The Three Stages in the

Formation of the Gospel

1. The life and teaching of Jesus

2. The oral tradition
3. The written Gospels
1. The life and teaching of Jesus

Jesus taught, healed, and worked

miracles. He died on the cross and
rose from the dead.
His followers witnessed and
remembered these things.
2. The oral tradition

After the ascension of Jesus, the apostles

handed on his deeds and words through
preaching and teaching.
They now had a better understanding of
what he did and said.
• They could look back on the whole story of Jesus’
life, from the beginning of his ministry to his
ascension.
• Also, they had the gift of the Holy Spirit, who came
to them at Pentecost and enlightened their minds.
3. The written Gospels
The gospels were written by the four
evangelists.

From all the stories and memories about Jesus,

passed down by word of mouth or already
written down, each evangelist selected what
was suitable for his purpose.
At times the evangelist would combine,
summarize, or explain these traditions.
The end result of this work was a written gospel.
Each evangelist composed his gospel with skill
and creativity, but always in such a way as to
tell us the honest truth about Jesus.
4 SYMBOLS AND IMAGES OF THE
GOSPELS
St. Matthew is represented by a
divine man
the Gospel highlights Jesus’ entry into this world,
first by presenting His family lineage
“A family record of Jesus Christ, Son of David, son
of Abraham” (Mt 1:1) — and His incarnation and
birth: “Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ
came about” (Mt 1:18).
St. Irenaeus, “is the Gospel of His humanity; for
which reason it is, too, that the character of a
humble and meek man is kept up through the
whole Gospel.”
4 SYMBOLS AND IMAGES OF THE
GOSPELS
St. Mark, represented by the
winged lion,
‘I send my messenger before you to prepare your
way: a herald’s voice in the desert, crying, “Make
ready the way of the Lord, clear Him a straight
path.’”
“The voice in the desert crying” reminds one of a
lion’s roar, and the prophetical spirit descending
to earth reminds one of a “winged message.” The
lion also signified royalty, an appropriate symbol
for the Son of God.
4 SYMBOLS AND IMAGES OF THE
GOSPELS
The winged ox represents St.
Luke.
Oxen were used in temple sacrifices.
St. Luke begins his Gospel with the announcement
of the birth of St. John the Baptizer to his father,
the priest Zechariah, who was offering sacrifice in
the Temple (Lk 1).
St. Luke also includes the parable of the Prodigal
Son
the winged ox reminds us of the priestly
character of our Lord and His sacrifice for our
redemption.
4 SYMBOLS AND IMAGES OF THE
GOSPELS
St. John is represented by the
rising eagle.
“In the beginning was the Word, the Word was in
God’s presence, and the Word was God. He was
present to God in the beginning. Through Him all
things came into being, and apart from Him
nothing came to be” (Jn 1:1-3).
“In the beginning was the Word, the Word was in
God’s presence, and the Word was God. He was
present to God in the beginning. Through Him all
things came into being, and apart from Him
nothing came to be” (Jn 1:1-3).
4 SYMBOLS AND IMAGES OF THE
GOSPELS
The four Gospels