Amanda Hawkins
Christmas Post
Gospel of Matthew
Announcement of Conception: an angel appeared
to Joseph and explained the baby was to be the
saviour and must be named Emmanuel.
Location of Jesus’ Birth: States that Joseph and
Mary travel to Bethlehem.
The Shepherds and King Herod: Wise men followed
the star and found baby Jesus in the manger. They
did not report back to King Herod, as an angel
appeared to them in a dream and warned them of
this idea.
Jesus presented in the Temple: There is no mention
of the temple and presentation of Jesus.
It is also stated that word was not shared with
anyone about Jesus.
Reactions to birth: King Herod finds out about Jesus Reactions to birth: The shepherds share the news
and that he is to be the king of the Jews and
becomes uneasy.
Gospel of Luke
Announcement of Conception: an angel announced
to Mary that she was going to give birth to a child
and he will be the son of God.
Location of Jesus’ birth: discusses their journey
from Nazareth to Bethlehem to be registered.
It continues on to mention the Inn and the manger.
The Shepherds and King Herod: The shepherds
came to the manger and saw baby Jesus. They
made it known what had been told to them about
the child and told many people.
Jesus presented in the Temple: Jesus was brought
up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord and
was also offered a sacrifice.
that a child is born who will become the Messiah.
This was a great exercise to work on as it allows for a deeper analysis of the two gospels and the
Christmas stories. The differences in either Christmas stories work to appeal to two different audiences.
In the Gospel of Matthew, the birth of Jesus is contextualized through the proclamation of Jesus saving
his people from sins. Matthew connects Jesus to the “Immanuel” prophecy. Essentially, Matthew
introduces Jesus as the “ruler of the Jews”, whereas the Gospel of Luke takes on a different perception
of Jesus. In his Gospel, Luke writes about a Jesus who will “save all people” and is the “Lord of the
world”. While it is the same story, it is told two different ways as a means of properly presenting the
idea of Jesus and the greatness he brings with him.

After reading the two Gospels, I was provided with an opportunity to refresh my own understandings of
the stories that I had forgotten or not mentioned in my own version. When looking back upon my own
personal fifth gospel, I noticed that it lacked important information which provides the overall context
of the Christmas story. In reading the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, I was able to reapply all my
previous understandings and “fill in the blanks” which had occurred overtime as this story was not
presented to us as much as we grew older. At this point, we were expected to understand the story and
use that as a means of understanding the meaning of Christmas and how it came to be.