In Which Gospel Is It? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Matthew

The story of the visitation of the wise men (kings, magi) to the Holy Family appears only in Matthew 2:1-12. Much of what is "known" about their visit is the product of imagination in hymns, poetry and drama. A fine example of this is their number; while most people assume that there were three (like it says in the song), the scripture is silent as to how many visitors there were.

Answer: Luke

The Parable of the Good Samaritan appears only in Luke 10:25-37. It is the story of a robbery victim who was ignored by "righteous" people but assisted by a Samaritan, despite the animosity between Samaritans and Jews. The phrase came to mean anyone who helps a stranger with no expectation of reward. It is used by hospitals and relief agencies for this reason.

Answer: John

Lazarus' resurrection from the dead is related in John 11:1-57. He was the brother of Mary and Martha of Bethany. When he died of natural causes, Jesus came to Bethany and raised him from the dead. Lazarus is also the name of the beggar in the parable of the rich man told in Luke 16:19-31; there is no connection.

Answer: Mark

The incident in which Jesus defended his disciples for picking and eating "corn" on the sabbath is reported in all three of the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark and Luke. Only in Mark, however, does Jesus say "The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath." (KJV/AV)

Answer: Matthew

An angel tells Joseph to take Mary and Jesus and flee to Egypt to avoid the mass infanticide conducted by King Herod. This story of how Jesus escaped and how the family returned to Nazareth after Herod's death appears only in Matthew 2:13-23.

Answer: Mark

A young man, who had been following Jesus, was accosted by the crowd when they came out to arrest Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. People grasped the linen sheet being worn by the young man as his only covering and he fled naked into the night. This story appears only in Mark 14:51-52. There is some academic speculation that the young man may have been the evangelist himself.

Answer: Luke

The Parable of the Prodigal Son appears only in Luke 15:11-32. It is less about the dumb bunny son who squanders his inheritance and more about his loving, welcoming father who forgives all and celebrates his return. This story is read every year in Eastern Orthodox Churches as part of the run-up to Lent.

Answer: John

In Jesus' time, men did not speak to women in public and Jews did not speak to Samaritans. Yet, in the story told only in John 4:1-42, Jesus asks a Samaritan woman to draw water for him from Jacob's Well. This leads to her conversion and the conversion of many of her neighbours.

Answer: Luke

The Archangel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah, a priest in the Temple at Jerusalem, and told him that his wife (who was old and barren) would conceive and bear a son. Zechariah was deprived of the ability to speak until the child was born and he named his son John (Luke 1:57-80). The "Baptist" part came later.

Answer: John

There was a pool of water near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem called the Pool of Bethesda. An angel would come and stir the water, whereupon someone would be healed. Jesus healed a disabled man who had been waiting by the pool for 38 years, according to John 5:1-47. "Beth hesda" is Hebrew for House of Mercy. Bethesda Naval Hospital took its name from Bethesda, Maryland, which took its name from the Bethesda Meeting House (a Presbyterian church built in 1820), which took its name from the Pool of Bethesda.