Sunday Forum: "Seeing Paul in the Four Gospels"

Led by Robert Coote This forum (the third of three sessions over three weeks) will explore how Paul’s views play out in each of the four Gospels, starting with how Mark incorporates his message into a narrative of Jesus (far more elaborate than Paul). The discussion will also cover Matthew’s critical cover of Mark, Luke’s attempt to finesse the disagreement between Mark and Matthew, and finally John’s prescinding from their narrative template in favor of the words and few deeds of a (Pauline) Jesus who is a cosmic demigod embodying the creative, life-giving, revealing discourse (logos) of God that begins with “let there be light”—the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome/grasped (katelabon) it.
Robert B. Coote is internationally renowned for his work on the Bible and the ancient Near East and has written several seminal texts of Biblical scholarship. His work expands across disciplines and is particularly known for the ways in which he brings context across texts through the examination of biblical composition, literary structure, and content. Bob is professor emeritus of Old Testament at San Francisco Theological Seminary.
Learn more about our upcoming Sunday Forums: https://www.stjohnsberkeley.org/sunday-forum-schedule-fall-2026/