One Angel in First 2 Gospels; Two in Latter; Which is it?

[Mike_O]

Out of curiosity, how have apologists resolved the differing Gospel accounts of the period after the Resurrection?

In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark there is one angel, for instance, and in the Gospels of Luke and John there are two.

I have been referred previously when asking similar questions to some long, theologically complex answers from the Vatican website, so if it is possible to answer this question briefly and simply, I would appreciate it.

 

[Todd_Easton]

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “The sacred authors, in writing the four Gospels, selected certain of the many elements which had been handed on…” (CCC 126)

Matthew writes about an angel outside the tomb sitting on the stone that had been rolled away from the entrance of the tomb.
Mark writes about an angel in the tomb on the right side.
Luke writes about two angels at the tomb after the women enter the tomb, it being unclear whether they are inside or outside the tomb.
John writes about two angels in the tomb, one at the head and another at the foot of where Jesus lay.

Since the location of the angels seems to be different in each Gospel, it is quite possible that each Gospel writer chose to write about only one of several angelic encounters that the women experienced and that they may have encountered six different angels all together, each angel or pair of angels saying pretty much the same thing to the women.

 

[J_Chrysostomos]

If four people witness an event, then their testimonies will not contradict if they are objective. However, they will empasize or recall different details about it. If the gospel writer said there was “one and only one” angel, then there is a contradiction. As it is there was not, just a different perspective.

 

[Gottle_of_Geer]

Mike O:

Out of curiosity, how have apologists resolved the differing Gospel accounts of the period after the Resurrection?

In the Gospels of Matthew and Mark there is one angel, for instance, and in the Gospels of Luke and John there are two.

I have been referred previously when asking similar questions to some long, theologically complex answers from the Vatican website, so if it is possible to answer this question briefly and simply, I would appreciate it.

There is no way of knowing beyond doubt - all we have are the accounts as they stand. All else is hypothesis.​

 

[mlchance]

To repeat in a different way what has already been said, these two statements do not contradict each other:

“I saw one angel.”

“I saw two angels.”

Depending on from whom the Gospel writers got their information, variations in stories are entirely explicable based on differing perceptions.

– Mark L. Chance.