Introduction to Canonicity Which books belong in the Bible? Which do not? & Why?
Segments of Bibliology 1.Revelation: when God reveals the thoughts from His mind, to the mind of the human author. 2.Inspiration: when the Spirit of God controls the mind of the author & records God s thoughts to the document. 3.Canonicity: Which Documents are, or are not from God? & How do we know? 4.Preservation: God has preserved His word from the original Documents down through the centuries to the present.
5.Translation: God has multiplied His word from the languages of the original documents to languages around the world. 6.Interpretation & Illumination: God helps His thoughts recorded in the document to be understood by the mind of the reader. 7.Application / Animation: God empowers His truth to go from the mind of the reader to the life of the reader.
What is Canonicity? Our English word canon, comes from the Greek word κανών, which means, measuring rod, rule, or test. This word was used by the early church to refer to writings accepted as sacred. Canonicity then, is the right of a piece of literature to be recognized as inspired & accepted as the Word of God.
Why is Canonicity Important? If you were to look into a Greek Orthodox Bible, or a Catholic Bible, or listen to the claims made about the book of Mormon, or watch another one of the many programs out on TV that speak of a new revelation from God, or a lost book of the Bible that has been rediscovered, you might ask yourself, how do we know what books ought be in the Bible?
Who Decides Canonicity? Despite popular claims, the Bible was not arbitrarily decided upon by a particular church counsel, or government official like Constantine, or anyone else. The church does not decide what is Bible, rather, the church merely recognized what is Bible.
Who Decides Canonicity? The church is not the mother of the Bible, but the children of the Bible. The church is not the regulator of the Bible, but the recognizer of the Bible. The church is not the judge of the Bible, but a witness to the Bible. The church is not the master of the Bible, but the servant to the Bible.
History of Canonicity Canonicity was not an event, but rather, it was a process, which rests upon the authority of Christ & the Apostles, was recognized by the early church, and was finalized by the end of the 4th century at two church councils, Hippo (AD 392) & Carthage (AD 397).
History of Canonicity The Authority of the words of Christ forms the foundation for all truth (Matt. 7:24; Mk. 13:31; John 6:63; 12:48; 1 Cor. 3:11). However, Christ also invested authority in the Apostles, promising that they would be led into all truth. Thus, the Apostles were viewed to be just as authoritative as the O.T. prophets (John 14:26; 16:13; Eph. 2:20; 2 Peter 3:2).
History of Canonicity An Apostolic body of truth was already recognized by the end of the N.T. era (Acts 2:42; Tit. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:2, 15; 3:6, 14; Jude 3). Though Apostolic writings were often addressed to a particular place and audience (e.g. Ephesus, Corinth, Rome, Asia, Galatia, Cappadocia), they were then commanded to be shared with other churches (Col 4:16; 1 Thess. 5:27).
History of Canonicity These Apostolic writings formed the foundation of the N.T. Two main events, however, served as the catalysts for the subsequent phases of canonization. 1.The Rise of Persecution 2.The Rise of False Prophets
The Rise of Persecution Paradoxically, persecution both aided, and hindered the process of Canonization. Persecution helped in that it forced Christians to think through which writings were authoritative, which were not, and why. Yet persecution hindered the process, because a large, public gathering of Christians, who could collectively recognize the canon, was not possible until persecution quieted down after AD 312.
The Rise of Persecution For decades, Roman emperors had become increasingly concerned with the ragged edges of the Empire and the invading barbarian tribes that harassed them. Decius, from a village near the Danube, at the northern frontier of the Empire, recognized the military dimensions of the problem but perceived some spiritual ones as well. He was concerned that traditional polytheism was weakening, and thought a resurrection of devotion to the deified Roman rulers of the past would help restore Roman strength. Naturally, monotheistic Christians stood in the way. -Galli, M. (1990). The Gallery The Persecuting Emperors. Christian History Magazine-Issue 27: Persecution in the Early Church.
The Rise of Persecution Emperor Decius (AD 249-251) was the first Roman Emperor to persecute Christians on a Empire wide scale. This persecution under Decius targeted Christian writings in particular. He felt that if he could eradicate the Christian Bible, then he could eradicate Christians. Therefore Christians had to decide what books of the Bible were worth dying for. The Gospel of Thomas? The Shepherd of Hermas? Matthew? Romans?
The Rise of False Prophets To the right is a relief picturing Marcion unrolling his Bible (circa AD 100-165). In AD 135, Marcion, a wealthy shipbuilder and son of a Christian bishop from Sinope in the province of Pontus, came to Rome and gave the church a large gift 200,000 sesterces. Almost immediately, Marcion became highly influential in the Roman church. But it soon became obvious that Marcion s theological views differed significantly from those widely held by the Christians not only in Rome but throughout the Mediterranean world. Powell, D. (2006). Holman QuickSource Guide to Christian Apologetics (p. 126). Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.
The Rise of False Prophets Marcion argued that the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament were two different Gods. Where most Christians saw a continuity between the Hebrew Scriptures and the teachings of Jesus and the apostles, Marcion saw irreconcilable discontinuity. For almost a century, Christians had accepted the Hebrew Scriptures as Scripture. Powell, D. (2006). Holman QuickSource Guide to Christian Apologetics (p. 126). Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.
The Rise of False Prophets To challenge this deeply held view that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Hebrew Scriptures, Marcion created his own canon of Scripture that completely excluded the Old Testament and any reference to God as presented in the Old Testament. Marcion s canon included ten of Paul s letters and the Gospel of Luke. But even these were edited to remove elements of Judaism and God who is wrathful and retributive. Powell, D. (2006). Holman QuickSource Guide to Christian Apologetics (pp. 126 127). Nashville, TN: Holman Reference.
The Rise of False Prophets One of the values of Marcion s and other heresies in the second- and third-century churches was that they forced Christians to think through the tradition that had been handed down to them and to reassess the grounds for its truthfulness.
Irenaeus: Against Marcion Irenaeus (c. a.d. 130 200) was born of Greek parents in Asia (modern-day Turkey). In his youth he learned under Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, who had been a disciple of the Apostle John. As a teenager Irenaeus served as a missionary to Gaul (France), where he later filled the office of bishop. Some later Christian authorities indicate that he was martyred during the reign of Septimius Severus. Cabal, T. (2007). Notable Christian Apologist: Irenaeus. In C. O. Brand, E. R. Clendenen, P. Copan, & J. P. Moreland (Eds.), The Apologetics Study Bible: Real Questions, Straight Answers, Stronger Faith (p. 1866). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
Irenaeus: Against Marcion Irenaeus was the most important defender of essential Christian doctrine in the second century. Irenaeus contended with the gnostic leader Marcion. Irenaeus powerfully refuted Marcion by demonstrating the interrelationship of the Testaments. He detailed how the OT accurately predicted the coming of Christ. Moreover, Irenaeus stressed the literal resurrection of Jesus. The Redeemer s physical body is not only not evil but in fact was raised from the dead for our salvation precisely as the OT prophets had predicted. Cabal, T. (2007). Notable Christian Apologist: Irenaeus. In C. O. Brand, E. R. Clendenen, P. Copan, & J. P. Moreland (Eds.), The Apologetics Study Bible: Real Questions, Straight Answers, Stronger Faith (p. 1866). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.
2nd Heresy: Montanism A man named Montanus, who was active during the AD 150 s-170 s, was the other major catalyst for the process of canonization. He taught that Christ and the Apostles were merely intermediary people, which ultimately led to him. He proclaimed himself to be the fulfillment of Jesus promise to send another comforter.
2nd Heresy: Montanism Montanus no longer recognized the four Gospels as authoritative, and he demeaned the writings of the Apostles. He claimed he was given new revelations from God, and he was the new authority to be recognized. His claim to authentication was that at his baptism he experienced something that had not been seen for a generation, he spoke in tongues.
2nd Heresy: Montanism He is reported to have said, I am God Almighty dwelling in man I am neither angel nor envoy; I am the Lord God and Father, and have come to myself. Montanism, named after its founder, became an immensely popular movement that spread throughout the Roman Empire. It later lost momentum and died in the 5th century. Parker, N. T. (2016). Montanus. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
Necessity of a Canon These various events brought the early church to recognize the necessity of a Canon, or a recognized body of writing viewed as authoritative. They understood the need for a Canon so that they could have unity in the face of difficulty. So the early church recognized a number of tests, which could be used to determine the authenticity of a book claiming to be Scripture.
Tests of Canonicity 1.Inspiration: Does the book claim to be inspired, or claim to carry the authority of God? 2.Authorship: Was it written, edited, or endorsed by an accredited agent of God? 3.Genuineness: Can the book be evidenced to have been written when, and by whom it professes to be? Is the evidence credible? eg. it cannot have anachronisms (i.e. historic inaccuracy, like bombers in the American Revolution). 4.Authenticity: Is it true? Is it Historically accurate and verifiable? 5.Testimony: Has it been recognized by Jesus and/or the early church? (eg. Jesus quotes from many O.T. books, but never from Apocrypha).
6.Authority: Does the book expect faith & obedience? ( I charge you by God ) 7.Agreement: Is the book in doctrinal harmony with the rest of the canon? Inspired writings will not contradict each other. Genuine revelation may be progressive, but never contradictory. 8.Fulfillment: Is there evidence of fulfillment of the promises or predictions of the book? 9.Endurance: Did the value of the book diminish over time, or did it speak to later generations? 10.Spirituality: Do the contents of the book promote the high morality of godliness?
Tests of Canonicity Writings that did not pass the tests for canonicity, were not recognized as inspired or authoritative. These other writings became known as Apocrypha, which is a Greek word that means, hidden, because they were excluded from the Canon.
What, Why, & Which This week were learned what Canonization is, & why certain books were considered authoritative, while others were not. Next week we will look at the evidence for which books passed the tests, and which did not.