Sources of Christian teaching: Holy Tradition and Holy Scripture. Holy Scripture of the Old Testament

Cover of a modern edition of the Russian Orthodox Bible from 2004.

The word "Bible" does not appear in the holy books themselves and was first used in relation to the collection of holy books in the east in the 4th century by John Chrysostom and Epiphanius of Cyprus.

Composition of the Bible

The Bible is made up of many parts that come together to form Old Testament And New Testament.

Old Testament (Tanakh)

The first part of the Bible in Judaism is called the Tanakh; in Christianity it was called the “Old Testament”, in contrast to the “New Testament”. The name " Hebrew Bible" This part of the Bible is a collection of books written in Hebrew long before our era and selected as sacred from other literature by Hebrew teachers of the law. It is the Holy Scripture for all Abrahamic religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam - however, it is canonized only in the first two named (in Islam its laws are considered ineffective, and also distorted).

The Old Testament consists of 39 books, in the Jewish tradition artificially counted as 22, according to the number of letters of the Hebrew alphabet, or as 24, according to the number of letters of the Greek alphabet. All 39 books of the Old Testament are divided into three sections in Judaism.

• "Teaching" (Torah) - contains the Pentateuch of Moses:

• “Prophets” (Neviim) - contains books:
  • 1st and 2nd Kings, or 1st and 2nd Samuel ( are considered one book)
  • 3rd and 4th Kings, or 1st and 2nd Kings ( are considered one book)
  • Twelve Minor Prophets ( are considered one book)

• “Scriptures” (Ketuvim) - contains books:
  • Ezra and Nehemiah ( are considered one book)
  • 1st and 2nd Chronicles, or Chronicles (Chronicles) ( are considered one book)

Combining the Book of Ruth with the Book of Judges into one book, as well as the Lamentations of Jeremiah with the Book of Jeremiah, we get 22 books instead of 24. The ancient Jews considered twenty-two sacred books in their canon, as Josephus Flavius ​​testifies. This is the composition and order of the books in the Hebrew Bible.

All these books are also considered canonical in Christianity.

New Testament

The second part of the Christian Bible is the New Testament, a collection of 27 Christian books (including the 4 Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles of the Apostles and the book of Revelation (Apocalypse)), written in the century. n. e. and those that have come down to us in ancient Greek. This part of the Bible is most important for Christianity, while Judaism does not consider it divinely inspired.

New Testament consists of books belonging to eight inspired writers: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter, Paul, James and Jude.

In the Slavic and Russian Bibles, the books of the New Testament are placed in the following order:

• historical

The books of the New Testament are arranged in this order and in ancient manuscripts- Alexandria and Vatican, Apostolic Rules, Rules of the Councils of Laodicea and Carthage and many ancient Fathers of the Church. But this order of placement of the books of the New Testament cannot be called universal and necessary; in some Bible collections there is a different arrangement of books, and now in the Vulgate and in editions of the Greek New Testament, the Council Epistles are placed after the Epistles of the Apostle Paul before the Apocalypse. When placing books in one way or another, they were guided by many considerations, but the time of writing the books had no bearing of great importance, which can most clearly be seen from the placement of Pavlov’s Epistles. In the order we indicated, we were guided by considerations regarding the importance of the places or churches to which the messages were sent: first, messages written to entire churches were delivered, and then messages written to individuals. The exception is the Epistle to the Hebrews, which stands on last place not because of its low significance, but because its authenticity was doubted for a long time. Guided by chronological considerations, we can place the Epistles of the Apostle Paul in this order:

• to the Thessalonians
  • 1st
• to the Galatians
• to the Corinthians
  • 1st
• to the Romans
• to Philemon
• Philippians
• to Titus
• to Timothy
  • 1st

Deuterocanonical books of the Old Testament

Apocrypha

Jewish teachers of the law, starting from the 4th century. BC e., and the Church Fathers in the II-IV centuries. n. BC, they selected books for the “Word of God” from a considerable number of manuscripts, writings, and monuments. What was not included in the selected canon remained outside the Bible and constituted apocryphal literature (from the Greek ἀπόκρυφος - hidden), accompanying the Old and New Testaments.

At one time, the leaders of the ancient Jewish “Great Assembly” (the administrative-theological scientific synclite of the 4th-3rd centuries BC) and subsequent Jewish religious authorities, and in Christianity - the Fathers of the Church, who formalized it on the initial path, worked a lot, cursing, banning as heretical and divergent from the accepted text, and simply exterminating books that did not meet their criteria. Relatively few apocrypha have survived - just over 100 Old Testament ones and about 100 New Testament ones. Science has been especially enriched by recent excavations and discoveries in the area of ​​the Dead Sea caves in Israel. The Apocrypha, in particular, helps us understand the paths through which Christianity was formed and what elements its dogma was composed of.

History of the Bible

page from the Vatican Codex

Writing Books of the Bible

• Codex Alexandrinus (lat. Codex Alexandrinus), kept in the British Museum Library
• Vatican Codex (lat. Codex Vaticanus), kept in Rome
• Codex Sinaiticus (lat. Codex Sinaiticus), kept in Oxford, formerly in the Hermitage

All of them are dated (palaeographically, that is, based on the “style of handwriting”) to the 4th century. n. e. The language of the codes is Greek.

In the 20th century, the Qumran manuscripts, discovered beginning in the city, in a number of caves in the Judean Desert and in Masada, became widely known.

Division into chapters and verses

The ancient Old Testament text did not have divisions into chapters and verses. But very early (probably after the Babylonian captivity) some divisions appeared for liturgical purposes. The oldest division of the Law into 669 so-called parashas, ​​adapted for public reading, is found in the Talmud; The current division into 50 or 54 parashas dates back to the time of the Masorah and is not found in ancient synagogical lists. Also in the Talmud there are already divisions of the prophets into goftars - final divisions, this name was adopted because they were read at the end of the service.

The divisions into chapters are of Christian origin and were made in the 13th century. or Cardinal Hugon, or Bishop Stephen. When compiling a concordance for the Old Testament, Hugon, for the most convenient indication of places, divided each book of the Bible into several small sections, which he designated by letters of the alphabet. The currently accepted division was introduced by the Bishop of Canterbury, Stephen Langton (died in the city). In the city he divided the text of the Latin Vulgate into chapters, and this division was carried over into the Hebrew and Greek texts.

Then in the 15th century. Rabbi Isaac Nathan, when compiling a concordance in the Hebrew language, divided each book into chapters, and this division is still retained in the Hebrew Bible. The division of poetic books into verses is already given in the very nature of Jewish versification and is therefore very ancient origin; it is found in the Talmud. The New Testament was first divided into verses in the 16th century.

The poems were numbered first by Santes Panino (died in the city), then, around the city, by Robert Etienne. The current chapter and verse system first appeared in the 1560 English Bible. The division is not always logical, but it is already too late to abandon it, much less change anything: over four centuries it has settled in references, comments and alphabetical indexes.

The Bible in the world's religions

Judaism

Christianity

If the 27 books of the New Testament are the same for all Christians, then Christians have major differences in their views on the Old Testament.

The fact is that where the Old Testament is quoted in the books of the New Testament, these quotes are most often given according to Greek translation Bibles III-II centuries. BC e., called, thanks to the legend of 70 translators, the Septuagint (in Greek - seventy), and not according to the Hebrew text accepted in Judaism and called by scientists Masoretic(named after the ancient Jewish biblical theologians who organized the sacred manuscripts).

In fact, it was the list of books of the Septuagint, and not the later “purified” collection of the Masoretes, that became traditional for the Ancient Church as a collection of the books of the Old Testament. Therefore, all the Ancient Churches (in particular, the Armenian Apostolic Church) consider all the books of the Bible that the apostles and Christ himself read as equally grace-filled and inspired, including those called “deuterocanonical” in modern biblical studies.

Catholics also, trusting the Septuagint, accepted these texts into their Vulgate - early medieval Latin translation The Bible, canonized by Western ecumenical councils, and equated them with the rest of the canonical texts and books of the Old Testament, recognizing them as equally inspired by God. These books are known among them as deuterocanonical, or deuterocanonical.

The Orthodox include 11 deuterocanonical books and interpolations in the remaining books in the Old Testament, but with the note that they “came down to us in Greek” and are not part of the main canon. They put insertions into canonical books in brackets and specify them with notes.

Characters from non-canonical books

• Archangel Sariel
• Archangel Jerahmiel

Sciences and teachings related to the Bible

see also

• Tanakh - Hebrew Bible

Literature

• Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: In 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional ones). - St. Petersburg: 1890-1907.
• McDowell, Josh. Evidence of the reliability of the Bible: a reason for reflection and a basis for decision-making: Trans. from English - St. Petersburg: Christian Society “Bible for Everyone”, 2003. - 747 p. - ISBN 5-7454-0794-8, ISBN 0-7852-4219-8 (en.)
• Doyel, Leo. Testament of Eternity. In Search of Biblical Manuscripts. - St. Petersburg: “Amphora”, 2001.
• Nesterova O. E. The theory of the plurality of “meanings” of Holy Scripture in the medieval Christian exegetical tradition // Genres and forms in the written culture of the Middle Ages. - M.: IMLI RAS, 2005. - P. 23-44.
• Kryvelev I. A. A book about the Bible. - M.: Publishing house of socio-economic literature, 1958.

Footnotes and sources

Links

Bible Texts and Translations

• More than 25 translations of the Bible and its parts and quick search for all translations. Ability to create hyperlinks to places in the Bible. Possibility to listen to the text of any of the books.
• Literal translation from Greek of some books of the New Testament into Russian
• Review of Russian translations of the Bible (with the ability to download)
• “Your Bible” - Russian Synodal translation with search and comparison of versions (Ukrainian translation by Ivan Ogienko and English King James Version
• Interlinear translation of the Bible from Greek into Russian
• Text of the Old and New Testaments in Russian and Church Slavonic languages
• Bible on algart.net - online Bible text with cross-references, including the complete Bible on one page
• Electronic Bible and Apocrypha - repeatedly verified text of the Synodal Translation
• Superbook is one of the most comprehensive Bible sites with non-trivial but very powerful navigation

In everything Christendom It is generally accepted that all books that were written by Prophets and Apostles under the “dictation” of God’s Holy Spirit are considered Holy Scripture. God himself shared the secrets of the future with his devoted servants, and they carried this through their records to all people, piercing time. All these books are collected under a single name - the Holy Scriptures or the Bible.

If you look at the Bible from another perspective, it can be considered a collection of historical stories. All the books of the prophets and apostles in the Bible are collected and arranged in chronological order their writings, and they tell about the lives of people, about all the events that took place on earth from its beginning and over the next five and a half thousand years. The Bible contains books that were written over two thousand years.

As a literary work, this book has absolutely no price. The Bible is priceless. This is a completely unique, inimitable literary masterpiece and monument. And for believers, this is also a kind of instruction for life and a guide to action.

The Holy Scripture or the Bible is internally divided into two parts - the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament makes up the majority of the Bible and records older events. The New Testament, smaller in volume, tells us about a later time.

In the Old Testament part of the Holy Scriptures, the authors of the books prepared people for the coming of Christ, talked about the foundation of the Earth and life on it, and explained the spiritual Divine laws of existence. And the New Testament authors, evangelists and disciples of Christ himself, tell us about the amazing coming and life of Jesus, the God-man, on Earth.

The entire Old Testament of the Bible has more varied themes. From the very beginning, it tells how God created the world: the stars, the Earth, man, animals and birds. The most ancient part The Bible is devoted only to this topic.

Next, the Bible tells us what laws God established for His people through Moses. The commandments that were given to the Jews through the first great prophet are still the basic rules of the Christian faith and life in general.

The next part of the Old Testament describes in detail historical events which took place over a period of a thousand years, until the beginning of the second century new era. Then follow books of a moral and edifying nature. All life stories individual people or the socio-political events of that time described in these books - each of them has meaning and teaching for any person living today.

There are books in the Old Testament that are distinguished by their poetry and lyrical content. These include the book of Psalms of King David and the Song of Songs of King Solomon. They reveal the inner peace of mind a person who loves and worships God the Creator.

The last books that make up the Old Testament are prophetic. These are not just predictions of the future, these are original revelations and appeals of those former prophets to all of us. They reveal the soul and heart of God Himself - the Father, who wants to convey to his children all the love and understanding, holiness and righteousness. These books teach a person to live in such a way that his heart is open to Him, the Father and creator of the whole Earth. The entire Old Testament consists of thirty-nine books.

The New Testament consists of twenty-seven books that describe the earthly life of Jesus Christ (the four Gospels), his disciples - followers (the Acts of the Apostles), letters, or rather, the messages of the disciples themselves to different peoples and the book of Revelations, which gives full picture O last days life on Earth.

The purpose of the entire teaching of the Holy Scriptures is to teach a person to live righteously, to eradicate all evil in himself, thereby defeating spiritual death. This is what the Holy Scripture is, the Bible, a book that is the oldest book that has ever existed on earth.

100 RUR bonus for first order

Select job type Graduate work Course work Abstract Master's thesis Report on practice Article Report Review Test Monograph Problem Solving Business Plan Answers to Questions Creative work Essay Drawing Works Translation Presentations Typing Other Increasing the uniqueness of the text Master's thesis Laboratory work Online help

Find out the price

The main source of knowledge about God and guidance in life for any Christian is the Holy Scripture. All the books of the Holy Scriptures are collected into one large book - the Bible (translated from Greek biblia - “books”).

The Bible is called the book of books. This is the most widespread book on earth; it ranks first in the world in terms of circulation. The Bible is needed by the peoples who speak different languages, so by the end of 1988 it had been translated in whole or in part into 1,907 languages. In addition, the contents of the Bible are distributed on records and cassettes, which is necessary, for example, for the blind and illiterate.

The Bible is accepted throughout the world greatest monument history and culture. However, for believers it is something incomparably greater: it is the written Revelation of God, the message of the Triune God addressed to humanity.

The Bible consists of two large parts: These are the Old Testament and the New Testament.

The word “Covenant” means “an agreement with God, a testament of the Lord, according to which people will find salvation.”

The Old (that is, ancient, old) Testament covers the period of history before the birth of Christ, and the New Testament tells about events directly related to the mission of Christ.

Most of the books of the Old Testament were written in the 7th-3rd centuries BC, and by the beginning of the 2nd century the books of the New Testament were added to the Old Testament.

Different people and at different times contributed to the writing of the Bible. There were more than 50 such participants, and the Bible is not a collection of different teachings and stories.

Saint John Chrysostom interprets the word “Bible” as a collective concept: “The Bible is many books that form one single book.” What these books have in common is the idea of ​​the Divine salvation of humanity.

(http://www.hrono.ru/religia/pravoslav/sv_pisanie.html)

The Holy Scripture or Bible is a collection of books written by prophets and apostles, as we believe, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The word “Bible” (ta biblia) is Greek and means “books”.

The main theme of Holy Scripture is the salvation of mankind by the Messiah, the incarnate Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Old Testament speaks of salvation in the form of types and prophecies about the Messiah and the Kingdom of God. The New Testament sets forth the very realization of our salvation through the incarnation, life and teaching of the God-man, sealed by His death on the cross and resurrection. According to the time of their writing, the sacred books are divided into the Old Testament and the New Testament. Of these, the first contain what the Lord revealed to people through the divinely inspired prophets before the coming of the Savior to earth; and the second is what the Lord Savior Himself and His apostles discovered and taught on earth.

The Old Testament books were originally written in Hebrew. Later books from the time of the Babylonian captivity already have many Assyrian and Babylonian words and figures of speech. And the books written during Greek rule (non-canonical books) are written in Greek, while the 3rd book of Ezra is in Latin.

The Old Testament Holy Scripture contains the following books:

The books of the prophet Moses or the Torah (containing the foundations of the Old Testament faith): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.

Historical books: the book of Joshua, the book of Judges, the book of Ruth, the books of Kings: 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th, the books of Chronicles: 1st and 2nd, the first book of Ezra, the book of Nehemiah, Second Book of Esther.

Educational (edifying content): the book of Job, the Psalter, the book of Solomon's parables, the book of Ecclesiastes, the book of Song of Songs.

Prophetic (books of predominantly prophetic content): the book of the prophet Isaiah, the book of the prophet Jeremiah, the book of the prophet Ezekiel, the book of the prophet Daniel, the Twelve books of the minor prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi.

The book of the Bible is Holy Scripture, a collection of books written God's people, inspired by the Holy Spirit, inspired by God. The Bible consists of two main sections - the Old and New Testaments.

In total, the Old Testament consists of 39 books, written in Hebrew, at different times, different people.

The New Testament consists of 27 books written in Greek. These are 4 Gospels: the Gospel of Matthew, the Gospel of Luke, the Gospel of Mark, the Gospel of John. The New Testament also includes the Acts of the Apostles, 21 Apostolic Epistles and the Apocalypse. The teachings of the holy apostles, prophets and teachers of the church contain not just wisdom, but we are given the truth, which was given to us by the Lord God himself. This truth lies at the basis of all life, both ours and those of those people who lived in those days. Modern preachers, theologians and pastors of the Church convey to us the interpretation of the Bible, the interpretation of the Holy Scriptures, what was revealed by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Christ of Nazareth was born much later than the Old Testament was written. Stories about him were first transmitted orally; later, the evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John wrote 4 Gospels. All the main events of the life of Jesus Christ, his birth in Bethlehem, his life, miracles and crucifixion are described in the Gospels by the evangelists. All 4 Gospels are based on the same oral traditions about the life of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul and his disciples wrote letters, many of which were included in the collection of books of the New Testament. The earliest complete copy of the New Testament dates back to 300 AD. During this time, the New Testament was translated into several languages, including Latin and Syriac.

The first copies of the Bible were written in Latin beautiful elegant handwriting. Later, the pages of the Old and New Testaments began to be decorated with patterns, flowers and small figures.

Over time, the languages ​​of peoples and nationalities change. The presentation of the Bible in the Old and New Testaments also changes. The Modern Bible is written in a modern language that we understand, but it has not lost its main content.

The Holy Scriptures are books written by Prophets and Apostles with the help of the Holy Spirit of God, revealing to them the secrets of the future. These books are called the Bible.

The Bible is a historically established collection of books that covers - according to the Biblical account - an age of about five and a half thousand years. How literary work it has been going on for about two thousand years.

It is divided in volume into two unequal parts: the larger one - the ancient one, that is, the Old Testament, and the later one - the New Testament.

The history of the Old Testament prepared people for the coming of Christ for about two thousand years. The New Testament covers the earthly period of the life of the God-man Jesus Christ and his closest followers. For us Christians, of course, the history of the New Testament is more important.

The books of the Bible are divided into four parts.

1) The first of them talks about the law left by God to the people through the prophet Moses. These commandments are dedicated to the rules of life and faith.

2) The second part is historical, it describes all the events that took place over 1100 years - until the 2nd century. ad.

3) The third part of the books includes moral and edifying ones. They are based on instructive stories from the lives of people famous for certain deeds or in a special way thoughts and behavior.

It should be noted that of all the Old Testament books, the Psalter was the main one for the formation of our Russian worldview. This book was educational - in the pre-Petrine era, all Russian children learned to read and write from it.

4) The fourth part of the books are prophetic books. Prophetic texts are not just reading, but revelation - very important for the life of each of us, since our inner world is always in motion, striving to achieve the pristine beauty of the human soul.

The story about the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the essence of his teaching is contained in the second part of the Bible - the New Testament. The New Testament consists of 27 books. These are, first of all, the four Gospels - a story about the life and three and a half years of preaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then - books telling about His disciples - the books of the Acts of the Apostles, as well as books of His disciples themselves - the Epistles of the Apostles, and, finally, the book of the Apocalypse, telling about the final destinies of the world.

The moral law contained in the New Testament is more strict than that of the Old Testament. Here not only sinful deeds are condemned, but also thoughts. The goal of every person is to eradicate evil in himself. By defeating evil, man conquers death.

The main thing in the Christian faith is the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, who conquered death and opened the way for all humanity to eternal life. It is this joyful feeling of liberation that permeates the New Testament narratives. The word “Gospel” itself is translated from Greek as “Good News.”

The Old Testament is the ancient union of God with man, in which God promised people a Divine Savior and, over many centuries, prepared them to receive Him.

The New Testament is that God really gave people a Divine Savior, in the person of His Only Begotten Son, who came down from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and suffered and crucified for us, was buried and resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures.

(http://zakonbozhiy.ru/Zakon_Bozhij/Chast_1_O_vere_i_zhizni_hristianskoj/SvJaschennoe_Pisanie_BibliJa/)

FROM VASILIEV:

The entire history and theory of Judaism, so closely connected with the life and destinies of the ancient Jews, are reflected in the Bible, in its Old Testament. Although the Bible, as a sum of sacred books, began to be compiled at the turn of the 11th-1st millennia BC. e. (its oldest parts date back to the 14th-13th centuries, and the first records - approximately to the 9th century BC), the main part of the texts and, apparently, the edition of the general code dates back to the period of the Second Temple. The Babylonian captivity gave a powerful impetus to the work of writing these books: the priests taken away from Jerusalem no longer had concerns about maintaining the temple” and were forced to concentrate their efforts on rewriting and editing the scrolls, on composing new texts. After returning from captivity, this work was continued and ultimately completed.

The Old Testament part of the Bible (most of it) consists of a number of books. First, there is the famous Pentateuch, attributed to Moses. The first book (“Genesis”) tells about the creation of the world, about Adam and Eve, the global flood and the first Hebrew patriarchs, and finally, about Joseph and the Egyptian captivity. Book two (“Exodus”) tells about the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, about Moses and his commandments, about the beginning of the organization of the cult of Yahweh. The third (“Leviticus”) is a set of religious dogmas, rules, and rituals. The fourth (“Numbers”) and fifth (“Deuteronomy”) are devoted to the history of the Jews after the Egyptian captivity. The Pentateuch (in Hebrew - Torah) was the most revered part of the Old Testament, and subsequently it was the interpretation of the Torah that gave rise to the multi-volume Talmud and formed the basis for the activities of rabbis in all Jewish communities of the world.

Following the Pentateuch, the Bible contains the books of the judges and kings of Israel, the books of the prophets and several other works - the collection of psalms of David (Psalter), Song of Solomon, Proverbs of Solomon, etc. The value of these books varies, and sometimes their fame and popularity are incommensurable. However, they were all considered sacred and were studied by many hundreds of millions of people, tens of generations of believers, not only Jews, but also Christians.

The Bible is, first of all, a church book that instilled in its readers blind faith in the omnipotence of God, in his omnipotence, in the miracles he performed, etc. Old Testament texts taught Jews humility before the will of Yahweh, obedience to him, as well as to the priests and prophets speaking on his behalf . However, the content of the Bible is far from exhausted by this. Her texts contain many deep thoughts about the universe and the fundamental principles of existence, about relationships between people, about moral standards, social values etc., which is usually found in every sacred book that claims to present the essence of a particular religious doctrine.

There are two main sources of creed and religious order: Sacred Tradition churches and Holy Scripture. The concept of Holy Tradition cannot be comprehended without the concept of Holy Scripture, and vice versa.

What is Sacred Tradition?

Sacred Tradition is, in a broad sense, the totality of all oral and written religious knowledge and sources containing all dogmas, canons, treatises and the basis of religious doctrine. The basis of Tradition is the transmission of the content of faith from mouth to mouth, from generation to generation.

Sacred Tradition is the totality of all dogmas and church traditions that are described in religious texts, and also conveyed to people by the apostles. The power and content of these texts are equal, and the truths contained in them are immutable. Important aspects of the entire Holy Tradition are conveyed by the apostolic sermons and texts.

How is Holy Tradition transmitted?

Sacred Tradition can be transmitted in three ways:

1. From historical treatises containing the Revelation of God;
2. From the experience of previous generations who experienced Divine Grace;
3. Through conducting and performing church services.

Composition of Sacred Tradition

Does not exist consensus about what place the Bible occupies in Holy Tradition. In any case, this book plays an important role in any branch of Christianity. The concepts of Sacred Tradition and Holy Scripture are inextricably linked, but the composition of Tradition is much more complex. Moreover, in some branches of Christianity, for example, in Catholicism, Scripture is not an important part of Tradition. Protestantism, on the contrary, recognizes only the text of the Bible.

Latin interpretation of the Tradition

The opinion of the church regarding Holy Tradition directly depends on the denomination. So, for example, the Latin version of Tradition says that the apostles, called to preach to all lands, secretly conveyed to the authors part of the teaching, which was set out in writing. The other, unwritten, was passed on from mouth to mouth, and was recorded much later, in the post-apostolic era.

The Law of God in Russian Orthodoxy

Sacred Tradition is the basis for Russian Orthodoxy, which is not much different from Orthodoxy in other countries. This explains the same attitude towards the basic tenets of faith. In Russian Orthodoxy, Holy Scripture is rather a form of sacred Tradition than an independent religious work.

Initial Orthodox tradition generally believes that Tradition can be transmitted not through the transfer of knowledge, but only in rites and rituals, as a result of the participation of the Holy Spirit in Church life. The creation of Tradition occurs through the appearance of Christ in human life during rituals and images that are passed on by previous generations to the next: from father to son, from teacher to student, from priest to parishioner.

Thus, Holy Scripture is the main book of Holy Tradition, reflecting its entire essence. Tradition at the same time personifies Scripture. The text of Scripture should not contradict the teachings of the church, because it is the understanding of what is written in the Bible that leads to the understanding of the entire doctrine as a whole. Guide to correct interpretation The Bibles are the teachings of the church fathers, but they are not considered sacred, unlike the texts approved at the Ecumenical Councils.

Scripture in Orthodoxy

Composition of the Holy Scriptures in Orthodoxy:

1. Bible;
2. Symbol of faith;
3. Decisions adopted by the Ecumenical Councils;
4. Liturgies, church sacraments and rituals;
5. Treatises of priests, church philosophers and teachers;
6. Stories written by martyrs;
7. Stories about saints and their lives;
8. In addition, some scientists believe that Christian apocrypha, whose content does not contradict the Holy Scriptures, can serve as a reliable source of Tradition.

It turns out that in Orthodoxy, Holy Tradition is any religious information that does not contradict the truth.

Catholic interpretation

Catholic Sacred Tradition is a religious teaching about the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary, passed down from mouth to mouth, from generation to generation.

Sacred Tradition in Protestantism

Protestants do not consider Tradition the main source of their faith and allow Christians to write independently. Additionally, Protestants adhere to the principle of sola Scriptura, which means “Scripture Alone.” In their opinion, only God can be trusted, and only the Divine word is authoritative. All other instructions are called into question. Nevertheless, Protestantism retained the relative authority of the church fathers, relying on their experience, however absolute truth only the information contained in Scripture counts.

Muslim Holy Tradition

The Holy Tradition of Muslims is set out in the Sunnah - a religious text citing episodes from the life of the Prophet Muhammad. The Sunnah is an example and a guide that forms the basis of behavior for all members of the Muslim community. It contains the sayings of the prophet, as well as actions that are approved by Islam. The Sunnah is the second main source of Islamic law for Muslims after the Koran, which makes its study very important for all Muslims.

From the 9th to the 10th centuries, the Sunnah was revered among Muslims along with the Quran. There are even such interpretations of the Holy Tradition when the Koran is called the “first Sunnah”, and the Sunnah of Muhammad is called the “second Sunnah”. The importance of the Sunnah is due to the fact that after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, it is the main source helping to resolve controversial issues in the life of the Caliphate and the Muslim community.

The Place of the Bible in Sacred Tradition

The Bible as the basis of divine revelation is the stories described in the Old and New Testaments. The word “Bible” is translated as “books,” which fully reflects the essence of the Holy Scriptures. The Bible was written by different people over several thousand years, has 75 books in different languages, but has a single composition, logic and spiritual content.

According to the church, God himself inspired people to write the Bible, which is why the book is “inspired.” It was he who revealed the truth to the authors and compiled their narrative into a single whole, helping to comprehend the content of the books. Moreover, the Holy Spirit did not forcefully fill the human mind with information. The truth poured out on the authors like grace, giving rise to creative process. Thus, the Holy Scriptures are, in essence, the result of the joint creation of man and the Holy Spirit. People were not in trance or fog states when writing the Bible. All of them were of sound mind and sober memory. As a result, thanks to fidelity to Tradition and living in the Holy Spirit, the church was able to separate the wheat from the chaff and include in the Bible only those books on which, in addition to the creative imprint of the author, also bear the divine stamp of grace, as well as those that connect the events of the Old and New Testaments. These two parts of one book testify to each other. The old here testifies to the new, and the new confirms the old.

Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition in brief

If Holy Tradition contains the entire basis of faith, including Scripture, then it is very important to know at least summary its most important parts.

The Bible begins with the Book of Genesis, which describes the moment of the creation of the World and the first people: Adam and Eve. As a result of the Fall, the unfortunate find themselves expelled from paradise, after which they continue the human race, which only roots sin in the earthly world. Divine attempts to hint to the first people about their inappropriate actions end with their total ignoring. The same book describes the appearance of Abraham, a righteous man who entered into a covenant with God - an agreement according to which his descendants should receive their land, and all other people should receive God's blessing. Abraham's descendants spent a long time in captivity among the Egyptians. The prophet Moses comes to their aid, saving them from slavery and fulfilling the first agreement with God: providing them with lands for life.

There are books of the Old Testament that provide rules for the comprehensive fulfillment of the covenant, necessary in order not to violate the will of God. The prophets were entrusted with bringing the Law of God to people. It is from this moment that the Lord proclaims the creation of a New Testament, eternal and common to all nations.

The New Testament is entirely built on descriptions of the life of Christ: his birth, life and resurrection. The Virgin Mary, as a result of the immaculate conception, gives birth to the baby Christ - the son of God, who is destined to become the one true God and Man, to preach and perform miracles. Accused of blasphemy, Christ is killed, after which miraculously resurrects and sends the Apostles to preach throughout the world and carry the word of God. In addition, there is a book about the apostolic acts, which talks about the emergence of the church as a whole, about the actions of the people redeemed by the blood of the Lord.

The last biblical book - the Apocalypse - speaks of the end of the world, victory over evil, general resurrection and God's judgment, after which everyone will be rewarded for their earthly deeds. Then God's Covenant will be fulfilled.

There is also a Holy Tradition for children, the Scripture in which contains the main episodes, but is adapted for understanding by the smallest.

The Meaning of Scripture

Essentially, the Bible contains proof of the contract between God and men, and also contains instructions regarding the fulfillment of this contract. From the sacred biblical texts, believers draw information about how to do things and what not to do. The Bible is the most effective way bring the word of God to as many as possible more followers.

It is believed that the authenticity of biblical texts is confirmed by the most ancient manuscripts written by contemporaries of Christ. They contain the same texts that are preached today in the Orthodox Church. In addition, the text of Scripture contains predictions that later came true.

The divine seal placed on the texts is confirmed by the numerous miracles described in the Bible that occur to this day. This includes toe-in Holy Fire before Easter, the appearance of stigmata and other events. Some consider such things to be only blasphemous tricks and profanation, trying to expose certain evidence of the existence of God and refute the historical accuracy of the events of the Bible. However, all these attempts, as a rule, are unsuccessful, because even those eyewitnesses who were opponents of Christ never denied what they saw.

The Most Incredible Miracles Described in the Bible

• Miracle of Moses

Twice a year, off the coast of the South Korean island of Jindo, a miracle similar to what Moses performed occurs. The sea parts, revealing coral reef. In any case, it is now impossible to say for sure whether the biblical event was an accident associated with natural phenomenon, or real divine will, but it really happened.

• Resurrection of the Dead

In the year 31, the disciples of Christ witnessed an amazing phenomenon: on the way to the city of Nain they met funeral procession. The inconsolable mother buried only son; being a widow, the woman was left completely alone. According to those who were present, Jesus took pity on the woman, touched the tomb, and commanded the dead man to stand up. To the amazement of those around him, the young man stood up and spoke.

• Resurrection of Christ

The most important miracle around which the entire New Testament is built, the resurrection of Christ, is also the most attested. This was spoken about not only by the disciples and apostles, who initially themselves did not believe what happened, but also by authoritative contemporaries of Christ, such as, for example, the doctor and historian Luke. He also testified to the facts of Jesus' resurrection from the dead.

In any case, belief in miracles is an integral part of the entire Christian faith. To believe in God means to believe in the Bible, and, accordingly, in the miracles that happen in it. They firmly believe in the contents of the Bible as a text written by God himself - a caring and loving Father.

All people globe can read the Bible in whole or in part on native language.

We Orthodox Christians are often reproached for not reading the Bible as often as, for example, Protestants do. How fair are such accusations?

Orthodox Church recognizes two sources of knowledge of God - Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. Moreover, the first is an integral part of the second. After all, initially the sermons of the holy apostles were delivered and transmitted orally. Sacred Tradition includes not only Holy Scripture, but also liturgical texts, decrees of Ecumenical Councils, iconography and a number of other sources that occupy an important place in the life of the Church. And everything that is said in the Holy Scriptures is also in the Tradition of the Church.

Since ancient times, the life of a Christian has been inextricably linked with biblical texts. And in the 16th century, when the so-called “Reformation” arose, the situation changed. Protestants abandoned the Holy Tradition of the Church and limited themselves to only studying the Holy Scriptures. And therefore, a special kind of piety appeared among them - reading and studying biblical texts. Once again I want to emphasize: from the point of view of the Orthodox Church, Holy Tradition includes the entire scope of church life, including the Holy Scriptures. Moreover, even if someone does not read the Word of God, but regularly visits the temple, he hears that all worship is permeated biblical quotes. Thus, if a person lives a church life, then he is in the atmosphere of the Bible.

The Holy Scriptures are a collection of different books according to the time of their writing, and by authorship, and by content, and by style.

- How many books are included in the Holy Scriptures? What is the difference between the Orthodox Bible and the Protestant Bible?

The Holy Scriptures are a collection of books, different books according to the time of their writing, and by authorship, and by content, and by style. They are divided into two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. There are 77 books in the Orthodox Bible, and 66 in the Protestant Bible.

- What causes this discrepancy?

The fact is that in the Orthodox Bible, more precisely in the Holy Scripture of the Old Testament, in addition to 39 canonical books, there are 11 more non-canonical books: Tobit, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, Wisdom of Jesus, son of Sirach, Epistle of Jeremiah, Baruch, second and third books of Ezra, three Maccabean books. In the “Long Christian Catechism” of St. Philaret of Moscow it is said that the division of books into canonical and non-canonical is caused by the absence of the latter (11 books) in Jewish primary sources and their presence only in Greek, i.e. in the Septuagint (translation of 70 interpreters). In turn, Protestants, starting with M. Luther, abandoned non-canonical books, mistakenly assigning them the status of “apocryphal”. As for the 27 books of the New Testament, they are recognized by both Orthodox and Protestants. It's about about the Christian part of the Bible, written after the Nativity of Christ: the New Testament books testify to the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the first decades of the existence of the Church. These include the four Gospels, the book of the Acts of the Apostles, the epistles of the apostles (seven - conciliar and 14 - of the Apostle Paul), as well as the Revelation of John the Theologian (Apocalypse).

Dobromir Gospel, early (?) XII century

The main thing is to have a sincere desire to know the Word of God

- How to study the Bible correctly? Is it worth starting knowledge from the first pages of Genesis?

The main thing is to have a sincere desire to learn the Word of God. It's better to start with the New Testament. Experienced pastors recommend getting acquainted with the Bible through the Gospel of Mark (that is, not in the order in which they are presented). It is the shortest, written in simple and accessible language. Having read the Gospels of Matthew, Luke and John, we move on to the book of Acts, the Apostolic Epistles and the Apocalypse (the most complex and most mysterious book throughout the Bible). And only after this can you begin to read the Old Testament books. Only after reading the New Testament, it is easier to understand the meaning of the Old. After all, it was not for nothing that the Apostle Paul said that the Old Testament legislation was a teacher to Christ (see: Gal. 3: 24): it leads a person, as if a child by the hand, to let him truly understand what happened during the Incarnation, What in principle is the incarnation of God for a person...

It is important to understand that reading the Holy Scriptures is part of a spiritual achievement

- What if the reader does not understand some episodes of the Bible? What to do in this case? Who should I contact?

It is advisable to have books on hand that explain the Holy Scriptures. We can recommend the works of Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria. His explanations are short, but very accessible and deeply ecclesiastical, reflecting the Tradition of the Church. The conversations of St. John Chrysostom on the Gospels and Apostolic Epistles are also classic. If any questions arise, it would be a good idea to consult with an experienced priest. It is necessary to understand that reading the Holy Scriptures is part of a spiritual achievement. And it is very important to pray, to cleanse your soul. Indeed, even in the Old Testament it was said: wisdom will not enter an evil soul and will not dwell in a body enslaved to sin, for the Holy Spirit of wisdom will withdraw from wickedness and turn away from foolish speculations, and will be ashamed of the approaching unrighteousness (Wisdom 1: 4-5) .

Before studying the Holy Scriptures, you need to familiarize yourself with the works of the holy fathers

- So, you need to prepare for reading the Holy Scriptures in a special way?

Experienced elders in monasteries gave the novice a rule: before studying the Holy Scriptures, you first need to become familiar with the works of the holy fathers. Bible readings are not just studying the Word of God, they are like prayer. In general, I would recommend reading the Bible in the morning, after prayer rule. I think it’s easy to set aside 15–20 minutes to read one or two chapters from the Gospel, the Apostolic Epistles. This way you can get a spiritual charge for the whole day. Very often, in this way, answers to serious questions that life poses to a person appear.

Ostromir Gospel (1056 - 1057)

The main tenets of Scripture are the voice of God, sounding in the nature of each of us

Sometimes the following situation happens: you read it, understand what it’s about, but it doesn’t suit you because you don’t agree with what’s written...

According to Tertullian (one of the church writers of antiquity), our soul is Christian by nature. Thus, biblical truths were given to man from the very beginning; they are embedded in his nature, his consciousness. We sometimes call it conscience, that is, it is not something new that is unusual human nature. The main tenets of the Holy Scriptures are the voice of God, sounding in the nature of each of us. Therefore, you need, first of all, to pay attention to your life: is everything in it consistent with the commandments of God? If a person does not want to listen to the voice of God, then what other voice does he need? Who will he listen to?

The main difference between the Bible and other books is revelation

Once Saint Philaret was asked: how can one believe that the prophet Jonah was swallowed by a whale that had a very narrow throat? In response, he said: “If it were written in the Holy Scriptures that it was not the whale that swallowed Jonah, but Jonah the whale, I would believe that too.” Of course, today such statements can be perceived with sarcasm. In this regard, the question arises: why does the Church trust the Holy Scripture so much? After all, the biblical books were written by people...

The main difference between the Bible and other books is revelation. This is not just the work of some outstanding person. Through the prophets and apostles, the voice of God Himself is reproduced in accessible language. If the Creator addresses us, then how should we react to this? Hence such attention and such trust in the Holy Scriptures.

In what language were the biblical books written? How did their translation affect modern perception sacred texts?

Most of the Old Testament books were written in Hebrew language(Hebrew). Some of them survive only in Aramaic. The already mentioned non-canonical books have reached us exclusively in Greek: for example, Judith, Tobit, Baruch and the Maccabees. The third book of Ezra is known to us in its entirety only in Latin. As for the New Testament, it was mainly written in Greek - in the Koine dialect. Some biblical scholars believe that the Gospel of Matthew was written in Hebrew, but no primary sources have reached us (there are only translations). Of course, it would be better to read and study biblical books based on primary sources and originals. But this has been the case since ancient times: all books of Holy Scripture were translated. And therefore, for the most part, people are familiar with the Holy Scriptures translated into their native language.

All people around the world can read the Bible in whole or in part in their native language

- It would be interesting to know: what language did Jesus Christ speak?

Many believe that Christ used Aramaic. However, when talking about the original Gospel of Matthew, most biblical scholars point to Hebrew as the language of the Old Testament books. Disputes on this topic continue to this day.

According to Bible societies, as recently as 2008, the Bible had been translated, in whole or in part, into 2,500 languages. Some scientists believe that there are 3 thousand languages ​​in the world, others point to 6 thousand. It is very difficult to define the criterion: what is a language and what is a dialect. But we can say with absolute confidence: all people living in different parts of the globe can read the Bible in whole or in part in their native language.

The main criterion is that the Bible must be understandable.

- Which language is preferable for us: Russian, Ukrainian or Church Slavonic?

The main criterion is that the Bible must be understandable. Traditionally used during church services Church Slavonic language. Unfortunately, in secondary school it is not studied. Therefore, many biblical expressions require explanation. This, by the way, applies not only to our era. This problem also arose in the 19th century. At the same time, a translation of the Holy Scriptures into Russian appeared - the Synodal Translation of the Bible. It has stood the test of time and had a huge impact on the development of the Russian language in particular and Russian culture in general. Therefore, for Russian-speaking parishioners, I would recommend using home reading exactly him. As for Ukrainian-speaking parishioners, the situation here is a little more complicated. The point is that the first attempt full translation Bible on Ukrainian language was undertaken by Panteleimon Kulish in the 60s of the XIX century. He was joined by Ivan Nechuy-Levitsky. The translation was completed by Ivan Pulyuy (after Kulish’s death). Their work was published in 1903 by the Bible Society. In the 20th century the most authoritative were the translations of Ivan Ogienko and Ivan Khomenko. Currently, many people are attempting to translate the entire Bible or parts of it. There are both positive experiences and difficult, controversial issues. So, it would probably be incorrect to recommend any specific text of the Ukrainian translation. Now the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is translating the Four Gospels. I hope that this will be a successful translation both for home reading and for liturgical services (in those parishes where Ukrainian is used).

7th century Four Evangelists. Gospel of Kells. Dublin, Trinity College

Spiritual food must be given to a person in a form in which it can bring spiritual benefit

In some parishes, during the service, a biblical passage is read in the native language (after reading in Church Slavonic)...

This tradition is typical not only for ours, but also for many foreign parishes, where there are believers from different countries. In such situations, liturgical passages from the Holy Scriptures are repeated in native languages. After all, spiritual food must be given to a person in a form in which it can bring spiritual benefit.

From time to time, information appears in the media about some new biblical book that was allegedly previously lost or kept secret. It necessarily reveals some “sacred” moments that contradict Christianity. How to treat such sources?

In the last two centuries, many ancient manuscripts have been discovered, which has made it possible to coordinate the approach to the study of the biblical text. First of all, this concerns the Qumran manuscripts discovered in the area Dead Sea(in the Qumran caves). Many manuscripts were found there - both biblical and gnostic (that is, texts that distort Christian teaching). It is possible that many manuscripts of a Gnostic nature will be found in the future. It should be recalled that even during the 2nd and 3rd centuries. The Church fought against the heresy of Gnosticism. And in our time, when we are witnessing a craze for the occult, these texts appear under the guise of some kind of sensation.

We read the Word of God not to memorize, but to feel the breath of God Himself

By what criteria can one determine a positive result from regular reading of the Holy Scriptures? By the number of memorized quotes?

We do not read the Word of God for memorization. Although there are situations, for example in seminaries, when exactly this task is set. Biblical texts are important for spiritual life in order to feel the breath of God Himself. In this way, we become familiar with the grace-filled gifts that exist in the Church, we learn about the commandments, thanks to which we become better, and draw closer to the Lord. Therefore, Bible study is a vital part of our spiritual ascent, spiritual life. With regular reading, many passages are gradually memorized without special memorization.