Canonical Gospels

The Gospels (Greek "good news") are writings that chronicle the life and / or the message of Jesus of Nazareth , called Christians by Jesus Christ. Many gospels were written during the first centuries of our era.

Four are recognized as canonical by the major Christian churches: the Gospels called by Matthew , Mark , Luke and John.

The other Gospels are called apocryphal.

The Gospels canonical Gospels are the four recognized Christian churches Catholic , Protestant and Orthodox.

Traditional Allocation

The canonical Gospels are anonymous. They have traditionally been attributed to disciples of Jesus (For the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of John , which would have been direct witnesses to the preaching of Jesus), or relatives of his disciples (for the Gospel According to Mark and the Gospel according to Luke ).

• Matthew said the publican, the apostle or evangelist;
• Marc (disciple of Pierre )
• Luke , says the beloved physician, (a disciple of Paul of Tarsus and author of the Acts of the Apostles )
• John says the apostle or the evangelist.

These awards date back at least to the second half of the second century, and we have the testimony of Irenaeus of Lyons and canon of Muratori

Irenaeus of Lyons (c. 130-202), in the Adversus Haereses ^{Award history, dating and composition}

These functions are no longer accepted by historians. The Gospels were actually written in several stages, by the second or third generation of disciples, probably in a range that oscillates between 65 and 110 , according to the historiographical options , fruit of a long process of gathering words of Jesus of Nazareth. These words, sometimes adapted or supplemented, are set in various life situations of the first Christian communities and are then arranged in the manner of a Life (a Vita) in the antique, though not under any of the biography . They are also called Gospels until about 150 .

If specialists emphasize the difficulties of dating and that discussions continue for a narrowing of the gap established between the texts, in chronological order of their appearance is accepted by most of them. The Gospels are not the oldest texts of the New Testament and their writing is preceded in time by those in other writings as part of the epistles of Paul (50-57) or the Epistle of Jacques (c. 60). The first Gospel is attributed to Mark who was allegedly written around 70. Around 80 to 85, following the Gospel according to Luke, whose author - probably a disciple of Paul of Tarsus - would be the same as the Acts of the Apostles , written about the same time. The Gospel of Matthew it is dated between 80 and 90 and, finally, that according to John between 80 and 100 or 110 .

The Gospels according to Matthew , Mark and Luke , which tell the story of Jesus from a perspective somewhat similar, are called synoptic. The Gospel of John reports to another Christology , called John. The first of the gospels to be written appears to be that of Mark. The parts common to Matthew and Luke may depend, according to some researchers, but an earlier document called lost source Q .

Manuscripts

Papyrus P52

The oldest fragment of a gospel is the Papyrus P52 , dated around 125 and is a short excerpt from the Gospel of John.

The main codices containing nearly complete versions of the Gospels, written in Greek, are the Codex Vaticanus and Codex Sinaiticus , which dates from the mid- ^fourth century.

References ancient

Ignatius of Antioch

In the early ^second century , Ignatius of Antioch wrote: "My record is Jesus Christ. " No citations of any text of New Testament writings n'maille.

Clement of Rome

Tradition attributes from the ^second century with Clement of Rome, an anonymous letter - known as the Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians - addressed to Rome around 95 to the Christian community of Corinth. The author of the text does not seem to know as gospel but makes great use of the Old Testament. His quotes are free form, based on the Septuagint.

1. It gives the status of Scripture texts now lost to midrashim pecharim (interpretations received and updating);
2. Writing itself as Christian, he knows that the first Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians;
3. It makes no mention or reference to the facts of the life of Jesus;
4. He cites the words of Jesus (1,3:2) that the New Testament does not repeat that form.

Papias of Hierapolis

Papias is known as bishop of Hierapolis in the first part of the II century ^s only through the Ecclesiastical History of Eusebius of Caesarea in the ^fourth century . Eusebius reports that restitution Papias tells succinctly by the evangelist Mark gestures and words of Jesus reported by Pierre and evokes a logia of Matthew in a passage whose significance is still debated. That's about the only source of information that exists on this course with Clement of Alexandria , the fragment of Muratori and Irenaeus of Lyons.

Justin

Justin , author of the second half of the ^second century , whose work is too fragmentary known only by quotations from later authors:

1. In his first Apology, the New Testament is everywhere.
2. It speaks of Jesus' life, he also speaks of "memoirs of the apostles," read during the Eucharistic assembly.
3. When Justin speaks of Scripture is the Old Testament it designates
4. In his Dialogue with Trypho, when Justin quotes the Gospels, his quotes are not consistent with the canonical texts known today. Boismard Emile Marie and Arnaud Lamouille in their book the Diatessaron of Tatian Justin to show that these quotes come from Gospel harmony of form prior to that of Tatian.

Irenaeus of Lyons and the "Four Gospels"

Irenaeus , bishop of Lyon ( ca130-202) was an important figure in the defense of the four main gospels of Matthew , of Mark , of Luke , of John in the New Testament in 170. He says in Against Heresies:

"Moreover, there can be no greater or smaller number of Gospels (four). Indeed, since there are four regions of the world in which we and four principal winds, and because, secondly, the Church is spread throughout the land and it has the support column and for the Gospel and the Spirit of life, it is natural that it has four columns which blow from all sides and make the imperishable life to men. Hence it appears that the Word, Artisan of the universe, who sits on the cherubim and holds all things, when manifested to men gave us a Gospel quad form, although held by a single mind. "

- Against Heresies 3.11.8

Thus Irenaeus is the first Christian writer known to have listed the four canonical Gospels as divinely inspired. He was probably in reaction to the version of the Gospel of Luke edited by Marcion , because it asserted that the Gospel of Luke was the only true gospel ^, . Irenaeus was also the first to assert that the Gospel of John was written by John the Apostle , and that the Gospel of Luke was written by Luke , the companion of Paul .

The Synoptic

The first three (the Gospel according to Matthew , the Gospel of Mark and the Gospel of Luke ) are called Synoptic - they have more or less the same episodes - as opposed to the fourth (the Gospel of John ) who reported of a more internalized the Christian message, which is actually more mystical.

Contents - Life of Jesus

The Gospels of Matthew , Mark , Luke and John are the main documentary sources concerning the life and teachings of Jesus, they each address a particular viewpoint while following the same general pattern and transmitting the same philosophy.

Childhood and hidden life

• The announcement to Mary (the Annunciation ) "Fear not Mary: for thou hast found favor with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive and bear a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus " ^, and Joseph , to whom she was betrothed to the virginal conception of Child "An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for the child she has conceived of the Holy Spirit " .

• The birth of Jesus according to these texts to Bethlehem (the Nativity ): "In the city of David, you is born a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger "( Lk 2. 11-12 ). According to the Gospels, a census was ordered the same time by an edict of Caesar Augustus. Mary, pregnant, and her husband Joseph were forced to leave Nazareth in Galilee to join the Judea. Jesus was born during the reign of King Herod ^I the Great , while Quirinius was governor of Syria. The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the town where was named David , thus fulfilling the prophecy of Micah : "And thou, Bethlehem Ephratah (= fertile), little among the thousands of Judah, from you shall come for me one who will rule over Israel , whose origin dates back to ancient times, the days of eternity. "( Mi 5. 1 ).

• The Flight into Egypt Joseph, his wife and child, before the Massacre of the Innocents ( Matthew 2. 16 ) and their return to Nazareth after the death of King Herod , in -4 ( Mt 2. 13 -23 ).

• The Presentation in the Temple ( Lk 2. 22-38 ).

• The Baptism in the Jordan by his cousin John the Baptist ( Mt 3. 13 , Mc. 1 9 ). However, John does not speak of baptism and mentions a coming of the Spirit ( John 1. 25-36 ) to differentiate it from baptisms "classic" he administered to the Jews.

Public life

In Galilee , Jesus is a group of twelve disciples, the apostles , the first of which is Simon Peter ( Mk 3. 13 , Lk. 6 13 , Mt 16. 17-19 ), who announces Jesus ( Mt 16. 18 ) he called Peter and he will build his church upon this rock (this may be a pun: Petra, the Latin word translated as "stone", also meaning "faith").

Later, Jesus went to Jerusalem to preach compassion ( Lk 6. 36 ), love of neighbor in the sense of brotherhood Universal (parable of the Good Samaritan ( Lk. 10 29 , Luke 10. 37 ): You have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies "( Mt 5. 44 ). It would have required moral purity, defined as follows: "Whoever looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" Matthew 5. 27-28 (although it should be noted that, by the term "adultery", Jesus speaks here of married men: it does not condemn lust and sex as such), called to share the Kingdom of God: "Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world "( Mt 25. 34 ) and prayed for the unity of his disciples, "Let all be one as you, Father, are in me and I in thee, that they also be in us" ( Jn 17. 21 ). It would have warmly welcomed the women and children, the marginalized, the outcasts of his time. It would have saved the life of a woman accused of adultery, without condemning it, but asking him to not to commit sins ( Jn 8. 1-11 ). By this act, contrary to Jewish religious law then in force (see Stoning ), Jesus would place the human life and its preservation over the laws and religions. with the Sermon on the Mount , he exalts those who have minds of poor, those who suffer, those who are pure in heart, who are the peacemakers, promising them a place in the Kingdom of God after death ( Mt 5. 3-11 ).

Still according to the Gospels, Jesus healed the sick ( Mt 8. 1-17 ), infirm (( Mk 7. 21 ; Mt 9. 1-8 ), given life to several people, including his friend Lazarus from John 11. 1-44 (his healings and resurrections may result from symbolic: the Latin root word "resurrect" ressuscitare, meaning "wake up"), performed exorcisms Mk 1. 21-28 (the method used by Jesus to to force (s) daemon (s) to reveal his name, is still used by the priests, exorcists) and rescued (the storm subsided Mt 8. 23-27 ). These miracles are most often presented as an effect of beneficiaries of their faith "triggered" by Jesus, and not any power, "Everything is possible for him who believes" ( Mk 9. 23 ), they justify the assertion of a reality already present Kingdom of God ( Mt 12. 28 ). At other times, Jesus himself gave in abundance (the Multiplication of the loaves in Mark 6. 35-44 , closer to John 6. 30-36 ).

God is for him a loving father and ready to forgive, at odds with the vengeful god of Judaism: "If then, being evil you are, you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father is in heaven give good things to it to those who ask him "( Mt 7. 11 ). It would have taught the prayer: "When you pray, say: Father! Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our sins, for we also forgive anyone who offends us, and lead us not into temptation "( Luke 11. 2 ).

His sermon, which lasted two to three years, would oppose the established order of the day, although devoid of political agendas ("Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's and unto God what is God's" ( Mk 12. 17 ). In Jerusalem , he drove the merchants from the temple ( Jn 2. 13-22 ) and castigated the religious formalism and the "moral hypocrisy" of the Sadducees and Pharisees ( Mt 23 ). As he would have told himself: "I came to cast fire upon the earth", to mark its opposition to the status quo of things and change attitudes ( Lk 12. 49 ).

• The Transfiguration with the appearance of Moses and Elijah ( Mt 17. 1-9 ): "His face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light", "A bright cloud overshadowed them. And behold, a voice came from the cloud these words: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: hear it! ". ( Mt 17. 1-8 , Luke 9. 28-36 , Mk 9. 2-8 ).

Passion and Resurrection

• The Last Supper , Last Supper with his disciples in which he instituted the Eucharist : "While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying: Take , eat, this is my body. He took the cup, and gave thanks, gave it to them, saying: Drink ye all of this is my blood, the blood of the covenant which is shed for many for the remission of sins " ( Mt 26. 26-29 ).

• After the betrayal of Judas in Matthew 26. 14-16 and Matthew 26. 24-25 , arrest the Mount of Olives ( Mt 26. 47 ), and appearance before the Sanhedrin who accused him of blasphemy : the priest interrogated him again and told him: "Are thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? Jesus replied: "I am. And you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power of God, and coming on the clouds of heaven. "Then the high priest would have torn his clothes, and said:" Why do we need witnesses? "( Mk 14. 63 - ). Then the death sentence by the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate would have agreed under pressure from the crowd: "When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that a riot, took water and washed his hands before the crowd and said: I am innocent of the blood of this righteous "( Mt 27. 1-26 ).

The Passion of Christ in front of Notre-Dame de la Garde in Marseille

• The Passion , that is to say the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross at Golgotha, outside Jerusalem , "The governor's soldiers took Jesus into the hall, and gathered unto him all cohort. They took off his clothes and covered him a scarlet robe. They plaited a crown of thorns, they put on his head, and they put a reed in his right hand and then, kneeling before him they mocked him, saying: Hi, King of the Jews! And they spat against him, and took the reed and struck him on his head. After they had mocked him, they took off the coat, put his own clothes and led him away to crucify him. "( Mt 27. 27-50 ).

• The Resurrection was found the morning of Easter by Mary Magdalene , Mary the mother of Jacques and Salome : "They entered the tomb, they saw a young man seated at right wearing a white dress, and they were amazed. He told them: Do not be alarmed, you seek Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified and is risen, he is not here: behold the place where they laid him "( Mk 16-5.6 , Mt 28. 1-10 ).

• Several appearances to the disciples and the Ascension : "The Lord, after talking to them, was taken to heaven, and sat at the right hand of God. And they went forth and preached everywhere. The Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following "( Mk 16. 19 ).

Meaning of the Gospels and exegesis

The Catholic Church recognizes the Gospels (and the Bible in general) four different meanings:

• the literal sense, on the reality and the historical significance of the events described, which is the historical elements in the text;
• the allegorical or spiritual meaning, concerning the religious significance, which states that the text brings to faith, dogma;
• moral sense, on the relationship between text and the believer;
• sense anagogical or mystical, on the symbolism of the facts reported in the Scriptures, which gives them a dimension of eschatological.

The first sense is historical analysis of the facts, the other three are a matter of belief. For a Christian, they are inseparable and find fulfillment in lectio divina , personal meditation on the Gospels, which incorporates these four dimensions :

"These four levels of meaning correspond substantially with the deepening of the lectio divina offers to the reader of Scripture, by guiding the literal-historical level (lectio) to its theological depth and revealing that brings out a central message (meditatio ) which are answered by prayer and commitment in life (oratio / I>) to give the whole life to share God's gaze on the human realities (contemplatio). "

To define the meaning of the Gospels, scholars and theologians have recourse to the exegesis. Exegesis is not the sole preserve of believers, especially when it comes to analyzing the historical reality of the elements contained in the Gospels. The Catholic Church has given general guidance on how to conduct the exegetical studies: During Vatican II , the Pontifical Biblical Commission issued a Statement on the historical truth of the Gospels (21 April 1964 ) was hailed as a wonderful working guide for scholars.

According to these guidelines very open, there are three stages of writing of the Gospels:

• Preaching of Jesus and the first witnesses,
• Apostolic preaching and writings of training,
• Writing of the Gospels.

The encyclical Fides et Ratio (number 94) states, in reference to this statement:

"With regard to the biblical texts, and the Gospels in particular, their truth can not be reduced certainly not purely historical narrative of events or the revelation of neutral facts, as would the positivist historicist. (111) Instead, these texts expose events whose truth lies beyond the simple historical fact: it is in and their significance in the history of salvation. This truth receives its full explanation in the reading that the Church continues down the centuries, keeping unchanged the original meaning. It is therefore urgent that we also questioned the point of view philosophical about the relationship between fact and meaning, which is over the specific meaning of the story. "

The parables of the Gospels

The Gospels account for 44 parabolas. They are all contained in the synoptic gospels. The Gospel of John contains no parable.

Problem barrel

The canon of the Gospels is a decree which established the contents of the Gospels of the New Testament.

From the ^second century , are considered the four canonical list above. See for example Against Heresies by Irenaeus, dated about 170.

The writings of Luke's Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles , we have achieved in two quite different forms: the Alexandrian text and the text says "western".

Apocryphal Gospels

The stories of Jesus' life that were not included as part of the canon official have been combined under the term "gospels apocryphal "(etymologically:" Hidden Gospels "). Long neglected, modern exegesis is interested again.
Artists over the ages have often withheld pious legends that have played quite a role. Collections of maxims, like the Gospel of Thomas , are of historical interest. Similarly, the Gospel of Peter , one fragment was found in Egypt in 1884, is the only one to contain a description of the resurrection of Jesus. They seem to defend the Gnostic doctrines. Some of these gospels are close to popular legends tend to fill gaps in the narrative of the four gospels deemed older. Among the many traditions found in the Catholic Church but not shown in the official Gospels, we find the names of the parents of Mary, Mother of Jesus (who's name was Anne and Joachim ), or presence of the beef and the donkey in the manger where Jesus was born.

Gospels and orality

The Gospel accounts are marked, like most texts of the Bible by many oral structures. The work of the Jesuit Marcel Jousse showed the importance of orality in the four gospels. This approach helps to revive the Gospels by an anthropological text. Closer to home, Pierre Perrier tried to find the primitive collections oral collated by the apostles before the writing of the Gospels. That's what that Irenaeus of Lyons called "memoirs of the apostles."

References

See also

• Gospel
• Canonical gospels :
  • Gospel according to Matthew
  • Gospel of Mark
  • Gospel according to Luke
  • Gospel of John
• Canon (Bible)
• Canons concordance
• Christianity
• Radical critique
• Apocryphal gospels
• Gospel of Judas
• Gospel of Thomas
• Gospel of Peter
• Biblical exegesis
• Historicity of the Bible
• Jesus in contemporary exegesis
• The four living creatures
• Midrash
• New Testament
• Synoptic problem
• Holy Scripture
• Sacred text

Text of the Gospels

• Wikisource, NASB translation, 1910
• Wikisource, translation Crampon, 1923

Bibliography

• The genre "gospel" according to the effects produced by the intrigue of Jesus - Laval theological and philosophical - Volume 58, Number 2, June 2002 - Theology in the literary field
• Daniel Marguerat ,
  • The Gospel explored External Links
    • The Gospels Protestant / Catholic / Orthodox, 35 Languages , Gospels in 35 Languages
    • Index Gospels

    
    

    • Bible Portal
    • Christianity portal

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