Behind the Gospels

This 1968 pamphlet about the new understanding of the Gospels arising from the new scholarship is now out of date, though it must have been very helpful at the time. However, Cadbury's questions and main point remain relevant: the early Christian Church does not seem to have been very interested in

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the actual life and teaching or character and career of Jesus. They do not evoke his example, or quote him outside of the Gospels. The book of Acts tells us very little of his career, but emphasizes his future role via the resurrection. The missionary message and community life of the early Church do not suggest that remembering Jesus himself and his actual message were important. So why were the Gospels written at all? Form criticism tries to explain how the Gospel reports were selected and altered, to serve the interests of the early Church. And our modern search for and interpretation of Jesus reflect our interests every bit as much as the early Church's reflected theirs.
Further scholarship has advanced this field, and interested readers should seek current versions on these topics.

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