THE GOSPELS WHO WROTE FIRST -- MATTHEW OR MARK ? DID YOU KNOW? ALL the earliest historians recorded that it was Matthew. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA reported a tradition of the earliest presbyters as: “…the first written of the gospels were those having the genealogies”. (So: Matthew – Luke – Mark - John) And: “While Peter was publicly preaching …the audience which was numerous, begged Mark … to write down the things he had said. And he did so, …” IRENAEUS used his biblical quotes in this Matthew-Luke-Mark order. AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO said that Mark developed the ideas of Matthew and Luke. When JEROME adopted the order of Matthew-Mark-Luke-John for his translation into Latin, he told the Pope that he had not followed the commonly used sequence. Jerome, in his: ‘Of Illustrious Men’, used the Matthew-Luke-Mark order. Dom Bernard Orchard OSB, (Editor of Catholic Commentary on the Scriptures) using modern literary analysis confirmed that the ancient historians and the early theologians were correct. SECTION 7 of DEI VERBUM says that the Apostles faithfully: “… handed on what they had received from the lips of Christ, from living with Him, and from what he did, …those Apostles …committed the message…to writing SECTION 18 says “the Apostles preached …afterwards they themselves and apostolic men, …handed onto us in writing … the fourfold Gospel …” SECTION 19 “the church firmly holds to the historical character of the Gospels” [See Vatican web site translations]. The Authors of the Gospels: This free on site booklet provides: A comprehensive list of quotations from the ancient historians (Chapter II). The uses by Rome of Scripture as history, since Vatican II (Chapter XIX). A review of how Markan priority has affected Catechetics (Chapter XX). The words of Cardinal Ratzinger when he said that the strongest attacks on the Catechism had came from Scripture scholars - Chapter XIX page 99). Examples Eastern Liturgies showing the influence of Clement’s order (Ch. IV). Answers offered to: Why were the glaring errors of Mark (1: 2 and 2: 26) never corrected? Why does the ‘he’ of Mark(16:9) appear to refer to a young man talking about Jesus (Mark 16:5)? SEE:  www.churchinhistory.org