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The third gospel is known as the Gospel According to Saint Luke, or Luke's Gospel. It was attributed by the Church Fathers, later in the second century, to Luke, the physician and travelling companion of Paul.

Scholars have established that the author used Mark's Gospel as the main source of information on the life and mission of Jesus. In fact, the "Missing Block" shows that the author of Luke's Gospel knew nothing about Jesus of Nazareth's life, beyond what was to be found in Mark's Gospel; he did not even know that he was copying from an incomplete document. Other evidence shows that Lukewas written at the end of the first century CE or, more probably, during the first decade of the second century.

Thus it is highly unlikely that the author of Luke's Gospel was alive during the first half of the first century. Moreover, if the author knew nothing about the life and mission of Jesus, apart from what he was able to copy, then he did not know any of the apostles, who can be expected to have taught him.

What we are left with is an anonymous author who lived somewhat later than the apostles and who had no previous knowledge of the life and mission of Jesus. From this, it is not possible to speculate who could have written Luke's Gospel.


Another point of view
Almost all Bible scholars regard the author of Luke's gospel as the same author of the Book of Acts. Evidence for this is the style of Greek in which it was written, the textual criticism and phraseology used, the fact that in both Acts and Luke mention is made that they were both written as an organised account at the request of the same patron (Theophilus) and that Acts refers to the author's previous book [Acts 1:1]. In addition to this, some scholars now regard the author of Acts as the Luke mentioned many times in the same book. There are stark changes in the prose of Acts where the author begins a passage referring to 'they' and then changes abruptly to e.g. 'then WE set sail...' [Acts 16: 10-17 as an example] strongly indicating that the author was, at least for part of the time, a companion of Paul and Barnabas on the missionary journeys. Also, this Luke, being a Gentile physician and hence interested in the Jewish customs, especially surrounding their erroneous belief of male supremacy, and also interested in healing and forgiveness (as Jewish belief was still that illness was a result of sin) emphasised the equality of women throughout the gospel attributed to him, and has the bulk of stories about Jesus that refer to forgiveness and physical, emotional and spiritual healing. As one example, the Prodigal Son parable is only found in Luke and no other gospel.

Lastly, the author of both Luke and Acts was commissioned to write a complete and orderly account of the events that happened both at the founding of Chriistianity and the early Church:

"Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught." [Luke 1:1-4]

"In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive." [Acts 1: 1-3]

In no part of either Acts or Luke was there even a hint of a mention of the fall of Jerusalem in AD70. To the writer of both Luke and Acts detail was meticulously researched to place events in context both geographically and historically. Acts, for example, contains dozens of place and personal names placing events firmly in context. So to omit such an event would be unthinkable unless the gospel was written before the event happened.

Therefore some modern scholars regard Luke/Acts as having been written around the time of Paul's journeys - from 50-65 AD and certainly no later, and written by the Luke mentioned in Acts who accompanied Paul. If this is so, then Luke would have also written the gospel attributed to him and would have gleaned his information both from Mark (as the first answer attests) but also from Peter (as another companion of Paul), and from Mary the mother of Jesus through John, another companion of Peter who took Mary into his own home after the crucifixion.
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