The formation of the New Testament canon

The formation of the New Testament canon

The official list of books recognised by the church as divinely inspired was a process of discernment that lasted roughly four centuries.[i] The word "canon" itself comes from a Greek term for a "measuring rod" or standard used to judge the correctness of faith.

The Apostolic Foundation

In the earliest years of the church, the primary authority was the oral teaching of the apostles and the shared memory of Jesus.[ii] However, the written letters of the apostles were highly valued even during their lifetimes and were likely collected soon after their deaths. By the end of the first century, Paul’s letters were already gathered into collections and treated as having an authority equal to other Scripture.

Challenges from Marcion and Montanus

The move to create an official list was driven by the appearance of variant interpretations of Christianity. Around 140 AD, a teacher named Marcion proposed the first formal canon, but it was a restricted list that rejected the Old Testament entirely. Marcion only accepted a heavily edited version of the Gospel of Luke and ten of Paul’s letters, forcing the mainstream church to define which books were truly apostolic. [iii]

Later in the second century, the Montanist movement claimed to receive new, direct revelations from the Holy Spirit that rivalled the authority of the apostles. To protect the core message of the gospel, the church began to "close" the canon, insisting that all subsequent teaching must be judged by the original apostolic witness. [iv]

The Development of Official Lists

Throughout the second and third centuries, the church gradually reached a consensus on most of the New Testament. An early document known as the Muratorian Fragment (c. 170–200 AD) listed the four Gospels, Acts, and thirteen of Paul's letters as universally accepted. By the early fourth century, the historian Eusebius categorised Christian writings into those accepted by all, those disputed but well-known (such as James and 2 Peter), and those to be rejected as heretical. [v]

The Final Consensus

The first time the exact list of 27 books we use today appeared together was in the 39th Festal Letter of Athanasius, the Bishop of Alexandria, in 367 AD [vi]. In the West, this same list was ratified by church councils held in North Africa, such as the Council of Carthage in 397 AD [vii].

Criteria for Canonicity

Church leaders used three primary "measuring rods" to recognise a book as Scripture:

1. Apostolicity: Was the book written by an apostle or someone in their immediate circle? [viii]
2. Orthodoxy: Did the teaching agree with the "Rule of Faith", the established summary of apostolic doctrine?[ix]
3. Catholicity: Was the book widely used and accepted in the worship of the universal church? [x]

Ultimately, the organised church did not "create" the canon but rather recognised its authority. By setting these books apart, the church declared that it was not its own final authority but was instead submitting itself to the unique witness of the apostles [xi].

The formation of the New Testament canon was not like a legislature passing new laws to govern a country. Instead, it was like a family recognising a long-lost father's voice over a crackling radio; the church did not give the voice its power, it simply identified the one voice that had been guiding them and giving them life since the very beginning.

[i] 2,000 Years of Christs Power Vol 1 The Age of the Early Church Fathers Part 1 (Nick R. Needham)

[ii] [ii] A lion handbook the history of Christianity (Dr Tim Dowley)

[iii] 2,000 Years of Christs Power Vol 1: The Age of the Early Church Fathers Part 1 (Nick R. Needham [Needham, Nick R.])

[iv] Church History in Plain Language (Bruce Shelley)

[v] IBID

[vi] Church History, Volume One from Christ to Pre-Reformation The Rise and Growth of the Church in Its Cultural, Intellectual,… (Everett Ferguson)

[vii] 2,000 Years of Christs Power Vol. 1: The Age of the Early Church Fathers Part 1 (Nick R. Needham)

[viii] Church History in Plain Language (Bruce Shelley)

[ix] IBID

[x] A lion handbook the history of Christianity (Dr Tim Dowley)

[xi] IBID

[xi] 2,000 Years of Christs Power Vol. 1: The Age of the Early Church Fathers Part 1 (Nick R. Needham)