DATE: Saturday, November 1, 1997            TAG: 9710310086

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E3   EDITION: FINAL 

COLUMN: Issues of Faith 

SOURCE: Betsy Wright 

                                            LENGTH:   91 lines

TWO VIEWS TRACE AUTHORS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

Fifth in a series

BY THE TIME OF Jesus' birth, Jews had lived with the Torah - in its oral or written form - for almost 1,500 years. Gradually, through those years, other holy books were added to the library, so that by the time Jesus began his ministry the Scriptures included almost all of what is now known as the Old Testament.

The New Testament, or Christian Testament, didn't take nearly as long to be formed, mainly because it came about in a time when literature and writing were both well-established methods of communication. Also, the Christian Testament spread among the Gentiles, who relied more on the writing down of ideas, than the Jews, who traditionally had relied heavily on the oral transmission of ideas.

Even with this emphasis on writing, it is important to note that today no original manuscripts - called autographs - exist. The oldest fragment of the New Testament is a reprint of a reprint that dates to around 150 A.D.

Who wrote the 27 books of the New Testament? Just as with the Old Testament, there are two sometimes-conflicting answers to that question: the Biblical/Traditional Account and the Extra-Biblical Account, each described in an earlier column.

Following are the books of the Christian Testament, both accounts of authorship and an estimated date when the book was written. To save space, I've abbreviated the Biblical/Traditional Account as B/T and the Extra-Biblical Account as E-B.

Matthew - B/T: by Matthew, the tax collector and disciple of Jesus, about 60-65 A.D. E-B: a second-generation Jewish Christian from Antioch in Syria, about 85-90 A.D.

Mark - B/T: by John Mark, a disciple of Paul, about 55-65 A.D.

E-B: by an unknown writer named Mark (one of the most common names of the ancient world), probably a follower of Peter, about 70 A.D.

Luke - B/T: by Luke, a Gentile physician and disciple of Paul, about 60 A.D. E-B: not known, but probably the traditional Luke, a Gentile physician and disciple of Paul, about 80-90 A.D.

John - B/T: by John, the disciple of Jesus, about 85-90 A.D. E-B: several writers, with some portions by John, the disciple of Jesus, 85-150 A.D.

Acts - B/T: by Luke, a Gentile physician and disciple of Paul, about 63-70 A.D. E-B: several unknown writers, 69-79 A.D.

Romans - B/T and E-B: Paul, about 57 A.D.

1 & 2 Corinthians - B/T: Paul, about 55-57 A.D. E-B: 1 Corinthians, by Paul about 55 A.D.; 2 Corinthians, by Paul, chapters 1-9 about 56 A.D.; chapters 10-13, written as a separate letter a little after he penned chapters 1-9 and later compiled as one letter.

Galatians - B/T: Paul, about 49 A.D. E-B: Paul, date disputed as either 49 A.D. or 54-55 A.D.

Ephesians - B/T: Paul, about 60 A.D. E-B: by Paul, about 54-62 A.D. or by a disciple of Paul, about 80-90 A.D.

Philippians - B/T and E-B: Paul, about 61 A.D.

Colossians - B/T: Paul, about 60 A.D. E-B: by Paul, 54-62 A.D., or by a disciple of Paul, 70-90 A.D.

1 & 2 Thessalonians - B/T: Paul, about 51 A.D. E-B: by Paul, 51 A.D., or by a disciple of Paul, about 70 A.D.

1 & 2 Timothy, Titus - B/T: Paul, about 64-67 A.D. E-B: by Paul, about 64 A.D.; by a disciple of Paul, 80-150 A.D.; or by a disciple who wove together several short notes of Paul, about 80-90 A.D.

Philemon - B/T and E-B: Paul, about 60 A.D.

Hebrews - B/T: not known but thought to be Paul or Luke, about 69 A.D. E-B: Many authors have been suggested: Paul, Apollos, Luke, Barnabas, Philip, Priscilla, though best candidates are Apollos or Barnabas; written about 64-95 A.D.

James - B/T: James, a leader in the Jerusalem church (Protestants say James was the brother of Jesus), about 49 A.D. E-B: by the traditional James, about 62 A.D., or a later follower of James, about 100 A.D.

1 Peter - B/T: Peter, the disciple of Jesus, about 62-64 A.D. E-B: by or under the direction of Peter, about 62-64 A.D. or by a later unknown author from 90-120 A.D.

2 Peter - B/T: Peter, the disciple of Jesus, about 67 A.D. E-B: an unknown Gentile writer, about 100-150 A.D.

1, 2 & 3 John - B/T: John, the disciple of Jesus, about 90 A.D. E-B: an unknown writer, perhaps same ``John'' who wrote the Gospel account, 90-115 A.D.

Jude - B/T: Jude, the brother of James (Protestants say Jude was Jesus' half-brother), about 65 A.D. E-B: by either Jude, the brother (or half-brother) of Jesus and James, about 65 A.D.; Jude, a bishop of the Jerusalem church, about 98-117 A.D.; or a disciple of Jude, about 80-90 A.D.

The Revelation - B/T: John, the disciple of Jesus, about 95 A.D. E-B: a writer named John, but probably not the disciple of Jesus, about 81-91 A.D.e-mail to bmw(AT)pilotonline.com. Please include name, city and phone number. MEMO: Responses will be published at the end of the series. Send them to

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