The standard collection of twenty-seven books of the New Testament, centers on the good news about Jesus the “Christ,” literally “the anointed one,” and his followers. The collected canon of biblical books during the first four centuries is in itself an indication of how the value of these texts developed slowly and emerged over time. These diverse inspired authors of the second half of the first century of the Christian era provide a basic insight into the thought and practices of the primitive Christian communities. Our shared sacred documents also reveal information about the perceived role of the Holy Spirit in the activities and expectations of the newly forming Christian communities.
the first century
Is the Bible Jewish or Christian?
The inspired Christian Bible actually is 2/3rd inspired Hebrew writings, so that actually Christians and Jews share 2/3rd of the inspired Bible. However, I do not know if we can break the habit of calling the inspired Greek writings of the first century followers of Jesus, the Christ, anything other than a New Testament. Traditions, both old and new, are hard to break. Calling it “New” obviously implies an old or outdated classical antique Testament. Can we change it to read the later first century canonically inspired Greek Christian writings? Or is that too clumsy?
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 