there was a stage of reporting that came before the recording of these events. That stage involved the oral “delivery” of the presentation of these events by “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word.” Here is the tradition base, grounded in eyewitness reports made to the church. They stood at the base of the accounts that Luke notes in v. 1 and at the base of his own work as well. Luke seeks to join this tradition of reporting about Jesus. He does so as an innovator, because only he will produce a