Part 1: Pre-Lab

1. Why do you think that there are four different gospels in the Christian Bible? Do they tell the same story?"

2. In this lab we will focus on the story of Jesus' baptism and the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday). What did you know about those stories before reading today's assignment?

Part 2: Hypothesis

3. So far in class we have discussed the unique ways in which Mark and Matthew told the story of Jesus. Summarize the distinguishing characteristics of Mark and Matthew, listing the distinctive features of each gospel author's portrayal of Jesus and his followers:

4. The author of the gospel of Luke is thought to have composed Luke as part of a two volume work, intending it to be read along with the Acts of the Apostles as one continuous story about the founding and growth of the early Church. The audience of Luke's gospel was mostly comprised of Gentile Christians. What do these two pieces of data about Luke's historical context tell us about the way that he might depict Jesus? What do you expect to find when you compare Luke's portrayal of Jesus with that of Mark and Matthew?

Part 3: Data Collection

4. Review the Accounts of Jesus' Baptism in each of the gospels (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22) and note the similarities and differences below, paying careful attention to differences in wording, what is included, what is not included, and where the story fits in each author's overall narrative (what comes immediately before and after it in each gospel).

Same in all 3 Unique to Matthew Unique to Mark Unique to Luke

5. Review the Accounts of Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-9; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-38) and note the similarities and differences below, paying careful attention to differences in wording, what is included, what is not included, and where the story fits in each author's overall narrative (what comes immediately before and after it in each gospel).

Same in all 3 Unique to Matthew Unique to Mark Unique to Luke

Part 4: Interpretation and Conclusions

6. What did you learn about each author's portrayal of Jesus from comparing and contrasting the three gospel accounts? How would you summarize each author's portrayal of Jesus based upon your study of these two stories?

7. Based upon your study of these two stories, would you say that Luke has more in common with Mark's gospel or Matthew's gospel? Justify your answer with data.