The Making of a Canon: Impact of the Old Testament Scriptures in the Christian Canon Development

• Autorzy: Kwaku Boamah
• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

The formation of the Christian canon was not a one day venture. Some scholars maintain it spanned from the first up to about the fourth centuries. This paper has three main parts: the first draws a linear process of canon generation, beginning from text to scripture and possibly becoming canonical. The second focuses on the creation of the Christian canon by exploring the stages and the implications of naming the canon as `Testaments`. At the heart of the study is a consideration of the use and inclusion or exclusion of the Jewish scripture by Christians as discussed by a heretic (Marcion) and three Anti-heretics (Justin Martyr, Irenaeus and Tertullian) in the 2nd and/or 3rd centuries of the Roman Empire. The third part takes an example of a modern church (Church of Christ) whose reception to the Old Testament is one of skepticism. Furthermore, the level of usage of the Old Testament by the Church of Christ is key for the thesis of this paper. It is, therefore, important to assess a possible relationship between Marcion and the Church of Christ. Historical, theological and an interview are employed to explore these developments. The paper concludes that by the naming of the Christian canon and inclusion of the Jewish scriptures, the Christian identity can be described as Judeo-Christian. This description has impacted Christian formation and development a great deal from antiquity to the modern era. Marcion and his followers did not take this lightly in the first four centuries of the Christian history. On the other hand, in the nineteenth century the Church of Christ seemingly follows this example in antiquity on including the Old Testament as part of the Christian canon. (original abstract)

Słowa kluczowe

EN

Christian religions

PL

Religie chrześcijańskie

• Czasopismo: International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences (ILSHS)
• Rocznik: 2018
• Tom: 80
• Strony: 7--21

Twórcy

autor

Kwaku Boamah

• Methodist University College, Ghana

Bibliografia

• Asante E., Topics in the Old Testament, Accra, Sonlife Printing Press and Services, 2005.
• Barton J., Holy Writings, Sacred Text. The Canon in Early Christianity, Westminister John Louisville, Knox Press, 1997.
• Barton J., Marcion Revisited, in: The Canon Debate, L.M. McDonald, J.A. Sanders (Eds.), Hendrickson Publications, Massachusetts, 2002, pp. 341-354.
• Barton J., The Spirit and the Letters: Studies in Biblical Canon, S.P.C.K Publishing, London, 1997.
• Brakke D., Scriptural Practice in Early Christianity. Towards a New History of the New Testament Canon, in: J. Ulrich, A.C. Jacobsen, D. Brakke (Eds.), Invention, Rewriting, Usurpation. Discursive Fights over Religious Traditions in Antiquity, Frankfurt am Main, Peter Lang, 2012.
• Ferguson E., Factors Leading to the Selection and Closure of the New Testament Canon: A survey of some Recent Studies, in: The Canon Debate, L.M. McDonald, J.A. Sanders (Eds.), Hendrickson Publications, Massachusetts, 2002, pp. 295-320.
• Gamble H.Y., The New Testament Canon: Recent Research and the Status, in: The Canon Debate, L.M. McDonald, J.A. Sanders (Eds.), Hendrickson Publications, Massachusetts, 2002, pp. 295-320.
• Goodenough E.R., The Theology of Justin Martyr, Verlag Frommannsche Buchhandlung, Jena, 1923.
• Graham W., Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspect of Scriptures in the History of Religion, The Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, Cambridge, 1987.
• Hamilton J.W., Why we don`t follow the Old Testament [Online]. Available: http://lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVarticles/WhyWeDontFollowtheOldTestament.htm.
• Hancock H., Does the Church of Christ Believe in the Old Testament [Online]. Available: http://www.timberlandchurch.com/faqs/577-does-the-church-of-christ-believe-in-the-oldtestament-. html.
• Kirby P., Early Christian Writing [Online]. Available: http:// www.earlychristianwritings.com /text/justinmartyr-dialoguetrypho.html.
• Knox J., Marcion and the New Testament, The University of Chicargo, Chicago, 1942.
• Lynch J.H., Early Christianity. A Brief History, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2010.
• Musurillo H, The acts of the Christian martyrs, London, Oxford University Press, 1972.
• Newton R., Heroes of the Early Church: Life-Changing Lessons for the Young. Birmingham, Solid Grounds Christian Books, 2005.
• Owens R.J., The Old Testament in the Christian Church, Leaven. 9(2) (2001) article 7.
• Raisanen H., Marcion, in: A Companion to Second-Century Christian `Heretics`, A. Marjanen, P. Luomanen (Eds.), Leiden, Brill, 2005, pp. 100-124.
• Shipp R.M., "Nailed to the Cross": The Continuing Relevance of the Old Testament, in: M.R. Weed (Ed.), Christian Studies. Scholarship for the Church. A Publication of the Faculty of Austin Graduate School of Theology, vol. 23, 2009, pp. 37-46.
• Smith B.C., Text Excavation [Online]. Available: http:// www. textexcavation. com /irenaeusah3. html

Identyfikatory

DOI

10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILSHS.80.7