GOSPELS

Gospel
Gospels are a genre of Early Christian literature claiming to

recount the life of Jesus, to preserve his teachings, or to reveal

aspects of God's nature. The New Testament has four canonical
gospels which are accepted as the only authentic and apostolic
gospels by the Christians, but many others exist, or used to
exist,
and
are
called
either
New
Testament
apocryphaorpseudepigrapha. Some of these have left
considerable traces on Christian traditions, including
iconography. The word "gospel" - Old English for "Good News" is the English term for the Greek word (euanglion) which
means "blessed proclamation", and from which we get the
word evangel and its cognates. While proclamation is central to
the four canonical Gospels, it is notably absent from the other
surviving apocryphal and pseudepigraphal works bearing the
name of gospels.

Synoptic Gospel
The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered synoptic

gospels on the basis of many similarities between them that are not
shared by the Gospel of John. "Synoptic" means here that they can
be "seen" or "read together," indicating the many parallels that
exist among the three. The synoptic gospels are the source of many
popular stories, parables, and sermons, such as Jesus' humble birth
in Bethlehem, the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, the Last
Supper, and the Great Commission. It is widely believed that the
three synoptic gospels derive from a common source or set of
sources, and that they directly or indirectly borrowed from or were
influenced by each other. For example, the vast majority of material
in Mark is also present in either Luke or Matthew or both,
suggesting that Mark was a source for Matthew and Luke. The
existence of common material in Matthew and Luke not contained
in Mark suggests that both Matthew and Luke had at least one other
source at their disposal.

Development Of The New

Testament Canon
Of the many gospels written in antiquity, only four gospels came to be accepted as part of

the New Testament, or canonical. An insistence upon there being a canon of four gospels,
and no others, was a central theme of Irenaeus of Lyons, c. 185. In his central work,
Adversus Haereses Irenaeus denounced various early Christian groups that used only one
gospel, such as Marcionism which used only Marcion's version of Luke, or the Ebionites
which seem to have used an Aramaic version of Matthew as well as groups that embraced
the texts of newer writings, such as the Valentinians (A.H. 1.11). Irenaeus declared that the
four he espoused were the four "Pillars of the Church": "it is not possible that there can be
either more or fewer than four" he stated, presenting as logic the analogy of the four corners
of the earth and the four winds (3.11.8). His image, taken from Ezekiel 1, or Revelation 4:6
10, of God's throne borne by four creatures with four faces"the four had the face of a man,
and the face of a lion, on the right side: and the four had the face of an ox on the left side;
they four also had the face of an eagle"equivalent to the "four-formed" gospel, is the origin
of the conventional symbols of the Evangelists: lion, bull, eagle, man. Irenaeus was
ultimately successful in declaring that the four gospels collectively, and exclusively these
four, contained the truth. He also supported reading each gospel in light of the others.
By the turn of the 5th century, the Catholic Church in the west, under Pope Innocent I,
recognized a biblical canon including the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
which had been previously established at a number of regional Synods, namely the Council
of Rome (382), the Synod of Hippo(393), and two Synods of Carthage (397 and 419).[22]
This canon, which corresponds to the modern Catholic canon, was used in the Vulgate, an
early 5th century translation of the Bible made by Jerome[23] under the commission of Pope
Damasus I in 382.

4 Gospels Of Bible

Gospel Of Matthew
The

Gospel According to Matthew (Gospel of

Matthew or simply Matthew) is one of the four
canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic
gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It
tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of
Jesus
of
Nazareth.
Matthew probably originated in a Jewish-Christian
community in Roman Syria towards the end of the
first century A.D.[1] The anonymous author drew
on three main sources, including the Gospel of
Mark, the sayings collection known as the Q source,
and material unique to his own community.[2]

4 Gospels Of Bible

Gospel Of Mark
The

Gospel According to Mark commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or

simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account
of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was
thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second gospel in
the Bible. However, most contemporary scholars now regard it as the earliest of
the canonical gospels[1] (c 70).[2]That Mark was used as a source for the other
synoptic gospels Gospel of Matthew and Gospel of Luke is widely held by many,
although
not
all,
New
Testament
scholars.[3]
The Gospel of Mark narrates the Ministry of Jesus from his baptism by John the
Baptist to his death and resurrection. It focuses particularly on the last week of
his life (chapters 1116) in Jerusalem. Its swift narrative portrays Jesus as a
heroic man of action,[2] an exorcist, healer and miracle worker. An important
theme of Mark is the Messianic Secret.[4] Jesus silences the demoniacs he
heals, tries unsuccessfully to keep his messianic identity secret, and conceals
his message with parables.[4] Meanwhile, the disciples fail to understand both
the implication of the miracles of Jesus[2] and the meaning of the things he
predicts about his arrest, death and resurrection. Most scholars believe that the
original text of the gospel ends at Mark 16:8 with the discovery of Jesus' empty
tomb and that the following account of his resurrection appearances is a later
addition[5]

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Gospel Of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke commonly shortened to the Gospel

of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four Gospels.
This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus
of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his
Ascension.
According to the preface,[1] the purpose of Luke is to write a
historical account,[2] while bringing out the theological significance
of the history.[3] The writer divides history into three stages: The
first ends with John the Baptist, the second consists of Jesus'
earthly ministry, and the third is the life of the church after Jesus'
resurrection.[4] The author attests that Jesus Christ is the Son of
God. This is consistent with all the authors of the New Testament
writings. Here, Jesus' compassion extends to all mankind. The
Gospel of Luke is written as a historical narrative. Certain popular
stories, such as the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan, are
found only in this gospel. This account also has a special emphasis
on prayer, the activity of the Holy Spirit, women, and joyfulness.[5]
Jesus is presented as the Son of God, but attention especially paid
to the humanity of Jesus, featuring his compassion for the weak,

4 Gospels Of Bible

Gospel Of John
The Gospel According to John commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or

simply John[1] and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the

Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus. It begins with
the witness and affirmation by John the Baptist and concludes with the
death, burial, resurrection, and post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. This
account is fourth of the canonical gospels, after the synoptic Matthew, Mark
and
Luke.
Chapter 21 states that the book derives from the testimony of the 'disciple
whom Jesus loved.' Along with Peter, the unnamed disciple is especially
close to Jesus, and early-church tradition identified him as John the Apostle,
one of Jesus' Twelve Apostles. The gospel is closely related in style and
content to the three surviving Epistles of John such that commentators treat
the four books together,[2] yet, according to most modern scholars, John
was not the author of any of these books.[3] Recent Christian Scripture
scholarship more and more has placed John within a first-century Jewish
context
John presents a "higher" Christology than the synoptic, meaning that it
describes Jesus as the incarnation of the divine Logos through whom all
things were made, as the object of veneration,[9] and more explicitly as
God incarnate.[10] Only in John does Jesus talk at length about himself and
his divine role, often shared with the disciples only. Against the synoptic,
John focuses largely on different miracles (including resurrecting Lazarus),

4 Gospels Of Bible

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