Their role in religion
Durkheim [McCutcheon 2000:202] wrote of how "a society can neither create nor recreate itself without creating some sort of ideal". In order for the gospels to assert the authenticity of their claims within the Sitz im Leben of a hostile first century Jewish society, it had to create myths of origin fulfilling and completing those of Hebrew Scriptures . Form criticism reveals the literary devices in process. Yet few Jews have ever converted to Christianity. Christians of Gentile origin tend to read the New Testament first and then look in the Old for evidence of Jesus' Messiahship. The role of the Old Testament symbolism in the gospels is therefore a role in Christianity rather than Judaism.
The role of the myths in Christianity is to introduce the person and purpose of Jesus. Matthew's genealogy presents Jesus as the son of David and Abraham whereas Luke's traces all the way back to Adam. …
