The Orthodox Pages

 

 ASK AN ORTHODOX PRIEST

Homepage

 

   Back                     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Question 422

Hi, Father Christopher, If you don't mind, this is a follow up question to my question last week! What was the process used by the Church in order to decide which books would form part of both the Old and New Testament? Regarding your reply to my question last week, many books we today take for granted did not immediately form part of the bible. A classic case in point is the book of revelation. Since this book itself was disputed by many Saints, this would imply that it was not available to the faithful for a long time. Despite the fact that all scripture is given by inspiration of God, wouldn't this suggest that the process used had problems? Further to my first question regarding the process used, is it possible that there are other books which should also have been included but were not? Since as John writes, there were many other things which Christ did and the world itself could not contain all the books which could have been written.  

 

 

Answer to Question 422

 

The Church discerned which writings were truly Apostolic and which were not. It was a prolonged struggle taking place over several centuries in which the Church decided what books were her own. Many criteria were used to determine if a book was to be included as canonical:

1) It had to have Apostolic authority in other words it had to have been written by an apostle, by someone associated with an apostle, like St. Mark and St Luke, or by a member of the Lord's family.

2) It had to be from the Apostolic age.

3) It must have been widely accepted for a long time and in many places. Regular use of a book liturgically was also an important principle. Liturgical use both provided a powerful motivation to produce the canon since knowing what books ought be used in public worship was critical and was itself an important determinant in setting the bounds of the canon.

4) It must conform to the oral tradition and rule of faith taught by the Church.

5) It must be considered inspired of God.

6) It must be accepted by the Church.

The fact that the church did not rush in to establish the Canon of the Bible shows that the church was very meticulous in her examination of all books available and decided wisely which books should or should not be included in the Canon