September Quiz: Matthew, Mark, Luke, Thomas

1. The Gospel writers attempted to
a. write objective biographies of Jesus designed to enable readers to reconstruct the life of Jesus
b. to interpret Jesus theologically for the communities they served

2. In studies about Jesus, scholars often distinguish between the Christ of faith and the Jesus of history. Which of the following is the best definition of the ‘Christ of faith’?
a. The Christ of faith is Jesus as proclaimed by the Christian community.
b. The Christ of faith is the very limited picture of Jesus that emerges when we use only data which can be ‘proven’ by using the historical method.
c. The Christ of faith is the real Jesus as we would see him if we could go back in time and listen to him teaching in Galilee.

3. Large amounts of information about Jesus may be found in non-Christian sources such as Josephus and Tacitus. In fact, we know almost as much about Jesus from these sources as from the Christian Gospels.
a. True
b. False

4. The criterion of dissimilarity asserts that
a. if an historical statement can be read as challenging the goals of the document in which it occurs or the goals of the community which preserved that document, then it is likely to be true.
b. if an historical statement can be read as challenging the goals of the document in which it occurs or the goals of the community which preserved that document, then it is likely to be false.
c. if an historical statement is not similar to other statements made in the same document, then it is probably false.

5. The criterion of multiple attestation asserts that
a. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, it is probably true
regardless of what the literary relationship of those sources might be.
b. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, and if the relevant sources could not be dependent upon one another, then the statement is probably true.
c. if an historical statement is supported by more than one source, the sources must be related to one another if the statement is true

6. The Jesus Seminar asserts that Jesus
a. preached a highly apocalyptic message, expecting the arrival of the Kingdom of God and the end of natural history shortly after his death.
b. preached a message that had little to do with popular eschatology.

7. Jesus grew up in __________.
a. Jerusalem
b. Bethlehem
c. Capernaum
d. Nazareth

8. Jesus was born sometime between
a. 40 and 27 BCE
b. 6 and 4 BCE
c. 1 and 12 CE
d. 27 and 30 CE

9. According to the canonical Gospels Jesus was born in __________.
a. Jerusalem
b. Bethlehem
c. Capernaum
d. Nazareth

10. Jesus was crucified in __________.
a. Jerusalem
b. Bethlehem
c. Capernaum
d. Nazareth

11. Which of the following is true about the New Testament claim that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist?
a. While the New Testament reports this event, we have no way to prove whether it actually happened or not. It must be accepted as a matter of faith.
b. Most historians would say that we have good evidence for this event. We can demonstrate that it is extremely likely that Jesus was actually baptized by John.

12. During Jesus’ public ministry
a. he attracted large crowds of both supporters and opponents.
b. he probably did not attract much attention. The Christian movement took on great force only after Jesus’ death.
c. he attracted large crowds, but the crowds virtually always opposed Jesus. He had few supporters.
d. he attracted large crowds of supporters. Strong popular opposition to his message arose only after his death.

13. Jesus’ public ministry lasted
a. between one and three years
b. about six months
c. between five and ten years

14. Who actually carried out the crucifixion of Jesus?
a. a group of Roman soldiers
b. an angry mob, without the help of the Romans
c. the Jewish temple leadership


Question Source:

Dr. Michael Palmer
www.greek-language.com/bible


Shorter Answer:

Of all Jesus' teachings, parables, or sayings, name one (or two or three if you can't decide on one) that is the most important for us as human beings to internalize? Why?


What title does Jesus use for himself more than any other? What do you think it means?


Matthew and Luke both include birth narratives. What are the differences between the two narratives? What does each author want us to know about the kind of person Jesus will be and the work Jesus will do through the device of the birth narrative?


Why was Jesus executed? What did it mean for his followers to claim he was “Resurrected”?




Longer Answer:

Imagine Jesus as a real person. Without using "theological jargon" describe in two or three paragraphs what kind of person Jesus is. Think in terms of personality, values, dreams, attitudes, and convictions. Don't worry about being "right or wrong" or orthodox or whatever; use your imagination and heart!