The Gospels

Central Sources for Understanding Jesus

Sources on Jesus:Gospels: Foundation of Christianity’s understanding of JesusContain the traditions of Jesus’ life, death, and

Resurrection.Set up the rest of the New Testament.Not the oldest writings in the New Testament.

How do we Read the Gospels?

The gospels are part of the faith sources of information about Jesus – What we read is revealed to us from believers.The gospels were written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in a particular time and place – it was influenced by early Christian life/culture.Although the Gospels are not objective biographies of Jesus! They are testimonies of faith. The gospels’ concern is religious truth, the deeper meaning God intends to reveal to people through historical events.

Gospel means “Good news” Greek word evangelion

Gospel writers = evangelists Wrote down the good news

Evangelion The term evangelion figures in the vocabulary of the Roman emperors who understood themselves as lords, saviors, and redeemers of the world.

The messages issued by the emperor were called in Latin evangelium The idea was that what

comes from the emperor is a saving message, that it is not just a piece of news, but a change of the world for the better.

A message endowed with plenary authority, a message that is not just talk, but reality.

Evangelium, gospel, is not just informative speech, but performative speech But action – power that

enters into the world to save and transform.

Mark speaks of the “Gospel of God”

The point is that the world is saved by God not by emperors.

The Gospels

The gospels differ in terms of: author, time of writing, audience, and purpose.Each is unique, but none tells the full story. To gain a fuller

understanding of Jesus, we must consider all four gospels together.

EVANGELISTS

SYMBOLS OF THE FOUR

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Symbols of the Evangelists

Christian tradition has long connected the authors of the four canonical gospels with the four “living creatures” that surround God’s throne, as described in Rev 4:6 in the following pairs: Matthew=Human/Angel Mark=Lion Luke=Ox John=Eagle

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Medieval ArtIt was common for medieval artists to depict Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John writing (or holding) their Gospel accounts of Jesus.

It was recognized that each of the Gospels provided a distinctive portrayal of Jesus Each evangelist came to

be associated with a symbolic animal thought to be appropriate to his account.

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Therefore, artistic portrayals of the evangelists sometimes included a picture of an animal

Or actually depicted the evangelist himself as the animal

MarkPortrayed as a Lion Emphasizing Jesus’

royalty Royal power leadership

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Matthew

Portrayed as a man/Angel Emphasizing

Jesus’ humanity A humble and

meek man

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Luke

Portrayed as an Ox Emphasizing

Jesus’ servility Taking up his

priestly character

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John

Portrayed as an Eagle Emphasizing Jesus’

divinity “pointing out the gift of

the Spirit hovering with His wings over the Church.

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Quiz

Quiz 4 5

Matching

a. Mark b. Matthew

c. Luke d. John

1. 2. 2. 3. 3.

Quiz 4. Lk 5-Jh

Matching

a. Mark b. Matthew

c. Luke d. John

1. - Mt. 2. Mk. 3. Lk

Review questions.1. What does the word gospel mean?

2. What is another name for the gospel writers?

3. List and describe the three stages of the development of the gospels

4. In what year was Jesus born?

5. When was the gospel of Luke written?

6. Which is the oldest gospel?

7. What was written first, the gospels or the letters of Paul?

8. Do the four gospels have the exact same information?

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Quiz – historical sourcesWord bank: Josephus, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger,

Suetonius – you will use one of the names twice

1. A Roman historian that blames Christians for a fire that burned Rome.

2. In his work, he narrates how Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome.

3. He is a Jewish historian.

4. He is a Roman governor who wrote letters to Emperor Trajan.

5. He describes Jesus as a “wise man… a doer of wonderful works.”

Quiz – historical sourcesWord bank: Josephus, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger,

Suetonius – you will use one of the names twice

1. A Roman historian that blames Christians for a fire that burned Rome. – Tacitus

2. In his work, he narrates how Claudius expelled the Jews from Rome. Suetonius

3. He is a Jewish historian. – Josephus

4. He is a Roman governor who wrote letters to Emperor Trajan. – Pliny

5. He describes Jesus as a “wise man… a doer of wonderful works.” - Josephus