THE BIBLE

HOW THE BIBLE CAME TO BE

WHAT IS AN ORAL TRADITION?  Are there any family stories that get told when your extended family is gathered? Are there any stories that get handed down from one generation to the next?  An oral tradition is a tradition that is passed on from generation to generation by word of mouth.  Some families have both written and oral traditions. Why might a family oral tradition be written down? Image in public domain

THE STAGES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SCRIPTURES  After Jesus ascended into Heaven, his disciples continued his mission by preaching and teaching about Christ.  Typically, the oral tradition developed into the written Word in the following stages:  People experienced God.  These experiences were shared orally.  Inspired authors created a written version.  The successors of the Apostles, guided by the Holy Spirit, discerned the books to be included in the Scriptures (the canon). Image in public domain

PEOPLE EXPERIENCE GOD  Have you ever had an awesome experience that changed you as a person?  Have you ever had an experience that brought you closer to God?  People’s experience of God is central to the passing on of the message of the Scriptures.  People experienced God through Revelation—whether over a long period of time as in the Old Testament or through the person of Jesus in the New Testament. Images - © The Crosiers/Gene Plaisted, OSC

PEOPLE SHARED THEIR EXPERIENCES OF GOD Think about the life-changing experience or experiences, identified in the previous slide, that brought you closer to God. How do you first share the story of that experience with someone else? Oral tradition: The handing on of the message of God’s saving plan, culminating in Jesus Christ, through storytelling, preaching, parables, and sacred wisdom. Most of the Bible’s writings were first transmitted orally and then written down. Image in public domain

PEOPLE WROTE DOWN THE STORIES Because of their desire to capture the stories for future generations or to record the authentic version, believers began recording the oral tradition in writing. Written tradition: The synthesis of the oral tradition into written books, capturing Divine Revelation under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Image in public domain

THE CHURCH DETERMINES THE CANON  The term canon comes from the Greek word meaning “rule” or “standard.”  The biblical canon is the collection of books the Church recognizes as the inspired Word of God.  The books of the Scriptures are canonical because they contain God’s Revelation to human beings. © Saint Mary’s Pres/Paul Casper

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANON IN EARLY CHRISTIANITY  The successors to the Apostles were guided by the Holy Spirit in discerning the canon of the New Testament.  They looked at the following criteria as they evaluated the writings:  apostolic origin  universal acceptance  the use of the writings in liturgical celebrations  the consistency of a book’s message with other Christian and Jewish writings

TRANSLATIONS OF THE BIBLE ARE CREATED  The Bible was originally written in three languages:  Hebrew  Aramaic  Greek  The Vulgate was the first common language translation. It was Saint Jerome’s translation of the Greek and Hebrew Scriptures into Latin.  The Council of Trent recognized the Vulgate as authoritative.  The Vulgate became the official Bible of the Roman Catholic Church for several centuries. Images in public domain

WHAT IS THE BIBLE?

Bible (English) © Nataliia Natykach/Shutterstock.com = Biblios (Greek) “Books” (Literal Meaning) =

The Bible is a library of books. © Saint Mary’s Pres/Paul Casper

How many books of the Bible can you name?

© Saint Mary’s Press / Catholic Youth Bible ®, Third Edition What are the main sections of the Bible?

Old and New Testaments Our covenant relationship to God Synonym for is solemn vow The original covenant is fulfilled Old Testament God’s relationship with the Hebrews/Israelites

© Saint Mary’s Pres/Paul Casper Pentateuch The first five books of the Bible, the heart of the Old Testament Prophets Eighteen books recording the warnings and promises of Israel’s prophets Wisdom Seven books of poetry and wise sayings Historical Books Sixteen books of religious history and a few “historical novellas”

Connect the Old Testament Books to Their Sections Micah 2 Chronicles Song of Songs Jeremiah Deuteronomy Proverbs Exodus Judges PENTATEUCH HISTORICAL BOOKS THE PROPHETS WISDOM & POETRY

© Saint Mary’s Pres/Paul Casper Catholic Letters Seven letters written by Christ’s Apostles or their disciples to provide teaching and to correct abuses in the early churches Gospels & Acts The story of Jesus’ life and ministry and the start of the Church, told from four complementary faith perspectives Pauline Letters (Epistles) Fourteen letters by Saint Paul or his disciples written to provide teaching and to correct abuses in the early churches Revelation A book written as apocalyptic literature, during a time when Christians were being persecuted

Connect the New Testament Books to Their Sections 2 John Mark Galatians John Revelation to John Romans James 1 Timothy GOSPELS & ACTS PAULINE LETTERS CATHOLIC LETTERS REVELATION

Images - © The Crosiers/Gene Plaisted, OSC The Bible Is the Story of Our Salvation

The Bible is a library of seventy-three books. The Bible has two main sections: the Old Testament and the New Testament. Testament is another word for covenant. A covenant is a sacred vow. The Old Testament covenants are between God and his Chosen People, who are called Hebrews, Israelites, or Jews. Points to Remember

The New Covenant (New Testament) shows how the former covenants are fulfilled by the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Old Testament is divided into four sections of books. The New Testament can also be divided into four sections. In the Bible God reveals his plan for our salvation. Points to Remember (cont.)

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