Marcus Borg, a contemporary spokesperson for Christians, considers “the Bible” as the “heart of Christian tradition”. For him Christian religion is “centered in the Bible”.
He is aware that there are Christians who consider the Bible to be “infallible”, emphasising the “historical factuality” and the moral and doctrinal teaching of the Bible are “absolute”.
But he rejects such emphasis along with “millions of people”. For Borg Bible is “a human response” to God; it is a “human product”. It should never be taken “literally” but “metaphorically”.
Jesus used the Tanekh, the Hebrew Scriptures (Possibly the 39 Books). There were other books too that were considered as “sacred”, at least in certain circles.
Christian Bible:
The early Christians, accepted the Bible of Jesus as theirs and “simply carried” these books into their community. To this they also added their own writings. Books they brought in from the Jewish community of Jesus, the Tanekh, they called it Old Testament (which we today call Hebrew Scriptures) after they gave a sacred status to their own books that they called New Testament (or Greek Scriptures).
Here are the books in the Hebrew Scriptures that you will find in the Non-Catholic Churches:
Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Ezra
Nehemiah
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
There were other Books that were rejected by these Churches that called them Apocrypha. They were, according to these Christians, books outside the Canon. Catholics included some of these books into their Hebrew Bible - making the number 46 - calling them Deuterocanonical Books:
Tobit
Judith
Additions to the Book of Esther
Wisdom of Solomon
Ecclesiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach
Baruch
The Letter of Jeremiah
The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Jews
Susanna
Bel and the Dragon
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
1 Esdras
Prayer of Manasseh
Psalm 151
3 Maccabees
2 Esdras
4 Maccabees
Books in Christian Scriptures (70 CE to 110 CE):
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Acts of the Apostles
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
Hebrews
James
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
2 John
3 John
Jude
Revelation
There were other books that were left out of this collection that had 27 books.
Interpreting the Bible:
Christians also differed from one another in the way they interpreted the Bible that led to so many divisions and denominations. The science of interpretation of the Bible is known as hermeneutics. Today there are two broad spectrums of interpretations:
a. Literal interpretations.
b. Metaphorical interpretations.
Please read:
a. LR, pp. 295-298.
b. Matthew chapters 5 to 7 (in the Bible).
Questions to Explore:
1. List and discuss briefly the main teachings of Jesus outlined in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. Is there a word, or a single phrase, that you may choose to summarise Jesus’ teachings? Explain the reasons for your choice.
2. Write brief notes on the following: Hebrew Bible; Greek Bible; Infallibility of the Bible; Hermeneutics; Synoptic Gospels; and Apocrypha.
He is aware that there are Christians who consider the Bible to be “infallible”, emphasising the “historical factuality” and the moral and doctrinal teaching of the Bible are “absolute”.
But he rejects such emphasis along with “millions of people”. For Borg Bible is “a human response” to God; it is a “human product”. It should never be taken “literally” but “metaphorically”.
Jesus used the Tanekh, the Hebrew Scriptures (Possibly the 39 Books). There were other books too that were considered as “sacred”, at least in certain circles.
Christian Bible:
The early Christians, accepted the Bible of Jesus as theirs and “simply carried” these books into their community. To this they also added their own writings. Books they brought in from the Jewish community of Jesus, the Tanekh, they called it Old Testament (which we today call Hebrew Scriptures) after they gave a sacred status to their own books that they called New Testament (or Greek Scriptures).
Here are the books in the Hebrew Scriptures that you will find in the Non-Catholic Churches:
Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Ezra
Nehemiah
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
There were other Books that were rejected by these Churches that called them Apocrypha. They were, according to these Christians, books outside the Canon. Catholics included some of these books into their Hebrew Bible - making the number 46 - calling them Deuterocanonical Books:
Tobit
Judith
Additions to the Book of Esther
Wisdom of Solomon
Ecclesiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach
Baruch
The Letter of Jeremiah
The Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Jews
Susanna
Bel and the Dragon
1 Maccabees
2 Maccabees
1 Esdras
Prayer of Manasseh
Psalm 151
3 Maccabees
2 Esdras
4 Maccabees
Books in Christian Scriptures (70 CE to 110 CE):
Matthew
Mark
Luke
John
Acts of the Apostles
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus
Philemon
Hebrews
James
1 Peter
2 Peter
1 John
2 John
3 John
Jude
Revelation
There were other books that were left out of this collection that had 27 books.
Interpreting the Bible:
Christians also differed from one another in the way they interpreted the Bible that led to so many divisions and denominations. The science of interpretation of the Bible is known as hermeneutics. Today there are two broad spectrums of interpretations:
a. Literal interpretations.
b. Metaphorical interpretations.
Please read:
a. LR, pp. 295-298.
b. Matthew chapters 5 to 7 (in the Bible).
Questions to Explore:
1. List and discuss briefly the main teachings of Jesus outlined in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. Is there a word, or a single phrase, that you may choose to summarise Jesus’ teachings? Explain the reasons for your choice.
2. Write brief notes on the following: Hebrew Bible; Greek Bible; Infallibility of the Bible; Hermeneutics; Synoptic Gospels; and Apocrypha.
