Biblical canon Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Western Church=== {{main|Latin Church|Catholic Bible}} ====Latin Fathers==== The first Council that accepted the present Catholic canon (the [[Canon of Trent]] of 1546) may have been the [[Synod of Hippo|Synod of Hippo Regius]], held in North Africa in 393. A brief summary of the acts was read at and accepted by the [[Council of Carthage (397)]] and also the [[Council of Carthage (419)]].{{sfnp|McDonald|Sanders|2002|loc=Appendix D-2, Note 19|ps=. "Revelation was added later in 419 at the subsequent synod of Carthage."}} These Councils took place under the authority of [[Augustine of Hippo]] (354–430), who regarded the canon as already closed.<ref>{{harvp|Ferguson|2002|p=320}}; {{cite book |author-first=F. F. |author-last=Bruce |title=The Canon of Scripture |publisher=Intervarsity Press |year=1988 |page=230 }}; cf. Augustine. ''De Civitate Dei''. 22.8.</ref> [[Augustine of Hippo]] declared without qualification that one is to "prefer those that are received by all Catholic Churches to those which some of them do not receive" (On Christian Doctrines 2.12). In the same passage, Augustine asserted that these dissenting churches should be outweighed by the opinions of "the more numerous and weightier churches", which would include Eastern Churches, the prestige of which Augustine stated moved him to include the [[Book of Hebrews]] among the canonical writings, though he had reservation about its authorship.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ntgreek.org/SeminaryPapers/ChurchHistory/Criteria%20for%20Development%20of%20the%20NT%20Canon%20in%20First%20Four%20Centuries.pdf |title=Corey Keating, The Criteria Used for Developing the New Testament Canon.}}</ref> [[Philip Schaff]] says that "the council of Hippo in 393, and the third (according to another reckoning the sixth) council of Carthage in 397, under the influence of Augustine, who attended both, fixed the catholic canon of the Holy Scriptures, including the Apocrypha of the Old Testament, ... This decision of the transmarine church however, was subject to ratification; and the concurrence of the [[Roman see]] it received when [[Innocent I]] and [[Gelasius I]] (414 AD) repeated the same index of biblical books. This canon remained undisturbed till the sixteenth century, and was sanctioned by the [[council of Trent]] at its fourth session."<ref name="Schaff">{{citation |title=History of the Christian Church |chapter=Chapter IX. Theological Controversies, and Development of the Ecumenical Orthodoxy |author-first=Philip |author-last=Schaff |publisher=CCEL |chapter-url=http://www.ccel.org/s/schaff/history/3_ch09.htm}}</ref> According to Lee Martin McDonald, the [[Book of Revelation|Revelation]] was added to the list in 419.{{sfnp|McDonald|Sanders|2002|loc=Appendix D-2, Note 19|ps=. "Revelation was added later in 419 at the subsequent synod of Carthage."}} These councils were convened under the influence of [[Augustine of Hippo]], who regarded the canon as already closed.<ref name="Ferguson, Everett">Ferguson, Everett. "Factors leading to the Selection and Closure of the New Testament Canon", in ''The Canon Debate'', eds. L. M. McDonald & J. A. Sanders (Hendrickson, 2002) p. 320</ref><ref>F. F. Bruce, ''The Canon of Scripture'' (Intervarsity Press, 1988) p. 230</ref><ref>cf. Augustine, ''De Civitate Dei'' 22.8.</ref> [[Pope Damasus I]]'s [[Council of Rome]] in 382 (if the ''[[Decretum Gelasianum|Decretum]]'' is correctly associated with it) issued a biblical canon identical to that mentioned above.<ref name="Lindberg 2006 15" /> Likewise, Damasus' commissioning of the Latin [[Vulgate]] edition of the Bible, {{circa}} 383, proved instrumental in the fixation of the canon in the West.{{sfnp|Bruce|1988|p= 225}} In a letter ({{circa}} 405) to [[Exuperius|Exsuperius of Toulouse]], a Gallic bishop, [[Pope Innocent I]] mentioned the sacred books that were already received in the canon.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bible-researcher.com/innocent.html |title=Innocent I |publisher=Bible Research |access-date=21 May 2016}}</ref> When bishops and Councils spoke on the matter of the Biblican canon, however, they were not defining something new, but instead "were ratifying what had already become the mind of the Church".{{sfnp|Ferguson|2002|pp=319–320}} Thus from the 4th century there existed unanimity in the [[Western Christianity|West]] concerning the New Testament canon as it is today,{{sfnp|Bruce|1988|p= 215}} with the exception of the [[Book of Revelation]]. In the 5th century the [[Eastern Christianity|East]] too, with a few exceptions, came to accept the Book of Revelation and thus came into harmony on the matter of the New Testament canon.<ref>{{harvp|Ackroyd|Evans|1970|p=305}}; cf. {{cite book |author-last=Reid |author-first=George |title=Catholic Encyclopedia |publisher=Robert Appleton Company |year=1908 |chapter=Canon of the New Testament |chapter-url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03274a.htm}}</ref> As the canon crystallised, non-canonical texts fell into relative disfavour and neglect.<ref>{{cite book |author-last1=Rohmann |author-first1=Dirk |title=Christianity, Book-Burning and Censorship in Late Antiquity: Studies in Text Transmission |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ie7CDAAAQBAJ |series=Arbeiten zur Kirchengeschichte |volume=135 |publisher=[[Walter de Gruyter]] GmbH & Co KG |date=2016 |isbn=9783110485554 |access-date=11 April 2018 |quote=Prudentius [348–{{circa}} 410] ... intends to demonstrate the superiority of Christianity and was likely aware that at this time the Bible has not replaced other books as much as he wants to think. This passage also presents a possible hint that old Latin translations were replaced with a new canonical version, perhaps alluding to the Vulgate, written by Jerome at the end of the fourth century. By implication, this suggests that uncanonical texts were unlikely to be transcribed—an ideologically and authoritatively endorsed selection process that comes close to modern understandings of censorship.}}</ref> ====Council of Florence==== [[File:KJV 1769 Oxford Edition, vol. 1.djvu|page=21|thumb|The contents page in a complete 80 book [[King James Bible]], listing "The Books of the Old Testament", "The Books called Apocrypha", and "The Books of the New Testament"]] Before the [[Protestant Reformation]], the [[Council of Florence]] (1439–1443) took place. With the approval of this [[ecumenical council]], Pope [[Eugenius IV]] (in office 1431–1447) issued several [[papal bulls]] ([[Decree (Catholic canon law)|decrees]]) with a view to restoring the [[Eastern churches]], which the Catholic Church considered as [[schism]]atic bodies, into [[Full communion|communion with Rome]]. Catholic theologians regard these documents as [[infallible]] statements of [[Catholic theology|Catholic doctrine]]. The ''Decretum pro Jacobitis'' contains a complete list of the books received by the Catholic Church as inspired, but omits the terms "canon" and "canonical". The Council of Florence therefore taught the inspiration of all the Scriptures, but did not formally pronounce itself on canonicity.<ref>{{cite book |author-last1=Gigot |author-first1=Francis Ernest Charles |author-link1=Francis Gigot |chapter=The Canon of the Old Testament in the Christian Church: Section II. From the Middle of the Fifth Century to our Day |title=General Introduction to the Study of the Holy Scriptures |year=1900 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n3kQAQAAIAAJ |volume=1 of Introduction to the study of the Holy Scriptures |edition=3 |location=New York |publisher=Benziger |publication-date=1900 |page=71 |access-date=1 February 2021 |quote=[...] the bull of Eugenius IV did not deal with the ''canonicity'' of the books which were not found in the Hebrew Text, but simply proclaimed their ''inspiration'' [...].}}</ref><ref> {{CathEncy|wstitle= Canon of the Old Testament}} section titled "The Council of Florence 1442"</ref> ====Luther's canon and apocrypha==== {{Main|Luther's canon}} [[Martin Luther]] (1483–1546) moved seven Old Testament books (Tobit, Judith, 1–2 Maccabees, Book of Wisdom, Sirach, and Baruch) into a section he called the "[[Biblical apocrypha|Apocrypha]], that are books which are not considered equal to the Holy Scriptures, but are useful and good to read".<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rl3lcbLkHV0C&pg=PA521 |title=The Popular and Critical Bible Encyclopædia and Scriptural Dictionary, Fully Defining and Explaining All Religious Terms, Including Biographical, Geographical, Historical, Archæological and Doctrinal Themes |page=521 |editor-first=Samuel |editor-last=Fallows |publisher=The Howard-Severance co |orig-year=1901 |year=1910 |display-editors=etal}}</ref> All of these apocrypha are called [[Biblical Apocrypha#Anagignoskomena|''anagignoskomena'']] by the Eastern Orthodox Church per the [[Synod of Jerusalem (1672)|Synod of Jerusalem]]. As with the [[Lutheran Church]]es,<ref name="GeislerMacKenzie1995">{{cite book |author-last1=Geisler |author-first1=Norman L. |author-last2=MacKenzie |author-first2=Ralph E. |title=Roman Catholics and Evangelicals: Agreements and Differences |date=1995 |publisher=Baker Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8010-3875-4 |page=171 |language=English |quote=Lutherans and Anglicans used it only for ethical / devotional matters but did not consider it authoritative in matters of faith.}}</ref> the [[Anglican Communion]] accepts "the Apocrypha for instruction in life and manners, but not for the establishment of doctrine",<ref>{{cite book|author-last=Ewert |author-first=David |title=A General Introduction to the Bible: From Ancient Tablets to Modern Translations |date=2010 |publisher=[[Zondervan]] |isbn=978-0310872436 |page=104}}</ref> and many "lectionary readings in [[The Book of Common Prayer]] are taken from the Apocrypha", with these lessons being "read in the same ways as those from the Old Testament".<ref>{{cite book|author-last1=Thomas |author-first1=Owen C. |author-last2=Wondra |author-first2=Ellen K. |author-link2=Ellen Wondra |title=Introduction to Theology|edition =3rd|date=2002 |publisher=Church Publishing, Inc. |isbn=978-0819218971 |page=56}}</ref> The Protestant Apocrypha contains three books (3 Esdras, 4 Esdras and the Prayer of Manasseh) that are accepted by many Eastern Orthodox Churches and Oriental Orthodox Churches as canonical, but are regarded as non-canonical by the Catholic Church and are therefore not included in modern Catholic Bibles.<ref>{{cite book|author-last1=Henze |author-first1=Matthias |author-last2=Boccaccini |author-first2=Gabriele |title=Fourth Ezra and Second Baruch: Reconstruction after the Fall |year=2013 |publisher=[[Brill Publishing]] |isbn=978-9004258815 |page=383}}</ref> [[Anabaptists]] use the [[Luther Bible]], which contains the intertestamental books; [[Amish]] wedding ceremonies include "the retelling of the marriage of Tobias and Sarah in the Apocrypha".<ref name="Wesner">{{cite web |author-last1=Wesner |author-first1=Erik J. |title=The Bible |date=8 April 2015 |url=https://amishamerica.com/bible/#apocrypha |publisher=Amish America |access-date=23 May 2021 |language=English}}</ref> The fathers of Anabaptism, such as [[Menno Simons]], quoted "them [the Apocrypha] with the same authority and nearly the same frequency as books of the Hebrew Bible" and the texts regarding the martyrdoms under Antiochus IV in [[1 Maccabees]] and [[2 Maccabees]] are held in high esteem by the Anabaptists, who historically faced persecution.<ref name="deSilva2018">{{cite book |last1=deSilva |first1=David A. |title=Introducing the Apocrypha: Message, Context, and Significance |date=2018 |publisher=Baker Books |isbn=978-1-4934-1307-2 |language=English}}</ref> Lutheran and Anglican lectionaries continue to include readings from the Apocrypha.<ref name="Forward1981">{{cite book|title=Readings from the Apocrypha |year=1981 |publisher=Forward Movement Publications |page=5}}</ref> ====Council of Trent==== {{main|Canon of Trent}} In response to [[Martin Luther]]'s demands, the [[Council of Trent]] on 8 April 1546 approved the present [[Catholic Bible]] canon, which includes the [[deuterocanonical books]], and the decision was confirmed by an [[anathema]] by vote (24 yea, 15 nay, 16 abstain).{{sfnp|Metzger|1997|p=246|ps=. "Finally on 8 April 1546, by a vote of 24 to 15, with 16 abstentions, the Council issued a decree (''De Canonicis Scripturis'') in which, for the first time in the history of the Church, the question of the contents of the Bible was made an absolute article of faith and confirmed by an anathema."}} The council confirmed the same list as produced at the [[Council of Florence]] in 1442,<ref>{{cite web|title=Council of Basel 1431–45 A |date=14 December 1431 |url=http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum17.htm |website=Papalencyclicals.net |access-date=7 January 2015}}</ref> Augustine's 397–419 [[Councils of Carthage]],<ref name="Schaff"/> and probably Damasus' 382 [[Council of Rome]].<ref name="Lindberg 2006 15" /><ref name="Cross">{{citation |title=The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |edition=2nd |editor-first1=F.L. |editor-last1=Cross |editor-first2=E.A. |editor-last2=Livingstone |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=1983 |page=232}}</ref> The Old Testament books that had been rejected by Luther were later termed "deuterocanonical", not indicating a lesser degree of inspiration, but a later time of final approval. The [[Sixto-Clementine Vulgate]] contained in the Appendix several books considered as apocryphal by the council: [[Prayer of Manasseh]], [[1 Esdras|3 Esdras]], and [[2 Esdras|4 Esdras]].<ref name="BSVxx">Praefatio, ''Biblia Sacra Vulgata'', Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart 1983, p. xx. {{ISBN|3-438-05303-9}}</ref> ====Protestant confessions==== {{see also|Protestant Bible}} Several [[Protestant confessions of faith]] identify the 27 books of the New Testament canon by name, including the [[French Confession of Faith]] (1559),<ref>[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/creeds3/Page_361.html Schaff, Philip. ''Creeds of the Evangelical Protestant Churches'', French Confession of Faith, p. 361]</ref> the [[Belgic Confession]] (1561), and the [[Westminster Confession of Faith]] (1647). The [[Second Helvetic Confession]] (1562), affirms "both Testaments to be the true Word of God" and appealing to [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]]'s ''[[De Civitate Dei]]'', it rejected the canonicity of the Apocrypha.<ref>The [[Second Helvetic Confession]], Chapter 1, Of The Holy Scripture Being The True Word of God</ref> The [[Thirty-Nine Articles]], issued by the Church of England in 1563, names the books of the Old Testament, but not the New Testament. The Belgic Confession<ref>[http://creeds.net/belgic/ Belgic Confession 4. Canonical Books of the Holy Scripture]</ref> and the Westminster Confession named the 39 books in the Old Testament and, apart from the aforementioned New Testament books, expressly rejected the canonicity of any others.<ref>The Westminster Confession rejected the canonicity of the Apocrypha stating that "The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration, are no part of the canon of the Scripture, and therefore are of no authority in the Church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of, than other human writings." [[s:The Confession of Faith of the Assembly of Divines at Westminster#Chapter 1|Westminster Confession of Faith, 1646]]</ref> The Lutheran [[Epitome of the Formula of Concord]] of 1577 declared that the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures comprised the Old and New Testaments alone.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://bookofconcord.org/fc-ep.php |title=The Epitome of the Formula of Concord – Book of Concord |access-date=19 August 2020 |archive-date=31 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031063041/http://bookofconcord.org/fc-ep.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Luther's canon|Luther himself did not accept the canonicity of the Apocrypha]] although he believed that its books were "Not Held Equal to the Scriptures, but Are Useful and Good to Read".<ref>Brecht, Martin. Martin Luther. Volume 3, p. 98 James L. Schaaf, trans. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985–1993. {{ISBN|0-8006-2813-6}}</ref> Lutheran and Anglican lectionaries continue to include readings from the Apocrypha.<ref name="Forward1981"/> ====Other apocrypha==== {{main|Biblical apocrypha|New Testament apocrypha}} Various books that were never canonized by any church, but are known to have existed in antiquity, are similar to the New Testament and often claim apostolic authorship, are known as the [[New Testament apocrypha]]. Some of these writings have been cited as [[Bible|scripture]] by early Christians, but since the fifth century a widespread consensus has emerged limiting the New Testament to the [[Development of the New Testament canon|27 books of the modern canon]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Van Liere |first=Frans |date=2014 |title=An Introduction to the Medieval Bible |pages=68–69 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521865784 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dwd-AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA68}}</ref><ref name="Ehrman2003">{{cite book |last=Ehrman |first=Bart D. |author-link=Bart Ehrman |date=2003 |title=Lost Christianities: Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew |pages=230–231 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0199756681 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHDNe8KmMAIC&pg=PA230}}</ref> Thus Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Protestant churches generally do not view these New Testament apocrypha as part of the Bible.<ref name=Ehrman2003/> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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