What is the significance of Greco-Roman epistlography for understanding the letters of the New Testament?

Essay Questions

1) In your own words: explain the synoptic problem. Write your essay as if you were explaining it to a friend who asked you about the relationship between the Gospels. As part of your answer, make an argument for which synoptic Gospel came first: Mark, Luke, or Matthew.

2) Pick one of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke) and write an essay in which you compare and contrast that author’s depiction of Jesus with the depiction of Jesus in the Gospel of John. How are they similar? How are they different?

3) What is the significance of Greco-Roman epistlography for understanding the letters of the New Testament? Be specific in your answer, and discuss at least one example of how the study of ancient letters helps us understand the New Testament. 4) In your own words: what is “apocalyptic literature”? How does a broader understanding of the genre of “apocalypse” help you make sense of the book of Revelation? 5) What is the significance of circumcision in the New Testament? Why does it come up so often as a topic? How do New Testament authors (especially Paul) deal with this topic, and why is it so important to them?