Ethan Walker
The New Testament canon was universally agreed upon by the fourth century. However, there are differences in the number of books included in the Bible of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Catholic Church has 73 books, while the Eastern Orthodox Church has 76 or more. These differences are due to the Eastern Orthodox Church's fluid approach to canonical status, similar to ancient Judaism, and the lack of a formal, universally approved Biblical canon. The Eastern Orthodox Church includes additional books such as 3 and 4 Maccabees, and the Didache, which are not formally part of the Catholic Bible.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of books in the Bible | Catholics believe the Bible should contain 73+ books, Orthodox believe it should contain 76+ books, and Protestants believe it should contain 66 books. However, all Christian groups agree that the New Testament should contain 27 books. |
| Definition of "canon" | The Catholic Church defines "canon" with exactness, specifying which books and parts of books are accepted. The Eastern Orthodox Churches have a more fluid understanding, where canonical means acceptable to be read in liturgy, similar to ancient Judaism. |
| Differences in the Old Testament | The Eastern Orthodox Old Testament includes additional books such as 3 & 4 Maccabees that are not found in the Catholic Old Testament. The specific books considered canonical can vary between different Orthodox Churches, such as the Russian Orthodox and Greek Orthodox. |
| Councils that determined the canon | The final canon of the Catholic Church was determined by the councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397), with ratification from Rome. |
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What You'll Learn
Eastern Orthodox vs. Catholic canon
The Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church have slightly different canons of scripture. The canon of the Catholic Church was affirmed by the Council of Rome (382), the Synod of Hippo (393), two of the Councils of Carthage (397 and 419), the Council of Florence (1431–1449), and finally, as an article of faith, by the Council of Trent (1545–1563). This established the Catholic biblical canon consisting of 46 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books, for a total of 73 books.
The Eastern Orthodox Church, on the other hand, does not have a formal, universally approved Biblical canon. Instead, there is some variation among Eastern Orthodox churches regarding which books constitute the canon of the Bible. For example, some Eastern Orthodox churches do not consider the Book of Revelation to be canonical and do not read from it during divine liturgy. However, they still consider it to be divinely inspired and morally binding.
The Eastern Orthodox Church includes several books in its Bible that are not found in the Catholic Bible, such as 3 Maccabees, and the apocryphal Esdras. These books were included in the pre-Carthaginian local canons of the Antiochian and Byzantine parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Council of Carthage excluded these books because they contained some problematic material. However, the modern Eastern Orthodox Church, particularly the Greek Orthodox Church, has a more fluid notion of what constitutes a "canonical book".
In summary, while the Catholic Church has a well-defined and universally accepted canon, the Eastern Orthodox Church has a more flexible approach, with regional variations among specific churches.
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The Book of Revelation
The inclusion of the Book of Revelation in the canon of the New Testament was not without controversy. There was initial hesitation on the part of the early Church to include it due to the difficulty of interpreting its apocalyptic symbols. However, it was ultimately included because it carried the name of the Apostle John and was believed to be inspired by the Holy Spirit for the instruction of the Church. Today, the Book of Revelation is included in Orthodox Bibles, and while it is not publicly read in most Orthodox churches, it does hold great liturgical significance within the Orthodox tradition.
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Apocryphal works
The word "apocrypha" means "things put away" or "things hidden", and comes from the Medieval Latin adjective "apocryphus", meaning "secret" or "non-canonical". It originates from the Greek adjective "apokryphos", meaning "obscure" or private, derived from the verb "apokryptein", meaning "to hide away". The term "apocrypha" is used to refer to a set of books that, when included in a Bible, are placed between the Old and New Testaments in a section called "Apocrypha". The canonicity of such books has been debated over a long period, with various books accepted by the Catholic Church, Orthodox Churches, and the Church of the East as deuterocanonical.
The deuterocanonical or intertestamental books of the Catholic Church include Tobit, Judith, Baruch, Sirach, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, Wisdom, and additions to Esther, Daniel, and Baruch. The Catholic Church includes non-canonical books under the category of "deuterocanonical", a term coined by the Council of Trent in 1546. The Eastern Orthodox Church, on the other hand, includes four other books in its canon that are not found in the Catholic canon: Psalm 151, the Prayer of Manasseh, 3 Maccabees, and 1 Esdras. The Book of Enoch is included in the biblical canon of the Oriental Orthodox churches of Ethiopia and Eritrea, and is also considered influential by some early church writers.
The New Testament apocrypha refers to a number of writings by early Christians that provide accounts of Jesus, his teachings, and the nature of God, as well as the teachings and lives of his apostles. While some of these writings were cited as scripture by early Christians, since the fifth century, there has been a consensus limiting the New Testament to the 27 books of the modern canon. The debate over which books to include in the canon was not just between different Christian groups, but also within "orthodox" circles. The historical debate centred on whether certain works should be read during church services or only privately.
The Old Testament Apocrypha, according to the Eastern Orthodox tradition, includes books such as the Assumption of Moses, Ascension of Isaiah, Apocalypse of Elijah, Book of Enoch, and the Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs. These books are not considered part of the Old Testament canon by the Orthodox Church, but they are included in the overall Old Testament canon. In Orthodox usage, these non-canonical books are called "anaginoskomena", which means "acknowledged" or "recommended reading". The deuterocanonical books, or the second canon, is the preferred term used by the Greek Church, as the term "apocrypha" is considered derogatory.
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The formation of the canon
The Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church have different approaches to defining their canons. The Catholic Church makes a clear distinction between canonical and inspired texts, and has precise definitions of which books and parts of books are accepted. On the other hand, the Eastern Orthodox Churches have a more fluid understanding of canonicity, where canonical means acceptable for reading in liturgy. They do not have a formal, universally approved Biblical canon, and there are minor differences among the various Orthodox Churches regarding which books are considered canonical.
The differences in the canons of the Catholic and Orthodox Bibles lie mainly in the Old Testament books. All Christian groups agree that the New Testament should contain 27 books, and they use the same New Testament books. However, the Orthodox believe that the Bible should contain 76 or more books, while Catholics believe it should contain 73 or more books, and Protestants believe it should be limited to 66 books.
The additional books found in the Eastern Orthodox Old Testament include 3 and 4 Maccabees, and other apocryphal works such as the Didache, an anonymous instructional text considered Orthodox and studied by patristic scholars. These works are referred to as the New Testament Apocrypha and include gnostic writings, prophecies, fantasy, and other heretical teachings.
The final canon of the Catholic Old and New Testaments was established by the North African bishops at the councils of Hippo in 393 and Carthage in 397. This canon was then submitted to Rome for final ratification and has been maintained by the Catholic Church since.
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The number of books in the Bible
The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism and are esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. It is composed of two major sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament, and includes a vast array of literary styles such as short stories, letters, poetry, and historical accounts.
The differences in the number of books arise from the different approaches to canonization, or the formal decision of which books are considered authoritative. In Western Christianity, the Catholic Church makes a clear distinction between canonical and inspired texts, while the Eastern Orthodox Churches have a more fluid understanding, with minor variations among themselves.
The New Testament, in particular, has been the subject of debate. While the New Testament canon was essentially universally agreed upon by the fourth century, there are still some variations today. For example, the Book of Revelation, also called "The Apocalypse of John," is the only book of the New Testament that is not read during Orthodox church services due to its capacity for misinterpretation.
The early Christians regarded the Hebrew scriptures as instructive for understanding the earthly life of Jesus and his teachings. These scriptures, along with the New Testament, form the basis of the Christian Bible, with the number of books varying across different denominations and traditions.
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Frequently asked questions
The Orthodox Bible has more books than the Catholic Bible. The Orthodox Bible includes some additional books like 3 and 4 Maccabees, which are not formally found in the Catholic Bible. The Catholic Church has exact definitions of what books and parts of books it accepts, whereas the Orthodox Churches have a more fluid understanding.
The New Testament is a collection of 27 books that are accepted by all Christians, including Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants.
The Catholic canon is included in the Eastern Orthodox canon, but the latter has some additional parts. The Catholic canon was defined by the councils of Hippo (393) and Carthage (397) and ratified by Rome. The Eastern Orthodox Church does not have a formal, universally-approved Biblical canon.
Yes, the Book of Revelation, also called "The Apocalypse of John", is the only book of the New Testament that is not read during Orthodox church services due to its capacity for misinterpretation.
