Ash Paul asks:
“Nagtanong po ung classmate ko sa aming professor kung bakit daw ang bibliya ng mga katoliko ay may mas maraming books compared sa ibang bibliya?
At ung mga laman daw ng mga aklat na ito ay contradicting dun sa ibang mga books? Gusto ko po sumagot… pero di ko din po alam ang aking sasabihin.. anu po ba ang maayos na paliwanag para dito? Tayo po ba ang nagdagdag? o sila ang nagbawas?
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Dear Ash Paul,
Salamat sa iyong tanong. Maaring ito rin ang tanong ng iba nating mga kasamahan. Una, mainam ang ginawa mo na hindi ka na lamang sumagot dahil hindi pa sapat ang iyong kaalaman hinggil dito. Ikalawa, hindi ka nakuntento sa ganun na lamang kaya’t ikaw na mismo ang naghahanap ng sagot na nagtulak sa iyo na “Magtanong kay Father”
Hangad ko na sana ay makapagbigay ako ng malinaw at focused na sagot. Maraming aspeto ang pag-aaral ng Bibliya at hindi natin mata-tackle lahat. Ang focus ng iyong katanungan ay ang “CANONICITY” of the Bible.
Fr. Louie
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ANO ANG CANON OF THE BIBLE?
- The canon of the Bible refers to the definitive list of the books which are considered to be divinely revealed and inspired.
- Ibig sabihin kung hindi kabilang sa canon (o divinely inspired list of books) ang isang book, hindi ito revealed and inspired by God.
NI-REVEAL BA NG DIYOS “EXPLICITLY” KUNG ANONG BOOK OF THE BIBLE ANG INSPIRED AT KUNG ALIN ANG HINDE?
- Ipinahayag ng Diyos ang Kanyang Salita, subalit HINDI po explicitly sinabi ng Diyos na “Etong Genesis, inspired ‘yan”, “Etong Esther, hinde.”
- God did NOT explicitly reveal what books are the inspired books of the Bible, title by title, to anyone, kaya we must look to His guidance in discovering the canon of the Bible.
- God has revealed Himself by communicating His will to man, and man must be able to know with assurance where that revelation lies. Hence the need for a list (i.e. canon) of books of the Bible.
DISCERNMENT OF THE CANON
The Roman Catholic Church did not create the canon; she discerned the canon. Narito ang ilang criteria upang ma-discern ang canonicity:
1. special relation to God, i.e., inspiration
2. apostolic origin
3. used in Church services, i.e., used by the community of believers guided by the Holy Spirit.
CANON OF THE NEW TESTAMENT: Walang dispute!
Ang mga Catholics kasama ng mga Protestant and Evangelical Christians ay pinanghahawakan na may 27 books ang Canon of the New Testament, na originally ay isinulat sa wikang GREEK.
So, walang problema, walang debate sa NT.
Subalit, ang Bible ng Roman Catholic ang siyang divinely inspired.
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: May Dispute sa 7 books!
- Catholics accept the longer Old Testament canon, 46 books, from the Greek Septuagint (LXX = eto ung symbol ng Greek Septuagint) translation of theAlexandrian Canon.
- Protestant and Evangelical Christians, from the Reformers onward, accept the shorter Old Testament canon, 39 books, from the Hebrew Palestinian Canon. Jews have the same canon as Protestants.
- So, sa sources magkaiba na! May debate!
- Ni-reject ng mga Protestants ang books which are not found in the "Palestinian Canon" of the Old Testament. Ito ‘yung ginagamit sa Palestine in the centuries before Christ. Sa Hebrew nakasulat ito.
May 7 books more naman ang "Alexandrian Canon" na source ng mga Catholics. Ginamit ito ng mga Jewish communities sa Alexandria sa Egypt during the time of Christ, kung saan tinranslate ito sa Greek.
CANON OF THE OLD TESTAMENT: May Dispute sa 7 books!
- Catholics accept the longer Old Testament canon, 46 books, from the Greek Septuagint (LXX = eto ung symbol ng Greek Septuagint) translation of theAlexandrian Canon.
- Protestant and Evangelical Christians, from the Reformers onward, accept the shorter Old Testament canon, 39 books, from the Hebrew Palestinian Canon. Jews have the same canon as Protestants.
- So, sa sources magkaiba na! May debate!
- Ni-reject ng mga Protestants ang books which are not found in the "Palestinian Canon" of the Old Testament. Ito ‘yung ginagamit sa Palestine in the centuries before Christ. Sa Hebrew nakasulat ito.
May 7 books more naman ang "Alexandrian Canon" na source ng mga Catholics. Ginamit ito ng mga Jewish communities sa Alexandria sa Egypt during the time of Christ, kung saan tinranslate ito sa Greek.
Inuulit, na ang Bible ng Roman Catholic ang siyang divinely inspired.
ANU-ANONG BOOKS ANG DISPUTED?
1. Tobit
2. Judith
3. 1 Maccabees
4. 2Maccabees
5. Wisdom of Solomon
6. Ecclesiasticus (or Sirach)
7. Baruch
ADDITIONAL: Dagdag pa sa 7 books sa taas, Catholic Bibles also include an additional six chapters (107 verses) in Esther and three chapters (174 verses) in Daniel.
The turo tungkol sa purgatory at praying for the dead ay maaring matagpuan sa II Maccabees.
BASIS NG DISPUTE NG MGA PROTESTANTS
1. Wala daw authentic Hebrew or Aramaic sources ang mga books mula sa Alexandrian Canon
ANU-ANONG BOOKS ANG DISPUTED?
1. Tobit
2. Judith
3. 1 Maccabees
4. 2Maccabees
5. Wisdom of Solomon
6. Ecclesiasticus (or Sirach)
7. Baruch
ADDITIONAL: Dagdag pa sa 7 books sa taas, Catholic Bibles also include an additional six chapters (107 verses) in Esther and three chapters (174 verses) in Daniel.
The turo tungkol sa purgatory at praying for the dead ay maaring matagpuan sa II Maccabees.
BASIS NG DISPUTE NG MGA PROTESTANTS
1. Wala daw authentic Hebrew or Aramaic sources ang mga books mula sa Alexandrian Canon
Dagdag pa nila, since the Jews were “entrusted with the oracles of God” (Rom. 3:2), di ba dapat ang ginagamit ay ang Hebrew Palestinian Canon at hindi ang Greek (LXX) Alexandrian Canon?
SAGOT:
Totoong ang written Word of God ay ipinagkatiwala sa mga Jews, subalit wala naming explicit title by title na book na ini-reveal. Ito ang dahilan ng disagreement over the canon—especially among Jews. Kinailangan ng 1,000 years bago ma-compile ang mga books ng Old Testament at within that span of time, the canon was not yet close. There was no common canon among the Jews at the time of Christ.
o-o-O-o-o
Noong 1947 lamang natuklasan ang Dead Sea Scrolls. Ang mga Dead Sea Scrolls ay collection ng 972 documents, including texts from the Hebrew Bible, na natagpuan sa 11 caves in and around the ruins of the ancient settlement of Qumran on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea.
Matindi ang religious and historical significance nito dahil they include the oldest known surviving copies of Biblical and extra-biblical documents, written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, between 150 BCE and 70 CE. At natagpuan ang reference ng disputed books (except Esther) sa mga Dead Sea Scrolls kaya hindi totoong walang authenticity ang mga books from the Greek Alexandrian Canon.
2. Dinagdag lang daw ng mga Katoliko ang disputed books saCouncil of Trent (1546) upang i-justify ang mga Catholic doctrines ng purgatory, praying for the dead, etc.
SAGOT: Hindi po ito totoo. Noong taong 382 pa lamang sa Council of Rome, nagdecidena ang Simbahan na may 46 Old Testament books and 27 in the New Testament. This decision was ratified by the councils at Hippo (393), Carthage (397, 419), II Nicea (787), Florence (1442), and Trent (1546) kung saan ito naging definitive at infallible (walang error).
3. Hindi man lamang daw nabanggit sa New Testament ang mga disputed books kaya hindi ito inspired.
SAGOT: The absence of a quote in the New Testament does not suggest that a book is not inspired. Kasi kung ganito ang basehan, e di, hindi rin pala inspired ang 8 pang books (ex Song of Songs) sa OT na hindi naman disputed dahil never itong nabanggit sa NT.
Though there are no quotes, the New Testament does make numerous allusions to the disputed books. For one strong example, examine Hebrews 11:35: "Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release that they might rise again to a better life." Nowhere in the Protestant Old Testament can this story be found. One must look to a Catholic Bible to read the story in 2 Maccabees 7.
4. Ang sinabi sa book of Judith ay si Nebuchadnezzar daw ang king of the Assyrians. Hindi ba’t king of the Babylonians siya? Kung ang book ay may error, hindi ito inspired.
SAGOT: In reading the Scriptures, it is imperative that we understand the genre of the work. Is it a historical passage? An apocalyptic one? A parable? A proverb? Knowing this influences how the book should be read. When Jesus says that the mustard seed is the smallest of seeds (Matt.13:32), he is not providing a treatise on botany. After all, there are seeds smaller than the mustard seed. When Jesus spoke in parables, the people understood that he was telling a story, and they did not expect it to conform to historical or scientific precision.
Another example: sa Leviticus 11: 13-19, sinabing ang paniki daw ay bird. Di ba mammal yun? So may error ba at hindi ito inspired? Tandaan na noong panahong iyon ay wala pang advancement sa science. Hindi nabawasan ang inspiration ng book of Leviticus dahil dito.
The same goes with the book of Judith. "Judith" means "lady Jew," and she personifies the nation of Israel, as "Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians" personifies the enemies of the nation. The Jews of the time were aware that Nebuchadnezzar was not the king of the Assyrians but that the Babylonians and Assyrians were two of the nation’s worst foes joined into one by the author of Judith for the sake of parable.
5. Sina St. Jerome nga at St.Augustine nagkaroon ng disagreement tungkol sa mga disputed books.
SAGOT: St. Jerome appears to have rejected most of the disputed books. But he did accept portions and included all seven books in his Latin translation of Scripture, known as the Vulgate. Ultimately, he recognized that the Church alone had the authority to determine the canon.
Since there was disagreement between some Church Fathers, it became obvious that no individual could provide an infallible list of inspired books. The bottom line: "We have no other assurance that the books of Moses, the four Gospels, and the other books are the true word of God," wrote Augustine, "but by the canon of the Catholic Church."
Ang Simbahan ang may authority to discern the canon. Recognized ito ni Sts. Jerome at Augustine.
SPECIAL TERMS
Kailangan din nating aralin sa puntong ito ang mga ss:
1. Protocanonical
- from the Greek proto meaning first
- Ito ang mga books of the Bible na tinaggap ng lahat ng walang dispute o kung meron man maliit lang at natapos agad.
- Ex. the Pentateuch of the Old Testament and the Gospels
2. Deuterocanonical
- from the Greek deutero meaning second.
- Ito ang mga books na disputed at mayroong doubts sa kanilang canonicity.
- Ex. Yung 7 disputed books sa taas
3. Apocryphal
- from the Greek apokryphos meaning hidden
- Ito ang mga books na regarded as non-canonical
- Ex. Gospel of Thomas
NOTE: Ang ibig sabihin po ng deuterocanonical ay disputed ito. Hindi po ibig sabihin nito na ang protocanonicals ay unang batch na naging inspired at later on ay nagkaroon na rin ng inspiration ang deuterocanonicals. Both
protocanonicals and deuterocanonicals are inspired from the very beginning.
These terms were just formulated in the 16th century.
NUMBER OF BOOKS IN THE BIBLE
Roman Catholics = 46 (OT) + 27 (NT) = 73 books
Protestants = 39 (OT) + 27 (NT) = 66 books
NOTE: Ang 7 disputed books ay canonical para sa mga Catholics pero apochrypal (non-canonical) para sa mga Protestants.
SPECIAL QUESTIONS
Q: Bakit ba ang Alexandrian canon ang pinili ng Simbahan?
A: It reflected a more traditional religious perspective that persisted even unto the time of Christ, where we still find the Sadducees embracing the older beliefs. Ito ay maikling sagot lamang sa napakahabang discussion about this.
Q: Pwede po bang sa paglipas ng panahon ay makatagpo pa rin tayo ng ilba pang books na divinely inspired at isama sa ating Bible?
A: Tapos na po. Wala na. The Canon is close!
Q: Ang Simbahang Katoliko po ba ang nagdagdag ng mga books? o ang mga Protestante ang nagbawas?
A: Hindi nagdagdag ang Simbahang Katoliko ng mga books. It simply received the Septuagint version of the Hebrew scriptures, from the Jews, at the time of Christ. Sa Jewish Council at around 90AD, the Jews removed 7 Old Testament books from the Septuagint because they could no longer find those books in Hebrew.[Di ba later on, natagpuan ang mga ito sa Dead Sea Scroll?]. This same Council condemned Jesus Christ Himself.
So, strictly speaking, ang mga Jews din ang nagbawas na siya namang inuphold ng mga Protestants noong 16th century sa Protestant Reformation while the Catholic Church maintained the disputed books as canonical throughout the centuries.
Ang mas mahalagang tanong ay inspired ba ang mga books sa source ng mga Catholics? Inspired lahat!
Inspired ba ang mga books sa source ng Protestants? Inspired...pero kulang.
Sources:
Catholic Biblical Apologetics by Paul Flanagan and Robert Schihl
Jerome Biblical Commentary
"Canon of the Old Testament". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03267a.htm
SAGOT:
Totoong ang written Word of God ay ipinagkatiwala sa mga Jews, subalit wala naming explicit title by title na book na ini-reveal. Ito ang dahilan ng disagreement over the canon—especially among Jews. Kinailangan ng 1,000 years bago ma-compile ang mga books ng Old Testament at within that span of time, the canon was not yet close. There was no common canon among the Jews at the time of Christ.
o-o-O-o-o
Noong 1947 lamang natuklasan ang Dead Sea Scrolls. Ang mga Dead Sea Scrolls ay collection ng 972 documents, including texts from the Hebrew Bible, na natagpuan sa 11 caves in and around the ruins of the ancient settlement of Qumran on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea.
Matindi ang religious and historical significance nito dahil they include the oldest known surviving copies of Biblical and extra-biblical documents, written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, between 150 BCE and 70 CE. At natagpuan ang reference ng disputed books (except Esther) sa mga Dead Sea Scrolls kaya hindi totoong walang authenticity ang mga books from the Greek Alexandrian Canon.
2. Dinagdag lang daw ng mga Katoliko ang disputed books saCouncil of Trent (1546) upang i-justify ang mga Catholic doctrines ng purgatory, praying for the dead, etc.
SAGOT: Hindi po ito totoo. Noong taong 382 pa lamang sa Council of Rome, nagdecidena ang Simbahan na may 46 Old Testament books and 27 in the New Testament. This decision was ratified by the councils at Hippo (393), Carthage (397, 419), II Nicea (787), Florence (1442), and Trent (1546) kung saan ito naging definitive at infallible (walang error).
3. Hindi man lamang daw nabanggit sa New Testament ang mga disputed books kaya hindi ito inspired.
SAGOT: The absence of a quote in the New Testament does not suggest that a book is not inspired. Kasi kung ganito ang basehan, e di, hindi rin pala inspired ang 8 pang books (ex Song of Songs) sa OT na hindi naman disputed dahil never itong nabanggit sa NT.
Though there are no quotes, the New Testament does make numerous allusions to the disputed books. For one strong example, examine Hebrews 11:35: "Women received their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release that they might rise again to a better life." Nowhere in the Protestant Old Testament can this story be found. One must look to a Catholic Bible to read the story in 2 Maccabees 7.
4. Ang sinabi sa book of Judith ay si Nebuchadnezzar daw ang king of the Assyrians. Hindi ba’t king of the Babylonians siya? Kung ang book ay may error, hindi ito inspired.
SAGOT: In reading the Scriptures, it is imperative that we understand the genre of the work. Is it a historical passage? An apocalyptic one? A parable? A proverb? Knowing this influences how the book should be read. When Jesus says that the mustard seed is the smallest of seeds (Matt.13:32), he is not providing a treatise on botany. After all, there are seeds smaller than the mustard seed. When Jesus spoke in parables, the people understood that he was telling a story, and they did not expect it to conform to historical or scientific precision.
Another example: sa Leviticus 11: 13-19, sinabing ang paniki daw ay bird. Di ba mammal yun? So may error ba at hindi ito inspired? Tandaan na noong panahong iyon ay wala pang advancement sa science. Hindi nabawasan ang inspiration ng book of Leviticus dahil dito.
The same goes with the book of Judith. "Judith" means "lady Jew," and she personifies the nation of Israel, as "Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians" personifies the enemies of the nation. The Jews of the time were aware that Nebuchadnezzar was not the king of the Assyrians but that the Babylonians and Assyrians were two of the nation’s worst foes joined into one by the author of Judith for the sake of parable.
5. Sina St. Jerome nga at St.Augustine nagkaroon ng disagreement tungkol sa mga disputed books.
SAGOT: St. Jerome appears to have rejected most of the disputed books. But he did accept portions and included all seven books in his Latin translation of Scripture, known as the Vulgate. Ultimately, he recognized that the Church alone had the authority to determine the canon.
Since there was disagreement between some Church Fathers, it became obvious that no individual could provide an infallible list of inspired books. The bottom line: "We have no other assurance that the books of Moses, the four Gospels, and the other books are the true word of God," wrote Augustine, "but by the canon of the Catholic Church."
Ang Simbahan ang may authority to discern the canon. Recognized ito ni Sts. Jerome at Augustine.
SPECIAL TERMS
Kailangan din nating aralin sa puntong ito ang mga ss:
1. Protocanonical
- from the Greek proto meaning first
- Ito ang mga books of the Bible na tinaggap ng lahat ng walang dispute o kung meron man maliit lang at natapos agad.
- Ex. the Pentateuch of the Old Testament and the Gospels
2. Deuterocanonical
- from the Greek deutero meaning second.
- Ito ang mga books na disputed at mayroong doubts sa kanilang canonicity.
- Ex. Yung 7 disputed books sa taas
3. Apocryphal
- from the Greek apokryphos meaning hidden
- Ito ang mga books na regarded as non-canonical
- Ex. Gospel of Thomas
NOTE: Ang ibig sabihin po ng deuterocanonical ay disputed ito. Hindi po ibig sabihin nito na ang protocanonicals ay unang batch na naging inspired at later on ay nagkaroon na rin ng inspiration ang deuterocanonicals. Both
protocanonicals and deuterocanonicals are inspired from the very beginning.
These terms were just formulated in the 16th century.
NUMBER OF BOOKS IN THE BIBLE
Roman Catholics = 46 (OT) + 27 (NT) = 73 books
Protestants = 39 (OT) + 27 (NT) = 66 books
NOTE: Ang 7 disputed books ay canonical para sa mga Catholics pero apochrypal (non-canonical) para sa mga Protestants.
SPECIAL QUESTIONS
Q: Bakit ba ang Alexandrian canon ang pinili ng Simbahan?
A: It reflected a more traditional religious perspective that persisted even unto the time of Christ, where we still find the Sadducees embracing the older beliefs. Ito ay maikling sagot lamang sa napakahabang discussion about this.
Q: Pwede po bang sa paglipas ng panahon ay makatagpo pa rin tayo ng ilba pang books na divinely inspired at isama sa ating Bible?
A: Tapos na po. Wala na. The Canon is close!
Q: Ang Simbahang Katoliko po ba ang nagdagdag ng mga books? o ang mga Protestante ang nagbawas?
A: Hindi nagdagdag ang Simbahang Katoliko ng mga books. It simply received the Septuagint version of the Hebrew scriptures, from the Jews, at the time of Christ. Sa Jewish Council at around 90AD, the Jews removed 7 Old Testament books from the Septuagint because they could no longer find those books in Hebrew.[Di ba later on, natagpuan ang mga ito sa Dead Sea Scroll?]. This same Council condemned Jesus Christ Himself.
So, strictly speaking, ang mga Jews din ang nagbawas na siya namang inuphold ng mga Protestants noong 16th century sa Protestant Reformation while the Catholic Church maintained the disputed books as canonical throughout the centuries.
Ang mas mahalagang tanong ay inspired ba ang mga books sa source ng mga Catholics? Inspired lahat!
Inspired ba ang mga books sa source ng Protestants? Inspired...pero kulang.
Sources:
Catholic Biblical Apologetics by Paul Flanagan and Robert Schihl
Jerome Biblical Commentary
"Canon of the Old Testament". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03267a.htm
Kung si Maria ang babae sa Revelation 12:1 "At ang isang dakilang tanda ay nakita sa langit: isang babae na nararamtan ng araw, at ang buwan ay nasa ilalim ng kaniyang mga paa, at sa kaniyang ulo ay may isang putong na labingdalawang bituin" hindi bat sya rin ang babae sa Revelation 12:2 "At siya'y nagdadalang tao; at siya'y sumisigaw, na nagdaramdam sa panganganak, at sa hirap upang manganak."Pero ayon sa doktrina katolika walang hirap nanganak si Maria. So si Maria parin ba yung babae Revelation?
ReplyDeleteFather paki sagot naman po ng tanong ko? Marami po kasing tumututol d2 at wala akong maisagot.
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