Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, Chapter 2

While Papias, Bishop of the Roman province of Asia, and his work (only existing in quotations in other works) has been debated, Bauckham finds it has recently been ignored. However, given Bauckham's desire to examine whether the gospels developed close to eye-witness testimony, this third generation Christian is of vital importance.

Papias knew Philip's daughter's and possibly Philip (whether of the Seven or the Twelve is unsure) himself in his childhood. His work, which some date to c. 130 and others to 110 and earlier, concerns the life and teaching of Jesus. Important to Bauckham's cause, however, is not just when Papias wrote, but when he collected and inquired of his research. The prologue to Papias' work is where Bauckham spends the most of his time figuring this out.

Buackham lists four categories of people from Papias' prologue:
1. people present at the teaching of "the elders";
2. the elders (who learned from the disciples);
3. recognizable disciples of Jesus (i.e., Matthew, Peter, Andrew...);
4. Aristion and John the Elder (who were disciples, as well).

Papias researches from what the people present at the elders' teaching were saying the disciples had said and what they heard Aristion and John the Elder saying. He says that a living and surviving voice is more profitable to him than books. Of course, while some think this ironic--that one would be writing about the research that voices yield--Bauckham counters by saying that it is the situation of these voices becoming scarce or even dying that would warrant this writing.

The categories are essential to Bauckham's point. He says that the reason Papias separates categories 3 and 4 are because those in three are dead, whereas those in 4 are still living, though he cannot travel to hear them. This is why he listens and seeks out those who have heard them. This, naturally, puts those in category 4 as being very old, having lived within the actual lifetime of Jesus, but not impossibly so. Papias' preference for a living voice is not unusual. It is related to the desire to learn a craft from a master via demonstration, not merely via words. Bauckham concludes that Papias' Prologue reveals that his inquiries priviliged eyewitness testimony, even second- and third-hand reports of this testimony, given that he was unable to obtain first-hand reports.

Some have argued that Papias' words of "living and surviving voice" refer to oral tradition. Bauckham criticizes this view, however, by pointing to the importance of eyewitness testimony in ancient historiography and by emphasizing the difference between oral tradition and oral history. Oral tradition only forms through generations. As Bauckham has interpreted Papias' sources, at most four steps exist between Papias and the actual disciples of Jesus (disciples--possible intervening stage--elders--disciples of elders--Papias; this is not to say that the elders are now dead, but that their disciples are the ones traveling and whom Papias is hearing). Moreover, only two stages occur between John the Elder and Papias! Simply put, there is not enough time for oral tradition to develop nor would Papias have found it as convincing. This means that the second century Christians who believed the gospels were attached to eye-witness testimony, rather than communities who edited and developed these teachings for their own purposes have good reason to be trusted. This means the proof is somewhat in hte pudding: While the form-critics of the twentieth century have read the Gospels in light of their own presuppositions of this development of oral tradition, Bauckham seeks to read the gospels as eyewitness testimony, taking seriously the beliefs of the early Christians and ancient historiographical practices.