How much of the Bible do the Jews read? How old is the Gospel?

The question arose last week as to how much of the Bible the Jews read and if any part of the Bible is more important than another to the Jews. The first five books, which you probably have read by now, are known as the Torah, or the Books of Moses. These five books, each on its own scroll, are to be found in the ark in synagogues and temples. The Torah is divided into weekly passages and reading the Torah (in Hebrew) is a high point of the weekly liturgy.

The remainder of what we know as the Old Testament is divided into the Prophets and Writings (which includes Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes).

The four books known as the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were accepted as the four canonical gospels by the end of the second century. All gospels began as oral tradition and by the end of the first century had been written down. The first three gospels are known as the Synoptics (seen through same eyes) because they are believed to have drawn upon a common source, now lost. Of these, Mark is the earliest, written around 70 CE, with Matthew and Luke following. (Acts, by the way, is the second volume of Luke.) John, which was written between 90-120 CE, differs significantly in tone and chronology of Jesus' life.

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