The Case Against Q: Studies in Markan Priority and the Synoptic Problem

For over a century Gospel scholarship has accepted a hypothetical document called Q as one of the major sources of the Synoptic Gospels. In recent times, it has even been transformed from a sayings source to a Gospel in its own right. But, says Mark Goodacre in The Case Against Q, the majority acceptance of Q cannot function as an argument for its existence. From time to time dissenting voices have spoken against such widespread acceptance of Q as a Gospel. Scholars have pointed out, for instance, that Luke's knowledge of Matthew and Mark would enable one to dispense with Q. Yet, such voices often have gone unheeded due to the lack of a clear, balanced, and scholarly treatment of the case against Q. So, in The Case Against Q Goodacre offers a careful and detailed critique of the Q hypothesis, examining the most important arguments of Q's proponents. He then offers new arguments and fresh reflections reaffirming Markan Priority as the key to successful Synoptic scholarship. With this book, Goodacre provides a more plausible picture of Synoptic relationships than has previously been available, as he reconstructs Synoptic interrelationships and Christian origins. Mark Goodacre is Lecturer in New Testament in the Department of Theology at the University of Birmingham (England) and the author of The Synoptic Problem: A Way Through the Maze.