Most of us would think of Mark as the conveyor of the parable for us to interpret, however, this article makes it seem more like everyone that wasn't Jesus had to first interpret the parables themselves before talking about them and writing them down. The interpretations conducted by Mark and Matthew were unavoidably influential on their writing method--they intruded on the parable. Thus, we are left with an already partially interpreted parable instead of the original.

Many people don't realize that there are two separate stories. --Nicole Whitlock

It is interesting how the meaning of a narrative changes over time to different audiences, but this does not change the original intention of the narrative. There can only be one true original intent. --Nicole Whitlock

I never thought of the Good Samaritan parable in this way; I always assumed it was a straightforward explanation of what a neighbor was. --Nicole Whitlock

This is probably hard for many theologians to swallow. --Nicole Whitlock

How does this relate to the idea of the innocence of a child? If the hearers are unable to understand, it is not an intentional denial of the Word, but rather a lack of reasoning capability--like a child. Should it not still be the responsibility of the communicator, (Jesus) to either help them understand or forgive their innocence? --Nicole Whitlock

I find it interesting that Matthew, one of the original writers, was already changing words around to fit his personal preference. --Nicole Whitlock

This reminds me of the "misinterpreting Jesus" clip we watched week 2 --Nicole Whitlock

This concept was always taught to me in the baptist church when I was a child.

This is so morbid and disheartening for a lover of wisdom and truth! --Nicole Whitlock

This is more of what I think of when I hear the word "parable." I think of a complex idea such as "neighborliness" put into a simple story for the common folk. I guess one's definition of parable can be either like a metaphor, vague and complicated, or an analogy, simple and helpful. --Nicole Whitlock

Although a riddle and a comparison both require some interpretative action from the author, One (a riddle) seems more like a game of wits and the other (a comparison) seems like you want the listener to reach their own conclusions and thus "certain knowledge" of the content. --Nicole Whitlock

If I were using a "comparison," "illustration," or "analogy," my intention would be to assist others in understanding my point--to aid in communication. If I were using a "riddle" or "dark saying" I believe my intentions would be less amiable. It is interesting how the word parable can mean such contrasting things. --Nicole Whitlock

The symbol for equality is literally a picture of two equal lines. I have never thought about that before!

So interesting! That would get tedious in calculus proofs though!