If you copy this material your wacked
- This is a preview of the essay.
To view the full text you must login!
Because of their theological congruity and the similarity in their introductions and their language patterns, quite early in the history of the church it was concluded that both Luke and Acts were written by the same individual. As early as 140 AD however, both volumes were circulating separately when Marcion included the Gospel of Luke in his canon but did not include Acts. The most important evidence that the two volumes came from the same author is found in each respective book's introduction. Acts (1:1-2) picks up on the introduction to Luke (1:1-4), noting not only the same addressee, but also that Acts is the second volume of a two volume work.
I. AUTHORSHIP
As with the other Gospels, the author of Luke-Acts remains anonymous. That is, the author makes no mention of his name throughout either of these works. The current respective superscriptions "The Gospel According to Luke" (KATA LOUKAN) and "The Acts of the Apostles" (PRAXEIS) comes from a later period in the Church's history. Traditionally, the "we" passages found in the book of Acts (16:10-17; 20:5-15; 21:1-18; 27:1-29; 28:1-16) have been understood as an indication that the author of both volumes was a companion of the Apostle Paul during the latter's missionary journeys. By a process of elimination it is asserted that Paul's "dear friend Luke, the doctor" (Col 4:14) and his "fellow worker" (Phlm 24) is the most likely candidate for authorial ascription of this two-volume work...