CCSS Year 2 Unit 1
1.1 Approaching the Gospels
The New Testament canon
o Canon - An official list or collection of writings that a particular religious group considers as its
"core scriptures" or "authorized books," which are used by the group as the basis for its religious
beliefs, moral precepts, and communal practices. The Greek word kanwn ("kanon") originally
meant "measuring rod; rule; criterion" (cf. 2 Cor 10:13-16; Gal 6:16), but later came to mean
such a list of writings that met certain criteria. "Canonization" or to be "canonized" refers to the
process by which a book was accepted into the official list of core scriptures (such as the Bible)
by a particular religious group. A scriptural canon is usually considered "fixed" or "closed,"
meaning that no additional books will be added to it.
Genres, specifically what is a Gospel as a literary form?
o 4 Gospels
 Early Christian narratives about the words and actions, the life and death of Jesus. The
word "Gospel" is derived from the Old English "god-spel" (god = good; spel = news),
which is equivalent to Greek eu-angelion (eu = good; angelion = message; angelos =
messenger). Originally "gospel" referred to oral proclamations (see Mark 1:14-15), but it
is later used for a particular genre of written literature (based on its use in Mark 1:1).
 The NT includes three "Synoptic Gospels" (Matthew, Mark, Luke), called
"Synoptic" because they see Jesus "with the same eye", and the "Fourth Gospel"
(John), which is substantially later than and different from the Synoptics in
content, style, and theology.
 We know of about 30 other early Christian "Gospels" that were not accepted into
the New Testament (called "non-canonical Gospels”).
 All four canonical Gospels were originally written in Koine ("Common") Greek
between the late 60's and early 90's of the 1st century.
 The Gospel authors are usually called the four "Evangelists" (from Greek
euangelion, lit. "good news").
 The official titles are "The Gospel according to..." (although we often use the
shorter but less accurate titles "Gospel of...")
 The Q-Document ("Quelle" = "source" in German) is a hypothetical collection of
sayings & teachings of Jesus. Many scholars think it was a written source (from
the 50's?) used later by Matthew and Luke, but it is now lost.
o 1 Acts
 Acts of the Apostles - an early partial account of the historical spread of Christianity; not
a complete "history" of 1st-century Christianity, since it focuses only on a few people and
a few events from a particular perspective, but leaves out most of what we would want
to know about how Christianity spread to other parts of the early Roman Empire and
beyond.

It was written by the same person who authored the third Gospel (the evangelist
called "Luke").
 Thus Luke/Acts together should be considered a two-volume work, even if the
two parts are now separated by John's Gospel.
o 21 Letters (epistles)
 Epistles or Letters - written by some of the early apostles to various Christian
communities or individuals, including:
 Thirteen "Letters attributed to Paul" (Rom, 1 & 2 Cor, Gal, Eph, Phil, Col, 1 & 2
Thess, 1 & 2 Tim, Titus, Phlm); these are often subdivided into:
o seven "authentic" or "undisputed Pauline Letters" (Rom, 1 & 2 Cor, Gal,
Phil, 1 Thess, Phlm), since almost all scholars agree that Paul himself
wrote these,
o and six "disputed" or "deutero-Pauline Letters" (Col, Eph, 2 Thess, 1 & 2
Tim, Titus), since some scholars think these are "authentic" [written by
Paul], while others argue they were written by Paul's followers;
o the three letters written to early "pastors" (1 & 2 Tim, Titus) are usually
also called the "Pastoral Epistles."
 An anonymous sermon apparently written "To the Hebrews" (but not written by
or even attributed to Paul!),
 And seven "Catholic Epistles" (James, 1 & 2 Peter, 1 & 2 & 3 John, Jude);
"Catholic" means "universal, general", indicating that these letters were written
to a wider audience of many different Christians, not just one community.
o 1 Apocalypse
 Book of Revelation (not plural!) - also called "The Apocalypse." A book containing seven
short letters addressed to the "Churches of Asia," and a long series of highly symbolic
"visions" attributed to a certain man named "John," culminating in the destruction of all
evil and the establishment of "a new heaven and a new earth," and "the new
Jerusalem."
o Koine Gk (and some Aramaic)
How do we interpret the Gospels? (Supplemental Reading 1)
o Ultimately, it is the magisterium, the authentic teaching authority of the Church (i.e. the Pope
in communion with the Bishops throughout history), that is the exclusive interpreter of
scripture.
o Inspired and inerrant
o Historical-critical method(s)
o Form criticism: the branch of biblical studies that classifies the various literary genres, studies
their features, and considers how and where such forms were actually used in the "life setting"
of the religious communities. Form = Function
o Redaction criticism: Redaction criticism studies "the collection, arrangement, editing and
modification of sources", and is frequently used to reconstruct the community and purposes of
the author/s of the text. It is based on the comparison of differences between manuscripts, and
their theological significance.
o Literary criticism: the study and understanding of whole biblical texts as forms of literature,
applying the methods used to study modern literary texts to the study of the Bible, including
analysis of the poetics and rhetorical features of the passage.
o Other methods (see PBC doc)
The stages of Gospel formation (Supplemental Reading 2)
o Lived Gospel
o Oral Gospel
o Written Gospel
This is really simplified!
Ten Stages of NT Formation and Transmission (with considerable chronological overlap,
continuing down to today): Some scholars (including the PBC) propose only 3 stages
(Historical Events, Oral Tradition, Written Texts), others 5 stages (Historical Events, Oral
Tradition, Written Tradition, Editing, Canonization); the following schema more
comprehensively lists 10 stages, many of which overlap:
1. The Historical Jesus - words are spoken and deeds are performed by Jesus himself
during his lifetime on earth.
2. Oral Tradition - traditions and beliefs about Jesus are developed and passed on by
early Christian communities.
3. Written Sources - some of the miracles and/or sayings of Jesus are compiled and recorded in early
written documents.
4. Written Texts - individual letters, full Gospels, etc., are written with particular messages for particular
situations.
5. Distribution - some writings are copied and shared with other Christian communities throughout the
Mediterranean.
6. Collection - certain Christians begin collecting the letters of Paul and gathering together several
different Gospels.
7. Canonization - four Gospels, several collections of letters, and a few other texts are accepted as
authoritative scriptures.
8. Translation - biblical texts are translated into ever more ancient and modern languages: Latin, Syriac,
Coptic, Armenian, etc.
9. Interpretation - the meaning of the scriptures is investigated on various levels: literal, spiritual,
historical, social, etc.
10. Application - communities and individuals use the NT for practical purposes: liturgical, moral,
sacramental, theological, etc.
Four Criteria for Canonicity (why certain books were eventually accepted into the NT Canon, while others were
rejected):
1. Apostolic Origin - attributed to and/or based on the preaching/teaching of the first-generation
apostles (or their closest companions).
2. Universal Acceptance - acknowledged by all major Christian communities in the Mediterranean world
(by the end of the fourth century).
3. Liturgical Use - read publicly along with the OT when early Christians gathered for the Lord's Supper
(their weekly worship services).
4. Consistent Message - containing theological ideas compatible with other accepted Christian writings
(incl. the divinity and humanity Jesus).
Four-Fold Role of the Evangelists as Authors (what they contributed, even if "God is the Author" of all
scripture): Compare this list with the principles mentioned in the Pontifical Biblical Commission's 1964
Instruction on the Historical Truth of the Gospels, par. IX.
1. Selectors - from among the many things Jesus said and did, they chose which stories they wanted to
include and which to omit.
2. Arrangers - they organized the materials in a particular sequence, not necessarily chronologically but
often in thematic blocks.
3. Shapers - they adapted and edited the individual stories from their sources so as to emphasize the
themes they wanted to stress.
4. Proclaimers - they were not objective historians, but preached the "good news" about Jesus in ways
appropriate to their audiences.
How do we deal with the inconsistencies (or seeming contradictions) in these texts?
o Meaning rather than detail
o Theology rather than history
o Truth rather than fact
Form is everything here!
The four senses of the inspired text:
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


Literal: “[T]he meaning conveyed by the words of Scripture” (Catechism, no. 116), the
actual event, person, thing described in the biblical text. This is also referred to as the
“plain” sense and is not to be confused with a “literalist” sense. The literal sense gives
rise to the following three “spiritual senses.”
Allegorical: How those things, events, or persons in the literal sense point to Christ and
the Paschal Mystery.
Moral: How the literal sense points to the Christian life in the Church.
Anagogical: How the literal sense points to the Christian’s heavenly destiny and the last
things.
The Synoptic problem
o The relation of Matthew, Mark and Luke
o Why is almost all of Mark in both Matthew and Luke?
o Why, if Matthew was written first and Luke copied from Matthew, would Luke create an
entirely original infancy narrative and post-resurrection appearances?
o Isn’t it more logical to posit an expansion of the Gospel narratives over time, not contraction?
Major dates to know for the New Testament:
164 – 63 BCE
63 BCE
40 – 4 BCE
6-4 BCE
4 BCE – 39 CE
10 – 62/64 CE
35CE
Early 50s
51-62
49/50/51 CE
66 – 74 CE
70 CE
66 – 72
76 – 82
85 – 89
85/90
After 85/90, before 100
Hasmonean Dynasty (Jewish self-rule)
Roman general Pompey conquers Jerusalem
Herod the Great (a Hasmonean with Roman support)
Birth of Jesus
Herod Antipas (son of Herod the Great) Tetrarch of Galilee & Perea
Public life of Paul
Conversion of Paul
Q is a written document in circulation
All letters of Paul written & 3 missionary journeys completed
Council of Jerusalem (Do you have to be Jewish to become Christian?)
First Jewish (Zealot) revolt against Rome (under Nero)
The Roman general Vespasian runs the Roman response until Nero dies in
68. There are 3 quick “transitional emperors” before Vespasian becomes
Emperor and sends Titus to finish the job
Roman general Titus destroys Jerusalem and the 2nd Temple
Approximate time of the writing of Mark
Approximate time of the writing of Matthew
Approximate time of the writing of Luke/Acts
Jewish Council of Jamnia (consolidation of Judaism, Christians kicked out
of the synagogues)
Approximate time of the writing of John (we know it’s after Jamnia)