Make sure to check out our bonus question with Dr. Goodacre!
Mark Goodacre is Professor of Religious Studies at Duke University, North Carolina, USA. He earned his MA, M.Phil and DPhil at the University of Oxford. His research interests include the Gospels, the Apocryphal New Testament, and the Historical Jesus. Goodacre is the author of five books including The Case Against Q: Studies in Markan Priority and the Synoptic Problem (Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2002), Thomas and the Gospels: The Case for Thomas’s Familiarity with the Synoptics (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012), and The Fourth Synoptic Gospel: John’s Use of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, forthcoming [September 2025]). He is well known for creating web resources on New Testament and Christian origins, including his podcast, the NT Pod. Goodacre has acted as consultant for several TV and radio programs including The Passion (BBC / HBO, 2008), Finding Jesus (CNN, 2015-17), and Jesus: His Life (History, 2019).
Outline
Introduction
- What got you into biblical studies?
- When you’re not teaching, writing, or podcasting, what else do you enjoy doing?
What is the Synoptic Problem?
How Do Most Scholars Explain the Similarities Between the Synoptics?
What Are the Issues with Q?
Why Do You Believe the Synoptics Are So Similar?
Why is This Important?
- Is there a Gospel story that comes to mind which we can better understand/interpret by understanding the interrelations between the Synoptics?
Additional Content by Dr. Goodacre
- Podcast: The NT Pod
- Books
Additional Content by Thinking Theologically
Thinking Theologically 