Testing the Eyewitnesses Worksheet

Each group will be assigned 2 of these tests. Look at the passages recommended and determine if the gospels can pass this test or reliability. Be ready to answer as a group why or why not?
  1. Intention test: does the eyewitness intend to accurately report what they saw and preserve history? (Read Luke 1:1-4, John 20:31 and 21:24-25)


  2. Ability test: Would they have been capable of preserving that information intact? Wouldn’t the information get garbled like when playing the game telephone?


  3. Character Test: Were these evangelists trustworthy as people in general, or were they known con men and crooks? (Consider Philippians 1)


  4. Consistency Test: Don’t the gospels contradict each other by giving so many different details? (Compare Matthew 8:28 with Mark 5:1-5—are there two men or one? Is this a significant contradiction? Can it be explained rationally?)


  5. Bias test: But surely, the evangelists were biased towards Christ, and this colored their perceptions? (Consider Luke 1:1-4 again, Luke 9:26, and Revelation 22:18-19, how would bias affect them?)


  6. The Cover-up test: Didn’t the disciples love for Jesus lead them to white-wash details that might have been scandalous or difficult for people to accept? (John 6:60-68)


  7. Corroboration test: Can the people and places mentioned in the gospels be verified independently? (Consider Luke 3:1—is this something we should be able to verify?)


  8. The Adverse witness test: Are there any other witnesses contradicting the writers of the gospels at that time? Any one saying that they misreported or misrepresented the facts? (Consider Matthew 12:23-27 and the Pharisees as an example of adverse witnesses)


Deliberations:

 

 

Department of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry
Orthodox Church in America
PO Box 675 Syosset, NY 11791
http://yya.oca.org
yyacm@oca.org

The Hub | Back to top