Fo eee FRA pOtryplia? Hpunpded tA from the words of the book of this prophecy. God wit ae away’ that person's share inthe tee of life and in the holy city, which are cecersbed inthis bok Revelation 22:19 All Chuistiaus ~Cattoie, Crtisdos and Protestant agree thatthe Books n te Bible ae the spared, writen Word of God but disagree o wish Fooks beng i the Bible. Specialy se dono: agree on the ONd Testariene OT) anon ~ the st of Books rsd by God. The Catholic OT Canim includes ~ obit, Judith, Winds: Baruch, and M Maccabees - plus sector yestunt Christians donot accep these Weta as inspire ty Gel ‘Sometimes this problem is used to defame the Catholic Church. As an exemple, John Ankerberg and Jobx their book, The nan Catholicisus, waite hs that Scripture volves more tha the canon avcortad my she Js, Jesus and the Chrurcs of thefirst four centuries, Le. tie 39 books ofthe Proiesiant Old Testament. (ARW. p33) Allegedly the Catholic Chnreh added tothe OT that Jesus nod ‘Now itmay be true tual Protestants share the sue OF canon as Jews tas, however, the situation was hile diffreus ducing the time of Jems. the Jore the 2nd cenlury A.D. did not appear to have @ ngidly de non. Inthe words of James King, West a Protestant Bible scholar The Sevipmures of Tudixiom wore not, therefore, a pracisebe define body of Hecvasine absuluiely set apa: from alt other iterative, but a central body of rah (ue. Genesis, Drodus, Levitiews, Nutiers & ait), wich from the time of Pera had remetned j te Seripmres par excellence, surrounded by other imerpretive material of varving degrees of inpornmce and authority, (SEW, . OF 432] ‘By the time of Chris, ot Ecclesiastes, were debs atepted the five Pooks of Mises the Torah -aS Sefiprive, however, Books, like Bsther cd the Dead Sea Sczolis, the Jews at Qumran apparently Jeremiah (Baruch 6 seh as Scripture, wiule Esther ss missing Hom the serolls. UBC, pp. $22 & 363] Untertmataty we can ‘only speculate on what Jesus thought ou this issue-No Where in the New Testa (NT) does Jesns or His Apostles preset a ‘coumplete ist oF the OT Books or even disci this sone ‘Before the 2nd century, most Palestian Jews preferred a cmon loosely similar to the Protestant OT; however, the Greck-apeuking s preferred the larger cmon found in the Greek: Septuagint Bible a Jnd-eentury H.C. Greck translator af the Hebrew Seripiwe. Ktwas the “Dibie" forthe Gtesk-speakiig Jews, When the Apostles bogat te evaugelze the Greck-speaking Jews and Gentiles, they usod the aieady established Septuagine as their Bible. Using the Hebrew Serre weld hase heen as effective as using a Russian Bible to evangelize Americans, The Septuagint served to bridge the Quickly the Greek: speaking converts Sutnumbcred the Hebrew Christians. Scholars also recognize thatthe Ni writers quod extersresly from the Septuagint ew. Matt, 1.23. The Septuagint became the OT of the early Church, [S@W, p. OT-433} ‘Only ater the destruction ofthe Temple and debates with Christian, the Pharisoos nt Jamia nally i the 2nd century AD, ~ centary iad the Hlebrew Canon to Books written before 460 B.C sn Hebrew. They aso rejected the Se by Wie Chnstins. [SEW, p, OT 153] inthe mid-2ad century. St_ Justin Martyr in his Dialogue With Trypho comucuied on the differice between the Ciuistian OT and the Hebrew Canon. Tertullian during this period iso commented on this difference. [JC p. 323] These comments and concerns ‘would have best inappropriate, ifthe carly Christions and Jews the same OF canon, The OT of the most ancient surviving Christian Bible maunscripts ~ Coder Vaticanus (th centuey), Coxex Sinaicus Cah century) sail Codex Alesandrts (Sth century} ~are Greek Septuagint lest. Apart ffum holes aed missing pages; Ube Cover contains all the Hooks of the Catholic OT, except Land If Maccabees, The Cover Sniticns only lacks I Maccaboes includes IV Maccabees. The Codex Alexandrinus containsal ofthe Catholic OT Books plus Hand IV ‘manuscripts show thet the Septuagint with its lerger and iogser canon Was the OY "Bible" ofthe early Church. Digna Passe unldapbneaesiepaced im: ahrsqreially hove who debuled with the Tews, ike Jerome, favored the shorler Tlebrew ‘and Augustine favored the larger canon of the Septuagint Others ke Gregory Na7s the Bible (JBC, p. 522}, Jerome while favoring the shores canon, sevecl nes his writings cited on ns Scripture, [S4W, p. OF 434] The Councils of Hippo and Carthage in the ie century were the crapts by the Church to end the conflsion over the GF exon. The OF canon which they proclaimed is sii found in oie Bibles toy, he cotrovers)contmucd bu sn 2487 the Come of Horence uphelt tts argreanon. in response othe sant, the Council of Trent definitively upheld the lagger OT eanon. (SAW, pp. OF 434435, IBC, p. 517] Now the Catholic Church is not alone iz accepting the Books which Proto pocrypits." The Coptic, G -Russian Orthodox churches alss revognize these Books as inspired by God. In 1950 an edition of the OT containing ail these Books ‘as officially approved by the Hialy Synod of the Greek chureh. Also the Russian Grek enurch in 1996 publishes Russian bible fn Mosoow which cited these Books, [IDC, p. 524] More details fro « scholarly Protestant viewpoint van found in The New crtsted Bible (Oxford. 1977). Some Cirstians temp io isco thse Dooks ty pointing wit apparent hisirea eors colin in hem. [ASW p Semmon Snowledae among scholars that hwbit and Judit conse ions histor acces however these Boks a Tena ad ble I mah, Is acon lee ls at Dall as om Spin Fistral raccuacien eg Daniel STS] Some scholars have suggest hat Sich may octal dea disgised histones! acount of Antioch Lpiphanes [SEW.p. OT 462} ‘Other Chuistiaus way point tothe immoral deceit of Judith in Sudith 9-10-13 i a attempt to discret this Book. (ARW, p. 33} Talortumaiely the OT contains ver oss than edifying practives, (or example: the deceit of Jacob in Genesis 27, incest in Genesis 19.32 and inhumanity #8 Pyaim 137-2. Also in Hosea 12, God commends che prophet Hosea to marry'a woman who would commit adultery. These OT events simply show the necd for Jesus Christ Binal we cannot se human reason alone ts judge the Word of Goa Fn enactusion the Catholie Church did not add to die OT. The Cathotic OT Canon (atso the numbering of the Psalms) came trom the ancient Gteck Sepruagint Bible. Proiestans, following the tradition ofthe Pharisac Sess, accep the shorter Hebrew Canon, even though the Jews alsa reject the NT Books, The main problem is thatthe Bible does not define itself. No were in the Secred ¥ fare the divinely iaspited Hooks ita# completely. (Tike Table of Con! Bible needs a visible, extemal authoniy guided by the Holy Spirit to ‘Magisceriom of the Cathotic Church. As St, Argustine writes,“ Church moved me.” (Bartet’s Familia Quotations, 15th ed 1298} is ts the publishing editors words, ike = teamnoles.) The ie both the OF and NT Canons, This authority 1s the 1iot have belived the Gospel had not the authori of he REFERENCES [A&W] Jol Ankerberg & John Weldon, The Fas on Rossum Catholicism (Fagene, OR; Harvest Touse Publishers, 2993), The Sera Hiblical Commentary (Englewood Clifls, NF. Prentios-atl, ine, 1968), Vol. TT, Chap. 67 SEW] Donald J. Selby & James King West Invedsctin fo the [sible (New York: The Macmillan Co, 19 sucel SEED READING: #25, Geahes si Where We Liot The HD Ne TANS ITI NIL OBSTAT. seid M. Tames Divis, STL. Censor Libcoruin Bruskewi, DD. STD. HE OBSTAT and IMPRIMATUR are official declarations Ut book or pamphlet is fee irom doctrinal or moral error. No eafion is eoniained therein hat These who have granted the NINIE. ORSTAT and TMiPRIMATUR agree with the contents, ‘A Cathotie Response, Inc 2omer00