Gospel of Luke
The third canonical Gospel, presenting Jesus’s life, teachings, death, and resurrection. It is the first volume of a two-part work continued in Acts.
Gospel: A literary account of Jesus’s life, teaching, death, and resurrection. Luke belongs to the four canonical Gospels, which share this broad narrative form.
Lukan special material: Stories and sayings found in Luke but absent from the other canonical Gospels. Parables such as the Good Samaritan give Luke much of its distinctive texture.
Luke the Evangelist: The traditional author associated with the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles. Christian tradition identifies him as the author, though the Gospel itself is formally anonymous.
Gospel of Matthew: The first canonical Gospel, presenting Jesus as Messiah in a narrative shaped by Jewish scripture. Matthew shares material with Luke but gives Jesus’s birth and teaching different emphases.
Magnificat: Mary’s hymn of praise in Luke 1, beginning with her rejoicing in God. Its vision of the powerful brought low and the poor lifted up became a major liturgical text.
Acts of the Apostles: The New Testament narrative of the early Christian movement and its spread after Jesus’s death. Acts continues Luke’s narrative and addresses the same dedicatee, Theophilus.
Infancy narrative: The accounts of Jesus’s conception and birth in Matthew and Luke. Luke’s opening chapters frame Jesus’s arrival through songs, prophecy, and encounters.
Theophilus: The person addressed in the opening of Luke and Acts, whose identity is uncertain. Luke says the account is written for him to provide assurance about received teachings.
Gospel of John: The fourth canonical Gospel, with a distinctive narrative and extended discourses about Jesus’s identity. John differs from Luke in structure, style, and much of its account of Jesus’s ministry.
Benedictus: Zechariah’s prophetic hymn in Luke 1, praising God for redemption and deliverance. Its daily use in Christian prayer carries Luke’s themes of promise and salvation.