2/6/23
Scholarly Reflections
Massaux, Éduard. "Chapter Three: Tatian." The Influence of the Gospel of Saint Matthew on Christian Literature before Saint Irenaeus: Book 3: The Apologists and the Didache. (Translated by Norman J. Belval and Suzanne Hecht. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1993, 110-115.
Tatian's Address to the Greeks is a strong polemic against Greek culture, likely composed prior to about 172. Massaux finds only slight evidence for literary dependence on New Testament writings in this work (Massaux 1993, 110). Massaux does find more evidence of connections to Luke, John, and Paul than he does for Matthew (Massaux 1993, 111). The passages tend to have only very slight similarity in wording. The exceptions are in 13.1 and 13.2, where Tatian's wording is very similar to John 1:5 and 1:9, and where in 19.4 Tatian's wording nearly matches John 1:3 (Massaux 1993, 113). These partial sentences, though they do strongly suggest an awareness of a biblical text, are hardly able to require a conclusion of dependence. The few connections Massaux finds of Tatian and Paul show Tatian referencing Paul's ideas, but not his specific language.
Scholarly Reflections
Massaux, Éduard. "Chapter Three: Tatian." The Influence of the Gospel of Saint Matthew on Christian Literature before Saint Irenaeus: Book 3: The Apologists and the Didache. (Translated by Norman J. Belval and Suzanne Hecht. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1993, 110-115.
Tatian's Address to the Greeks is a strong polemic against Greek culture, likely composed prior to about 172. Massaux finds only slight evidence for literary dependence on New Testament writings in this work (Massaux 1993, 110). Massaux does find more evidence of connections to Luke, John, and Paul than he does for Matthew (Massaux 1993, 111). The passages tend to have only very slight similarity in wording. The exceptions are in 13.1 and 13.2, where Tatian's wording is very similar to John 1:5 and 1:9, and where in 19.4 Tatian's wording nearly matches John 1:3 (Massaux 1993, 113). These partial sentences, though they do strongly suggest an awareness of a biblical text, are hardly able to require a conclusion of dependence. The few connections Massaux finds of Tatian and Paul show Tatian referencing Paul's ideas, but not his specific language.
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