Farrer hypothesis

On the basis of this double tradition, scholars have attempted detailed reconstructions of this lost Q source.

The other school of thought is called the Farrer Hypothesis, named after Oxford theologian Austin Farrer.

Instead of positing a hypothetical source, the Farrer Hypothesis proposes that the author of Luke used both Mark and Matthew.

In the triple tradition where Mark is the middle term, the authors of Matthew and Luke used Mark.

In the double tradition where Matthew and Luke agree without any parallel in Mark, the author of Luke used Matthew.

There are a series of arguments for and against both of these positions which we'll need to save for a future video.

But it's worth remembering just how much these two rival schools of thought agree.

First, both the two-source theory and the Farrer Hypothesis agree on the need for a documentary solution to the Synoptic problem.