Roger Pearse

Some of you may know that Eusebius of Caesarea wrote a work on contradictions/problems in the gospels, and solutions to them.

The work was in three books, 2 on problems at the start of the gospels (Quaestiones ad Stephanum) and 1 on problems at the ends of the gospels (Quaestiones ad Marinum). The remains of the work are about 50,000 words, or about half the size of the Church History.

No English translation exists. As an experiment I've commissioned one, for money, with a view to publishing it myself. If I can sell enough printed copies, then it will cover the cost of translation and then I can put the thing online or something, eventually.

However I'd appreciate some suggestions from people in this forum.

1. Is this a work that you would be interested in reading, and would buy?

2. What sort of money would you be prepared to pay for a copy?

3. Would you want the Greek and Syriac as well as the English?

4. Would you want a detailed commentary or not?

If this idea works, then I would intend to do a small series of translations of patristic works that have never found a translator.

All the best,

Roger Pearse

PhilosopherJay

Hi Roger,

I would love to read it. I think it is amazing that it has not been translated until now. I mean Eusebius is certainly an enormously important historical and Christian writer. It is not like we are talking about some minor poet from antiquity.

It would be nice to have a Greek version too, but not all that important.

Commentaries are always welcome, but again not really important.

Money-wise, I'm not sure. I would consider buying it as a book if it was reasonably priced $5-15. I would probably donate the same amount to a website that carried it. If I needed it for a specific bit of research at some point in the future, I might pay more.

Warmly,

Philosopher Jay

Roger Pearse

Thank you for the feedback; very welcome. (I was somewhat afraid that no-one would respond!)

Jeffrey Gibson

There is a Greek version of these two texts. It's available on the TLG.

Jeffrey

Roger Pearse

I've had the first 'question' translated. The 'question' is why Matthew gives the genealogy of Joseph, rather than that of Mary, since Joseph was not Jesus' biological father.

Sarai

Roger--what a fabulous project! Absolutely, I would buy the book. Preferably, the book would include the Greek & Syriac, although I couldn't make use of them at this point. I always prefer to have the original language side-by-side to the English, so that if need be, I can consult someone who IS proficient in the original language.

I would also prefer a detailed commentary, and please, please, extensive and detailed end-notes. I use them "religiously"! (No pun intended, but gratefully accepted!)

Price-wise for the sort of book I've described--I'd expect a price tag around $30-$35. That seems to be about the average price of the scholarly books on Biblical research that I've purchased in the recent past.

Hope this helps and I look forward to the end-product of your project!

Sarai

Roger Pearse

Many thanks for the note, the encouragement and the suggestions -- thank you!

I tend to want the original languages myself, I must say, when I get a book. Not sure if I'm in a minority on that, tho.

Producing a decent commentary/notes would probably be difficult, but if people want it, I'm sure it can be arranged.

I've just put out an advert for the Syriac side of the job -- around 5,000 words, it seems.

Roger Pearse

Someone who sounds qualified has already offered to translate, thankfully (just getting the right people is one problem).

I need to get a peer-reviewer for the Greek translation as well.

Ben C Smith

Interested in reading, definitely. Buying is another matter, since I am a notorious cheapskate when it comes to books.

If a copy were freely available at a library or online, probably nothing or at least not very much. But, if my research required me to read these texts (and even with a knowledge of Greek I always like to check myself against standard translations), I would hypothetically be willing to pay more, say, in the $20 to $30 range.

Absolutely.

Always nice, but not necessary, especially if providing one is going to kick up the cost of the book. An acceptable substitute might be a somewhat detailed introduction (5-10 pages, perhaps) and bibliography (as many pages as it takes).

Best of luck, Roger.

Ben.

makerowner

Definitely.

I'd probably go up to ~$35.

I don't speak either, but it might be useful for more scholarly uses of the work. I do like to try following the Greek sometimes.

That would probably be useful. Things like variant MSS, fact-checking, finding the sources of works quoted, etc.