The Foundation Of Orthodoxy And The Canon

Over the centuries, Christianity has organised its beliefs into a systematic theology that draws from its sacred writing and tradition. While the main beliefs of Christianity are shared by all Christian variants, there are degrees of different in the interpretation of these beliefs and how they are lived out in everyday life. This can be seen in the important of sacred text, principle belief of the concept of salvation in John 3:16, principle belief of divine and humanity in ‘John 1:14’, principle belief of resurrection in ‘Mark 16:1-8’, principle belief of revelation in ‘1 corinthians14:6’, and beliefs through the Trinity in ‘2 Corinthians 13:14’. This essay will explain the important of the sacred text and the principal beliefs of Christianity.

Sacred texts and writings are very beneficial for Christian people since they are the word of God and can be deliberated as supportive indication of understanding the principle beliefs of Christianity which include the divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the nature of god and the nature of trinity, revelation and salvation. This essay aim’s at assessing the significant role of the sacred text in providing authentic information in regards to sacred texts.

The book The Rise of Christianity by Don Nardo was used thoroughly, and was quite helpful, during the research step of this project. The Rise of Christianity was written in 1999 and originated in San Diego, California by the publishing company Greenhaven Press. The purpose of this book is to inform readers about early Christianity’s creation, spread, and the struggle the first Christians experienced while trying to tell others about their faith. The book also tells the story of Jesus’ life, a few of his disciples, and talks about key figures who made a big impact on Christianity itself and the people who, sceptic at

During the medieval period, the Catholic faith was one of the largest practiced religions, if not the largest. When one can encompass the wide range of power and influence, as the Church had done, it can eventually become difficult to maintain absolute control. That was the case for the Catholic Church as it dealt with heresy and heretics, as is evident in the readings from Michael Goodich, and Robert Ian Moore. In this essay, I will discuss how the Chruch’s treatment of heresy, and treatment towards the heretics, was a means for them maintain control and power within the Church.

There are several areas in the early church on essential issues such as the deity of Christ, nature, and humanity. This period of dispute was also characterized with the emergence of groups like Gnostics, which brought a completely new set of presumed beliefs to the faith that came alongside the faith and in total compromised tenets of the faith. These new beliefs were supposedly based on the truth of Christ’s teachings as presented to his followers. Consequently, there was a great need to explain the true writings that presented the truth of Christ. The need for clarifications of these truths was necessary because of the fact that heretical parties involved would constantly present texts and teach them as being the writings of the Apostles. This process should include clarification of key events and movements that impacted the acknowledgment of the canonical books.

This method examines the unique literary features and the social function of the genre, canon, paying particular attention to the way in which once historically conditioned literature is given a new authoritative function as the comprehensive word of God to later communities of faith.

When detailing the important figures in the history of Christianity, the most obvious person to begin with is the figure of Jesus. But the question arises: which Jesus are we talking about? The Jesus of Mark's Gospel, who often speaks in the tone of an impassioned outsider? The Jesus who derives his authority from Judaism in Matthew? Or the more cosmological Jesus of John? The diversity of Jesuses within the cannon and there is a different conception of Jesus in Paul's letters, as well as the Gospel of Luke and Acts underlies the fact that the forging of the Christian canon was a process, not a foregone conclusion. "In the earliest Christian movement, there were actually many different writings circulated and many traditions about the sayings of Jesus" (Pagels 1998).

The historical marks of the church date back to the Council of Constantinople in 381. Out of this council, The Apostles’ Creed was formulated and the four marks of the church, ‘one, holy, catholic, apostolic’, were established. The task of this paper is to briefly define these four marks and then reinterpret a mark in light of specific contextual challenges.

The wealth of early church attestation of the meaning of texts and collective tradition of witnesses is the second tool which provides insight for objective meaning. The Bible is a complex piece of “literary work” if it has no valid source. However, it is written by different authors viewing the life of Jesus from different perspectives as can be seen from the Gospels. The Torah attributed to Moses as its author may not be uniform in its teaching, however, there exists a “Mosaic unity” among them with each book standing alone and complementing the

The essence, naturally, is that we must regularly refer to the Bible as the only true source for exegetical study. Even though, we respect what the early church fathers, the Reformers, the Puritans, and today’s church leaders, we must always remember what Luke writes, we must be open minded and eager to receive the Word and study the Scriptures daily to see if the truth is being taught (Acts 17:11). Martin Luther said it wonderfully when he declared before the Diet of Worms: "Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason, I do not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other, my conscience is captive to the Word of God. . . . Here I stand, I cannot do

the early church intrinsically created a cannon of scripture. The second is that of the date of

What is the Bible and why is it authoritative? The what and the why each give rise to the other. Historical criticism revealed that the formation of the Bible took place over many years and even centuries. The following is a gross oversimplification: Oral traditions and pieces of parchment were passed from generation to generation, and the gradual collection and arrangement, editing, and revising of these different parts eventually formed individual books. Books that held essential truths and stories and histories became more central and popular to the communities that espoused them. These books were thought of as authoritative because the communities through the years affirmed their value, truth, and centrality for their faith, and as a result the books shaped the lifestyles of the communities. It could be said that the communities strived to be obedient to the expectations, the calling, the personal sacrifice, and identity formation held within the books. Such books were compiled into canon, but the important note is that communities affirmed the authority of the books through the processes of

Ever since the church’s inception, almost 2000 years ago, it has been attacked by various heresies that have sought to destroy it. The claim of Christ’s divinity has been one such target. In recent years, one

When it comes to the topic of the early church, most of us will readily agree that Christianity sprang from Judaism and started in Palestine and that the first Christians were Jewish. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of “deviation from a dominant theory, opinion, or practice.” Whereas some are convinced of the dominate position or heretic, others maintain the contrary positon or heresy.

As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states “Sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture, then are bound closely together, and communicate with one another. For both of them, flowing out from the same divine well-spring, come together in some fashion to form one thing, and move towards the same goal.” Each of them makes present and fruitful in the Church the mystery of Christ, who promised to remain with his own always, to the close of the age. Being one of the oldest religions Catholicism has been very close to the scriptures and over time has developed many traditions, and over the centuries has also be the centre of controversy for those very traditions, as the origin was questioned.