Why was there such a delay in writing the Gospels?

Answer 1

The first gospel, known as the Gospel of Mark, was written approximately 70 CE, long after the events it portrays. The other gospels were written decades later, with John's Gospel certainly written early in the second century. For a long time, Christians believed that the gospels were actually written soon after the crucifixion of Jesus, a position still held by conservative Christians. Others say that the gospel was written down when the apostles believed that they would soon all pass away, and there needed to be a written record of what they knew.

The fact that Mark was written approximately 70 CE is instructive. This was a time of great tribulation for the Jews and, no doubt for the Christian Church. The Roman army was crushing the Jewish revolt, and even while Jerusalem was under seige, a bloody civil war raged within its walls. The Christians of the small Jerusalem Church had fled east across the River Jordan. To many, it appeared as if the world would soon end. Mark speaks of this in chapter 13. It may well be that the anticipated destruction to come was the reason for the gospel.

Within a few decades, two unknown evangelists realised that Mark's Gospel needed updating, perhaps because people were questioning its historicity. They each added a birth narrative and some resurrection appearances, as well as some elaborations to add a human touch to the story of Jesus. The author of the gospel now known as Matthew's Gospel made many references to the Old Testament, to show that the roots of Christianity were ancient and unchallengeable. The author of Luke added historical background, probably from the works of Josephus, to show that the story of Jesus really did happen. They both added a genealogy of Jesus, through his father Jospeh and the male line back to King David.

John was a more political gospel. This gospel was inspired by Luke, with some material taken direct from Mark, but the author did not feel as constrained to follow his sources closely, as had theauthors of Matthew and Luke. John's Gospel appears to have been dealing with issues that arose in the Christian Church after the turn of the century.