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Have you ever looked at the cover of the Book of the and wondered what the symbols on the front of it mean? They are all winged beings. The first resembles a man, the second a lion, the third a calf, and the final one is an eagle. These symbols stand for the Four Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These are the men whose writings about the life of have been handed down through the generations in the .

The prophet in the Old Testament had a vision of living beings like these bearing the throne of . You can read more about this tremendous scene in :1-21. In the New Testament the tells about a similar vision with four winged beings singing the glory of God without stopping and with all of their attention turned toward the throne of God. Read this in Revelation 4:6-8. This is why many who studied Scripture thought the gospels were like these four beings. The gospels constantly tell of the glory of God and help all of us to turn our attention to Him.

The writers were inspired by God to write the story of Jesus’ life. Each one told about Jesus just a little differently and focused on something special that they wanted to share.

Matthew begins his gospel with a very detailed account of the ancestors of Jesus and His birth. Matthew wanted to show us that Jesus becoming a human being (the Incarnation) is very important, That is why the symbol for Matthew is a man.

Mark is shown as the Lion because he begins his gospel with announcing the coming of the Messiah. That must have sounded like the roar of a lion in the wilderness! John also writes about Jesus as the King, the Son of God, and lions are a royal symbol.

Luke is the ox. Oxen are symbols of . Luke wanted everyone to know that Jesus became the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Jesus is the Savior of the World.

The eagle represents of John, because it tells the stories of Jesus teaching and explaining heavenly things.

We can spend our whole lives learning about the gospels and the gospel writers. The sites below have some very interesting information. However, the most important reason the Four Evangelists had for writing the gospels is that we read them, listen to them, and hear Jesus talking to our hearts. https://catholicexchange.com/what-are-the-symbols-of-the-four-evangelists https://www.stjames-cathedral.org/kids/evangelists.aspx https://www.dolr.org/article/four-evangelists%E2%80%99-symbols-came-themes-their-gospels

Try drawing your own pictures of the symbols for the Four Evangelists and share them with us!