Why These Twenty Seven Part 1

Why These Twenty-Seven?
The Formation Of The New Testament Canon

A “Lessons To Go” Scripture study
By Mark S. Pavlin

The Bible is the most influential work of literature in
Western civilization and continues, year after year,
to be reprinted and sold more than any other book.

The 27 books that
constitute the New
Testament (NT) are
most important for,
and especially
cherished by
Christians.
Verses of the NT are
memorized, cited to
formulate doctrines
and support theolog-
ical arguments, and
read as a devotion or
meditation

A national treasure: the Library of Congress Gutenberg BibleDid you know? “Bible” is the first word in the NT

A national treasure: the Library of Congress Gutenberg Bible“Bible” just means “book”
Βίβλος γενέσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ υἱοῦ
Δαυιδ υἱοῦ Ἀβραάμ. - Mt.1:1
Biblos geneseos Jesoy Christoy yioy
Dayid yioy Abraam
The book of the generations of Jesus
Christ, son of David, son of Abraham.

✦ “Canon” is from the Greek “κανᾠν“ meaning “a straight rod”,
a ruler, a measuring stick
✦ “Canon law” is a body of official rules
governing faith and practice of a church
(for Methodists, the Book of Discipline)
✦ “Canonize” means to declare that
someone “measures up” to being
especially holy, a saint
✦ The word occurs in Gal. 6:16 - “Peace and
mercy to all who follow this rule”
Canonical books “measure up”
The New Testament, then, is the
collection of texts against which all
other works of Christian theology
doctrine and policy are measured.

A precious gift
Taken together, the 39 {or 47} books of
the Old Testament (OT) and the 27 books
of the New Testament (NT) are a source
of spiritual insight, a touchstone of faith,
a comfort in trials, and a guide for life
The 27 books of the NT are, in particular,
a precious gift passed down to us from
devout Christian men & women over
many centuries
In these books we:
 hear Good News of God’s love for all
 encounter Jesus as human being and
as Messiah (Christ), and
 struggle with his followers as they try to
understand what it means to live in the
Kingdom of which Jesus is Lord.
Page from a manuscript copy (ca. 1400) of the Wycliffe NT. Yes, it’s in English.

 Methodists share with other Christians the conviction that Scripture is
the #1 source and criterion for Christian doctrine;
 We affirm the Bible as the source of all that is "necessary" and
"sufficient" for salvation... and "is to be received through the Holy
Spirit as the true rule and guide for faith and practice".…
 We are aided by scholarly inquiry and personal insight. We take into
account what we have been able to learn about the original context
and intention of that text.
 We draw upon careful historical, literary, and textual studies of recent
years which have enriched our understanding of the Bible.
 Bible texts serve as the baseline criteria by which the truth and fidelity
of any interpretation of faith is measured.
The Bible is THE book
From The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church

 Methodists share with other Christians the conviction that Scripture is
the #1 source and criterion for Christian doctrine;
 We affirm the Bible as the source of all that is "necessary" and
"sufficient" for salvation... and "is to be received through the Holy
Spirit as the true rule and guide for faith and practice".…
 We are aided by scholarly inquiry and personal insight. We take into
account what we have been able to learn about the original context
and intention of that text.
 We draw upon careful historical, literary, and textual studies of recent
years which have enriched our understanding of the Bible.
 Bible texts serve as the baseline criteria by which the truth and fidelity
of any interpretation of faith is measured.
But why?
From The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church
What makes the
books of the
Bible author-
itative?
How was it that
Christians were
able to “add”
27 new sacred
books to the 39
OT ones?

Dictated by God?
Is this what
comes into your
mind when you
think about the
composition of
a NT book?
Dictation by an
angel?
“St. Mark the Evangelist”, from the Rossano
Codex, one of the earliest (6th century)
extant illuminated Gospel manuscripts.

Not seen that way today
Artus Wolffort “The Four Evangelists”
This 2-part study
is an introduction
to what is now
known about the
formation of the
NT canon based
on a vast amount
of scholarly
research and
textural analyses
of scholars over
the last 400 years

✴ Who selected the books for inclusion in the NT canon? Jesus?
Maybe the Apostles? Did a later Church Council take a vote?
✴ If any of the above, when/where did selection take place?
✴What criteria did a book meet to warrant inclusion? Were
other Christian texts written at that time?
✴Was there any disagreement over the selection? How did
heretical groups influence the formation of the canon?
✴ How do we know that only “authoritative” (or “inspired”)
books “made the cut”? What happened to books that missed
the cut?
✴ Are other religious books authoritative (i.e. inspired, holy)?
For example, the Quran or more recent works like The Pilgrim’s
Progress? Why can’t we add books to Scripture?
✴ AND ....
This study will try to answer these questions

... why does the preface to my New International Version
say that it is a
“completely new
translation of the
Holy Bible…
from the best
available…
texts”?
What was
wrong with
older trans-
lations?
And what does
“best available texts” mean?

... how/why these 27 books became the NT Canon?
To inform and assure you...
These 27 books are “the real thing”, having won their place in Scripture
for sound and defensible reasons
Our faith is grounded in history, grounded in what real people saw,
heard, and passed on to us
All Christian thought is “argued”, not just dictated; it is the result of
hard work, discussion, use, and even blood
That you can answer questions posed by
interested non–Christians
That you can understand why
Christians don’t regard other books
no matter how excellent as canonical.
Why is it important to know...

Did you know?
“Scripture” in Greek is γραφε (graphe)
which means "writing", from which we
get the English words
 graphic
 calligraphy (beautiful writing)
 photography (light writing)
 graffiti (via Latin, Italian)
 graphite (mineral used since ca. 1550 in pencils;
the metal lead was never used in making pencils]

 Do all Christian denominations agree which books are sacred texts?
[consider e.g. the books in a Bible used by Roman Catholics com-
pared to those in a Bible used by most Protestants; books consid-
ered authoritative by members of the Church of Jesus Christ LDS,
and those used by followers of Mary Baker Eddy].
 In what sense could a written text possibly be the “word of God”?
How can an English translation of the Bible be authoritative when
the original was in Hebrew or Greek? [Consider that Moslems re-
gard the Quran as definitive only in the original Arabic].
 Can you be a Christian without being able to read the Bible (maybe
you don’t have a copy or maybe you can’t read)?
 If you quote Scripture to someone who is not a Christian, do you expect
them to receive it as authoritative? As meaningful? Why? How might
they instead receive it?
For discussion/home study

“Of making many books there is no end” - Eccl. 12:12
Does it seem
“normal” or
“natural” to
you that
Christians
have a col-
lection of
writings
(Scripture)
regarded as
sacred?

Did all ancient religions have one? Do all of the major
modern faiths have (a) sacred text(s)?
Does it make sense to have a sacred text that only a
few (maybe scribes or priests) can read?
Do many secular ideologies have a foundational text?
(think, e.g. of Communism’s “Das Capital” or Nazism’s
“Mein Kampf.” Cite other examples)
Foundational or inspirational; ancient or modern,
religious or secular... Who wrote them?
Have you ever read any of them? What do you think
of them?
What comes first- the foundational text or the
movement?
Today >50% of Americans have read little of the
Bible. What do non-Christians think of the Bible?
Think about making many books
Does it seem
“normal” or
“natural” to
you that
Christians
have a col-
lection of
writings
(Scripture)
regarded as
sacred? If so,
why?

✦ There are no extant Christian writings until about 20 years after
the execution of Jesus when Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica
✦ In these early years, followers of “The Way” told stories about
Jesus and repeated his sayings, parables, and teachings
✦ The apostle, Paul, after forming small groups of converts in the late
40’s in Greece began writing letters to these “assemblies” (ekklesia)
about AD 50 to encourage them and address problems that arose
✦ Some time later, probably just after the First Jewish Revolt
(AD 70-73), Christian scribes began writing and “publishing” the
the oral traditions about Jesus (proto-gospels); See Lk. 1:1
✦ After this came Christian sermons, teachings, sacred histories
(“acts”), infancy stories, apologies, revelations (“apocalypses”),
martyrologies, anti-heretical tracts, and commentaries;
✦ By the end of the 2nd century, there were probably hundreds of
works in circulation, of great variety and quality.
The “emergence” of Christian writings

1) The first Christians, because they were Jews, were, from the outset
“People of the Book.” This referred to what we now call the “Old
Testament” (OT) but the Jewish people called Torah or “the Prophets”
2) Christians wanted to spread the Good News by all means, to convince
others that Jesus is Lord and defend to defend their practices
3) The very success of the spread of “The Way” (and the tragic failure of
the Jewish Revolt*) insured that 2nd generation Christians included
Greek and Roman Gentiles
4) Enough Christians were literate in Greek that reading aloud Gospels,
letters, and other writings to others was possible
5) Copying and disseminating a text was difficult, expensive, and
time-consuming, but was an effort of love and service
6) There were lots of Christian writings circulating about the Roman
world in the 2nd–3rd centuries, of all genres.
Why were Christians bookish?
* More about this tragedy in later slides

Do you have a clue as to
how the books of the NT
got into the canon?

In fact, glue is part of the story...
because before we can talk
about THE Book we have to talk
about books in general as they
were written and “published” in
the 1st century AD.

Take a close look at a modern Bible
 Stacked pages, edge-bound (codex)
 Printed (lithography) - - on paper
 In (modern) English
 “Published” means thousands of
copies distributed widely
 Every copy (of one edition) is
identical to every other copy
 Includes verse and chapter #, book
titles, section headings, cross-
references, footnotes, illustrations,
maps, tables and other helps.
 One bound NT contains 27 books
and every volume contains the
same 27 books (the canon)

 Scroll – continuous roll made by
gluing pages edge to edge
 Hand-written (manuscript)
 On papyrus (leather, parchment)
 In Greek (Koine, common)
 “Published” - original (autograph)
circulated, others copied it
 Each copy was different (errors,
smudges, annotations, etc.)
 No markings of any kind – no titles,
no verse numbers, not even spaces
between words; some coloration of
letters (illumination) added later
 One scroll contained one book
 One person’s collection likely
contained only a handful of books
 Stacked pages, edge-bound (codex)
 Printed (lithography) - - on paper
 In (modern) English
 “Published” means thousands of
copies distributed widely
 Every copy (of one edition) is
identical to every other copy
 Includes verse and chapter #, book
titles, section headings, cross-
references, footnotes, illustrations,
maps, tables and other helps.
 One bound NT contains 27 books
and every volume contains the
same 27 books (the canon)
Compare that to a book of the 1st century AD

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this on a scroll as something to be
remembered... - Ex. 17:149
Write this!
If you give the scroll to
someone who cannot
read, and say, “Read this,
please,” they will answer,
“I don’t know how to
read.” - Is. 29:12
“Yes,” Baruch replied,
“he dictated all these
words to me, and I wrote
them in ink on the
scroll.” - Jer. 36:18
“Oh, that my words were recorded, that they were written on a scroll...
– Job 19:23

 Texts were written on papyrus, a medium resembling paper (and from
which we derive the word “paper”) made from thin-cut reed strips
layered, beaten, then smoothed
Papyrus was better than nothing
Inks were made by
dispersing common
lampblack (soot) in a
solution of animal glue
in water or in olive oil.
 Papyrus was brittle, hard to
write on, impermanent
(especially in wet climates),
expensive, and could not be
folded (would tear), but could
be rolled up- in the form
called a book roll or scroll.

 Texts were written on papyrus, a medium resembling paper (and from
which we derive the word “paper”) made from thin-cut reed strips
layered, beaten, then smoothed
Papyrus was better than nothing
 Papyrus was brittle, hard to
write on, impermanent
(especially in wet climates),
expensive, and could not be
folded (would tear), but could
be rolled up- in the form
called a book roll or scroll.
 Standard lengths of papyrus allowed
one to write about 20 “pages” of text;
to make a longer book, one had to glue
two standard strips end-to-end
 The scroll form made locating a
specific passage very awkward.

Scroll, scroll, scroll your book
... γράψον εἰς βιβλίον
...graphon eis biblion
Write what you see in a book and
send it to the seven churches...
Literate Christian scribes of the 1st century AD wrote to other assemblies
just as did everyone else – on scrolls (books) as mentioned...
... in Jn. 21:25:
...γραφόμενα βιβλία.
...graphonena biblia
Jesus did many other things. If
every one... were written.. the
whole world would not have
room for the books....
...and Rev. 1:11:

Scroll, scroll, scroll your book
 If handled regularly and roughly, a letter would wear out quickly.
 That a document written on papyrus degraded was not an issue for
documents that served a purpose and could then be discarded
 Documents like personal letters, orders to soldiers, ship manifests,
building plans and notes and official proclamations.
 Even if rolled up and placed in a cabinet or on a storage shelf (as in a
library) a scroll would remain intact for only 20-25 years since, like
many a cheap paperback today, papyrus oxidized in contact with air.

“The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up”
 If handled regularly and roughly, a letter would wear out quickly.
 That a document written on papyrus degraded was not an issue for
documents that served a purpose and could then be discarded
 Documents like personal letters, orders to soldiers, ship manifests,
building plans and notes and official proclamations.
 Even if rolled up and placed in a cabinet or on a storage shelf (as in a
library) a scroll would remain intact for only 20-25 years since, like
many a cheap paperback today, papyrus oxidized in contact with air.
 And so, books thought especially “worthy” by
Christians were the ones re-copied by Christian
scribes and shared with other churches; those
were the texts that survived into the next century.
 Books judged “worthy” and/or “useful” therefore had to be copied
over again if the owner wanted to preserve them; a costly effort
for a large collection of books!
- Rev. 6:14

✦ Commercial documents (e.g. bills of sale, inventories) were vital to trade
but were not needed for long periods of time (not archived)
✦ Books of value were copied by hand- which took 2-3 days, a rate increased
by dictation to multiple scribes; books were “issued” by sending out copies
by messenger to buyers
✦ A few libraries existed but
they did not lend out books
✦ Much Greek and Roman
literature survived, is still
read today in modern
translation (Aristotle, Ovid
Marcus Aurelius, etc.)
✦ Extant manuscripts from
ages past are (obviously)
irreplaceable, rare, and,
extremely valuable.
How did they publish a book?
The Library of Alexandria employed thousands of
scribes. City officials confiscated books from travel-
ers and copied them, keeping the originals, return-
ing the copies; they traded copies with merchants.

Since papyrus was expensive, scribes would practice writing or take notes
on a re-usable tablet made by applying a thick layer of wax to a board.
Say, for example, that an official needs to write a letter by dictation to a
scribe whose job it is to prepare a clean, neat original on papyrus and a
faithful copy for the official’s records.
 First, the scribe jotted down the dictation
on his wax tablet, scratching on the
surface with a metal stylus
 He then transcribed the text carefully
onto papyrus and maked a 2nd copy.
 Done with the draft version on the
tablet, he then melted the wax, perhaps
over a pan of hot water.
 When cooled, the tablet surface re-
hardened; it was then ready to use again.
Wax on, wax off
Greeks ca. 800 BC were using such boards

 Around the middle 2nd century, Christians began compiling texts written on
parchment into a new form: the codex (pl. codices).
 Parchment was made from limed animal skins. Though very expensive, it
was smoother and less fragile than papyrus, accepted text on both sides,
and could be folded. (N.B. higher-quality parchment is called vellum)
 A verse in the Epistle of Second Timothy might refer to a codex and is,
therefore, strong support for a very late dating of its writing.
The codex as technical innovation
When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas,
and my scrolls, especially the parchments. - 2Ti. 4:13

Codex  Modern book  Digital display
By the 4th century the scroll was
replaced everywhere by the codex.
Only when Kindle, iPad, cell phone
and other digital displays emerged
in the 21st century did this book
form face serious competition.
Name some of the features unique to
a digital bible that make this form so
useful that it is rapidly making the
codex form obsolete.
Answers: searches/versions/highlights/notes

The Saint John’s Bible
Very few completely handwritten, hand illuminated Bibles have been produced since the
invention of the printing press. Most recent is the St. John’s Bible commissioned by the Hill
Museum & Manuscript Library, St. John's University, Collegeville, MN, completed in 2011.

It consists of 7 volumes, is 2 ft. tall/3 ft. wide when opened, written on vellum, and contains
160 original illuminations. British calligrapher Donald Jackson was the artistic director.

What languages did people speak in Jesus’ day?
IESVS NAZARENVS REX IVDÆORVM
Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened
to the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth the
King of the Jews.” Many of the Jews read this
sign for the place where Jesus was crucified was
near the city and the sign was written in Aramaic,
Latin, and Greek.
- Jn. 19:19-20
All the lands that bordered the Mediterranean Sea and regions inland
that are now Spain, France, and Italy were controlled by the Romans so
Latin was the language of many.
But the major cultural influence since the time of Alexander the Great
(ca. 330 BC) was Greek, so Greek was the region’s “lingua franca.”
Aramaic was the native tongue of Jewish people, so this was
the language Jesus spoke.

Were people in Jesus’ day literate?

When they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived
that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished.
– Acts 4:13

When they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived
that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished.
– Acts 4:13
Over the last 2,000 years until modern times, no more than 10-15%
of people were literate, fewer in rural areas; not farmers, not
fisherman, not common laborers. Almost no women were literate.
Most of Jesus’ followers, then, could not read or write. But not all:
perhaps an exception was Matthew. Since he was a tax collector he
might have been educated.

✦ Paul, certainly, was literate – READ 2Thes. 3:17
✦ Christians who could read were tasked to read letters out loud for
those who could not; this began a practice lay Lectors) carry out in
worship services to this day - READ Col. 4:16 & 1Thes. 5:27
✦ But only literate persons with additional training could read text
fluently enough to be public readers.
Were early Christians literate?
I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. This is the sign of
genuineness in every letter of mine; it is the way I write. The grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. – 2Thes. 3:17-18
Give my greetings to the brethren at Laodicea... When this letter has
been read among you, have it read in the church of the Laodiceans.
See that you also read the letter from Laodicea. – Col. 4:15-16
Greet all the brethren... I put you under oath before the Lord to
have this letter read to all the brethren. – 1Th. 5:27

{Jesus} came to Nazareth... As was his custom, he
went to the synagogue on the Sabbath and he
stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah
was given to him... - Lk. 4:16-17
Sidebar: Was Jesus literate?
Was Jesus literate?
One passage suggests that he could
at least read (Lk. 4:16-21), although
writing was another skill altogether.

{Jesus} came to Nazareth... As was his custom, he
went to the synagogue on the Sabbath and he
stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah
was given to him... - Lk. 4:16-17
This passage does not settle the question - there are difficulties with it were it
taken at face value. The text as recorded in Luke is taken from the Greek
version, the Septuagint, not the scripture in Hebrew. Even if Jesus were literate,
his native language was Aramaic, not Greek. A text in Hebrew is also unlikely
since very few scribes in his day knew Hebrew. However, in this multi-cultural
society, Jesus probably knew a smattering of Greek and Latin at the very least.
Sidebar: Was Jesus literate?
Was Jesus literate?
One passage suggests that he could
at least read (Lk. 4:16-21), although
writing was another skill altogether.

”Pay attention to what has been written so that you may save
yourselves and the one who is your reader.” - 2Clem. 19:1
Clement, Bishop of Rome, writing in the early 2nd century and Justin
Martyr, writing in the mid 2nd century, attest to literacy among Christians:
Were early Christians literate?
”On the day called Sunday, all who live in the
cities or in the country gather together to one
place and the memoirs of the apostles or the
writings of the prophets are read as long as
time permits.” - 1Apol. 67
What did early Christians
have available to read?
(other than the books later
to become part of the NT)

“Both you and Ignatius have written me that if anyone is traveling to
Syria, he should also take along {a copy of} your letters.
This I will do, either myself or the one whom I will send as a
representative on your behalf and ours.
We are sending you {a copy of} the letters of Ignatius that were sent to
us by him together with any others that we have in our possession, just
as you requested.
You will receive great benefit from them, for they deal with faith and
patient endurance and every kind of spiritual growth that has to do with
our Lord.”
- Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna,
Letter to the Philippians (c. 137 AD)
Please, Mr. Postman, look and see-
is there a letter in your bag for me?

Letters attributed to St. Paul -- Lodiceans, 3rd Corinthians
Letters from Ignatius -- Seneca, Magnesians
Church Orders (Teachings) -- The Teachings of the Twelve Apostles (The
Didache)
Apocalypses -- The Shepherd of Hermas
Works of the 2nd-3rd centuries (judged to be orthodox)
Defenses of the Faith -- Justin Martyr, Diognetus,
Martyrologies -- Martydom of Polycarp, The
Persecutions at Lyon and Vienne
Anti-Heretical Tracts - Epistle of Barnabas,
Irenaeus “Against Heresies”
Gospel Harmonies -- Diatessaron of Taitian
Commentaries -- Heracleon, Tertullian, Origen,
Jerome

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that
have been fulfilled among us…. - Lk. 1:1
+ GOSPELS (Narratives of the life of Jesus) -all or parts of 17 are extant:
of Peter of Mary of the Ebionites
of Philip of James of the Egyptians
of Thomas of the Nazareans
of Truth of the Hebrews
secret gospel of Mark
+ ACTS (Historical):
Acts of John Acts of Paul
Acts of Thecla Acts of Peter
Acts of Thomas
+ REVELATIONS (Apocalypses):
of Peter of Paul
Works of the 2nd-3rd centuries (suspected to be heterodox)
Complete texts of most early church writings are
available online at www.earlychristianwritings.com

You say you can read?
Early Greek manu-
scripts were written
“scriptuo continua”;
i.e. in block capital
letters (uncial) with-
out spacing, punctu-
ation, capitalization
or verse markings.

For fun: do you recognize this text?
ANDBOTHTHATMORNINGEQUALLYLAYINLE
AVESNOSTEPHADTRODDENBLACKOHIKEP
TTHEFIRSTFORANOTHERDAYYETKNOWING
HOWWAYLEADSONTOWAYIDOUBTEDIFISHO
ULDEVERCOMEBACKISHALLBETELLINGTHI
SWITHASIGHSOMEWHEREAGESANDAGESH
ENCETWOROADSDIVERGEDINAWOODANDII
TOOKTHEONELESSTRAVELEDBYANDTHAT
HASMADEALLTHEDIFFERENCE
Try reading this example of scriptuo continua (it’s in English).
This text is printed “normally” on the following slide.....

The Road Not Taken
by Robert Frost (portion)
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads onto way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

How might you strengthen your
spiritual life through writing?
 spiritual diary, theological
insights
 formal prayers, poetry
 prayer requests/responses
 letters to members of your
church community
 notes of encouragement to
those in need
Life Application
Is there special value in writing your
thoughts, prayers, and insights
by hand and on paper?

How can you study what happened in the past?
If ancient texts are not available (not extant or never written)
then it is like trying to focus on an object through a cloud.
Sci-fi stories aside, we cannot look either for-
ward in time to know what will happen or
backward in time to know what did happen.
What happened in the world at times
before the modern era?
The best we can do is to look through
the “window” of old writings.

 “History” is what one culture says happened in the past to another
culture based on fragmentary information from archeological finds,
extant literature, and ethnobiology*
 Much is not known, much is uncertain, much is based on
speculation (at best, reasoned). Scholarly work is always on-going
 What we known of the process of the formation of the NT is of this
sort – it was a “messy” process largely ignored by the dominant Greco-
Roman culture and therefore undocumented until about 300 years
after its founder’s death
 Christians believe the process was a spiritual work of the Holy Spirit
 But the secular discipline of history today must adhere to standards
which disallow assigning responsibility for an event to the guiding
influence of a supernatural, divine or other-dimensional entity.
“History” is a secular work
* Since the 19th century, additional evidence is provided by photographs, video and
audio recordings, and, now, by all manner of digital data from measuring instruments.
“What we known of the process of the formation of the NT is of this
sort – it was a “messy” process largely ignored by the dominant Greco-
Roman culture and therefore undocumented until about 300 years
after its founder’s death

History is a funny thing
The first extensive, ordered, detailed and supported
history of the development of Christianity was written
by Eusebius, Bishop of Caesarea (completed AD 326).
He had access to the extensive library left to the city by
the theologian Origen.
He also made use of ecclesiastical documents, acts of
the martyrs, letters, extracts from earlier Christian
writings, lists of bishops, and similar sources.
He frequently quoted these at length so that his work
preserved writings now lost in any other form.
What follows is a summary of the development of the canon
over about the first 200 years of Christian history, starting with
what is told to us in the NT Book of Acts.

According to the Book of Acts, Christianity started...
...following the empowerment by the Holy Spirit of the Apostles on the
day of Pentecost, the Twelve began preaching in/around Jerusalem.
Converts go home to their own countries, bearing the “good
news”. They meet regularly for prayer in local “house-churches.”

• In the first two decades after this Pentecost event, (ca. 30-50 AD), converts
to “The Way” were Jews; they acknowledged Jesus as Lord and Messiah but
did not hold to a separate religion called “Christianity”
• There is persecution by Jewish leaders in Jerusalem- James and Stephan
suffer martyrdom; some Apostles travel to other countries as missionaries.
• Persecutor Saul converts to Apostle Paul; goes into “Arabia” to pray and
study, begins an aggressive series of missionary journeys, converting many
Gentiles to “The Way”.
• Paul meets in Jerusalem with the Apostles and all agree on a course of
action, a set of guidelines.
• Paul is arrested but gets an all-expenses paid trip to Rome where he
continues his ministry. The Gospel spreads rapidly to all nations.
• Converts are joyously all of one accord (read Jude 2-4) as they eagerly
expect the return of Jesus (parousia).
The “primitive” church was unified

• In the first two decades after this Pentecost event, (ca. 30-50 AD), converts
to “The Way” were Jews; they acknowledged Jesus as Lord and Messiah but
did not hold to a separate religion called “Christianity”
• There is persecution by Jewish leaders in Jerusalem- James and Stephan
suffer martyrdom; some Apostles travel to other countries as missionaries.
• Persecutor Saul converts to Apostle Paul; goes into “Arabia” to pray and
study, begins an aggressive series of missionary journeys, converting many
Gentiles to “The Way”.
• Paul meets in Jerusalem with the Apostles and all agree on a course of
action, a set of guidelines.
• Paul is arrested but gets an all-expenses paid trip to Rome where he
continues his ministry. The Gospel spreads rapidly to all nations.
• Converts are joyously all of one accord (read Jude 2-4) as they eagerly
expect the return of Jesus (parousia).
The “primitive” church was unified
Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common
salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the
faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain people have
crept in unnoticed... who pervert the grace of our God... - Jude 2-4

BUT... is Acts an accurate historical account of early Christianity? We cannot
look through the cloud to learn more because there is no earlier historical account.
Modern scholarly consensus is that Acts is not history in the modern sense.
• For about 50 years, remembered sayings of Jesus and events in his life are
recounted by followers of “The Way” and carried by disciples (“prophets”)
as far as Rome.
Maybe not: tradition is not the same as history
• The importance of the Apostles is
unclear (Peter likely was prominent).
• With the exception of the genuine
Pauline epistles, no written doc-
uments survive from these years.
• As far as historians can tell, the main
(perhaps the sole) means of telling
the story of Jesus was word-of-
mouth, i.e. oral transmission.

• Repeated at house-churches and taught
to new converts, this tradition, which is
by its nature impossible to preserve and
transmit in one fixed form, grows, spreads
and diverges
• There is diversity rather than uniformity
in how early followers come to under-
stand Jesus, first among Jewish, but
especially among Greek (and, later,
Roman) converts.
Maybe not: tradition is not the same as history
But... is Acts an accurate historical account of early Christianity? We cannot
look through the cloud to learn more because there is no earlier historical account.
Modern scholarly consensus is that Acts is not history in the modern sense.
• For about 50 years, remembered sayings of Jesus and events in his life are
recounted by followers of “The Way” and carried by disciples (“prophets”)
as far as Rome.

Questions - even quarrels - arose among these different groups of Believers -
See Acts 6:1 and 1Cor.1:11-13
“Dear Church in __X__.... Sincerely, Paul”
When the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by
the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows
were being neglected in the daily distribution.. - Acts 6:1
My brothers and sisters, some
of Chloe’s household have in-
formed me that there are
quarrels among you. What I
mean is, one of you says, “I
follow Paul”; another, “I
follow Apollos”; another, “I
follow Cephas”; another, “I
follow Christ.”... 1Cor. 1:11-13

 Converts, most of them not formally missionaries, spread the “good news”
to cities throughout the Empire, particularly in Asia Minor, Egypt and Greece
 Starting around AD 50, Paul wrote letters (epistole) to “assemblies” of new
Christians meeting in houses, most to those he started (not Romans)
 He addressed questions, taught and admonished, encouraging growth in
the faith. These Pauline epistles were in no way doctrinally systematic
 But Paul did begin a long process of interpreting the significance of Jesus’
deeds, mainly for Gentiles, which accounts for its decidedly “Greek” tone
 Paul’s letters themselves suggest that he dictated them to a scribe, even
though he was literate [see Rom. 16:22]. Other evidence suggests that he
wrote more letters than the ones in the NT.
“Dear Church in __X__.... Sincerely, Paul”
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. Timothy my co-worker sends his
greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews. I, Tertius,
who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord. - Rom. 16:22-24

The most contentious issue
When Cephas came to Antioch, I
opposed him to his face, because he
stood condemned.... he used to eat with
the Gentiles. But... he began to draw
back and separate himself from the
Gentiles because he was afraid of those
who belonged to the circumcision
group. ...even Barnabas was led
astray. When I saw that they were not
acting in line with the truth of the
gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them
all, “... How is it, then, that you force
Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?”
Paul’s letters tell us that the “big question” of his day was
not the nature of God or of Jesus Christ, but one concern-
ing the Gentile converts – must they become Jews to be
genuine followers of Jesus? See Gal. 2:11-14

Then some of the believers who
belonged to the party of the
Pharisees stood up and said, “The
Gentiles must be circumcised and
required to keep the law of Moses.”
The apostles and elders met to
consider this question.
After much discussion.... When they
finished, James * spoke up....
Naturally, Jerusalem was seen as the center of this new “Way” – so,
naturally, the first meeting of Christian leaders was held there (Acts 15).
*Despite what you might otherwise expect, an Apostle was not in charge.
The Head of the early church was James, the brother of Jesus.
The most contentious issue

Cornelius Tacitus (56–117), senator/historian whose major surviving
works are the Annals and the Histories, examined the reigns of the
Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, and Nero; from the death of Augustus
(AD 14) to the death of Domitian (AD 96).
In AD 65, Nero kills Peter and Paul as part of his campaign to blame
Christians for the catastrophic city fire he set (it was apparently his idea
of urban renewal) that burned two-thirds of Rome the prior year.
Tragedy in Rome: AD 65
“.... all the lavish gifts of the emperor... did not banish
the sinister belief that the great fire was the result of
{Nero’s} order.
To get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and in-
flicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated by
the populace for their abominations, the Chrestians."

“Christus...suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands
of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, but a mischievous superstition... broke
out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome...
Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their
information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of
firing the city, as of hatred against mankind.”

Henryk Siemiradzki “Nero’s Torches” 1877
Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths... they were torn by
dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the
flames and burnt to serve as a nightly illumination. - Annals, 15.44

Tragedy in Jerusalem: AD 70
In AD 70, a Roman army crushed a
Jewish revolt and razed Jerusalem; its
people became refugees and many
Christians fled to other territories.

The consequences of the tragedy
What happened to the Temple that Jesus loved, in which Jesus walked
and taught? The Romans stripped it of any vessels and ornaments
made of gold or silver, burned it to ashes and shattered its stone walls.
It was never rebuilt.
The effect of this war and the destruction of the Temple on the
development of Judaism and Christianity can scarcely be exaggerated
The historian Flavius Josephus in his AD 78 work, The Jewish Wars,
stated that a million people died many from illnesses and hunger.
Apocalyptic hopes go unfulfilled when Messiah fails to save Israel;
Christians are disappointed when Jesus fails to return.
Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come,
scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is
this ‘coming’ he promised? ...Everything goes on as it has since the
beginning of creation.” - 2Pe. 3:3-4

The humiliation of the Jews
This is a Roman coin minted following the suppression of the Jewish
uprising of AD 66-70 and distributed throughout the Empire to warn
others of the folly of such rebellious activity shows a bound Jewish
man and a weeping Jewish woman as “Judea Captured”.

After AD 70
Even before the Jewish revolt, many 1st generation Christ-followers passed
away but not before they passed on stories and sayings of Jesus to their
children and to new (younger) converts.
*House churches. Our word “church” derives from the Middle English “chirche”
similar to German “Kirche.” It comes from the Greek “kyriakon” which should be
familiar to you from the phrase “kyrie eleison.” Lord have mercy.” A church,
then, means at its root, “{those} of the Lord.”
Because Jesus did not return from heaven to overthrow the Romans, expect-
ation of his sudden appearance receded for these 2nd-generation believers.
Assemblies* began to organize “for the long haul.” This prompted
preserving what was passed on to them but now in written form.
Christians did not take part in the Revolt. Though still revering the OT,
they distanced themselves from their Jewish faith and practice and
accommodated “The Way” to the requirements of peoples immersed in
Greco-Roman culture.

 Christianity, at first a sect of Judaism, is, by the start of the 2nd century,
increasingly Non-Jewish and Greco-Roman (Coptic, Syrian, Armenian)
 New Christians are taken into full participation in the assemblies (ecclesia)
by baptism without first becoming Jews
 What was once a rift widens into hostile schism as the majority of Jews
do not embrace the new “Way”, rejecting Jesus as Messiah
 Jewish scholars meet to set their own canon of Scripture, what Christians
refer to as the OT
An often bitter parting of the ways
By the middle of the century, writings like Justin Martyr’s Dialog with Typho
showed open hostility between the old and new faiths.
Compare the favorable citation of Jewish prophecy in the Gospel of Matthew
with harsh condemnation of “the Jews” in the Gospel of John.
The Letter of Barnabas, written ca. AD 130, declares that God rejected the
Jews when they failed Him after the Exodus and interpreted Scriptures in
imaginative ways so that everything in Torah actually taught about Jesus.

AD 60-250 Rome tolerates many religions, including
Christianity. But some Christians are suspected of
being not being quite loyal to Caesar and maybe
conducting Immoral rituals in secret.
Some arrests and executions occur but there are no
coordinated state-sponsored drives to eliminate the
new faith.
Sporadic persecution

AD 250-260 Emperors Decius and Valerian require
everyone (except Jews) to perform a sacrifice to the
gods in the presence of a magistrate and and obtain
a signed, witnessed certificate (a libellus, right).
Sporadic persecution
The decree was intended to restore traditional Roman
values; Christians were not specifically targeted.
AD 261 Valerian's son Gallienus revoked the decree.
AD 60-250 Rome tolerates many religions, including
Christianity. But some Christians are suspected of
being not being quite loyal to Caesar and maybe
conducting Immoral rituals in secret.
Some arrests and executions occur but there are no
coordinated state-sponsored drives to eliminate the
new faith.

Persecution!
AD 303-311 When Diocletian retires, his designated
successor, Galerius, began an aggressive and cruel
purge of “atheists”.
When the Imperial police demanded that known Christians
surrender their “holy books”, some turned over suspected
heretical weitings while hiding the most treasured texts,
e.g. a Gospel or a letter of Paul.
Household shrine, Herculenum, Italy. The absence of figurines
of the Emperor, Roman gods or heroes would signal that the
family that occupied the house was Christian.
AD 285-303 Emperor Diocletian wanted to unify the Empire by returning
people to cultic observances that honor the Roman gods.
He did not persecute Christians but, instead, gradually applied pressure,
first removing them from the army, then from positions of responsibility.
He ordered that Christian buildings and books are to be destroyed.

Persecution!
Christian leaders were arrested. Some Christians hid, some commit
apostasy or buy a pardon, some are spared by sympathetic local
officials or are forgotten amid political chaos. Some are executed.
Constantinus, procounsel in Iberia, refuses to par-
ticipate and his son, Constantine, restores rights
and property to Christians living there in AD 306.

• In spring of 311, Emperor Galerius suddenly becomes seriously ill
• He is convinced by advisors that his illness is Divine punishment due to
his cruel persecution of Christians;
• He writes an “Edict of Toleration” (box) and immediately suspends the
persecution
• Christians en masse are freed from prisons all over the portions of the
Empire under Galerius’ control.
Is there such a thing as a miraculous Illness?
...We therefore, with our accustomed clemency in extending pardon to all are
please to grant indulgence... Allowing Christians the right to exist again and to set
up place of worship provided always that they do not offend public order...

• In spring of 311, Emperor Galerius suddenly becomes seriously ill
• He is convinced by advisors that his illness is Divine punishment due to
his cruel persecution of Christians;
• He writes an “Edict of Toleration” (box) and immediately suspends the
persecution
• Christians en masse are freed from prisons all over the portions of the
Empire under Galerius’ control.
...We therefore, with our accustomed clemency in extending pardon to all are
please to grant indulgence... Allowing Christians the right to exist again and to set
up place of worship provided always that they do not offend public order...
Is there such a thing as a miraculous Illness?
Happy ending for Christians, but not for the Emperor who
died five days later. Just one year later, the fate of the
Christian Church is decided by the outcome of a great battle...
In return... It will be the duty of Christians to pray to God for our recovery for the
public welfare and for their own that the State may be preserved from danger...

The Battle of the Milvian Bridge (AD 312) influenced the spread of Christianity
more than any other military contest in history. Three Emperors ruled - two
fought for control of Rome; Constantine & Maximius...
Decisive battle for Christianity

In this sign, victory!
 Constantine has a vision before the battle; he is to put this ()
symbol on his soldiers’ standards and shields;
 He does so and wins a decisive victory after Maximius drowns in
a valiant last stand
 Constantine negotiates a peace with the other Emperor, Licinius, at Milan
and then issues the famous “Edict” outlawing the persecution of Christians
 Christianity goes from a minor (despised) sect to a free and favored
religion at the stroke of a stylus.
Christianity
becomes the
official religion
of the Roman
Empire under
Emperor
Theodosius
(379-395)

Edict of Milan (excerpts)
 “…it is right that Christians and all others should have freedom to follow
the kind of religion they favor.
 … all who choose to be Christians are permitted to do so without let or
hindrance and are not to be troubled or molested in any way.
 “At the same time all others
are to be allowed the free
and unrestricted practice of
their religion…
 …each should worship God
after his own choice; we do
not intend to detract from
the honor due to any
religion or its followers”.

*The antagonist in the 2000 movie
“Gladiator” starring Russell Crowe.
Imagine you are a catechumen preparing for baptism in the first
year of the reign of Emperor Commodus*(AD 180).
You live in Carthage with
parents who are Christians,
as were their parents, who
turn away from the pagan
creed of from Mithraism
many years ago after hearing
and believing the Gospel
from an itinerant “prophet.”
Which texts are holy?

You received a good education so you are literate in Greek and Latin and
know that many philosophical and religious texts are circulating in the city.
Byzantine baptismal
font, The Bardo
Museum, Tunisia
He replies, writing
out a list of books
that he knows are
those the churches
in Rome, Antioch,
and Alexandria all
revere as Spirit-
filled and approved
for reading in the
public services.
Which texts are true?
You ask your Bishop which are best to read to help in your preparations
and which are heretical.

Something like this scenario may have been
the origin for the earliest extant proto-
orthodox listing of approved NT books, the
list we now call the Muratorian Canon*.
The earliest canon
*More about this important and fascinating list of books on a later slide.

What Do You Think?
Should you accept this list as true? Is your
bishop certain these books are a complete
list? If so, did someone in Antioch approve
them? Or a Council? If so when? What
books did he exclude?
The earliest canon
*More about this important and fascinating list of books on a later slide.
You probably don’t know its origin but as
a new Christian you trust your superiors.
To you, from now on, it is Scripture.

Early Christian churches read from and
prized many writings, as we do today.
But gradually, over a period of about
300 years, the Church, as a whole,
came to accept as sacred and canonical
those writings generally regarded as
“old” (dating from the “apostolic age”),
In brief, it was:
 Old
 Apostolic
 Orthodox
 Used Widely
Did you know? No official group voted on whether or not a
text should be admitted into the NT. Not until the Council
of Trent (ca. 1560) did an official Church body ratify the 27
books of the NT we know today as canonical.
written by an Apostle or the close companion of an
Apostle, trustworthy (orthodox), and used in worship
services just about everywhere (“universal” or “catholic”).
Why did a book “make the NT cut”?

Can there be any doubt that if we had something Jesus himself
wrote, that this would be authoritative?
While there is no tradition that Jesus wrote anything, his sayings,
parables and teachings were cherished in the hearts of his followers,
shared orally with family members and new converts for many years
before anyone committed any to papyrus.
Followers cited the words of Jesus as authoritative very soon after
the Resurrection, as they would OT passages
An example of oral tradition in the NT is Acts 20:34-35:
In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work
we must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus
himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' (this saying
does not appear in any of the four canonical gospels)
Which author is authoritative?

Soon, the words of the Apostles, close companions and chosen disciples of
Jesus, and Paul, the 13th Apostle (as it were) are also
taken as authoritative.
There must be four Gospels
Four 1st century narratives (gospels) received wide acceptance as works
by or closely connected to Apostles Matthew, Peter (Mark), Paul (Luke)
and John.
It is not possible that the Gospels can be
either more or fewer in number than
they are. For there are four zones of the
world in which we live and four principal
winds.
The Church is scattered throughout all
the world and the pillar and ground of
the Church is the Gospel. Therefore, it is
fitting that she should have four pillars...
- Irenaeus (ca. AD 180)

Although Mark was not an Apostle, his work is apostolic
“Mark, having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately
whatsoever he remembered. It was not, however, in exact order, for he
neither heard the Lord nor accompanied Him.”
Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis wrote this ca. AD 130 when he completed his
five-book study, “Interpretations of the Sayings of the Lord” (now lost).
He claimed he learned all he could
from interviewing any follower of an
Apostle that he met, not trusting in
writings:
“For I considered that I should not
get as much advantage from matter
in books as from the voice which
yet lives and remains.”

Pop Quiz
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Man
Lion
Ox
Eagle
What symbolic
figures represent
the four evangelists?
What is the source
of these icons?

As I looked... came the likeness of four living creatures... Each of the four had the
face of a human being, and on the right side each had the face of a lion, and on
the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an eagle. - Ez. 1:4-10
Abraham Bloemaert, ca. 1615, Princeton University Art Museum

Paul was not one of the “Twelve” chosen by Jesus to be
an Apostle, in fact, he never met and probably never
even saw Jesus.
Paul was not of the Twelve yet his work is apostolic
He gave himself the title “Apostle to the Gentiles” as a
result of a vision of the Risen Jesus; Christians since
acknowledged the title out of respect.
So how did he receive instruction in the faith? Answer:
from others.
And he in turn repeated what was told to him that
Jesus said.
For I received from the Lord what I also passed
on to you; that the Lord Jesus, on the night he
was betrayed…” - 1Co. 11:23-25
“That” in Greek is like using quotation marks. The word marks material that
is directly cited. This text, then, is a tradition summary formula. And notice
that Paul does not say, “It is written.”

“Received from the Lord” We don’t know what Paul meant but it could
be that his Christian instructor told him that it came from Jesus.
“Passed on” (or “handed on” , “delivered”)…like a baton in a relay race;
this is the essence of tradition (Latin for “hand over”).
The NT, then, is the written embodiment of that which was passed on
from the first Christian generation to those who came after them.
Pass it on

 Following the failed Jewish revolt and the destruction of the Temple in
AD 70, Christians began to organize as distinctive religious entities.
 This distinctive, i.e. non-Jewish, faith gained adherents at a rate of
roughly 4%/yr. These new Christians were given instructions based on the
sayings of and the stories about Jesus that were “passed on.” Stories
about Mary, Peter, Paul and other “saints” also circulated.
 Literate men in the various communities were tasked with preserving all
of these sayings, instructions and stories in a written form.
 The “cloud of history” obscured where/how/when it happened. “First
editions” (autographs) do not exist; extant copies aren’t signed or dated.
 Scholars have reconstructed one early text they call “the Source”
(“Quelle”, or “Q”) consisting of the shared verses found in the Gospels
of Luke and Matthew but not derived from the Gospel of Mark.
 Other letters, “acts”, “revelations”, and martyrologies were penned in the
first half of the 2nd century by men now referred to as “Apostolic Fathers”
The Age of the Apostles passed into story

Author Written Title of Work Description
Clement of Rome 100-120 1st & 2nd Letters Third successor to Peter as
Bishop of Rome
Justin Martyr 150-160 First Apology, Second Apology,
Dialogue with Trypho the Jew
Founded a Christian school
in Rome,
Polycarp ca. 125
155
Letter to the Philippians
Martyrdom of Polycarp
Bishop of Smyrna
Written by an eyewitness
Papias ca. 110-120 Exposition of the Sayings of
Jesus (now lost) – first such
collection
Only extant writings are in
quotes from others writers
Hermas ca. 150 The Shepherd – an “apocalypse”
that was very popular
Far and away the longest book of
all early Christian writings
Ignatius of Antioch 107 Seven epistles - exhortations He wrote these on his way
to Rome to be martyred
Unknown 100? The Didache or Teachings of the
Twelve Apostles
Ethical teachings and church
manual (Baptism, Eucharist, and
what to do with prophets!)
Unknown 150? Letter to Diognetus Intellectual defense –
Christianity is superior to
pagan religions
Barnabas 125? Epistle of Barnabas How should Christianity
relate to Judaism?
Works of the “Apostolic Fathers”

Polycarp, the mid-2nd century Bishop of
Smyrna, wrote in his Letter to the
Philippians (3:1);
“For I am as far as anyone else of my sort
from having the wisdom of our blessed
and glorious Paul.
During his residence with you he gave the
men of those days clear and sound
instruction in the word of truth while he
was there in person among them.
And even after his departure he still sent
letters which, if you study them
attentively, will enable you to make
progress in the faith which was
delivered to you.”
And so the faith is “delivered” to the next generation

This ends Part 1 of
Part 2 of this study is available on SlideShare

Why These Twenty Seven Part 1

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