Canon of the Bible
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New Testament Dating James 45-48 A.D. Galatians 48-50 A.D. Gospel of Matthew 50 A.D. 1 and 2 Thessalonians 50-54 A.D. 1 Corinthinans 54-55 A.D. 2 Corinthinans 56-57 A.D. Romans 58 A.D. Gospel of Mark 57-59 A.D. Gospel of Luke 58-60 A.D. Ephesians 60 A.D. Colossians 60-61 A.D. Philemon 62 A.D. Acts of the Apostles 60-62 A.D. 1 John, 2 John, 3 John 60-65 A.D. 1 Timothy 63-66 A.D. Titus 63-66 A.D. 1 Peter 64 A.D. 2 Peter 64-68 A.D. PETER IS MARTYRED 68 A.D. 2 Timothy 67 A.D. PAUL IS MARTYRED 68 A.D. Hebrews (author unknown) 68-69 A.D. Jude 67-80 A.D. Gospel of John 85-95 A.D. Revelation 95-96 A.D. -
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"Inspired Scripture"?"Inspired Scripture" indicates that a particular written work -- a letter, a poem, a psalm, a gospel, a history, etc. -- was composed under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is free of all error pertaining to salvation, and has a human author.
"Inspired Scripture" does not mean that the Holy Spirit dictated Scripture or overrode the author's individual ability (or use of conventions particular to his time or place in salvation history).
When we say that Scripture is "free of error pertaining to salvation", we are confirming that the Bible is not a scientific library, nor was it intended to be by the Holy Spirit. Scripture is directed to man's salvation, not a Nobel Prize in Physics, and so the Church recognized that science and Scripture are not in opposition, except where science contradicts the salvific Truth. In which case, the science is to be rejected. This is extremely rare, however, contemporary examples indeed exist. -
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Council of Carthage (397 A.D.)
From the Codex Canonum Ecclesiae Africanae:
16 It was also determined that besides the Canonical Scriptures nothing be read in the Church under the title of divine Scriptures. The Canonical Scriptures are these: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua the son of Nun, Judges, Ruth, four books of Kings, two books of Paraleipomena, Job, the Psalter, five books of Solomon, the books of the twelve prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezechiel, Daniel, Tobit, Judith, Esther, two books of Esdras, two Books of the Maccabees.17 Of the New Testament: four books of the Gospels, one book of the Acts of the Apostles, thirteen Epistles of the Apostle Paul, one epistle of the same [writer] to the Hebrews, two Epistles of the Apostle Peter, three of John, one of James, one of Jude, one book of the Apocalypse of John.
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Why *These* Books?You may have noticed that Catholic bibles differ from bibles read by our Protestant brethren. The following Old Testament books were removed from biblical canon by Martin Luther in 1534, after he exited the Church:
- 1 and 2 Maccabees
- Tobit
- Judith
- Additions to Esther
- Wisdom
- Sirach
- Baruch
- Sections of Daniel
Due to the scandal of selling "indulgences" for the purpose of relief from Purgatory, Luther's stance against the dogma of Purgatory compelled him to expunge from Sacred Scripture the examples of almsgiving and prayers for the dead found in 2 Maccabees. Although there are many arguments over the reason for removing the list of books above, the common thread is that each was not present in the original, widely accepted Hebrew Testament, but added when the Hebrew Testament was translated into the Greek (called the Septuagint). It has been conjectured by many that this was merely a convenient justification for Luther to be rid of 2 Maccabees.
The problem with eliminating these books on the basis of their original language, is that there was no universally accepted canon of Hebrew Scripture among the Jews, outside of the first five books of Moses - the Torah (Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus, Deuteronomy). The early Christian Church, therefore, decided that since these books were regularly read during the liturgy, and universally accepted as Scripture by the Bishops, they were to be included in the Canon of inspired scripture. -
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The Gospels
Book Author Occupation Witness Year Audience Matthew St. Matthew Apostle Himself 50 Jewish Christians Mark St. Mark Scribe Peter 59 Jewish Christians Luke St. Luke Physician Paul 60 Jews and Gentiles John St. John Apostle Himself 95 Gentiles -
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What Are the Synoptic Gospels?
The term "Synoptic Gospels" refers to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The word "synoptic" (like the "synopsis" of a story) is a relating of events, from one event to the next, much like you would read in a news report. Who, what, where, when, and why are the meat and potatoes of what is written.
Matthew wrote to the Christian community in Jerusalem, so his gospel contains a lot of imagery related to Hebraic tradition and fulfillment of the Law of Moses. Mark was the scribe of St. Peter, and it is believed he also wrote to Jewish-Christians based, in part, on the eye witness accounts of our first pope. Mark is also believed to have transcribed the Letters of 1 and 2 Peter. Luke was a Syrian gentile, Greek-speaking physician who was a disciple of St. Paul. Luke tells us in the gospel that his work was investigative, and involved interviewing many witnesses of Christ. Given the amount of Marian material at the beginning, it is not unreasonable to conclude the Blessed Mother was one of his sources, or perhaps even John. Luke also wrote Acts of the Apostles, which details not only the Church after Pentecost, but the travels and mission of St. Paul, which Luke was an eye witness to.
The Gospel of John is *not* a "Synoptic" gospel. Whereas the first three gospels are interested in reporting things like geneaologies and the specific actions (especially miracles) of Christ, John's gospel is interested in telling us "who" Jesus Christ is as the "Word of God" -- the "Logos" in the gentile Greek, to whom John was writing. John's gospel is steeped in symbolism and theological content that emphasizes not His miracles, but His teachings. John only highlights Jesus' activity in Judea and Jerusalem, with little mention of Galilee. Pay close attention to the ways in which John frames Our Lord as "king", as the Cross as His throne, and His unparalleled majesty as Redeemer. -
