re: #338 vxbush

But I think you’re missing my point. They didn’t have to just rely on the earliest manuscripts, because I think the monks did an outstanding job of copying the manuscripts. I think some of the later manuscripts could have been safely used.
[snip]

Of course they had to rely on the earliest manuscripts. If you are going to examine a text, and you want to examine it’s authenticity, you would certainly go to the earliest examples of the text that you have.