The document summarizes the key stages in the development of the New Testament: 1) Jesus of Nazareth, his life, teachings, death and resurrection. 2) The early Christian communities who proclaimed Christ and celebrated the Eucharist. 3) The writing down of the oral traditions which became the New Testament texts between 70-100AD, including the Gospels, Acts, letters of Paul, and Revelation.

2. "And in the same way He
took the cup after they had
eaten, saying, 'This cup
which is poured out for you
is the new covenant in My
blood.'" (Luke 22:20)

3. “This is the new covenant in my blood…”
During the Last Supper, Christ proclaimed
the New Covenant. This agreement
between humanity and God, unlike the
old covenant, is everlasting, for it is
engraved not on stone but in the hearts
of men.
While Jesus did not abolish the Old
Covenant, he enhanced it and fulfilled it
with a new one: the covenant that is
sealed by his blood. The shedding of his
blood, once and for all, reconciled sinful
humanity with GOD.

4. The Resurrection of Jesus is the Central
Event of the New Testament.
The teachings of the Christian Scriptures
are all in the light of the truth that
Christ rose from the dead:
•Through the Resurrection of Christ, God gives us
an assurance that the effects of sin had been
conquered.
•Since Christ is risen, then he is present in our
midst.
•The resurrection of Jesus gives us a sense of hope
that after all our struggles in life, there is
vindication in the end.
•The resurrection of Jesus is a pledge of future
glory for us all.

5. The New Testament presents Jesus Christ as
the fulfillment of promises, prefigurations ,
and prophecies in the Old Testament.
He is Israel’s awaited MESSIAH that the
prophets spoke about.
The New Testament, therefore, can only be
understood in the light of the Old.
“The New Testament was hidden in the Old
while the Old is unveiled in the New.”
St. Augustine

6. The Early Church was a “Preaching Church”
rather than a “Writing Church”. The life and
teachings of Jesus was preserved through the
preaching of the Apostles.
Writing was not so much of the concern because
during those days, the Christians thought the
Second Coming of Christ was imminent,
therefore written doctrines were not necessary.
Realizing that Christ wasn’t coming back in their
lifetime, the Early Christians wrote their oral
tradition so that it can be handed over to the
next generation.

8. 51 63
preach preaches
P
A Writes
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celebrate L
Jesus lives
at Nazareth
as a Good
Jew
practicing
the
The Disciples reread
spirituality ‘Council’ the life of Jesus on the
of the teach
50 basis of their life, in
Pharisees
the light of the
resurrection
Official Judaism rejects the Christians

9. First Stage: JESUS OF NAZARETH
Born during the reign of Herod
around 6BC
Lived in Nazareth, educated by the
Pharisees
Baptized by John c.27-28, proclaimed
the Kingdom of God
Condemned by Religious Authorities
and Crucified by the Romans almost
certainly on April 7,30.

10. Second Stage: THE COMMUNITIES
c 30-70 AD
The disciples proclaimed the risen Christ first to the
Jews then to the Gentiles
The disciples celebrated the Risen Lord, in the
Liturgy, above all in the Eucharist
The disciples taught the newly baptized, and in
order to do so recalled the actions and words of
Jesus.
c 36AD Paul was converted and preached in Asia
Minor, Greece, and Rome.
c 50AD Council of Jerusalem, Jewish law need not
apply to the Gentiles
c 51-63AD Paul preached and wrote his letters.
Christians were excommunicated from Judaism.
70 Romans destroyed Jerusalem

11. MARK
at Rome? JOHN
about 70? in Asia Minor?
about 95-100?
LUKE
At Antioch?
About 80 – 90?
MATTHEW
in Syria Palestine?
About 80 – 90?
At Jabneh (Jamnia) Judaism has a new beginning

12. Third Stage: REDACTION
(EDITING) OF THE WRITINGS
Mark – c. 70; contains the preaching of
Peter in Rome
Luke – c. 80-90 Antioch; wrote a Gospel,
and a second volume- The Acts of the
Apostles
Matthew – c. 80-90; written for Jewish
Converts
John – c. 95-100; profound meditation on
Jesus as the Word of God
The Book of Revelation was written
depicting Jesus as the goal of history
The Catholic Epistles were written during
this period

13. THE GOSPELS
THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
THE PAULINE LETTERS
THE CATHOLIC EPISTLES
THE BOOK OF REVELATION

14. The Gospels , though they are
attributed to the four
evangelists, were a product
of the collaborative work of
the early Christians who
compiled their faith accounts,
particularly those regarding
their experiences of the
RISEN LORD and the message
of salvation which Jesus
proclaimed through His
words and actions.

15. The Acts of the Apostles was written also
by St. Luke. This book describes the life of
the early church- from its birth in
Jerusalem on the first Pentecost to its
flourishing to different parts of the
“known world” through the missionary
journeys of the Apostles, particularly St.
Paul, of whom St. Luke was a disciple.

16. The Pauline Epistles are writings attributed
to St. Paul. Some of these writings were not
really written by him but by Christians who
used St. Paul’s teachings as their source.
These letters contains teachings,
instruction, exhortations, and admonitions
that are addressed to particular persons or
Christian Communities.

17. GENUINE DOUBTFULLY NOT
WRITINGS GENUINE WRITTEN
OF PAUL: WRITINGS OF BY PAUL:
PAUL:
1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians Titus
Galatians Colossians 1Timothy
Philippians Ephesians 2 Timothy
1 Corinthians Hebrews
2 Corinthians
Romans
Philemon

18. “CATHOLIC” means
“UNIVERSAL”. The contents
of these letters are more or
less similar in nature to the
Pauline epistles. The
difference is that these
letters are addressed to all
Christians, unlike the
Pauline letters which are
addressed to particular
communities.

19. The Book of Revelation is attributed to
St. John (though many scholars
contest that this John is not John the
apostle). This book is also called
“Apocalypse” since it is a visionary
book containing a lot of mystical
revelations.

20. The Old Covenant was The New Covenant is
written on stone tablets. engraved in our hearts.
Its service brought Its service leads to life
death and and frees one from
condemnation. being condemned.
The covenant made with The Covenant in Jesus
Moses had come to an is to last forever.
end.

21. "'Behold, days are coming' declares the Lord,
'when I will make a new covenant with the house
of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the
covenant which I made with their fathers in the
day I took them by the hand to bring them out of
the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke,
although I was a husband to them,' declares the
Lord. 'But this is the covenant which I will make
with the house of Israel after those days,' declares
the Lord, 'I will put my law within them, and on
their heart I will write it; and I will be their God,
and they shall be My people. And they shall not
teach again, each man his neighbor and each man
his brother, saying, "know the Lord," for they shall
all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest
of them,' declares the Lord, 'for I will forgive their
iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.'"
Jeremiah 31:31-34

22. Theo Aerts and Bernard Hurault
THE CATHOLIC BIBLE
Quezon City: Claretian Publications, 2001
Fr. Ian Knox, C.S.Sp
THEOLOGY FOR TEACHERS
Ottawa: Novalis Press, 1994
Fr. Etienne Charpentier
HOW TO READ THE NEW TESTAMENT
Quezon City: Claretian Publications, 1997
CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH