"SALT" Exercise: The Synoptic Problem
Richert Manjarres
NBST515: New Testament Orientation I (B08)
September 24, 2023
Contents
Summary........................................................................................................................................3
Application.....................................................................................................................................4
Bibliography...................................................................................................................................7
2
Summary
This week’s SALT exercise deals with the “Synaptic Problem”, a problem many a reader
may ignore but which is, nonetheless, important to the study of scripture. While the modern
study of the Gospels can trace its beginnings all the way back to 18 century Enlightenment,
th
study of the Gospels can be traced back centuries before then. The four gospels were thought of
as equals in that while they may have been written by human hands, they were divinely inspired.
That was the view held by St. Augustine of Hippo and that which prevailed for over a thousand
years. Basically, Matthew was the first gospel written. Mark used Matthew and Peter as his
sources and John and Luke were written independently of Matthew and Mark. This would be
