Henry Imler September 18th, 2006

Introduction
The purpose of my research paper is to analyze the use of miracle stories in the gospels. The approach will be three-fold; first, the use of miracle stories will be analyzed within the narrative framework of each canonical gospel independently. Secondly, there will be a cross-evaluation of the miracle stories and of the miracle story approaches each gospel presents. Lastly, the theory of an M-source will be examined using the narrative results to mediate differing historical claims that are unable to be verified historically. Also included in the paper will be a similar treatment of some of the non-canonical gospels of the Gnostic tradition.

Method
First, a short introduction to the varying philosophic views on the occurrence of miracles will be given. This introduction will focus on Hume’s attack on the possibility of miracles with a rebuttal by Lewis. Lewis’ view will then be briefly critiqued.

Each of the four canonical gospels will be examined via the lens of narrative criticism. First, the pre-reading attitude towards miracle stories of the each implied reader will be examined. Then the effect that the real author intended to have on the reader about how one should view miracle stories will be examined. The purpose of this is to see how the implied reader’s attitude towards miracle stories develops. The same process will then be repeated with a few of the Gnostic gospels.

The second phase of the paper will be to examine the miracle stories in a cross-gospel frame work. The hope is to see how the different miracle accounts not only vary from gospel to gospel, but how they were changed to fit each of the gospel’s overall narrative. Such an instance of a cross-gospel miracle is the cursing of the fig tree by Jesus on the day that he cleansed the temple. The same process will then be repeated with a few of the Gnostic gospels.

The final phase of the paper will examine the results of the second phase as it pertains to the various theories of an M-Source in the formation of the gospels. It is hoped that the narrative results from phase one will help to navigate through the historical incompleteness that clouds the probability of each theory of the composition of the gospels in relation to the hypothetical M-source. The same process will then be repeated with a few of the Gnostic gospels with the purpose of seeing if there is a parallel m-source, oral or otherwise for the Gnostic tradition.

Finally, the results of the canonical and Gnostic gospels’ attitudes towards miracles will be compared and contrasted. It is hoped that a greater understanding of the implied reader and author will be illuminated.

• Christianity , Religion
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