03_Biblica_Foster_Layout 1 08/07/13 12:56 Pagina 392 03_B 392 PAUL FOSTER circle of northern Galilean village scribes. Neither of these assump- tions has gone uncontested, and, perhaps more importantly, they are themselves highly speculative. * * * Perhaps it need not be stated, but the primary purpose of Q is not to communicate information about its own social setting 70. Instead it seeks to transmit those traditions it conveys as being central teach- ings and pronouncements of Jesus. Furthermore, it seeks to account for how the rejected figure of Jesus can be claimed as the teacher par excellence for Q believers. As Tuckett states, this position is defended by noting that “as a prophetic figure Jesus is thus in a line of conti- nuity with all the prophets” 71. Therefore it is unsurprising that no clear statement concerning the social location of the community be- hind Q emerges from the text — that is not the purpose of this type of document. Secondly, it is unsurprising that a document that recounts the teachings of the Jewish figure Jesus reflects Jewish religious beliefs and controversies. The debate concerning the social location of Q cannot be determined by requiring the document to be free of Jew- ish elements in order for it to be understood as open to Gentile con- verts. In fact if that were the case, Q would have little claim to preserve authentic Jesus traditions. What is perhaps significant is that a document which recounts the story of a Jewish teacher, and may have compiled traditions collected by those who were ethni- cally Jewish, at a number of points commends the faith of Gentiles (Q 7.1, 3, 6-9), criticizes Jewish institutions and practices (Q 12.11), and can also preserve sayings that downgrade the importance of Torah (Q 16.16, 18), albeit alongside more traditional affirmations of the law and its requirements (Q 11.42c; 16.17). That such per- As Fleddermann states, “the author deliberately effaced identifying fea- 70 tures in the service of the author’s aim to present a universal vision of Chris- tianity rooted in Jesus’ kingdom proclamation. Anyone qualifies as a reader of Q who wants to hear the message of God’s kingdom proclaimed by Jesus, and the gospel Q does not disappoint such a reader”, FLEDDERMANN, Q: A Reconstruction and Commentary, 167. TUCKETT, Q and the History of Early Christianity, 236. 71 © Gregorian Biblical Press 2013 - Tutti i diritti riservati