One aspect of the Aramaic Primacy argument is to disparage koine Greek, claiming that it was not a real language of the quality sufficient to compose the New Testament. Other sister languages contemporaneous with Aramaic, Arabic and Hebrew from ancient times are now extinct.
It is, however, well established and documented extensively in historical and comparative linguistics, that all three languages consist of dialect groups of the broader Semitic family.Īramaic, Arabic and Hebrew are three sister languages to Amharic, Tigre, Tigrinya, Gurage and other languages in the Ethiopic branch of Semitic. Younan also follows the Assyrian Church in claiming that Arabic and Hebrew are descended from Aramaic. The Peshitta, the form used by the Assyrian Church and claimed to be the original text, is later. The view ultimizes their version of the Christian scriptures, which history can document in the Aramaic language only from the second to third century CE. This reflects a cultural mythos of ultimacy or primacy common among human cultures. This church claims that the apostles originally wrote the whole New Testament in Aramaic. "With reference to.the originality of the Peshitta text, as the Patriarch and Head of the Holy Apostolic and Catholic Church of the East, we wish to state, that the Church of the East received the scriptures from the hands of the blessed Apostles themselves in the Aramaic original, the language spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and that the Peshitta is the text of the Church of the East which has come down from the Biblical times without any change or revision." In reference to the originality of the Peshitta, the words of His Holiness Mar Eshai Shimun, Catholicos Patriarch of the Church of the East, are summarized as follows: The Peshitta is the only authentic and pure text which contains the books in the New Testament that were written in Aramaic, the Language of Mshikha (the Messiah) and His Disciples. The name Peshitta in Aramaic means "Straight", in other words, the original and pure (the standard) New Testament. The Peshitta is the official Bible of the Church of the East.
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He includes the full statement of the church on his site: Younan seems to advocate the official view of the Assyrian Church of the East, Aramaic Primacy, which claims the New Testament was originally written in Aramaic. This version has helpful articles, a lexicon and an Aramaic grammar.
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Younan has this posted on his own site in Word format (need to download an Aramaic font set), as well as PDF. On his site is a repost of Paul Younan's text of the Aramaic Peshitta Gospels and Acts with English interlinear. Lataster maintains his website, which provides information on the Aramaic Primacy theory and includes many resources on Old and New Testament backgrounds and translations. Read iGod for the new perspective from Raphael Lataster. The author informed me in August 2012 that the book is now being revised and updated by the author in line with his new perspective and insights. This is an earlier short version of a longer book, Was the New Testament Really Written in Greek? Thsi edition is currently unavailable. The book I originally read was a short version titled Aramaic Peshitta Primacy for Dummies, which is no longer available, and has been disowned by the author.* The Aramaic Primacy site is remains as a resource on the perspectives of the theory for those interested in knowing about it.* He has now updated his views in a new book, originally titled iGod in an early interim form. & As time progressed he mvoed farther into an atheistic view, at lest in regard to treasditoinal Christian theism. In October 2010, Lataster informed me he had discarded literalist Chrisianity, after learning much more about religion and philosophy over the intervening years.
Lataster managed at that time a website which promoted the Aramaic Primacy theory. The author, Raphael Lataster (writing under a pseudonym), later contacted me by email on the question. My focus on this topic was aroused when a friend, Jim DeArras of Richmond, Virginia (USA), referred me to an online book on this topic. This claim is referred to as the Aramaic Primacy Theory. I was particularly intrigued by a claim that the New Testament (not just one or more of the Gospels) was originally written in Aramaic, NOT Greek. Was the New Testament first Written in Aramaic?Ĭlick here for the new perspective from Raphael Lataster.Įarly in 2005, I did a critical study of the relationship of Aramaic translations of the New Testament to the Greek. Theology and Christian Faith (Bible Translation) Thoughts on Aramaic Primacy Aramaic Primacy - Was the New Testament first Written in Aramaic? Orville Jenkins Articles Menu