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What are the symbols of the Four Evangelists?
What do the Four Evangelists symbolize in the Book of Kells?
What are some examples of evangelist symbolism?
What symbols do the Gospel writers have?
The symbols of the four Evangelists are here depicted in the Book of Kells. The four winged creatures symbolize, top to bottom, left to right: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Matthew the Evangelist, the author of the first gospel account, is symbolized by a winged man, or angel.
- St. Matthew is represented by a divine man because 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. Mark, represented by the winged lion, references the Prophet Isaiah when he begins his gospel: “Here begins the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
- The winged ox represents St. Luke. Oxen were used in temple sacrifices. For instance, when the Ark of the Covenant was brought to Jerusalem, an ox and a fatling were sacrificed every six steps (2 Sm 6).
- Lastly, St. John is represented by the rising eagle. The Gospel begins with the “lofty” prologue and “rises” to pierce most deeply the mysteries of God, the relationship between the Father and the Son, and the incarnation: “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was in God’s presence, and the Word was God.
Aug 20, 2019 · Look for these four symbols in pictures of the Evangelists, or by themselves decorating the front of Gospel books and pulpits. Matthew is associated with the winged man, or the ange...
Folio 27v of the Books of Kells, ca. 800, showing the Symbols of the Four Evangelists. It is to St Jerome that we owe the formation of this tradition as we now hold it, in which the man, lion, ox and eagle, are the symbols respectively of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
Mar 26, 2013 · Its main images depict the symbols of the four Evangelists: Matthew is represented by the Man, Mark by the Lion, Luke by the Calf, and John by the Eagle. The symbols have haloes and wings, a double set in the case of the Calf.
Apr 11, 2018 · Symbols of the Four Evangelists compiled by Felix Just, S.J., Ph.D. Christian tradition has long connected the authors of the four canonical Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) with the four "living creatures" that surround God's throne, as described in Rev 4:7, in the following pairs: Matthew = Human/Angel.
May 5, 2007 · In the early Church, the “four living creatures” that encircle God’s throne in the Book of Revelation (4:7-8) became symbols for the evangelists. These symbols originated from the four-sided creatures described by the prophet Ezekiel 600 years before the birth of Christ.
