Text and Tradition: The Role of New Testament Manuscripts in Early Christian Studies. Lecture Two: Text and Transmission: The Historical Significance of the ‘Altered’ Text, The Kenneth W. Clark Lectures, Duke Divinity School, 1997

Abstract The obsession that New Testament textual critics have had with reconstructing the original text has blinded many to the importance of readings that were introduced at some point in the transmission history. An investigation of many variants yields evidence that scribes modified the text before them in order to promote their own (or their communities’) views on theological points. Other modifications reveal apologetic or polemic concerns, and still others point to arguments over church order (e.g., the role of women).