been edited by purpledawn, 02-13-2006 06:39 AM

"Peshat is what I say and derash is what you say." --Nehama Leibowitz

This message is a reply to:
 Message 16 by arachnophilia, posted 02-12-2006 6:11 PM arachnophilia has not replied

  
doctrbill
Member (Idle past 2764 days)
Posts: 1174
From: Eugene, Oregon, USA
Joined: 01-08-2001


Message 19 of 19 (291472)
03-02-2006 11:34 AM
Reply to: Message 16 by arachnophilia
02-12-2006 6:11 PM


Re: genealogies
arachnophilia writes:
i can understand why the double of donkey is funny, but i don't see the possession.
Maybe not so much funny as more frightening. Makes it scarier, doesn't it? Twice the craziness. Twice the confusion. Powerful demons indeed!!!!
Many years ago when I was attempting (and failing miserably), to produce a parallel (unified) Gospel I noticed that Matthew tends to exaggerate the numbers given by Mark. He also does this in a story about the healing of a blind man (i.e. - "two" blind men). I have included Luke's version of the same story, which seems to support purpledawn's statement regarding the function of Luke.
quote:
Mark 10:46 - And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.
Matthew 20:29, 30 - And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him. And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, ...
Luk 18:35 - And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging: ...

Theology is the science of Dominion.
- - - My God is your god's Boss - - -

This message is a reply to:
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