The Origins of Early Christian Literature: Contextualizing the New Testament within Greco-RomanConventional approaches to the Synoptic gospels argue that the gospel authors acted as literate spokespersons for their religious communities. Whether described as documenting intra group 'oral traditions' or preserving the collective perspectives of their fellow Christ followers, these writers are treated as something akin to the Romantic poet speaking for their Volk a questionable framework inherited from nineteenth century German Romanticism. In