Bible Canon Uncertainties If There Was No Infallible Church to
Decide
Is the Protestant Old Testament Canon Obviously True ?
Does the Book of Esther (the shorter Protestant version) have a
universal and solid tradition of being counted as Sacred Scripture so
that it has no need of an authoritative church established by Jesus
Christ to establish it as being part of the Bible ?
Answer : No.
For example Esther was Not always Included :
Saint Melito of Sardes, the Philosopher, A.D. 177
He does not include Esther in his lists of Books for the Old
Testament.
(The Faith of the Early Fathers, by William A. Jurgens, Volume 1,
paragraph 190
Fragments, IV, From the Book of Extracts)
Saint Athanasius Bishop of Alexandria, Doctor of the Church, A.D.
367.
He does not include Esther in his lists of Books for the Old
Testament.
(The Faith of the Early Fathers, by William A. Jurgens, Volume 1,
paragraph 791
Letter 39, 4)
Saint Amphilochius of Iconium A.D 340-394
He does not include Esther in his lists of Books of the Old
Testament, but at the end of the list he writes, “To these some add
Esther.” Thus, the inclusion of this book was not universal.
(Letter to Seleucus
The Faith of the Early Fathers, by William A. Jurgens, Volume 2,
paragraph 1078)
St. Gregory of Nazianz, Doctor of the Church, Bishiop,
He does not include Esther in his lists of Books for the Old
Testament.
(Poems [1, 1, 12]
The Faith of the Early Fathers, by William A. Jurgens, Volume 2,
paragraph 1020)
Synopsis of Sacred Scripture (called anonymous, or pseudo-Athanasian)
A.D. 490-500
After listing the “canonical” Old Testament Books it states;
“Besides these there are also other books of the same Old Testament,
which are not canonical, and which are read only to the catechumens.
These are the Wisdom of Solomon, … the Wisdom of Jesus, Son of
Sirach, … Esther, … Judith, … Tobias … These are not canonical.”
(The Faith of the Early Fathers, by William A. Jurgens, Volume 3,
paragraph 2167)
It was Protestant theologian R.C. Sproul who said, We have “a fallible
collection of infallible books.”
(R.C. Sproul, Essential Truths of the Christian Faith, Wheaton, IL:
Tyndale House
1992), p. 22.
And this truth could also be stated from the Protestant perspective,
“We have a fallible list of
fallible books.”
This is because Protestantism has rejected the
Authoritative Church who has the authority to infallibly define that a
particular Gospel Book or Letter belongs in the Bible. This completely
undermines any security that any Protestant could have about every point
of docrine he believes in. He has rejected the infallibly authority of
the Church to affirm that a particular Gospel or Letter belongs in the
New Testament.
“If you died to tonight do you know if you would go to heaven?”
Honest Protestant answer, “Well, if I assume - despite my own sins -
that based on human humane reason and speculation I have correctly
included all the appropriate books into my New Testament then…”
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