And so, the final session (before the panel discussion) begins. Dr. Robinson is currently speaking about his introduction to the study of the PA. He describes Dr. Pierpont’s influence and his 97 sabbatical when he began his work on the collation of the PA. He just finished his volume on all the available and readable manuscripts. Folks, you can’t find this volume anywhere else than the SEBTS library at the moment. So flock on down to Wake Forest!

Dr. Robinson just quipped that Dr. Keith makes his case for him, if he simply omits the word “interpolation.”

Dr. Keith retorted that Dr. Robinson is a modern day Marcion. Fun was had by all.

If an interpolator was picking up on certain features of the Gospel in order to mimic style, would he have been able to pick up on all the interlocking features within the PA? This is the main point of Robinson’s paper. He contends that the artistry of the book, which includes the PA, is part of the author’s overall literary purposes and construction of the text. Specifically, Robinson argues for the density of repeated elements within the text.

Concluding observations: the fact that the PA was removed in certain manuscripts resulted from lectionary practice. Vocab, syntax, style, thematic links and interlocks, etc. should settle the Johannine authenticity of the PA.