The Gospel of Luke

Lesson 1
The New Testament: A Library of Books
Whenever we purchase a new book, we look at the table of contents. In the case of the New
Testament, the table of contents consists of 27 books, written by different authors at different
times, and addressed to different audiences. Thus the New Testament is not a book but rather a
library of books. These books were written in koine Greek, the vernacular Greek of the first century.
They constitute the canon of the New Testament that is, they are seen as authoritative by Christians
for religious belief.

The Canon of Sacred Scripture

The English term “canon” comes from a Greek word that originally meant “ruler” or
“measuring rod.” A canon was used to make straight lines or to measure distances. When applied
to a group of books, it refers to a recognized list (body) of literature. With reference to the Bible, the
term canon denotes the collection of books that are accepted as authoritative by a religious body,
the church. Thus, for example, we can speak of the canon of the Old Testament or the canon of the
New Testament.
The Layout of the New Testament

Gospels: The Beginning of Christianity

Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Acts: The Spread of Christianity
Acts of the Apostles
Epistles: Letters Addressed to Early Christian Communities
Pauline Epistles
Romans
1 and 2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 and 2 Thessalonians
1 and 2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
General Epistles
Hebrews
James
1, and 2 Peter
1, 2, and 3 John
Jude

Apocalypse: Literature to Inspire Hope to Christians during Times of Persecution

Book of Revelation

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The Gospels: “Written So That You May Come to Believe” (John 20:31)

The Gospels have as their purpose to evoke faith. They do not always provide detailed and
exact historical information but, rather, they present revelations about Jesus and his followers that
are directed at inspiring readers to appropriate such a lifestyle.
The Gospels are faith literature, which were written by people of faith to inspire faith. They
are not video camera recordings or DVD’s of events; rather they are proclamations of belief. They
were written to inspire peoples’ belief, not to simply report information or as the Gospel of John
states so well: “But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the
Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:31).

Stages of Gospel Development

The Gospels went through three stages of development, as outlined by the Roman Pontifical
Biblical Commission in its “Instruction on the Historical Truth of the Gospels.” In this document,
biblical scholars of the Catholic Church present the first stage of Gospel development as: PUBLIC
MINISTRY OR ACTIVITY OF JESUS OF NAZARETH (the first third of the first century). Jesus did things of note,
such as heal people, perform miracles, preach and teach. He orally proclaimed his message, and
interacted with others, namely John the Baptist, Jewish religious figures, and his disciples. The
interpreted memories of Jesus’ words and deeds are what the Gospels record. These memories
were selective and do not include such trivia as Jesus’ weight and height, the color of his eyes and
hair.
The second stage of Gospel development is: (APOSTOLIC) PREACHING ABOUT JESUS (the second third
of the first century). Those who had seen and heard Jesus had their choice to follow him confirmed
through post-resurrectional appearances; and they came to full faith in the risen Jesus as the one
through whom God was manifested. That post-resurrectional faith illumined the memories of what
they had seen and heard during the pre-resurrectional period; and so they proclaimed his words
and deeds with enriched significance. These preachers are referred to as apostolic because they
understood themselves as being sent forth (Greek: apostallein) by the risen Jesus, and their
preaching is often described as kerygmatic proclamation intended to bring others to faith.
Another factor operative in this stage of Gospel development was the necessary adaptation
of the preaching to a new audience. While Jesus was a Galilean Jew of the first third of the first
century who spoke Aramaic, by mid-century his Gospel was being preached in Greek throughout
the Diaspora (Jews living outside of Palestine) to urban Jews and Gentiles. This change of
language involved translation in the broadest sense of that term. It required a rephrasing in
vocabulary and patterns that would make the message intelligible and alive for new audiences.
The final stage of Gospel development is: THE WRITTEN GOSPELS (the last third of the first
century). During this stage, oral traditions and preachings were collated together into a written
form. The era from 65-100 A. D. is when all four canonical Gospels were written. It was the stage
of articulation. As for the evangelists or Gospel writers/authors, according to traditions stemming
from the second century and reflected in titles prefaced to the manuscripts of Gospels circa 200
A.D. (or even earlier), the Gospels were attributed to apostles. Yet most modern biblical scholars
do not think that the evangelists — understood as those who wrote the Gospels down — were
eyewitnesses to the ministry of Jesus. (For a more detailed explanation of the three stages of
formation of the Gospels, see The Catechism of the Catholic Church, # 126).
This recognition — that the evangelists were not eyewitnesses of Jesus’ ministry — is
important for understanding the differences among the Gospels. In the older approach, wherein
the evangelists themselves were thought to have seen what they reported, it was very difficult to
explain differences among their Gospels. How could “eyewitness” John (chapter 2) report the
cleansing of the Temple at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and “eyewitness” Matthew (chapter 21)
report the cleansing of the Temple at the end of the ministry? This is no longer a problem if neither
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evangelist was an eyewitness and each had received an account from the oral tradition and
preaching of the Temple-cleansing from an intermediate source, neither one (or only one) may
have known when it occurred during the public ministry. Rather than depending on a personal
memory of events, each evangelist arranged the material he received in order to portray Jesus in a
way that would meet the spiritual needs of the faith community to which he was addressing the
Gospel.
In sum, the Gospels are not literal records or “sound bites” or DVD’s of the ministry of
Jesus. Rather they are revelations whose purpose is not information but inspiration. The goal of
the Gospels was to bring readers/hearers to a faith in Jesus that opens them to God’s activity.

Matthew, Mark and Luke

Matthew, Mark, and Luke are often called the “Synoptic Gospels.” This is because they have
so many stories in common that they can be placed side by side in columns and “seen together”
(the literal meaning of the word “synoptic”). Indeed, not only do these Gospels tell many of the
same stories, they often do so using the very same words.
This phenomenon is virtually inexplicable, unless the stories are derived from a common
literary source. Consider a modern day parallel. You may have noticed that when newspapers,
magazines, and books all describe the same event, they do so differently. Take any three of today’s
newspapers and compare their treatment of the same news item. At no point will they contain
entire paragraphs that are word for word the same, unless they happen to be quoting from the
same source, for example, an interview or a speech. These differences occur because every
journalist wants to emphasize certain things and has his or her own way of writing. When you find
that two newspapers have exactly the same account, you know that they have simply reproduced a
feature from somewhere else. This happens, for example, when two newspapers pick up the same
news story from the Associated Press.
We have a similar situation with the Gospels. There are passages shared by Matthew, Mark,
and Luke that are verbatim (see Matthew 13:1-9; Mark 4:1-9; Luke 8:4-8). This can be scarcely
explained unless all three of them drew these accounts from a common source. But what was it?
The question is complicated by the fact that the synoptics not only agree extensively with one
another, they also disagree. There are some stories found in all three Gospels, others found in only
two of the three (see Matthew 3:7-10; Luke 3:7-9), and yet others found only in one (see Luke 3:10-
14). Moreover, when all three Gospels share the same story, they sometimes give it in precisely the
same wording and sometimes word it differently. Or sometimes two of them will word it the same
way and the third will word it differently. The problem of how to explain the wide-ranging
agreements and disagreements among these three Gospels is called the “Synoptic Problem.”

“Synoptic Problem”

Biblical scholars have offered a number of theories over the years to solve the Synoptic
Problem. We will focus on the one that most scholars have come to accept as the least problematic.
This explanation is sometimes referred to as “four-source hypothesis.” According to this
hypothesis, Mark was the first Gospel to be written. It was used by both Matthew and Luke. In
addition, both Matthew and Luke had access to another “source,” Q (from the German word for
“source,” quelle). Q provided Matthew and Luke with the stories that they have in common that
are not, however, found in Mark. Moreover, Matthew had a source (or group of sources) of his
own, from which he drew stories found in neither of the other Gospels. Scholars have simply
labeled this source(s) “M” (for Matthew’s special source). Likewise, Luke had a source(s) for
stories that he alone tells; this is called “L” (for Luke’s special source). Hence, according to this
hypothesis, four sources lie behind our three Synoptic Gospels: Mark, Q, M, and L. No written
copies of Q, M, and L exist.

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 To help prepare for our study of the Gospels, the following timeline is presented:

Timeline
30-100 A.D. Oral and Written Tradition about Jesus
_________________________________________________________

4 B.C.E.—30 A.D. 50-60 65-70 80-85 95-100

Life of Jesus Letters of Mark Luke, Matthew John
Paul

Before reading any of the four Gospels it will be helpful to have some information about the
various Jewish religious sects that existed at both the time of Jesus and the writing of the Gospels.

Jewish Groups and the Gospels

Jewish Scribes in the first century represented the literate elite, those who could read and study
the sacred traditions of Israel and, presumably, teach them to others. Recall that most Jews, as
well as most other people in the ancient world, were not highly educated by our standards; those
who were educated enjoyed a special place of prominence.

Pharisees, were Jews who were reformers strongly committed to maintaining the purity laws set
forth in the Torah and who developed their own set of more carefully nuanced laws to help them do
so. They appear as the chief culprits in the Jewish opposition to Jesus during much of his ministry
in Mark’s Gospel, as well as the other Gospels.

Herodians were a group of Jews whom Mark mentions but does not identify (3:6; 12:13; see also
Matt. 22:16). They are described in no other ancient source. Mark may understand them to be
collaborationists, that are supporters of the Herods, the rulers intermittently appointed over Jews
in Palestine by the Romans.

Sadducees were Jews of the upper classes who were closely connected with and strong advocates
of the Temple cult in Jerusalem. They were largely in charge of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the council
of Jews that advised the high priest concerning policy and served as a kind of liaison with the
Roman authorities.

Zealots were a group of Jews characterized by their insistence on violent opposition to the Roman
domination of the Promised Land. A group that had been centered in Galilee fled to Jerusalem
during the uprising against Rome in 66-70 C.E.; they overthrew the reigning aristocracy in the city
and urged violent resistance to the bitter end.

Essenes A group of Jews whose name may come from an Aramaic word meaning “pious,”
withdrew from Jerusalem and active participation in the Jerusalem Temple. They settled in the
Judean wilderness in isolated monastic communities where they studied the Scriptures and
developed their rule of life. Essenes were known for their piety such as daily prayer, prayer before
and after meals, strict observance of the Sabbath, daily ritual bathing, emphasis on chastity and
celibacy, wearing white robes as a symbol of purity, communal meals, and sharing all property in
common.

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Chief Priests were the upper classes of the Jewish priesthood who operated the Temple and
oversaw its sacrifices. They would have been closely connected with the Sadducees and would have
been the real power players in Jesus’ day, the ones with the ear of the Roman governor in
Jerusalem and the ones responsible for regulating the lives of the Jewish people in Judea. Their
leader, the high priest, was the ultimate authority over civil and religious affairs when there was no
king in Judea.

The Gospel of Luke

The Gospel of Luke is part of a two-volume set; the other is Acts of the Apostles. Both
volumes were composed by the same author. They were intended to be read in sequence. Luke
presents the good news of Jesus, the Gospel; and Acts of the Apostles presents the good news of the
Church and what people did in response to that Gospel. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus moves from
Galilee to Jerusalem, toward the center of the Jewish world. In Acts of the Apostles, the “way” — a
synonym for the followers of Jesus — moves from Jerusalem to Rome, the center of the Greco-
Roman world.

Outline of the Gospel of Luke

I. Luke 1:1-4: the Prologue
II. Luke 1:5-2:52: The Infancy Narrative
III. Luke 3:1-4:13: Preparation for the Ministry of Jesus
IV. Luke 4:14-9:50 The Ministry of Jesus in Galilee
V. Luke 9:51-19:27: The Journey to Jerusalem
VI. Luke 19:28-21:38: Jesus’ Ministry in Jerusalem
VII. Luke 22:1-24:53: The Passion and Resurrection Narratives

Luke the Evangelist

Not much is known about the evangelist Luke. Church tradition says that he was both a
physician and an artist from Syria who completed his gospel between A.D. 80 and 90.There are
three brief references to “Luke” in the New Testament. Philemon mentions a “Luke” as Paul’s
fellow worker (verse 24); and 2 Timothy 4:11 notes that a “Luke” was alone in staying with Paul in
the days of Paul’s imprisonment. Finally, Colossians 4:10-14 mentions a “Luke,” a physician and
Gentile. Are these references to Luke the evangelist? It is unclear!
Who was this highly gifted and reflective evangelist? The only thing that can be said with
certainty is that Luke was a second generation Gentile Christian. No ancient tradition suggests a
place of composition for the gospel. Scholarly consensus holds that the Gospel was composed in
Antioch. Luke’s gospel comes from the middle period of gospel writing (83-90 C.E.); it was written
after Mark (on which it depends) and before John.

Luke’s Writing Style

Luke is an economical writer who avoids repetitions and superfluous information. His use of
Greek is among the finest in the New Testament, and he is well versed in Greco-Roman literary
style. Luke uses polished prose, tells a story well and always takes his audience into consideration
when he writes.
Luke writes with an eye toward influencing Rome positively toward Christianity. The
primary audiences for Luke’s writing were Gentiles, some of whom were Roman citizens. For these
people, a literary approach that would not jar educated tastes was required. And so, using the
Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) as his stylistic model, Luke writes in the
mode of a Roman historian, using literary forms and designs drawn from that world. Luke is a
classic defender of the faith. To counter the Romans who viewed Christianity as having sordid
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origins since it sprang from the Jews who the Romans considered suspect, Luke demonstrates
Christianity’s universality. The salvation offered by Jesus is available to everyone, not just Jews:
“…and all flesh shall see the salvation of God” (Luke 3:6).
Dedicated to a Gentile, the Theophilus of Luke’s prologue (1:1-4; see Acts of the Apostles 1:1-
5) the two-volume set commends Christianity to a Gentile world; Luke argues that Church and
state can live peaceably together. His writings were not only a defense to the Empire, but a tool for
its evangelization. Further, since theophilus means “God lover” some scholars suggest that Luke is
writing to all God lovers not just a particular historical person.

Characteristics and Themes in Luke’s Gospel

Pairing Men and Women

A technique used by the writer of the Gospel of Luke is the pairing of men and women. He
pairs the birth announcement to Zechariah (1:5-20) about the birth of John the Baptist with the
birth announcement to Mary (1:26-38) regarding the birth of Jesus. In the presentation of Jesus in
the Temple, both the man Simeon and the woman Anna receive the infant Jesus (2:25-38). Jesus
cures both the male demoniac and Peter’s mother-in-law (4:33-39) as well as the male centurions’
slave (7:1-10) and the raising of the dead son of a widow (7:11-5). This technique continues
throughout the Gospel of Luke and reveals his emphasis on inclusivity.

The Gospel of Luke and Women

In Luke’s gospel, women have a prominent role, one that at times puts them on a par with
men. There are ten named and unnamed women in Luke’s gospel. In Jesus’ teaching in Luke,
women are mentioned 18 times; speak 15 times; and in 10 of these instances their words are given.
In Luke, there are women disciples who provide for Jesus and his disciples out of their financial
means (Luke 8:1-3). Two of Jesus’ closest friends are Martha and Mary of Bethany (Luke 10:38-
42). Further, women follow Jesus to Calvary (23:27-31), are present at the crucifixion (23:49; see
23:55-56), and discover the empty tomb after Jesus’ resurrection (24:1-12).

The Gospel of Luke and the Holy Spirit

In Luke’s gospel, the role of the Holy Spirit is underlined. Often known as the Gospel of the
Holy Spirit, Luke provides more references to the Holy Spirit than any other of the Synoptic
Gospels (see Luke 1:15, 35, 41, 67; 2:26-27; 3:16; 3:21-22; 4:1-14; 4:18-19; 12:12). As a matter of
fact, the expression “Holy Spirit” appears 13 times in the Gospel of Luke and 41 times in Acts of the
Apostles, which was composed by the same author.
From the very beginning of the Gospel of Luke, the Holy Spirit plays a key role. Zechariah is
told that his son, John the Baptizer, will “even before his birth be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke
1:15). Jesus’ very origin is said to be from the Holy Spirit, for the angel says to Mary: “The Holy
Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you . . .” (Luke 1:35).
When Mary visits Elizabeth, the Gospel of Luke points out that “. . . Elizabeth was filled with the
Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:41). Why? Because Mary, who is the pregnant one bearing Jesus, transfers to
John and his mother Elizabeth God’s spirit. Even unborn, Jesus is a bearer of the spirit to all
whom he encounters.
Once Zechariah, the father of John the Baptizer, is able to speak, he proclaims a canticle
about the meaning of his son’s birth and Luke is quick to point out that John’s “. . . father,
Zechariah, was filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 1:67) as he began to proclaim “Blessed be the Lord
God of Israel.”

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 In the story of the presentation of Jesus in the temple — which is found only in the Gospel of
Luke — the aged Simeon is said to have had the Holy Spirit rest on him and promise him that he
would not see death before he saw the messiah (Luke 2:25-27).
Jesus is preeminently the man of the Holy Spirit, and the giver of the Spirit in the Gospel of
Luke. John the Baptizer identifies Jesus’ role as being the living conduit of the Spirit. John says: “I
baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; . . . He will baptize you with
the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16).
A pivotal point in Jesus’ life, as portrayed in the Gospel of Luke, is his baptism (Luke 3:21-
22). When Jesus is baptized, we see clearly that the Holy Spirit is being poured out upon him. And
the Spirit appears in the form of a dove. Why a dove? The dove is the sign of a new season in the
Song of Songs (2:12), and the herald of the new world after the flood (Genesis 8:8-12); and it’s
presence at the baptism of Jesus suggests the opening of a new age.
For Luke, Jesus’ baptism is God’s decisive intervention in our history. Here at the Jordan
River, Jesus saw and experienced in a most vivid and human way the descent of the Holy Spirit
upon him, and it is under the auspices of the spirit that Jesus’ ministry begins. In the power of the
spirit, Jesus was driven into the wilderness (desert) (Luke 4:1); in the power of the spirit he
returned to Galilee (Luke 4:14).
Further, Luke is quite clear that Jesus brought the spirit of God. In fact, when Jesus begins
his public ministry he stands up in the synagogue in Nazareth and applies to himself the words of
the prophet Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good
news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the
blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19). Luke
sees Jesus as a vehicle of the Spirit and the instrument of a new prophetic outpouring.

The Gospel of Luke and the Themes of Poverty, Mercy and Forgiveness

Luke’s gospel is also known as the Gospel of the poor, and the Gospel of mercy and the
forgiveness of God. Luke sees Jesus as friend and advocate of those whom society ignores or turns
from in distaste, the poor, handicapped persons, public sinners, and all who found themselves on
the fringes of the community. The Lukan Jesus has great compassion for all of these. In Luke’s
day, none bore the brunt of ostracism more than the Samaritans. Only Luke tells the story of the
Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), and in the story of the cleansing of the ten lepers by Jesus, the
only leper to return with gratitude to thank Jesus is a Samaritan (see Luke 17:11-19). The most
famous of Jesus’ parables on forgiveness — the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) — is
found only in Luke.

The Gospel of Luke and Prayer

Luke’s gospel stresses prayer. Jesus is portrayed in Luke as praying “without ceasing.”
Jesus prays often in the Gospel of Luke (see 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18; 9:28-29; 11:1; 22:40-46). In
Luke, Jesus prays at every major decision-making moment in his life. Luke provides this as a
model for all who would be followers of Jesus. In addition, in the Gospel of Luke Jesus tells three
parables about prayer

The Gospel of Luke and Parables

Luke’s gospel contains the largest number of parables, the two most famous being the
parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37) and the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). Luke’s gospel
alone contains three parables about poverty and riches: the rich fool (Luke 12:13-21), the shrewd
manager (Luke 16:1-13), and the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). Luke records three
parables on prayer: the friend at midnight (Luke 11:5-8), the parable of the persistent widow (Luke
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18:1-8), and the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9-14). Further, Luke
provides parables on being a disciple: the parable of the two builders (Luke 6:47-49), the tower
builder and the warring king (Luke 14:28-33), and the parable of the unworthy servant (Luke 17:7-
10).

The Gospel of Luke and Jesus’ Table Fellowship

Luke is also known as the gospel of table fellowship. There are ten meal stories in Luke.
They include: a meal at the house of Levi (5:27-39), at the home of Simon the Pharisee (7:36-50),
breaking bread in Bethsaida (9:10-17), dinning at the home of Martha (10:38-42) as well as at the
home of a Pharisee (11:37-54), a Sabbath meal with a leading Pharisee (14:1-24), a meal at the
house of Zacchaeus (19:1-10), Jesus’ celebrating of the Passover meal with his disciples (22:14-38),
the risen Jesus breaking bread with the disciples on the road to Emmaus (24:13-35) and with his
disciples in Jerusalem (24:36-53). Often, when Jesus dines in the Gospel of Luke, an outcast or
socially unacceptable person becomes included in Jesus’ table fellowship.

Luke: The Gospel of Joy

Finally there is the theme of joy. The word “joy” appears more often in the third Gospel than
in any other New Testament work. In the theological world view of the Gospel of Luke we live in a
world redeemed and transformed by the birth, life, ministry, passion and death of Jesus Christ. In
such a world there can be no other Christian response than joy.

The Prologue of the Gospel of Luke

Read Luke 1:1-4

The Gospel opens with a single sentence typical of ancient literature. A Gentile audience
would expect such a prologue, and Luke is simply supplying it. He addresses it to a person named
Theophilus whose identity is unknown. The guesses as to his identity include the possibility that he
was a benefactor, a church leader or even a civil authority. On the one hand, it seems most likely
that Theophilus represents an audience of believers of Gentile origin whose adherence to
Christianity Luke wishes to confirm by communicating a new sense of their identity precisely as
Gentile members of the People of God. On the other hand, using the name Theophilus (literally,
“Beloved of God”) universalizes the identity allowing every reader to be the Gospel’s addressee.
The prologue also tells us a great deal about Luke and his understanding of himself and
about the methods and aims of his writing. First, he locates himself in the sweep of the tradition. At
the beginning stand those who were “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word” (verse 2). The
reference is presumably to the original disciples (notably the apostles), who after Pentecost were
empowered by the Spirit to proclaim what they had seen and experienced. Later there were others
who “set their hands” to composing the narratives of the “events that have been fulfilled among us.”
Secondly, Luke’s aim is to write ---in contrast it would seem, to his predecessors---an
“orderly account,” designed to produce in the reader “firm assurance” in regard to things in which
he has been instructed. The term “orderly” as used here does not necessarily mean an account that
narrates things in strict chronological order. The sense is rather that of setting the various episodes
pertaining to Jesus in a sequence demonstrates the truth of the whole story.
Third and finally, for Luke, the purpose of all of this is to provide assurance to his Gentile
audience who had never experienced the historical Jesus that their choice to become disciples of
Jesus is a valid one.

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Review and Discussion Questions
How do you react to the stages of development that the Gospels went through?

What do we know about the author of the Gospel of Luke?

With which themes in the Gospel of Luke can you readily identify?

Session Call to Prayer

(Place an open Bible on a table in the room with a lighted candle next to it.)

Leader: My friends let us pause as we prepare to hear the Word of God proclaimed in the Gospel.
[Lead all in the Sign of the Cross] + In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.

Leader: Come Holy and Compassionate God, be with us here.

All: Dwell in our hearts minds and souls.

Leader: Help us to experience your presence revealed in the Sacred Scriptures.

All: May our time together help us to grow in wisdom and knowledge and grace before God and
humankind.

All: Amen.

Session Closing Prayer

Leader: We thank you God for this time spent together experiencing your revelation through the
Gospel.

All: May we continue to be informed and formed by your word in Sacred Scripture.

Leader: Let us go forth to live our faith.

All: Thanks be to God.

Exchange a gesture of peace

For Further Reading

Binz, Stephen. Introduction to the Bible: A Catholic Guide to Studying the Bible. Collegeville:
Liturgical Press, 2007.

Brown, Raymond. Reading the Gospels With The Church. Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger
Press, 1996.

Harrington, Daniel. How To Read The Gospels. Hyde Park, NY: New City Press, 1996.

Harrington, Daniel. How Do Catholics Read The Bible. NY: Rowan & Littlefield, 2005.
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