From Memory to Myth to Ideology: The Historicizing Function of Scripture in Matthew's Travel Narrative
Abstract
The travel narrative in Matthew 2 contains several strategically placed quotations of scripture that explain why Jesus, after being born in Bethlehem, journeyed to Egypt and eventually settled in Nazareth. In response to form-critical and source-critical approaches, the aim of this paper is to explain how these quotations function from the perspective of social remembrance and ideological formation.
The paper is divided into two parts: The first part discusses the narrative artistry of Matthew 2 by integrating the remembrances of Jesus' journey from Egypt with the remembrances of Israel's history, particularly in relation to Moses and David. The second part attempts to show how those remembrances, which take on mythical characteristics, are historicized by the evangelist, turning the entire account into ideology.