Parables of Jesus the unforgiving servant, dealing with forgiveness; the parable of the Good Samaritan, dealing with practical love; and the parable of the Friend at Night, dealing with persistence in prayer. Of the thirty or so parables in the canonical Gospels, four were shown in medieval art almost to the exclusion of the others, but not mixed in with the narrative scenes of the "Life of Christ". These were: the Ten Virgins, the Rich man and Lazarus, the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan. Artists famous for depicting parables include Martin Schongauer, Pieter the Elder Bruegal and Albrecht Dürer. The Workers in
The Parables of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to promote proper conduct. In addition to teaching Christianity, the parables are set up against the interpretations of Bible held by the Roman Catholic Church and against the Roman Church itself. Most of the "Parables" come from traditional Christian Parables, but Smart extended the original interpretation of what a "parable" is to include any "parabolic discourse" that could convey Christian doctrine "through, or with the aid of, similes, metaphors, proverbs, and other indirect forms of expression." Christopher Smart is not alone in interpreting parables in this manner because the Old Testament tradition of parables "meant first of all a comparison