The Acts of the Apostles

302 THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
Weiss, and Zahn. The results at which I have
arrived not only approach very nearly to, but are
often coincident with, the results of their research.
The conclusion will be at once drawn that in my
case as in theirs there is little prospect of claiming
the attention of critics, and compelling them to reconsider
their position. So it may actually happen
to be. But the cases present points of difference.
These scholars are influenced partly by prepossessions
in reference to the Canon of the New Testament,
partly by the conviction that miracles really happened,
partly by both these prejudices. This attitude of
theirs has most unfortunately rendered their research
and their demonstrations subject to suspicion, even in
those points that have nothing to do with the afore-
said prepossessions. In the history of the criticism
of the New Testament an Apologetic with a dogmatic
bias has always promoted radicalism, or has at least
made critics deaf to proofs. This is just the effect
that it has had upon its opponents in the case of
the Acts. They were led to imagine that every-
thing must be cleared away, and thus together with
what is worthless they cast from them traditions
that are certainly historical and information that is
most valuable. To make matters worse, Blass went
on to insult the work that had been hitherto done
by the critical school, though at the same time he
betrayed a very slight conception of deeper historical
questions ; again Ramsay set his clear eye, his powers
of picturesque description, and his great learning,
at the service of a method which seeks to extract
from the sources more than is really in them; while