Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Creationism

2015-10-06T19:56:24Z

Auspicies:

'''Creationism''' is the [[religious belief]] that the [[Universe]] and [[life]] originated "from specific acts of [[Creation myth|divine creation]]."<ref name="Gunn2004">[[#Gunn 2004|Gunn 2004]], p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism is 'the belief that the universe and living organisms originated from specific acts of divine creation.'"</ref><ref name="OD_creationism">{{cite web |url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/creationism?q=creationism |title=creationism: definition of creationism in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US) |author= |website=Oxford Dictionaries |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |type=Definition |oclc=656668849 |accessdate=2014-03-05 |quote=The belief that the universe and living organisms originate from specific acts of divine creation, as in the biblical account, rather than by natural processes such as evolution.}}</ref> For [[Young Earth creationism|young Earth creationists]], this includes a [[Biblical literalism|biblical literalist]] interpretation of the [[Genesis creation narrative]] and the rejection of the [[scientific theory]] of [[evolution]].<ref name="Stewart2009">[[#Stewart 2010|Haarsma 2010]], p. 168, "Some Christians, often called 'Young Earth creationists,' reject evolution in order to maintain a semi-literal interpretation of certain biblical passages. Other Christians, called 'progressive creationists,' accept the scientific evidence for some evolution over a long history of the earth, but also insist that God must have performed some miracles during that history to create new life-forms. The theory of Intelligent Design, as it is promoted in North America is a form of progressive creation. Still other Christians, called 'theistic evolutionists' or 'evolutionary creationists,' assert that the scientific theory of evolution and the religious beliefs of Christianity can both be true."</ref> As the [[history of evolutionary thought]] developed from the 18th century on, various views aimed at reconciling the [[Abrahamic religions]] and Genesis with [[biology]] and other [[science]]s developed in [[Western culture]].<ref name="Numbers_Ordinary_View">{{cite web |url=http://www.counterbalance.net/history/ordcreat-frame.html |title=The ‘Ordinary’ View of Creation |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L |authorlink=Ronald Numbers |website=Counterbalance Interactive Library |publisher=Counterbalance Foundation |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2010-08-11}}</ref> Those holding that [[species]] had been created separately (such as [[Omphalos (book)|Philip Gosse]] in 1857) were generally called "advocates of creation" but were also called "creationists," as in private correspondence between [[Charles Darwin]] and his friends. As the [[creation–evolution controversy]] developed over time, the term "anti-evolutionists" became common. In 1929 in the United States, the term "creationism" first became associated with [[Christian fundamentalism|Christian fundamentalists]], specifically with their rejection of [[human evolution]] and belief in a [[Young Earth creationism|young Earth]]—although this usage was contested by other groups, such as [[old Earth creationism|old Earth creationists]] and [[theistic evolution|evolutionary creationists]], who hold different concepts of creation, such as the acceptance of the age of the Earth and biological evolution as understood by the [[scientific community]].<ref name="Stewart2009" /><ref>[[#Lamoureux 1999|Lamoureux 1999]], [http://books.google.com/?id=wTADzz2w5c4C&pg=PA14&lpg=PA14&dq=evolutionary+creation+creationism+lamoreux#v=onepage&q=evolutionary%20creation%20creationism%20lamoreux&f=false p. 14]</ref><ref>[[#Rainey 2012|Rainey 2012]], p. 263, "Thus, there is diversity within the Christian community, and a continuum of ideas that begins with young-earth creationists. There are four main Christian schools of thought: young-earth [[creation science]], old-earth creation science, intelligent design, and theistic evolution."</ref>

Today, the [[American Scientific Affiliation]], a prominent religious organisation in the US, recognizes that there are different opinions among creationists on the method of creation, while acknowledging [[ecumenism|unity]] on the Abrahamic belief that [[God]] "created the universe."<ref name="ASA">{{cite web |url=http://www.asa3.org/ASA/topics/Evolution/ |title=A Spectrum of Creation Views held by Evangelicals |author= |publisher=[[American Scientific Affiliation]] |location=Ipswich, MA |accessdate=2007-10-18 |quote=All Christians in the sciences affirm the central role of the ''Logos'' in creating and maintaining the Universe. In seeking to describe how the incredible universe has come to be, a variety of views has emerged in the last two hundred years as continuing biblical and scientific scholarship have enabled deeper understanding of God's word and world.}}</ref><ref>[[#Numbers 1998|Numbers 1998]], [http://books.google.com/books?id=drk3zykoEy4C&pg=PA55&dq=definition+of+creationism#v=onepage&q=definition%20of%20creationism&f=false p. 55], "'Creationists of today are not in agreement concerning what was created according to Genesis.'" — [[Russell L. Mixter]], ''Creation and Evolution'' (1951) {{OCLC|40774047}}</ref> Since the 1920s, [[Biblical literalism|literalist]] creationism in America has contested [[Scientific theory|scientific theories]], such as that of evolution,<ref name="NCSEcreationism">{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/creationism |title=Creationism Controversy: Understanding and Responding to Creationist Movements |author= |website=[[National Center for Science Education]] |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2009-06-22}}</ref><ref>[[#Giberson & Yerxa 2002|Giberson & Yerxa 2002]], pp. 3-4. For example, the [[Scopes Trial]] of 1925 brought creationism and evolution into the adversarial environment of the American justice system. The trial was well-publicized, and served as a catalyst for the wider creation–evolution controversy.</ref><ref name="Gould_Moran">{{cite journal |last=Gould |first=Stephen Jay |authorlink=Stephen Jay Gould |date=May 1981 |title=Evolution as Fact and Theory |url=http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_fact-and-theory.html |journal=[[Discover (magazine)|Discover]] |type=Reprint |location=Waukesha, WI |publisher=[[Kalmbach Publishing]] |volume=2 |pages=34–37 |issn=0274-7529 |accessdate=2010-04-12}}; {{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/evolution-fact.html |title=Evolution is a Fact and a Theory |last=Moran |first=Laurence |year=2002 |origyear=Originally published 1993 |website=[[TalkOrigins Archive]] |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2010-04-12}} Evolution's status as a "theory" has played a prominent role in the creation–evolution controversy. In scientific terminology, "theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts." Evolutionists utilise this definition to characterise evolution as a [[Evolution as fact and theory|scientific fact and a theory.]] In contrast, creationists use the term "theory" to characterize evolution as an "imperfect fact," drawing upon the [[vernacular]] conception of "theory" as "part of a hierarchy of confidence running downhill from fact to theory to hypothesis to guess."</ref> which derive from [[Naturalism (philosophy)#Methodological naturalism|natural observations]] of the Universe and life. Literalist creationists<ref name="Campbell_2006">{{cite news |last=Campbell |first=Duncan |date=February 20, 2006 |title=Academics fight rise of creationism at universities |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/feb/21/religion.highereducation |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London |publisher=[[Guardian Media Group]] |accessdate=2010-04-07}}</ref> believe that evolution cannot adequately account for the [[Evolutionary history of life|history]], [[Biodiversity|diversity]], and [[complexity]] of life on [[Earth]].<ref name="crossref1">For the biological understanding of complexity, see ''[[Evolution of complexity]]''. For a creationist perspective, see ''[[Irreducible complexity]]''.</ref> Fundamentalist creationists of the [[Christianity|Christian]] faith usually base their belief on a literal reading of the Genesis creation narrative.<ref name="Campbell_2006" /><ref name="TopicIndex">{{cite web |url=http://www.counterbalance.net/history/intro-frame.html |title=Creationism History: Topic Index |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L. |website=Counterbalance Interactive Library |publisher=Counterbalance Foundation |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2009-06-22}}</ref> Other religions either share the Genesis creation myth or have different deity-led creation myths,<ref name="myth" group="note" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Dundes |first=Alan |authorlink=Alan Dundes |date=Winter 1997 |title=Binary Opposition in Myth: The Propp/Levi-Strauss Debate in Retrospect |journal=[[Western Folklore]] |publisher=Western States Folklore Society |volume=56 |issue=1 |pages=39–50 |issn=0043-373X |jstor=1500385}}</ref><ref>[[#Dundes 1984|Dundes 1984]]</ref><ref>[[#Patton & Doniger 1996|Dundes 1996]]</ref> while different members of individual faiths vary in their acceptance of scientific findings.

When scientific research produces [[empirical evidence]] and theoretical conclusions which contradict a literalist creationist interpretation of scripture, young Earth creationists often reject the conclusions of the research<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.trueorigin.org/isakrbtl.asp |title=Five Major Evolutionist Misconceptions about Evolution |last=Wallace |first=Tim |year=2007 |origyear=Originally published 2005 |website=The True.Origin Archive |publisher=Tim Wallace |location=Hergiswil, Switzerland |accessdate=2011-04-25}}</ref> or its underlying scientific theories<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/CA/CA215.html |title=Index to Creationist Claims: CA215: Practical uses of evolution |editor-last=Isaak |editor-first=Mark |year=2005 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2009-08-20}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/CH/CH100_1.html |title=Index to Creationist Claims: CH100.1: Science in light of Scripture |editor-last=Isaak |editor-first=Mark |year=2005 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2009-08-20}}</ref> or its methodology.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/CA/CA301.html |title=Index to Creationist Claims: CA301: Science and naturalism |editor-last=Isaak |editor-first=Mark |year=2004 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2009-08-20}}</ref> This tendency has led to [[Politics|political]] and theological [[creation-evolution controversy|controversy]].<ref name="NCSEcreationism" /> Two disciplines somewhat allied with creationism—creation science and [[intelligent design]]—have been labelled "[[pseudoscience]]" by scientists.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Padian |first=Kevin |authorlink=Kevin Padian |date=January–April 2006 |title=The Dover Victory |url=http://ncse.com/rncse/26/1-2/dover-victory |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=National Center for Science Education |volume=26 |issue=1-2 |pages=49–50 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2014-05-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Alters |first=Brian |authorlink=Brian Alters |date=January–April 2006 |title='Ties' to Canada |url=http://ncse.com/rncse/26/1-2/ties-to-canada-0 |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=National Center for Science Education |volume=26 |issue=1-2 |pages=51–52 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2014-05-06}}</ref> The most notable disputes concern the evolution of living organisms, the idea of [[common descent]], the [[Geological history of Earth|geological history of the Earth]], the [[Formation and evolution of the Solar System|formation of the Solar System]] and the [[Cosmogony|origin of the Universe]].<ref name="RoyalSociety_2006">{{cite web |url=http://royalsociety.org/news.asp?year=&id=4298 |title=Royal Society statement on evolution, creationism and intelligent design |author= |date=April 11, 2006 |website=[[Royal Society]] |publisher=Royal Society |location=London |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080602213726/http://royalsociety.org/news.asp?year=&id=4298 |archivedate=2008-06-02 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nabt.org/sub/position_statements/evolution.asp |title=NABT’s Statement on Teaching Evolution |author= |website=[[National Association of Biology Teachers]] |publisher=National Association of Biology Teachers |location=McLean, VA |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.interacademies.net/10878/13901.aspx |title=IAP Statement on the Teaching of Evolution |author=IAP Member Academies |date=June 21, 2006 |website=[[InterAcademy Panel|IAP]] |publisher=[[TWAS|The World Academy of Sciences]] |location=Trieste, Italy |accessdate=2014-03-09}} Joint statement issued by the national science academies of 67 countries, including the United Kingdom's Royal Society.</ref><ref name="aaas">{{cite web |url=http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2006/pdf/0219boardstatement.pdf |title=Statement on the Teaching of Evolution |author= |date=February 16, 2006 |publisher=[[American Association for the Advancement of Science]] |location=Washington, D.C. |format=PDF |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060221125539/http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2006/pdf/0219boardstatement.pdf |archivedate=2006-02-21 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}
*{{cite press release |last=Pinholster |first=Ginger |date=February 19, 2006 |title=AAAS Denounces Anti-Evolution Laws as Hundreds of K-12 Teachers Convene for 'Front Line' Event |url=http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2006/0219boardstatement.shtml |location=St. Louis, MO |publisher=American Association for the Advancement of Science |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060421193306/http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2006/0219boardstatement.shtml |archivedate=2006-04-21 |accessdate=2014-08-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Montgomery |first=David R. |authorlink=David R. Montgomery |date=November 2012 |title=The evolution of creationism |journal=GSA Today |location=Boulder, CO |publisher=[[Geological Society of America]] |volume=22 |number=11 |pages=4–9 |doi=10.1130/GSATG158A.1}}</ref>

[[Theistic evolution]], also known as Evolutionary Creationism, is an attempt to reconcile religion with scientific findings on the [[age of the Earth]] and evolution. The term covers a range of views including [[Old Earth creationism]].<ref>[[#Collins 2006|Collins 2006]], p. 201, "This view is entirely compatible with everything that science teachings us about the natural world."</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answersincreation.org/theistic_evolution.htm |title=Theistic Evolution |last=Neyman |first=Greg |website=[[Old Earth creationism#Old Earth creationist organizations|Old Earth Ministries]] |publisher=Old Earth Ministries |location=Springfield, OH |accessdate=2012-04-24 |quote=Theistic Evolution is the old earth creationist belief that God used the process of evolution to create life on earth. The modern scientific understanding of biological evolution is considered to be compatible with the Bible.}}</ref>

{{TOC limit|4}}

==History==
{{Main|History of creationism}}
The term "creationist" to describe a proponent of creationism was first used in a letter by Charles Darwin in 1856.<ref name="Darwin_letters_1856_1863" /> In the 1920s, the term became particularly associated with Christian fundamentalist movements that insisted on a literalist interpretation of the Genesis creation narrative and likewise opposed the idea of human evolution. These groups succeeded in getting teaching of evolution banned in American [[State school#United States|public schools]], then from the mid-1960s the young Earth creationists promoted the teaching of "scientific creationism" using "[[Flood geology]]" in public school science classes as support for a purely literal reading of the Book of Genesis.<ref name="encarta">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L |encyclopedia=[[Encarta|Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2009]] |title=Creationism |url=http://encarta.msn.com/text_761580511___0/Creationism.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091022061756/http://encarta.msn.com/text_761580511___0/Creationism.html |archivedate=2009-10-22 |accessdate=2014-03-09 |publisher=[[Microsoft|Microsoft Corporation]] |location=Redmond, WA}}</ref> After the legal judgment of the case ''[[Daniel v. Waters]]'' (1975) ruled that teaching creationism in public schools contravened the [[Establishment Clause]] of the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution]], the content was stripped of overt biblical references and renamed creation science. When the court case ''[[Edwards v. Aguillard]]'' (1987) ruled that creation science similarly contravened the constitution, all references to "creation" in a draft school textbook were changed to refer to intelligent design, which was presented by creationists as a new scientific theory. The ''[[Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District|Kitzmiller v. Dover]]'' (2005) ruling concluded that intelligent design is not science and contravenes the constitutional restriction on teaching religion in public school science classes.<ref name="Flank_April2006" /> In September 2012, [[Bill Nye]] ("[[Bill Nye the Science Guy|The Science Guy]]") expressed his concern that ''creationist views'' threaten [[science education]] and [[innovation]]s in the US.<ref name="APNews-20120924">{{cite news |last=Luvan |first=Dylan |date=September 24, 2012 |title=Bill Nye Warns: Creation Views Threaten US Science |url=http://bigstory.ap.org/article/bill-nye-warns-creation-views-threaten-us-science |agency=[[Associated Press]] |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref><ref name="Youtube-20120823">{{cite web |last=Fowler |first=Jonathan |last2=Rodd |first2=Elizabeth |title=Bill Nye: Creationism Is Not Appropriate For Children |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbYJfwFgOU |date=August 23, 2012 |website=[[YouTube]] |publisher=[[Big Think]] |location=New York |accessdate=2012-09-24}}</ref><ref name="NYT-20141103-JD">{{cite news |last=Deiviscio |first=Jeffrey |title=A Fight for the Young Creationist Mind - In ‘Undeniable,’ Bill Nye Speaks Evolution Directly to Creationists |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/04/science/in-undeniable-bill-nye-speaks-evolution-directly-to-creationists.html |date=November 3, 2014 |work=[[New York Times]] |accessdate=November 4, 2014 }}</ref>

===Early and medieval times===
The first-century Jewish philosopher [[Philo|Philo of Alexandria]] admired the literal narrative of passages concerning the [[Patriarch]]s, but in other passages viewed the literal interpretation as being for those unable to see an underlying deeper meaning. For example, he noted that [[Moses]] said the world was created in six days, but did not consider this as a length of time as "we must think of God as doing all things simultaneously" and the six days were mentioned because of a need for order and according with a [[perfect number]]. Genesis was about real events, but God through Moses described them in figurative or [[Allegory|allegorical]] language.<ref name="Philo_Chapter2">[[#Philo|Philo]]</ref>

The early Christian [[Church Fathers]] largely read creation history as an allegory, and followed Philo's ideas of time beginning with an instantaneous creation without the convention that a day was the conventional time period. Christian orthodoxy rejected the second-century [[Gnosticism|Gnostic]] belief that the Book of Genesis was purely allegorical, but without taking a purely literal view of the texts. Thus, [[Origen]] believed that the physical world is ‘literally’ a creation of God, but did not take the chronology or the days as ‘literal’. Similarly, [[Basil of Caesarea|Saint Basil the Great]] in the fourth century while literal in many ways, described creation as instantaneous and timeless, being immeasurable and indivisible.<ref name="rsf" />

[[Augustine of Hippo]] in ''On the Literal Meaning of Genesis'' was insistent that the Book of Genesis describes the creation of physical objects, but also shows creation occurring simultaneously, with the days of creation being categories for didactic reasons, a logical framework which has nothing to do with time. For him, light was the illumination of angels rather than visible light, and spiritual light was just as literal as physical light. Augustine emphasized that the text was difficult to understand and should be reinterpreted as new knowledge became available. In particular, Christians should not make absurd dogmatic interpretations of scripture which contradict what people know from physical evidence.<ref name="Augustine">{{cite journal |last=Young |first=Davis A. |date=March 1988 |title=The Contemporary Relevance of Augustine's View of Creation |url=http://www.asa3.org/ASA/PSCF/1988/PSCF3-88Young.html |journal=[[American Scientific Affiliation|Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith]] |location=Ipswich, MA |publisher=American Scientific Affiliation |volume=40 |issue=1 |pages=42–45 |issn=0892-2675 |accessdate=2008-08-18}}</ref>

In the 13th century, [[Thomas Aquinas]], like Augustine, asserted the need to hold the truth of scripture without wavering while cautioning "that since Holy Scripture can be explained in a multiplicity of senses, one should not adhere to a particular explanation, only in such measure as to be ready to abandon it if it be proved with certainty to be false; lest holy Scripture be exposed to the ridicule of unbelievers, and obstacles be placed to their believing."<ref name="rsf" />

===Impact of the Reformation===
[[File:Martin Luther by Cranach-restoration.tif|thumb|right|[[Martin Luther]] taught [[young Earth creationism]], a literal interpretation of the Genesis creation narrative.]]
From 1517 the [[Protestant Reformation]] brought a new emphasis on lay literacy. [[Martin Luther]] taught young Earth creationism, that creation took six literal days about [[dating creation|6000 years ago]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bartz |first=Paul |date=February 1984 |title=Luther on Evolution |url=http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/cm/v6/n3/luther |journal=[[Creation Ministries International|Ex Nihilo]] |location=Sunnybank, Queensland |publisher=Creation Science Foundation |volume=6 |issue=3 |pages=18–21 |issn=0726-6782 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref> [[John Calvin]] also rejected instantaneous creation, but criticised those who, contradicting the contemporary understanding of [[nature]], asserted that there are "waters above the heavens."<ref name="rsf" />

Discoveries of new lands brought knowledge of a huge diversity of life, and a new belief developed that each of these [[Biology|biological]] species had been individually created by God. In 1605, [[Francis Bacon]] emphasized that the works of God in nature teach us how to interpret the word of God in the [[Bible]], and his [[Baconian method]] introduced the empirical approach which became central to modern science.<ref name="James_Moore">{{cite interview |last=Moore |first=James |authorlink=James Moore (biographer) |interviewer=[[Krista Tippett]] |title=Evolution and Wonder: Understanding Charles Darwin |url=http://www.onbeing.org/program/evolution-and-wonder-understanding-charles-darwin/transcript/899 |callsign=[[NPR]] |program=[[On Being|Speaking of Faith with Krista Tippett]] |date=September 20, 2007 |publisher=[[American Public Media]] |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref> [[Natural theology]] developed the study of nature with the expectation of finding evidence supporting Christianity, and numerous attempts were made to reconcile new knowledge with the biblical [[Flood myth|deluge myth]] and story of [[Noah's Ark]].<ref name="floodgeol">{{cite web |url=http://www.philvaz.com/apologetics/p82.htm |title=History of the Collapse of 'Flood Geology' and a Young Earth |website=PhilVaz.com |publisher=Philip J. Porvaznik |accessdate=2014-03-09}} Adapted from [[#Young 1995|Young 1995]]</ref>

In 1650 the [[Archbishop of Armagh (Church of Ireland)|Archbishop of Armagh]], [[James Ussher]], published the [[Ussher chronology]] based on Bible history giving a date for Creation of 4004 BC. This was generally accepted, but the development of modern [[geology]] in the 18th and 19th centuries found [[Stratum|geological strata]] and [[Fossil#Fossilization processes|fossil]] sequences indicating an ancient Earth. [[Catastrophism]] was favoured in England as supporting the biblical flood, but this was found to be untenable<ref name="floodgeol" /> and by 1850 all geologists and most [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical Christians]] had adopted various forms of old Earth creationism, while continuing to firmly reject evolution.<ref name="rsf" />{{failed verification|date=December 2010}}

===Modern science===
{{Main|History of evolutionary thought}}
{{See also|History of science}}
From around the start of the 19th century, ideas such as [[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck]]'s concept of [[transmutation of species]] had gained some supporters in Paris and [[Edinburgh]], mostly amongst anatomists.<ref name="rsf" /> The anonymous publication of ''[[Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation]]'' in 1844 aroused wide public interest with support from [[Quakers]] and [[Unitarianism|Unitarians]], but was strongly criticised by the scientific community, which called for solidly backed science. In 1859, Charles Darwin's ''[[On the Origin of Species]]'' provided that evidence from an authoritative and respected source, and within a decade or so convinced scientists that evolution occurs. This view clashed with that of conservative evangelicals in the [[Church of England]], but their attention quickly turned to the much greater uproar about ''[[Essays and Reviews]]'' by [[Liberal Christianity|liberal Anglican theologians]], which introduced into the controversy "[[Historical criticism|higher criticism]]" begun by [[Desiderius Erasmus|Erasmus]] centuries earlier. This book re-examined the Bible and cast doubt on a literal interpretation.<ref>[[#Desmond & Moore 1991|Desmond & Moore 1991]]</ref> By 1875 most American [[natural history|naturalists]] supported ideas of theistic evolution, often involving [[special creation]] of [[human|human beings]].<ref name="encarta" />

At this time those holding that species had been separately created were generally called "advocates of creation," but they were occasionally called "creationists" in private correspondence between Charles Darwin and his friends.<ref name="Numbers_Antievolutionists" /> The term appears in letters Darwin wrote between 1856 and 1863,<ref name="Darwin_letters_1856_1863">{{cite web |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/entry-1919 |title=Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D. |last=Darwin |first=Charles |authorlink=Charles Darwin |date=July 5, 1856 |website=[[Correspondence of Charles Darwin#Darwin Correspondence Project website|Darwin Correspondence Project]] |publisher=[[Cambridge University Library]] |location=Cambridge, UK |id=Letter 1919 |accessdate=2010-08-11}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/entry-4196 |title=Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa |last=Darwin |first=Charles |date=May 31, 1863 |website=Darwin Correspondence Project |publisher=Cambridge University Library |location=Cambridge, UK |id=Letter 4196 |accessdate=2010-08-11}}</ref> and was also used in a response by [[Charles Lyell]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/entry-4041 |title=Lyell, Charles to Darwin, C. R. |last=Lyell |first=Charles |authorlink=Charles Lyell |date=March 15, 1863 |website=Darwin Correspondence Project |publisher=Cambridge University Library |location=Cambridge, UK |id=Letter 4041 |accessdate=2010-08-11}}</ref>

==Types of creationism==
Several attempts have been made to categorize the different types of creationism, and create a "[[Taxonomy (general)|taxonomy]]" of creationists.<ref name="Scott1999">{{cite journal |last=Scott |first=Eugenie C. |authorlink=Eugenie Scott |date=July–August 1999 |title=The Creation/Evolution Continuum |url=http://ncse.com/creationism/general/creationevolution-continuum |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=National Center for Science Education |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=16–17, 23–25 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2014-03-14}}</ref><ref name="Wise-p30">{{cite journal |last=Wise |first=Donald U. |date=January 2001 |title=Creationism's Propaganda Assault on Deep Time and Evolution |url=http://nagt.org/nagt/jge/abstracts/jan01.html |journal=Journal of Geoscience Education |location=Bellingham, WA |publisher=[[National Association of Geoscience Teachers]] |volume=49 |issue=1 |pages=30–35 |issn=1089-9995 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref><ref name="nagt-pdf-Ross">{{cite journal |last=Ross |first=Marcus R. |authorlink=Marcus R. Ross |date=May 2005 |title=Who Believes What? Clearing up Confusion over Intelligent Design and Young-Earth Creationism |url=http://nagt.org/files/nagt/jge/abstracts/Ross_v53n3p319.pdf |format=PDF |journal=Journal of Geoscience Education |location=Bellingham, WA |publisher=National Association of Geoscience Teachers |volume=53 |issue=3 |pages=319–323 |issn=1089-9995 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref> Creationism (broadly construed) covers a spectrum of beliefs which have been categorized into the general types listed below.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Comparison of major creationist views
|-
!
!Acceptance in the US
!Humanity
!Biological species
!Earth
!Age of Universe
|-
! [[Young Earth creationism]]
|rowspan="2"| 40%<ref name="gallup" />
|rowspan="2"| Directly created by God.
|rowspan="2"| Directly created by God. [[Macroevolution]] does not occur.
|Less than 10,000 years old. Reshaped by global flood.
|Less than 10,000 years old, but some hold this view only for our Solar System.
|-
! [[Gap creationism]]
|Scientifically accepted age. Reshaped by global flood.
|Scientifically accepted age.
|-
! [[Progressive creationism]]
|rowspan="3"| 38%<ref name="gallup" />
|Directly created by God, based on [[primate]] anatomy.
|Direct creation + evolution. No single common ancestor.
|Scientifically accepted age. No global flood.
|Scientifically accepted age.
|-
! [[Intelligent design]]
|Proponents hold various beliefs. (For example, [[Michael Behe]] accepts evolution from primates.)
|[[Miracle|Divine intervention]] at some point in the past, as evidenced by what intelligent-design creationists call "[[irreducible complexity]]."
|Some adherents accept [[common descent]], others not. Some claim the existence of Earth is the result of divine intervention.
|Scientifically accepted age.
|-
! [[Theistic evolution]] (evolutionary creationism)
|Evolution from primates.
|Evolution from single common ancestor.
|Scientifically accepted age. No global flood.
|Scientifically accepted age.
|}

===Young Earth creationism===
{{Main|Young Earth creationism}}
[[File:ICR building.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Institute for Creation Research]] (ICR) is a young-Earth creationist organization.]]

Young Earth creationists believe that God created the Earth within the last ten thousand years, literally as described in the Genesis creation narrative, within the approximate time-frame of biblical genealogies (detailed for example in the [[Ussher chronology]]). Most young Earth creationists believe that the Universe has a similar age as the Earth. A few assign a much older age to the Universe than to Earth. [[Creationist cosmologies]] give the Universe an age consistent with the Ussher chronology and other young Earth time frames. Other young Earth creationists believe that the Earth and the Universe were created with the appearance of age, so that the world appears to be much older than it is, and that this appearance is what gives the geological findings and other methods of dating the Earth and the Universe their much longer [[timeline]]s.

The Christian organizations [[Institute for Creation Research]] (ICR) and the [[Creation Research Society]] (CRS) both promote young Earth creationism in the US. Another organization with similar views, [[Answers in Genesis]] (AiG)—based in both the US and the [[United Kingdom]]—has opened the [[Creation Museum]] in [[Petersburg, Boone County, Kentucky|Petersburg, Kentucky]], to promote young Earth creationism. [[Creation Ministries International]] promotes young Earth views in Australia, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, the US, and the UK. Among [[Catholicism|Roman Catholics]], the [[List of Catholic creationist organisations|Kolbe Center]] for the Study of Creation promotes similar ideas.

====Creation science====
{{Main|Creation science}}
Creation science, or initially scientific creationism, is [[pseudoscience]]<ref>[[#NAS 1999|NAS 1999]], [http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=6024&page=R9 p. R9]</ref><ref name=amicus>{{wayback|url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/edwards-v-aguillard/amicus1.html|title=Amicus Curiae Brief Of 72 Nobel Laureates, 17 State Academies Of Science, And 7 Other Scientific Organizations}}, ''[[Edwards v. Aguillard]]''</ref><ref name=philofscience>{{cite book|author1=Sahotra Sarkar|author2=Jessica Pfeifer|title=The Philosophy of science: an encyclopedia. A-M|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=od68ge7aF6wC|year=2006|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-415-93927-0|page=[http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=od68ge7aF6wC&pg=PA194 194]}}</ref><ref>[[#Okasha 2002|Okasha 2002]], p. 127. Okasha's full statement is that "virtually all professional biologists regard creation science as a sham – a dishonest and misguided attempt to promote religious beliefs under the guise of science, with extremely harmful educational consequences."</ref> that emerged in the 1960s with proponents aiming to have young Earth creationist beliefs taught in school science classes as a counter to teaching of evolution. Common features of Creation science argument include: creationist cosmologies which accommodate a Universe on the order of thousands of years old, criticism of [[radiometric dating]] through a technical argument about [[radiohalo]]s, explanations for the [[Fossil#Fossil record|fossil record]] as a record of the [[Genesis flood narrative]] (see [[Flood geology]]), and explanations for the present diversity as a result of pre-designed genetic variability and partially due to the rapid degradation of the perfect [[genome]]s God placed in "created kinds" or "[[Baraminology|Baramin]]" (see [[Creation science#Creationist biology|creationist biology]]) due to [[mutation]]s.

===Old Earth creationism===
{{Main|Old Earth creationism}}
Old Earth creationism holds that the physical universe was created by God, but that the creation event described in the Book of Genesis is to be taken figuratively. This group generally believes that the [[age of the universe|age of the Universe]] and the age of the Earth are as described by [[astronomer]]s and [[geologist]]s, but that details of [[Modern evolutionary synthesis|modern evolutionary theory]] are questionable.<ref name="Scott1999" />

Old Earth creationism itself comes in at least three types:<ref name="Scott1999" />

====Gap creationism====
{{Main|Gap creationism}}
Gap creationism, also called "restoration creationism," holds that life was recently created on a pre-existing old Earth. This theory relies on a particular interpretation of {{Bibleverse|Genesis|1:1-2|KJV}}. It is considered that the words [[Tohu wa-bohu|''formless'' and ''void'']] in fact denote waste and ruin, taking into account the original Hebrew and other places these words are used in the [[Old Testament]]. Genesis 1:1-2 is consequently translated:

: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." (Original act of creation.)
: "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

Thus, the six days of creation (verse 3 onwards) start sometime after the Earth was "without form and void." This allows an indefinite "gap" of time to be inserted after the original creation of the Universe, but prior to the [[Genesis creation narrative|creation according to Genesis]], (when present biological species and [[human]]ity were created). Gap theorists can therefore agree with the [[scientific consensus]] regarding the age of the Earth and Universe, while maintaining a literal interpretation of the biblical text.

Some{{which|date=November 2013}} gap theorists expand the basic theory by proposing a "primordial creation" of biological life within the "gap" of time. This is thought to be "the world that then was" mentioned in [[2 Peter]] 3:3-7.<ref>{{Bibleverse|2 Peter|3|KJV}}</ref> Discoveries of fossils and archaeological ruins older than 10,000 years are generally ascribed to this "world that then was," which may also be associated with [[Lucifer]]'s rebellion. These views became popular with publications of Hebrew Lexicons such as the [[Strong's Concordance]], and Bible commentaries such as the ''[[Scofield Reference Bible]]'' and the [[E. W. Bullinger|Companion Bible]].{{citation needed|date=November 2013}}

====Day-age creationism====
{{Main|Day-age creationism}}
Day-age creationism states that the "six days" of the Book of Genesis are not ordinary 24-hour days, but rather much longer periods (for instance, each "day" could be the equivalent of millions, or billions of years of human time). Physicist [[Gerald Schroeder]] is one such proponent of this view. This theory often states that the [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] word "yôm," in the context of Genesis 1, can be properly interpreted as "age." Some{{which|date=September 2013}} adherents claim we are still living in the seventh age ("seventh day").

Strictly speaking, day-age creationism is not so much a creationist theory as a [[Hermeneutics|hermeneutic]] option which may be combined with theories such as progressive creationism.

====Progressive creationism====
{{Main|Progressive creationism}}
Progressive creationism holds that species have changed or evolved in a process continuously guided by God, with various ideas as to how the process operated—though it is generally taken that God directly intervened in the natural order at key moments in Earth history. This view accepts most of modern physical science including the age of the Earth, but rejects much of modern [[evolutionary biology]] or looks to it for evidence that evolution by [[natural selection]] alone is incorrect.{{Citation needed|date=June 2009}} Organizations such as [[Reasons To Believe]], founded by [[Hugh Ross (creationist)|Hugh Ross]], promote this theory.

Progressive creationism can be held in conjunction with [[hermeneutic]] approaches to the Genesis creation narrative such as the [[Day-age creationism|day-age theory]] or [[Framework interpretation (Genesis)|framework]]/metaphoric/poetic views.

===Neo-creationism===
{{Main|Neo-creationism}}
Neo-Creationists intentionally distance themselves from other forms of creationism, preferring to be known as wholly separate from creationism as a philosophy.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}} Neo-creationism aims to restate creationism in terms more likely to be well received by the public, policy makers, educators and the scientific community. It aims to re-frame the debate over the [[Creation myth|origins of life]] in non-religious terms and without appeals to scripture, and to bring the debate before the public.

Neo-creationism sees ostensibly [[Objectivity (science)|objective]] [[Mainstream#In science|mainstream science]] as a dogmatically [[atheism|atheistic]] [[religion]]. Neo-creationists argue that the [[scientific method]] excludes certain explanations of phenomena, particularly where they point towards [[supernatural]] elements. They argue that this effectively excludes any possible religious insight from contributing to a scientific understanding of the Universe. Neo-creationists also argue that science, as an "atheistic enterprise," lies at the root of many of contemporary society's ills including social unrest and family breakdown.{{citation needed|date=August 2012}}

The [[intelligent design movement]] arguably represents the most recognized form of neo-creationism in the US. Unlike their philosophical forebears, neo-creationists largely do not believe in many of the traditional cornerstones of creationism such as a young Earth, or in a dogmatically [[Biblical inerrancy|literal interpretation of the Bible]]. Common to all forms of neo-creationism is a rejection of [[Naturalism (philosophy)|naturalism]],{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} usually made together with a tacit admission of [[supernatural]]ism, and an open and often hostile opposition to what they term "[[Darwinism]]," meaning evolution.

====Intelligent design====
{{Main|Intelligent design}}
Intelligent design (ID) is the [[pseudoscientific]] view<ref name="Boudry 2010">{{cite journal |last1=Boudry |first1=Maarten |authorlink1=Maarten Boudry |last2=Blancke |first2=Stefaan |last3=Braeckman |first3=Johan |authorlink3=Johan Braeckman |date=December 2010 |title=Irreducible Incoherence and Intelligent Design: A Look into the Conceptual Toolbox of a Pseudoscience |journal=[[The Quarterly Review of Biology]] |location=Chicago, IL |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |volume=85 |issue=4 |pages=473–482 |doi=10.1086/656904 |pmid=21243965}} Article available from [https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/952482 Universiteit Gent]</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Pigliucci |first1=Massimo |authorlink=Massimo Pigliucci |year=2010 |chapter=Science in the Courtroom: The Case against Intelligent Design |chapterurl=http://ncse.com/files/pub/evolution/Nonsenseonstilts.pdf |title=Nonsense on Stilts: How to Tell Science from Bunk |format=PDF |location=Chicago, IL |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-66786-7 |lccn=2009049778 |oclc=457149439 |pages=160–186 |ref=Pigliucci 2010}}</ref> that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection."<ref name="DIposition">{{cite web |url=http://www.discovery.org/csc/topQuestions.php#questionsAboutIntelligentDesign |author= |title=CSC - Top Questions: Questions About Intelligent Design: What is the theory of intelligent design? |website=[[Center for Science and Culture]] |publisher=[[Discovery Institute]] |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2007-05-13}}</ref> All of its leading proponents are associated with the [[Discovery Institute]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/dover/day6pm.html |title=Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District Trial transcript: Day 6 (October 5), PM Session, Part 1 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2014-03-13}}</ref> a think tank whose [[Wedge strategy]] aims to replace the scientific method with "a science consonant with Christian and theistic convictions" which accepts supernatural explanations.<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.antievolution.org/features/wedge.pdf |title=The Wedge |year=1999 |publisher=[[Center for Science and Culture|Center for the Renewal of Science and Culture]] |location=Seattle, WA |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-13}}</ref> It is widely accepted in the scientific and academic communities that intelligent design is a form of creationism,<ref name="Wise-p30" /><ref name="nagt-pdf-Ross" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Mu |first=David |date=Fall 2005 |title=Trojan Horse or Legitimate Science: Deconstructing the Debate over Intelligent Design |url=http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~hsr/wp-content/themes/hsr/pdf/fall2005/mu.pdf |format=PDF |journal=[[Harvard College#Publications and media|Harvard Science Review]] |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=Harvard Science Review, Inc. |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=22–25 |accessdate=2014-03-13 |ref=Mu 2005 |quote=...for most members of the mainstream scientific community, ID is not a scientific theory, but a creationist pseudoscience.}}
*{{cite journal |last=Klotzko |first=Arlene Judith |date=May 28, 2001 |title=Cynical Science and Stem Cells |url=http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/13410/title/Cynical-Science-and-Stem-Cells/ |journal=[[The Scientist]] |volume=15 |issue=11 |page=35 |issn=0890-3670 |quote=Creationists are repackaging their message as the pseudo-science of 'intelligent design theory.' |accessdate=2014-03-13}}
*{{cite court |litigants=Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District |vol=04 |reporter=cv |opinion=2688 |date=December 20, 2005}}, [[s:Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District/6:Curriculum, Conclusion#Page 136 of 139|Curriculum, Conclusion, p. 136]].</ref><ref name="Numbers 2006">[[#Numbers 2006|Numbers 2006]]</ref> and is sometimes referred to as "intelligent design creationism."<ref name="Scott1999" /><ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" /><ref>[[#Forrest & Gross 2004|Forrest & Gross 2004]]</ref><ref>[[#Pennock 2001|Pennock 2001]], "Wizards of ID: Reply to Dembski," pp. 645–667, "Dembski chides me for never using the term 'intelligent design' without conjoining it to 'creationism'. He implies (though never explicitly asserts) that he and others in his movement are not creationists and that it is incorrect to discuss them in such terms, suggesting that doing so is merely a rhetorical ploy to 'rally the troops'. (2) Am I (and the many others who see Dembski's movement in the same way) misrepresenting their position? The basic notion of creationism is the rejection of biological evolution in favor of special creation, where the latter is understood to be supernatural. Beyond this there is considerable variability..."
*[[#Pennock 1999|Pennock 1999]]</ref><ref>[[#Scott 2005|Scott 2005]]</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Young |first1=Matt |last2=Edis |first2=Taner |title=Why Intelligent Design Fails: A Scientific Critique of the New Creationism |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=2006 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hYLKdtlVeQgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Why+Intelligent+Design+Fails:+A+Scientific+Critique+of+the+New+Creationism&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CBwQ6AEwAGoVChMIg6_llsqkyAIVyjKICh0fcg77#v=onepage&q=Why%20Intelligent%20Design%20Fails%3A%20A%20Scientific%20Critique%20of%20the%20New%20Creationism&f=false}}</ref>

ID originated as a re-branding of creation science in an attempt to avoid a series of court decisions ruling out the teaching of creationism in American public schools, and the Discovery Institute has run [[Discovery Institute intelligent design campaigns|a series of campaigns]] to change school curricula.<ref name="Flank_April2006" /> In Australia, where curricula are under the control of state governments rather than local school boards, there was a public outcry when the notion of ID being taught in science classes was raised by the Federal Education Minister [[Brendan Nelson]]; the minister quickly conceded that the correct forum for ID, if it were to be taught, is in religious or philosophy classes.<ref>{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Deborah |date=October 21, 2005 |title=Intelligent design not science: experts |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/intelligent-design-not-science-experts/2005/10/20/1129775902661.html |newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |location=Sydney |publisher=[[Fairfax Media]] |accessdate=2007-07-13}}</ref>

In the US, teaching of intelligent design in public schools has been decisively ruled by a [[United States district court|federal district court]] to be in violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. In [[Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District|Kitzmiller v. Dover]], the court found that intelligent design is not science and "cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents,"<ref>{{cite court |litigants=Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District |vol=04 |reporter=cv |opinion=2688 |date=December 20, 2005}}, [[s:Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District/6:Curriculum, Conclusion#Page 136 of 139|Curriculum, Conclusion, p. 136]].</ref> and hence cannot be taught as an alternative to evolution in public school science classrooms under the jurisdiction of that court. This sets a [[Precedent#Persuasive precedent|persuasive precedent]], based on previous US [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] decisions in ''Edwards v. Aguillard'' and ''[[Epperson v. Arkansas]]'' (1968), and by the application of the [[Lemon v. Kurtzman|Lemon test]], that creates a legal hurdle to teaching intelligent design in public school districts in other federal court jurisdictions.<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" /><ref name="kitz">[[s:Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District et al.|Full text of U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III's ruling in ''Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District'', dated December 20, 2005.]]</ref>

===Obscure and largely discounted beliefs===
{{Main|Geocentric model}}
In [[astronomy]], the geocentric model (also known as geocentrism, or the Ptolemaic system), is a description of the [[Cosmos]] where Earth is at the orbital center of all celestial bodies. This model served as the predominant cosmological system in many ancient civilizations such as [[ancient Greece]]. As such, they assumed that the [[Sun]], [[Moon]], [[star]]s, and [[Classical planet|naked eye planets]] circled Earth, including the noteworthy systems of [[Aristotle]] (see [[Aristotelian physics]]) and [[Ptolemy]].

Articles arguing that geocentrism was the biblical perspective appeared in some early creation science newsletters associated with the Creation Research Society pointing to some passages in the Bible, which, when taken literally, indicate that the daily apparent motions of the Sun and the Moon are due to their actual motions around the Earth rather than due to the rotation of the Earth about its axis for example, [[Book of Joshua|Joshua]] 10:12 where the Sun and Moon are said to stop in the sky, and [[Psalms]] 93:1 where the world is described as immobile.<ref name="Numbers1993">{{cite book |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L. |year=1993 |origyear=Originally published 1992; New York: [[Alfred A. Knopf]] |title=The Creationists: The Evolution of Scientific Creationism |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |page=237 |isbn=0-5200-8393-8 |lccn=93015804 |oclc=810488078}}</ref> Contemporary advocates for such [[religious belief]]s include [[Robert Sungenis]], co-author of the self-published ''Galileo Was Wrong: The Church Was Right'' (2006).<ref name="Sefton2006">{{cite news |first=Dru |last=Sefton |date=March 30, 2006 |title=In this world view, the sun revolves around the earth |url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_1kaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=XCYEAAAAIBAJ&dq=robert-sungenis&pg=6714%2C4991566 |newspaper=[[Times-News (Hendersonville, North Carolina)|Times-News]] |location=Hendersonville, NC |publisher=Hendersonville Newspaper Corporation |agency=[[Religion News Service]] |page=5A |accessdate=2014-03-14}}</ref> These people subscribe to the view that a plain reading of the Bible contains an accurate account of the manner in which the Universe was created and requires a geocentric worldview. Most contemporary creationist organizations reject such perspectives.{{refn|group="note"|Donald B. DeYoung, for example, states that "Similar terminology is often used today when we speak of the sun's rising and setting, even though the earth, not the sun, is doing the moving. Bible writers used the 'language of appearance,' just as people always have. Without it, the intended message would be awkward at best and probably not understood clearly. When the Bible touches on scientific subjects, it is entirely accurate."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/1997/11/05/astronomy-bible |title=Astronomy and the Bible: Selected questions and answers excerpted from the book |last=DeYoung |first=Donald B. |date=November 5, 1997 |website=[[Answers in Genesis]] |publisher=Answers in Genesis Ministries International |location=Hebron, KY |accessdate=2013-12-01}}</ref>}}

===Omphalos hypothesis===
{{Main|Omphalos hypothesis}}
The Omphalos hypothesis argues that in order for the world to be functional, God must have created a mature Earth with mountains and canyons, rock strata, trees with growth rings, and so on; therefore ''no'' evidence that we can see of the presumed age of the Earth and age of the Universe can be taken as reliable.<ref>[[#Gosse 1857|Gosse 1857]]</ref> The idea has seen some revival in the 20th century by some modern creationists, who have extended the argument to light that originates in far-off stars and [[galaxy|galaxies]] (see [[Creationist cosmologies#Starlight problem|The "starlight problem"]]).

==Theistic evolution==
{{Main|Theistic evolution}}
Theistic evolution, or evolutionary creation, is a belief that "the personal God of the Bible created the universe and life through evolutionary processes."<ref>[[#Sweet & Feist 2007|Sweet & Feist 2007]], [http://books.google.com/?id=qwaRUNj6S34C&pg=PA48&dq=theistic+evolution+evolutionary+creation#v=onepage&q=theistic%20evolution%20evolutionary%20creation&f=false p. 48], "''Evolutionary Creation'' (or Theistic Evolution) asserts that the personal God of the Bible created the universe and life through evolutionary processes."</ref> According to the American Scientific Affiliation:

{{quote|A theory of theistic evolution (TE) — also called evolutionary creation — proposes that God's method of creation was to cleverly design a universe in which everything would naturally evolve. Usually the "evolution" in "theistic evolution" means Total Evolution — astronomical evolution (to form galaxies, solar systems,...) and geological evolution (to form the earth's geology) plus chemical evolution (to form the first life) and biological evolution (for the development of life) — but it can refer only to biological evolution.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asa3.org/ASA/education/origins/te2-cr.htm |title=Evolutionary Creation |last=Rusbult |first=Craig |year=1998 |publisher=American Scientific Affiliation |location=Ipswich, MA |accessdate=2014-03-14 |quote=A theory of theistic evolution (TE) — also called evolutionary creation * — proposes that God's method of creation was to cleverly design a universe in which everything would naturally evolve. Usually the "evolution" in "theistic evolution" means Total Evolution — astronomical evolution (to form galaxies, solar systems,...) and geological evolution (to form the earth's geology) plus chemical evolution (to form the first life) and biological evolution (for the development of life) — but it can refer only to biological evolution.}}</ref>}}

Through the 19th century the term ''creationism'' most commonly referred to [[Creationism (soul)|direct creation of individual souls]], in contrast to [[traducianism]]. Following the publication of ''Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation'', there was interest in ideas of Creation by [[divine law]]. In particular, the [[liberal Christianity|liberal theologian]] [[Baden Powell (mathematician)|Baden Powell]] argued that this illustrated the Creator's power better than the idea of miraculous creation, which he thought ridiculous.<ref>[[#Bowler 2003|Bowler 2003]], p. 139</ref> When ''On the Origin of Species'' was published, the cleric [[Charles Kingsley]] wrote of evolution as "just as noble a conception of Deity."<ref name="Darwinanddesign">{{cite web |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/darwin-and-design-article |title=Darwin and design: historical essay |year=2007 |website=Darwin Correspondence Project |publisher=Cambridge University Library |location=Cambridge, UK |accessdate=2012-04-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/entry-2534 |title=Kingsley, Charles to Darwin, C. R. |last=Kingsley |first=Charles |authorlink=Charles Kingsley |date=November 18, 1859 |website=Darwin Correspondence Project |publisher=Cambridge University Library |location=Cambridge, UK |id=Letter 2534 |accessdate=2010-08-11}}</ref> Darwin's view at the time was of God creating life through the laws of nature,<ref name="James_Moore" /><ref>[[#Quammen 2006|Quammen 2006]], p. 119</ref> and the book makes several references to "creation," though he later regretted using the term rather than calling it an unknown process.<ref>[[#Barlow 1963|Barlow 1963]], [http://darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?viewtype=text&itemID=F1577&pageseq=9 p. 207]</ref> In America, [[Asa Gray]] argued that evolution is the secondary effect, or ''modus operandi'', of the first cause, design,<ref>[[#Dewey 1994|Dewey 1994]], p. 27</ref> and published a pamphlet defending the book in theistic terms, ''Natural Selection not inconsistent with Natural Theology''.<ref name="Darwinanddesign" /><ref name="Miles_2001">{{cite journal |last=Miles |first=Sara Joan |date=September 2001 |title=Charles Darwin and Asa Gray Discuss Teleology and Design |url=http://www.asa3.org/ASA/PSCF/2001/PSCF9-01Miles.html |journal=Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith |location=Ipswich, MA |publisher=American Scientific Affiliation |volume=53 |pages=196–201 |accessdate=2008-11-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Gray |first=Asa |authorlink=Asa Gray |year=1860 |title=Natural Selection not inconsistent with Natural Theology |url=http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/content/view/84/69/ |journal=[[The Atlantic|The Atlantic Monthly]] |type=Reprint |location=Boston, MA |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20090220124011/http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/content/view/84/69/  |archivedate=2009-02-20 |accessdate=2009-04-11}} "Atlantic Monthly for ''July'', ''August'', and ''October'', 1860, reprinted in 1861."</ref> Theistic evolution, also called, evolutionary creation, became a popular compromise, and [[St. George Jackson Mivart]] was among those accepting evolution but attacking Darwin's naturalistic mechanism. Eventually it was realised that supernatural intervention could not be a scientific explanation, and naturalistic mechanisms such as [[Lamarckism#Neo-Lamarckism|neo-Lamarckism]] were favoured as being more compatible with purpose than natural selection.<ref name="bowl202">[[#Bowler 2003|Bowler 2003]], pp. 202–208</ref>

Some theists took the general view that, instead of faith being in opposition to biological evolution, some or all classical religious teachings about [[God in Christianity|Christian God]] and creation are compatible with some or all of modern scientific theory, including specifically evolution; it is also known as "evolutionary creation." In Evolution versus Creationism, [[Eugenie Scott]] and [[Niles Eldredge]] state that it is in fact a type of evolution.<ref>[[#Scott 2005|Scott 2005]], pp. 62–63</ref>

It generally views evolution as a tool used by God, who is both the [[Unmoved mover#First cause|first cause]] and [[Immanence|immanent]] sustainer/upholder of the Universe; it is therefore well accepted by people of strong [[theism|theistic]] (as opposed to [[deism|deistic]]) convictions. Theistic evolution can synthesize with the day-age creationist interpretation of the Genesis creation narrative; however most adherents consider that the first chapters of the Book of Genesis should not be interpreted as a "literal" description, but rather as a [[framework view|literary framework]] or allegory.

From a theistic viewpoint, the underlying laws of nature were designed by God for a purpose, and are so self-sufficient that the complexity of the entire physical universe evolved from fundamental particles in processes such as [[stellar evolution]], life forms developed in biological evolution, and in the same way the [[Abiogenesis|origin of life by natural causes]] has resulted from these laws.<ref name="The Origin of Life">{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/abioprob/originoflife.html#intro |title=The Origin of Life |last=Moritz |first=Albrecht |date=October 31, 2006 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2008-11-22}}</ref>

In one form or another, theistic evolution is the view of creation taught at the majority of mainline [[Protestantism|Protestant]] seminaries.<ref>[[#Scott 1999|Scott 1999]]</ref> For Roman Catholics, human evolution is not a matter of religious teaching, and must stand or fall on its own scientific merits. [[Catholic Church and evolution|Evolution and the Roman Catholic Church]] are not in conflict. The [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]] comments positively on the theory of evolution, which is neither precluded nor required by the sources of faith, stating that scientific studies "have splendidly enriched our knowledge of the age and dimensions of the cosmos, the development of life-forms and the appearance of man."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Akin |first=Jimmy |date=January 2004 |title=Evolution and the Magisterium |url=http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2004/0401bt.asp |journal=[[Catholic Answers|This Rock]] |location=San Diego, CA |publisher=[[Catholic Answers|Catholic Answers, Inc.]] |volume=15 |issue=1 |issn=1049-4561 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070804102139/http://www.catholic.com/thisrock/2004/0401bt.asp |archivedate=2007-08-04 |accessdate=2014-03-14}}</ref> [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] schools teach evolution without controversy on the basis that scientific knowledge does not extend beyond the physical, and scientific truth and religious truth cannot be in conflict.<ref>{{cite news |last=Guntzel |first=Jeff Severns |url=http://natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives2/2005a/032505/032505ssn.htm |date=March 25, 2005 |title=Catholic schools steer clear of anti-evolution bias |newspaper=[[National Catholic Reporter]] |location=Kansas City, MO |publisher=The National Catholic Reporter Publishing Company |issn=0027-8939 |accessdate=2007-08-15}}</ref> Theistic evolution can be described as "creationism" in holding that [[Miracle|divine intervention]] brought about the origin of life or that divine laws govern formation of species, though many creationists (in the strict sense) would deny that the position is creationism at all. In the creation–evolution controversy its proponents generally take the "evolutionist" side. This sentiment was expressed by Fr. [[George Coyne]], (the [[Vatican City|Vatican]]'s chief astronomer between 1978 and 2006):<blockquote>...in America, creationism has come to mean some fundamentalistic, literal, scientific interpretation of Genesis. Judaic-Christian faith is radically creationist, but in a totally different sense. It is rooted in a belief that everything depends upon God, or better, all is a gift from God.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=18504 |title=Text of talk by Vatican Observatory director on 'Science Does Not Need God. Or Does It? A Catholic Scientist Looks at Evolution' |last=Coyne |first=George V. |authorlink=George Coyne |date=January 30, 2006 |publisher=Catholic Online, LLC |accessdate=2011-03-10}}</ref></blockquote>

While supporting the [[naturalism (philosophy)|methodological naturalism]] inherent in modern science, the proponents of theistic evolution reject the implication taken by some [[atheism|atheists]] that this gives credence to [[Ontology|ontological]] [[materialism]]. In fact, many modern philosophers of science,<ref>[[#Pennock 1999|Pennock 1999]]
*{{cite web |url=http://llanoestacado.org/freeinquiry/files/naturalism.html |title=Naturalism is an Essential Part of Science and Critical Inquiry |last=Schafersman |first=Steven D. |authorlink=Steven Schafersman |date=May 1997 |website=Free Inquiry: The Humanist and Skeptic Website of Steven Schafersman |publisher=Steven Schafersman |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*{{cite web |url=http://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2004/04/on_methodologic.html |title=On Methodological Naturalism and Intelligent Design (or Why Can't Lawrence VanDyke Leave Well Enough Alone?) |last=Leiter |first=Brian |authorlink=Brian Leiter |date=April 6, 2004 |website=Leiter Reports: A Philosophy Blog |publisher=Brian Leiter |type=Blog |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*{{cite journal |last=Burgeson |first=John W. |year=1997 |title=NTSE: An Intellectual Feast |url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od182/ntse182.htm |journal=Origins & Design |location=Colorado Springs, CO |publisher=[[Access Research Network]] |volume=18 |issue=2 |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*[[#Draper 2005|Draper 2005]]
*{{cite journal |last1=Pigliucci |first1=Massimo |authorlink=Massimo Pigliucci |last2=Banta |first2=Joshua |last3=Bossu |first3=Christen |last4=Crouse |first4=Paula |last5=Dexter |first5=Troy |last6=Hansknecht |first6=Kerry |last7=Muth |first7=Norris |display-authors=1 |date=May–June 2004 |title=The Alleged Fallacies of Evolutionary Theory |url=http://philosophynow.org/issues/46/The_Alleged_Fallacies_of_Evolutionary_Theory |journal=[[Philosophy Now]] |location=London |issue=46 |issn=0961-5970 |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*{{cite web |url=http://www.biology.uiowa.edu/ID.html |title=Statement on Intelligent Design |year=2005 |website=The Department of Biology |publisher=[[University of Iowa]] |type=Petition |location=Iowa City, IA |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100901150357/http://www.biology.uiowa.edu/ID.html |archivedate=2010-09-01 |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*{{cite journal |last=Pigliucci |first=Massimo |date=December 2005 |title=Science and fundamentalism |url=http://embor.embopress.org/content/6/12/1106 |journal=EMBO Reports |location=London |publisher=[[Nature Publishing Group]] |volume=6 |issue=12 |doi=10.1038/sj.embor.7400589 |issn=1469-3178 |accessdate=2014-03-15}}
*{{cite web |url=http://infidels.org/library/modern/michael_martin/naturalism.html |title=Justifying Methodological Naturalism |last=Martin |first=Michael |authorlink=Michael Martin (philosopher) |year=2002 |website=The Secular Web |publisher=[[Internet Infidels|Internet Infidels, Inc.]] |location=Colorado Springs, CO |accessdate=2014-03-15}}</ref> including atheists,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.butterfliesandwheels.org/2005/intelligent-design-or-natural-design/ |title=Intelligent Design or Natural Design |last=Bradley |first=Raymond |date=November 23, 2005 |website=Butterflies and Wheels |publisher=[[Ophelia Benson]] |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2014-03-16}}</ref> refer to the long-standing convention in the scientific method that [[observation|observable]] events in nature should be explained by natural causes, with the distinction that it does not assume the actual existence or non-existence of the supernatural. 

==Religious views==

===Christianity===
{{Further|Genesis creation narrative|Creation–evolution controversy}}
{{As of | 2006}} most Christians around the world accepted evolution as the most likely explanation for the origins of species, and did not take a literal view of the Genesis creation myth. The US is an exception where belief in religious fundamentalism is much more likely to affect attitudes towards evolution than it is for believers elsewhere. Political partisanship affecting religious belief may be a factor because political partisanship in the US is highly correlated with fundamentalist thinking, unlike in Europe.<ref name="Science survey">{{cite journal |last1=Miller |first1=Jon D. |last2=Scott |first2=Eugenie C. |authorlink2=Eugenie Scott |last3=Okamoto |first3=Shinji |date=August 2006 |title=Public acceptance of evolution |url=http://old.richarddawkins.net/articles/706 |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=American Association for the Advancement of Science |volume=313 |issue=5788 |pages=765–766 |doi=10.1126/science.1126746 |pmid=16902112 |accessdate=2014-03-16}}</ref>

Most contemporary Christian leaders and scholars from mainstream churches,<ref name="Denominational Views">{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/religion/denominational-views |title=Denominational Views |date=October 17, 2008 |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2010-05-17}}</ref> such as [[Anglicanism|Anglicans]]<ref name="Episcopal Church">{{cite web|url=http://ncse.com/media/voices/episcopal-church-general-convention-2006 |title=Episcopal Church, General Convention (2006) |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2010-05-17}}</ref> and [[Lutheranism|Lutherans]],<ref name="Lutheran">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Schick |first=Edwin A. |editor-last=Bodensieck |editor-first=Julius |encyclopedia=The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church |url=http://ncse.com/media/voices/lutheran-world-federation |accessdate=2010-05-17 |title=Evolution |year=1965 |publisher=[[Augsburg Fortress|Augsburg Publishing House]] |volume=1 |location=Minneapolis, MN |lccn=64021500 |oclc=947120}} Edited for the [[Lutheran World Federation]].
*{{cite journal |last=Hollabaugh |first=Mark |date=October 2006 |title=God allows the universe to create itself and evolve |url=http://www.thelutheran.org/article/article.cfm?article_id=6093 |journal=[[The Lutheran]] |location=Minneapolis, MN |publisher=[[Augsburg Fortress]] |issn=0024-743X |accessdate=2014-03-16}}</ref> consider that there is no conflict between the spiritual meaning of creation and the science of evolution. According to the former [[Archbishop of Canterbury]], [[Rowan Williams]], "...for most of the history of Christianity, and I think this is fair enough, most of the history of the Christianity there's been an awareness that a belief that everything depends on the creative act of God, is quite compatible with a degree of uncertainty or latitude about how precisely that unfolds in creative time."<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=March 21, 2006 |title=Interview: Rowan Williams |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/mar/21/religion.uk |newspaper=The Guardian |type=Transcript |location=London |publisher=Guardian Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-16}}</ref>

Leaders of the Anglican<ref>{{cite news |last=Williams |first=Christopher |date=March 21, 2006 |title=Archbishop of Canterbury backs evolution |url=http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/03/21/archbishop_backs_evolution/ |work=[[The Register]] |location=London |publisher=Situation Publishing Limited |accessdate=2011-03-10}}</ref> and Roman Catholic<ref>{{cite journal |last=McDonell |first=Keelin |date=July 12, 2005 |title=What Catholics Think of Evolution |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2122506/ |journal=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=[[Graham Holdings Company|The Washington Post Company]] |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20050716003211/http://www.slate.com/id/2122506/ |archivedate=2005-07-16 |accessdate=2014-03-16}}</ref><ref>See also the article [[Catholic Church and evolution]].
</ref> churches have made statements in favor of evolutionary theory, as have scholars such as the physicist [[John Polkinghorne]], who argues that evolution is one of the principles through which God created living beings. Earlier supporters of evolutionary theory include [[Frederick Temple]], Asa Gray and Charles Kingsley who were enthusiastic supporters of Darwin's theories upon their publication,<ref>[[#Polkinghorne 1998|Polkinghorne 1998]], pp. 7–8</ref> and the French Jesuit priest and geologist [[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin]] saw evolution as confirmation of his Christian beliefs, despite condemnation from Church authorities for his more speculative theories. Another example is that of [[Liberal Christianity|Liberal theology]], not providing any creation models, but instead focusing on the [[symbol]]ism in beliefs of the time of authoring Genesis and the cultural environment.

Many Christians and Jews had been considering the idea of the creation history as an allegory (instead of historical) long before the development of Darwin's theory of evolution. For example, Philo, whose works were taken up by early Church writers, wrote that it would be a mistake to think that creation happened in six days, or in any set amount of time.<ref name="Philo_Chapter2" /><ref name="www.earlychurch.org.uk">{{cite web |url=http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/philo.php |title=Philo of Alexandria (c.20 BC - c. AD 50) |last=Bradshaw |first=Rob |website=Early Church.org.uk |publisher=Steve Bradshaw |location=West Wickham, England |accessdate=December 21, 2011}}</ref> Augustine of the late fourth century who was also a former neoplatonist argued that everything in the Universe was created by God at the same moment in time (and not in six days as a literal reading of the Book of Genesis would seem to require);<ref name="Augustine" /> It appears that both Philo and Augustine felt uncomfortable with the idea of a seven-day creation because it detracted from the notion of God's omnipotence. In 1950, [[Pope Pius XII]] stated limited support for the idea in his [[Encyclical#Catholic usage|encyclical]] ''[[Humani generis]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_12081950_humani-generis_en.html |author=Pope Pius XII |authorlink=Pope Pius XII |title=Humani Generis |website=Vatican: the Holy See |publisher=[[Holy See]] |location=St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City |type=[[Encyclical#Catholic usage|Papal encyclical]] |date=August 12, 1950 |accessdate=2011-11-08}}</ref> In 1996, [[Pope John Paul II]] stated that "new knowledge has led to the recognition of the theory of evolution as more than a hypothesis," but, referring to previous papal writings, he concluded that "if the human body takes its origin from pre-existent living matter, the spiritual [[soul]] is immediately created by God."<ref>{{cite news |author=Pope John Paul II |authorlink=Pope John Paul II |date=October 30, 1996 |title=Magisterium is concerned with question of evolution, for it involves conception of man |url=http://www.its.caltech.edu/~nmcenter/sci-cp/evolution.html |newspaper=[[L'Osservatore Romano]] |type=Message to the [[Pontifical Academy of Sciences]] |edition=Weekly English |location=Tipografia Vaticana, Vatican City |publisher=Holy See |number=44 |pages=3, 7 |accessdate=2014-03-19}}</ref>

In the US, Evangelical Christians have continued to believe in a literal Genesis. Members of evangelical Protestant (70%), [[Mormons|Mormon]] (76%) and [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] (90%) denominations are the most likely to reject the evolutionary interpretation of the origins of life.<ref>{{cite report |author= |year=2008 |title=U.S. Religious Landscape Survey |url=http://religions.pewforum.org/pdf/report2religious-landscape-study-chapter-2.pdf |publisher=[[Pew Research Center]] |location=Washington, D.C. |chapter=Social and Political Views |page=95 |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-19}} Report 2: Religious Beliefs & Practices, Chapter 2.</ref> The historic Christian literal interpretation of creation requires the harmonization of the two creation stories, Genesis 1:1-2:3 and Genesis 2:4-25, for there to be a consistent interpretation.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/2194 |title=Are There Two Creation Accounts in Genesis? |last=Jackson |first=Wayne |website=Apologetics Press |location=Montgomery, Al |accessdate=2007-05-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rejectionofpascalswager.net/creationint.html |last=Tobin |first=Paul N. |year=2000 |title=The Creation Myths: Internal Difficulties |website=The Rejection of Pascal's Wager: A Skeptic's Guide to Christianity |publisher=Paul Tobin |location=Singapore |accessdate=2014-03-19}}</ref> They sometimes seek to ensure that their belief is taught in science classes, mainly in American schools. Opponents reject the claim that the literalistic biblical view meets the criteria required to be considered scientific. Many religious groups teach that God created the Cosmos. From the days of the early Christian Church Fathers there were allegorical interpretations of the Book of Genesis as well as literal aspects.<ref name="rsf">[[#Forster & Marston 1999|Forster & Marston 1999]]</ref>

[[Christian Science]], a system of thought and practice derived from the writings of [[Mary Baker Eddy]], interprets the Book of Genesis figuratively rather than literally. It holds that the material world is an illusion, and consequently not created by God: the only real creation is the spiritual realm, of which the material world is a distorted version. Christian Scientists regard the story of the creation in the Book of Genesis as having symbolic rather than literal meaning. According to Christian Science, both creationism and evolution are false from an absolute or "spiritual" point of view, as they both proceed from a (false) belief in the reality of a material universe. However, Christian Scientists do not oppose the teaching of evolution in schools, nor do they demand that alternative accounts be taught: they believe that both material science and literalist theology are concerned with the illusory, mortal and material, rather than the real, immortal and spiritual. With regard to material theories of creation, Mary Baker Eddy showed a preference for Darwin's theory of evolution over others.<ref name=S&Hp547>[[#Eddy 1934|Eddy 1934]], p. 547</ref>

===Hinduism===
{{Main|Hindu views on evolution}}
According to Hindu creationism all species on Earth including humans have "devolved" or come down from a high state of pure [[consciousness]].{{citation needed|date=March 2013}} Hindu creationists claim that species of [[plants]] and [[animals]] are material forms adopted by pure consciousness which live an endless cycle of births and rebirths.<ref>[[#McGrath 2010|McGrath 2010]], p. 140</ref> [[Ronald Numbers]] says that: "Hindu Creationists have insisted on the antiquity of humans, who they believe appeared fully formed as long, perhaps, as trillions of years ago."<ref>[[#Numbers 2006|Numbers 2006]], p. 420</ref> Hindu creationism is a form of old Earth creationism, according to Hindu creationists the Universe may even be older than billions of years. These views are based on the [[Vedas]], the creation myths of which depict an extreme antiquity of the Universe and history of the Earth.<ref>[[#Carper & Hunt 2009|Carper & Hunt 2009]], p. 167</ref><ref>[[#Dasgupta 1922|Dasgupta 1922]], p. 10</ref>

===Islam===
{{Main|Islamic views on evolution}}
[[Islamic views on evolution|Islamic creationism]] is the belief that the Universe (including humanity) was directly created by [[God in Islam|God]] as explained in the [[Quran|Qur'an]]. It usually views the Book of Genesis as a corrupted version of God's message. The creation myths in the Qur'an are vaguer and allow for a wider range of interpretations similar to those in other Abrahamic religions.

Islam also has its own school of theistic evolutionism, which holds that mainstream scientific analysis of the origin of the Universe is supported by the Qur'an. Some [[Muslims]] believe in evolutionary creation, especially among [[liberal movements within Islam]].

Khalid Anees, president of the [[Islamic Society of Britain]], at a conference called 'Creationism: Science and Faith in Schools', made points including the following:<blockquote>There is no contradiction between what is revealed in the Koran and natural selection and [[survival of the fittest]]. However, Muslims do not agree that one species can develop from another.<ref name=guardian0104>{{cite news |author= |date=January 7, 2004 |url=http://education.guardian.co.uk/conferences/story/0,,1117752,00.html |title=Creationism: Science and Faith in Schools |newspaper=The Guardian |type=Conferences |location=London |publisher=Guardian Media Group |accessdate=2008-07-18}}</ref></blockquote>

Writing for ''[[The Boston Globe]]'', Drake Bennett noted: "Without a Book of Genesis to account for ... Muslim creationists have little interest in proving that the age of the Earth is measured in the thousands rather than the billions of years, nor do they show much interest in the problem of the dinosaurs. And the idea that animals might evolve into other animals also tends to be less controversial, in part because there are passages of the Koran that seem to support it. But the issue of whether human beings are the product of evolution is just as fraught among Muslims."<ref name="Bennett 4" /> However, some Muslims, such as [[Adnan Oktar]] (also known as Harun Yahya), do not agree that one species can develop from another.<ref name="PrizeforFossil">{{cite news |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/3102103/Creationist-Adnan-Oktar-offers-trillion-pound-prize-for-fossil-proof-of-evolution.html |last=Irvine |first=Chris |date=September 29, 2008 |title=Creationist Adnan Oktar offers trillion-pound prize for fossil proof of evolution |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London |publisher=[[Telegraph Media Group]] |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref>

But there is also a growing movement of Islamic creationism. Similar to Christian creationism, there is concern regarding the perceived conflicts between the Qur'an and the main points of evolutionary theory. The main location for this has been in Turkey, where fewer than 25% of people believe in evolution.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kaufman |first=Marc |date=November 8, 2009 |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/07/AR2009110702233.html |title=In Turkey, fertile ground for creationism |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=The Washington Post Company |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref>

There are several verses in the Qur'an which some modern writers have interpreted as being compatible with the [[Metric expansion of space|expansion of the Universe]], [[Big Bang]] and [[Big Crunch]] theories:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.harunyahya.com/tr/works/3344/The-Big-Bang-echoes-throught-the-map-of-the-galaxy |title=The Big Bang Echoes through the Map of the Galaxy |author=Harun Yahya |authorlink=Adnan Oktar |date=June 30, 2005 |website=Harun Yahya |publisher=Global Publication Ltd. Co. |location=Horsham, England |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref><ref>[[#Bucaille 1977|Bucaille 1977]]
*[[#Bucaille 1976|Bucaille 1976]]</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/scislam.html |title=The Qur'an, Knowledge, and Science |last=Abd-Allah |first=A. |website=Compendium of Muslim Texts |publisher=[[University of Southern California]] |location=Los Angeles, CA |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081128054613/http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/scislam.html |archivedate=2008-11-28 |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref>

: {{Cite quran|21|30|t=y|q=Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe?}}

: {{Cite quran|41|11|t=y|q=Moreover He comprehended in His design the sky, and it had been (as) smoke: He said to it and to the earth: 'Come ye together, willingly or unwillingly.' They said: 'We do come (together), in willing obedience.'}}

: {{Cite quran|51|47|t=y|q=With power and skill did We construct the Firmament: for it is We Who create the vastness of space.}}

: {{Cite quran|21|104|t=y|q=The Day that We roll up the heavens like a scroll rolled up for books (completed),- even as We produced the first creation, so shall We produce a new one: a promise We have undertaken: truly shall We fulfil it.}}

====Ahmadiyya====
The [[Ahmadiyya]] movement activey promotes evolutionary theory.<ref name="Masood_Ch13">[[#Masood 1994|Masood 1994]], [http://www.itl-usa.org/ahmadi/ahmadi13.html Chapter 13, "Every Wind of Doctrine"]</ref> Ahmadis interpret scripture from the Qur'an to support the concept of [[macroevolution]] and give precedence to scientific theories. Furthermore, unlike orthodox Muslims, Ahmadis believe that mankind has gradually evolved from different species. Ahmadis regard [[Adam]] as being the first Prophet of God{{spaced ndash}}as opposed to him being the first man on Earth.<ref name="Masood_Ch13" /> Rather than wholly adopting the theory of natural selection, Ahmadis promote the idea of a "guided evolution," viewing each stage of the evolutionary process as having been selectively woven by God.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.alislam.org/library/articles/Guided_evolution_and_punctuated_equilibrium-20081104MN.pdf |title=Guided Evolution: Proof From Punctuated Equilibrium |last1=Lahaye |first1=Ataul Wahid |last2=Shah |first2=Zia H. |website=Al Islam |publisher=[[Ahmadiyya Muslim Community]] |location=London |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref> [[Mirza Tahir Ahmad]], Fourth [[Khalifatul Masih|Caliph]] of the [[Ahmadiyya Muslim Community]] has stated in his magnum opus ''[[Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge & Truth]]'' (1998) that evolution did occur but only through God being the One who brings it about. It does not occur itself, according to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.

===Judaism===
{{Main|Jewish views on evolution}}
For [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox Jews]] who seek to reconcile discrepancies between science and the creation myths in the Bible, the notion that science and the Bible should even be reconciled through traditional scientific means is questioned. To these groups, science is as true as the [[Torah]] and if there seems to be a problem, our own [[Epistemology|epistemological]] limits are to blame for any apparent irreconcilable point. They point to various discrepancies between what is expected and what actually is to demonstrate that things are not always as they appear. They point out the fact that even the root word for "world" in the [[Hebrew language]]—עולם (Olam)—means hidden—נעלם (Neh-Eh-Lahm). Just as they know from the Torah that God created man and trees and the light on its way from the stars in their observed state, so too can they know that the World was created in its over the six days of Creation that reflects progression to its currently-observed state, with the understanding that physical ways to verify this may eventually be identified. This knowledge has been advanced by Rabbi [[Dovid Gottlieb]], former philosophy professor at [[Johns Hopkins University]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2015}} Also, relatively old [[Kabbalah|Kabbalistic]] sources from well before the scientifically apparent age of the Universe was first determined are in close concord with modern scientific estimates of the age of the Universe, according to Rabbi [[Aryeh Kaplan]], and based on Sefer Temunah, an early kabbalistic work attributed to the first-century [[Tannaim|Tanna]] [[Nehunya ben HaKanah]]. Many kabbalists accepted the teachings of the [[Sefer HaTemunah]], including the medieval Jewish scholar [[Nahmanides]], his close student [[Isaac ben Samuel of Acre]], and the [[David ben Solomon ibn Abi Zimra]]. Other interesting parallels are derived, among other sources, from Nahmanides, who expounds that there was a [[Neanderthal]]-like species with which Adam mated (he did this long before Neanderthals had even been discovered scientifically).<ref>[[#Aviezer 1990|Aviezer 1990]]</ref><ref>[[#Carmell & Domb 1976|Carmell & Domb 1976]]</ref><ref>[[#Schroeder 1998|Schroeder 1998]]</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Tigay |first=Jeffrey H. |date=Winter 1987–1988 |title=Genesis, Science, and 'Scientific Creationism' |url=http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~jtigay/sci.htm |journal=[[Conservative Judaism (journal)|Conservative Judaism]] |location=New York |publisher=[[Rabbinical Assembly]]; [[Jewish Theological Seminary of America]] |volume=40 |issue=2 |pages=20–27 |issn=0010-6542 |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref> [[Reform Judaism]] does not take the Torah as a literal text, but rather as a symbolic or open-ended work.

===Bahá'í Faith===
In the creation myth taught by [[Bahá'u'lláh]], the [[Bahá'í Faith]] founder, the Universe has "neither beginning nor ending," and that the component elements of the material world have always existed and will always exist.<ref>[[#`Abdu'l-Bahá 1982|`Abdu'l-Bahá 1982]], [http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/ab/PUP/pup-79.html#gr8 p. 220]</ref> With regard to evolution and the origin of human beings, [[`Abdu'l-Bahá]] gave extensive comments on the subject when he addressed western audiences in the beginning of the 20th century. Transcripts of these comments can be found in ''[[Some Answered Questions]]'', ''[[Paris Talks]]'' and ''The Promulgation of Universal Peace''. `Abdu'l-Bahá described the human species as having evolved from a primitive form to modern man, but that the capacity to form human intelligence was always in existence.

==Creationism by country==
Creationism is widely accepted and taught throughout the Middle East. Although it has been prominent in the US but not widely accepted in academia, it has been making a resurgence in other countries as well.<ref name="Discover">{{cite journal |last=Pitock |first=Todd |date=July 2007 |title=Science and Islam in Conflict |url=http://discovermagazine.com/2007/jul/science-and-islam |journal=Discover |location=Waukesha, WI |publisher=Kalmbach Publishing |volume=28 |issue=7 |pages=36–45 |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref><ref name="Katz_AP">{{cite news |last=Katz |first=Gregory |date=February 9, 2008 |title=Creationists seek foothold in Europe |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-02-09-3128465947_x.htm |newspaper=[[USA Today]] |location=Tysons Corner, VA |publisher=[[Gannett Company]] |agency=Associated Press |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref><ref name="NCSE Edis">{{cite journal |last=Edis |first=Taner |date=November–December 1999 |title=Cloning Creationism in Turkey |url=http://ncse.com/rncse/19/6/cloning-creationism-turkey |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=National Center for Science Education |volume=19 |issue=6 |pages=30–35 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2008-02-17}}</ref>

===Europe===
In recent years the teaching of creationism has become a subject of debate in a variety of countries including Germany, the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Serbia.<ref name="Katz_AP" /><ref name="NCSE Edis" /><ref name="Serbia_Darwin">{{cite news |author= |date=September 9, 2004 |title=Serbia reverses Darwin suspension |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3642460.stm |work=[[BBC News]] |location=London |publisher=[[BBC]] |accessdate=2014-03-21 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Highfield |first=Roger |authorlink=Roger Highfield |date=October 2, 2007 |title=Creationists rewrite natural history |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/3309018/Creationists-rewrite-natural-history.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref>

Creation science has been heavily promoted in immigrant communities in Western Europe, primarily by Adnan Oktar.<ref name="NCSE Edis" /> On October 4, 2007, the [[Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe]] adopted ''[[Creation and evolution in public education#Council of Europe|The dangers of creationism in education]]'', a resolution on the attempt by American-inspired creationists to promote creationism in European schools. It concludes "The war on the theory of evolution and on its proponents most often originates in forms of religious extremism closely linked to extreme right-wing political movements... some advocates of strict creationism are out to replace democracy by theocracy... If we are not careful, the values that are the very essence of the Council of Europe will be under direct threat from creationist fundamentalists."<ref name="R1580">{{cite web |url=http://assembly.coe.int/main.asp?link=/documents/adoptedtext/ta07/eres1580.htm |title=The dangers of creationism in education |date=October 4, 2007 |work=Committee on Culture, Science and Education |publisher=[[Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe]] |type=Resolution |id=Resolution 1580 |accessdate=2014-03-22}} Paras. 13, 18</ref>

====Germany====
In 1978, British Professor [[A. E. Wilder-Smith]], who came to Germany after [[World War II]] and lectured at [[Marburg]] and other cities, published a book arguing against evolution with a secular, well known publishing house, titled ''The Natural Sciences Know Nothing of Evolution'' (1978).<ref>[[#Wilder-Smith 1978|Wilder-Smith 1978]]</ref> At the end of the year Horst W. Beck became a creationist. Both an engineer and theologian, he was a leading figure in the "Karl-Heim-Gesellschaft" ([[Karl Heim#Place amongst German scholars|Karl Heim Society]]) and had previously published articles and books defending theistic evolution. Together with other members of the society, which they soon left, he followed the arguments of Willem Ouweneel, a Dutch [[biologist]] lecturing in Germany. Beck soon found other scientists who had changed their view or were "hidden" creationists. Under his leadership, the first creationist society was founded ("Wort und Wissen"—Word and Knowledge). Three book series were soon published, an independent creationist monthly journal started (''Factum''), and the first German article in the ''[[Creation Research Society#Publications|Creation Research Society Quarterly]]'' was published.<ref name="Schirrmacher">{{cite journal |last=Schirrmacher |first=Thomas |authorlink=Thomas Schirrmacher |date=July 1985 |title=The German Creationist Movement |url=http://www.icr.org/article/german-creationist-movement/ |journal=Acts & Facts |location=San Diego, CA |publisher=[[Institute for Creation Research]] |volume=14 |issue=7 |issn=1094-8562 |accessdate=2014-03-22}}</ref>

In 2006, a documentary on the [[Arte]] television network, ''Von Göttern und Designern'' ("Genesis vs. Darwin"), by filmmaker [[Frank Papenbroock]], demonstrated that creationism had already been taught in biology classes in at least two schools in [[Giessen|Giessen, Hesse]], without this being noticed.<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=October 31, 2006 |title=Hessische Schulen: 'Kultusministerin fällt auf Kreationisten herein' |url=http://www.spiegel.de/schulspiegel/hessische-schulen-kultusministerin-faellt-auf-kreationisten-herein-a-445487.html |work=[[Spiegel Online]] |location=Hamburg, Germany |publisher=Spiegel Online GmbH |accessdate=2014-03-22}}</ref> During this, the Education Minister of Hessen, Karin Wolff, said she believed creationism should be taught in biology class as a theory, like the theory of evolution: "I think it makes sense to bring up multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary problems for discussion."<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=November 2, 2006 |title=German Scientists Concerned About Rise in Creationist Belief |url=http://www.dw.de/german-scientists-concerned-about-rise-in-creationist-belief/a-2222454-1 |work=[[Deutsche Welle]] |location=Bonn, Germany |publisher=[[ARD (broadcaster)|ARD]] |accessdate=2014-03-22}}</ref> In 2009, an article on the German news site [[Spiegel Online]] stated approximately 20% of people disbelieve evolutionary theory in Germany.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lubbadeh |first=Jens |date=February 25, 2009 |title=Contesting Evolution: European Creationists Take On Darwin |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/contesting-evolution-european-creationists-take-on-darwin-a-609712.html |work=Spiegel Online |location=Hamburg, Germany |publisher=Spiegel Online GmbH |accessdate=2014-03-22}}</ref> More recently, a 2011 [[Ipsos]] poll commissioned by [[Reuters]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/news/2011/04/polling-creationism-evolution-around-world-006634 |title=Polling creationism and evolution around the world |author= |date=April 25, 2011 |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2014-01-01}}</ref> found 12% of Germans identify as creationists.<ref>{{cite press release |last=Duffy |first=Bobby |date=April 25, 2011 |title=Ipsos Global @dvisory: Supreme Being(s), the Afterlife and Evolution |url=http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/pressrelease.aspx?id=5217 |location=New York, NY |publisher=[[Ipsos]] |accessdate=2014-01-01}} Results are tabulated [http://www.ipsos-na.com/download/pr.aspx?id=10670 here], with results by country on page 20.</ref>

====Romania====
In [[Romanians|Romania]], in 2002, the Ministry of Education approved the use of a biology book endorsing creationism, titled ''Biologie clasa a IX-a – Măiestrie şi strălucire divină în biosferă'' ("Biology Class IX – Divine Mastery and Light in the Biosphere"), in public high schools. Following a protest of the Romanian Humanist Association the Romanian Ministry of Education replied that the book is not a "textbook" but merely an "accessory." The president of the Association labeled the reply as "disappointing" since, whether a textbook or an accessory, the book remains available for usage in schools. Reports indicate that at least one teacher in [[Oradea]] did use the book.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/carte-creationista-pentru-biologie-avizata-de-minister-844190.html |title=Carte creaţionistă pentru biologie, avizată de minister |last=Dogar |first=Andreea |date=March 20, 2009 |website=EVZ.ro |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608131053/http://www.evz.ro/detalii/stiri/carte-creationista-pentru-biologie-avizata-de-minister-844190.html |archivedate=2011-06-08 |accessdate=2014-03-23}}</ref>

====Russia====
[[Russians|Russia]] is home to the Moscow Creation Society.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Doughty |first1=John |last2=Doughty |first2=Svetlana |date=June 1997 |title=Creationism in Russia |url=http://www.icr.org/article/creationism-russia/ |journal=Acts & Facts |location=San Diego, CA |publisher=Institute for Creation Research |volume=26 |issue=6 |issn=1094-8562 |accessdate=2014-03-23}}</ref> The department of extracurricular and alternative education of the [[Ministry of Education and Science (Russia)|Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation]] has cosponsored numerous creationist conferences. Since 1994, Alexander Asmolov, the previous deputy minister of education, has urged that creationism be taught to help restore academic freedom in Russia after years of state-enforced scientific orthodoxy.<ref name="Numbers 2006" /> In February 2007, a 16-year-old girl and her father launched a court case against the Ministry of Education and Science, backed by the [[Russian Orthodox Church]], challenging the teaching of just one "theory" of biology in school textbooks as a breach of her human rights.<ref name="Kjærgaard">{{cite journal |last=Kjærgaard |first=Peter C. |date=May–June 2008 |title=Western front |url=http://newhumanist.org.uk/1783/western-front |journal=[[New Humanist]] |location=London |publisher=[[Rationalist Association]] |volume=123 |issue=3 |pages=39–41 |issn=0306-512X |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.assembly.coe.int/ASP/Doc/XrefViewHTML.asp?FileID=11751&Language=EN |title=The dangers of creationism in education |date=September 17, 2007 |work=Committee on Culture, Science and Education |publisher=Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe |type=Report |id=Doc. 11375 |accessdate=2014-04-24}}</ref>

A 2005 poll reportedly found 26% of Russians accepting evolution and 49% accepting creationism.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bigg |first=Claire |date=March 10, 2006 |title=Russia: Creationism Finds Support Among Young |url=http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1066577.html |work=[[Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty]] |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=[[Broadcasting Board of Governors]] |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> But a 2003 poll reported that 44% agreed with "Human beings are developed from earlier species of animals,"<ref name="NSB_06">{{cite book |author= |date=February 23, 2006 |chapter=Figure 7-7: Correct answers to specific science literacy questions, by country/region: Most recent year |chapterurl=http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind06/c7/fig07-07.htm |title=Science and Engineering Indicators 2006 |url=http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/seind06/ |type=Figure |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=[[National Science Foundation]]; [[National Science Board]] |oclc=71342049 |id=NSB 06-01 |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> and a 2009 poll reported (PDF) that 48% of Russians who "know something about Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution" agreed that there was sufficient evidence for the theory.<ref name="britishcouncil.org">{{cite press release |last1=Stephenson |first1=Tony |last2=Michael |first2=Adam |last3=Tan |first3=Benjamyn |date=June 30, 2009 |title=Darwin Survey Shows International Consensus on Acceptance of Evolution |url=http://www.britishcouncil.org/darwin_now_survey_global.pdf |format=PDF |location=London |publisher=[[British Council]] |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> The 2009 poll indicated that 53% of Russians agreed with "Evolutionary theories should be taught in science lessons in schools together with other possible perspectives, such as intelligent design and creationism," with 13% preferring that such perspectives be taught instead of evolution; only 10% agreed with "Evolutionary theories alone should be taught in science lessons in schools."<ref name="britishcouncil.org" />

====Serbia====
On September 7, 2004, the Serbian Minister for Education and Sport, [[Ljiljana Čolić]], temporarily banned evolution from being taught in the country. After statewide outcry she resigned on September 16, 2004, from her post.<ref name="Serbian_schools">{{cite news |last=de Quetteville |first=Harry |date=September 9, 2004 |title=Darwin is off the curriculum for Serbian schools |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1471367/Darwin-is-off-the-curriculum-for-Serbian-schools.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=January 24, 2012}}</ref>

====Switzerland====
A 2006 international survey found that 30% of the [[Swiss people|Swiss]] reject evolution, one of the highest national percentages in Europe.<ref name="steph">{{cite news |last=Stephens |first=Thomas |date=October 9, 2006 |title=Swiss drag knuckles accepting evolution |url=http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/Home/Archive/Swiss_drag_knuckles_accepting_evolution.html?cid=70292 |work=swissinfo.ch |location=Bern, Switzerland |publisher=[[SRG SSR]] |accessdate=2011-12-04}}</ref> Another survey in 2007, commissioned by the fringe Christian organization Pro Genesis, controversially claims 80%. This resulted in schools in the [[Canton of Bern]] printing science textbooks that presented creationism as a valid alternative theory to evolution. Scientists and education experts harshly criticized the move, which quickly prompted school authorities to revise the books.<ref name="sch">{{cite news |last=Bechtel |first=Dale |date=November 28, 2007 |title=Creationism controversy evolves |url=http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/Home/Archive/Creationism_controversy_evolves.html?cid=6283640 |work=swissinfo.ch |location=Bern, Switzerland |publisher=SRG SSR |accessdate=2011-12-04}}</ref>

====United Kingdom====
[[File:Gensis expo building ground floor.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Creation Science Movement#Genesis Expo|Genesis Expo]] is a young Earth creationism museum in [[Portsmouth|Portsmouth, England]].]]
Since the development of evolutionary theory by Charles Darwin in England, where his portrait appears on the back of the [[Bank of England note issues#£10|revised Series E £10 note]] issued in 2000, significant shifts in British public opinion have occurred. A 2006 survey for the [[BBC]] showed that "more than a fifth of those polled were convinced by the creationist argument,"<ref name="Joyce">{{cite news |last=Joyce |first=Julian |date=September 15, 2008 |title=Who are the British creationists? |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7613403.stm |work=BBC News |location=London |publisher=BBC |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> a massive decrease from the almost total acceptance of creationism before Darwin published his theory. A 2010 [[Angus Reid Public Opinion|Angus Reid]] poll found that "In Britain, two-thirds of respondents (68%) side with evolution while less than one-in-five (16%) choose creationism. At least seven-in-ten respondents in the South of England (70%) and Scotland (75%) believe human beings evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.angusreidglobal.com/polls/43135/americans-are-creationists-britons-and-canadians-side-with-evolution/ |title=Americans are creationists; Britons and Canadians side with evolution |date=July 15, 2010 |website=[[Angus Reid Public Opinion|Angus Reid Global]] |publisher=[[Vision Critical]] |location=Vancouver, B.C. |accessdate=2012-06-02}}</ref> A subsequent 2010 [[YouGov]] poll on the origin of humans found that 9% opted for creationism, 12% intelligent design, 65% evolutionary theory and 13% did not know.<ref name="YouGov" />

Speaking at the [[British Science Association#British Science Festival|British Science Association]]'s British Science Festival at the [[University of Liverpool]] in 2008, Professor [[Michael Reiss]] estimated that about only 10% of children were from a family that supported a creationist rather than evolutionary viewpoint.<ref name="Wynne-Jones">{{cite news |last=Wynne-Jones |first=Jonathan |date=January 31, 2009 |title=Poll reveals public doubts over Charles Darwin's theory of evolution |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/4410927/Poll-reveals-public-doubts-over-Charles-Darwins-theory-of-evolution.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> [[Richard Dawkins]] has been quoted saying "I have spoken to a lot of science teachers in schools here in Britain who are finding an increasing number of students coming to them and saying they are Young Earth creationists."<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=April 2, 2008 |title=Richard Dawkins: 'Growth in creationist beliefs a problem for schools' |url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/education/richard-dawkins-growth-in-creationist-beliefs-a-problem-for-schools-1-1254885 |newspaper=[[The Scotsman]] |location=London |publisher=Johnston Press |accessdate=2014-04-23}}</ref>

The director of education at the [[Royal Society]] has said that creationism should be discussed in school science lessons, rather than be excluded, to explain why creationism had no scientific basis.<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=September 13, 2008 |title=Call for creationism in science |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/7612152.stm |work=BBC News |location=London |publisher=BBC |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> [[Wales]] has the largest proportion of theistic evolutionists—the belief that evolution is part of God's plan (38%). [[Northern Ireland]] has the highest proportion of people who believe in 'intelligent design' (16%), which holds that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection."<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=March 2, 2009 |title=Four out of five Britons do not believe in creationism |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/4926271/Four-out-of-five-Britons-do-not-believe-in-creationism.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> Some private religious schools in the UK teach creationism rather than evolution.<ref name="Joyce" /> However, the teaching of creationism is illegal in any school that receives state funding.

===Muslim world===
A 2007 study of religious patterns found that only 8% of [[Egyptians]], 11% of [[Malaysians]], 14% of [[Pakistanis]], 16% of [[Demographics of Indonesia|Indonesians]], and 22% of [[Turkish citizen|Turks]] agree that Darwin's theory is probably or most certainly true, and a 2006 survey reported that about a quarter of Turkish adults agreed that human beings evolved from earlier animal species.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hameed |first1=Salman |date=December 12, 2008 |title=Bracing for Islamic creationism |url=http://helios.hampshire.edu/~sahCS/Hameed-Science-Creationism.pdf |format=PDF |journal=Science |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=American Association for the Advancement of Science |volume=322 |issue=5908 |pages=1637–1638 |doi=10.1126/science.1163672 |pmid=19074331 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> Surveys carried out by researchers affiliated with McGill University's Evolution Education Research Centre found that in Egypt and Pakistan, while the official high school curriculum does include evolution, many of the teachers there do not believe in it themselves, and will often tell their students so.<ref name="Bennett 4" />

Currently in Egypt, evolution is taught in schools but Saudi Arabia and Sudan have both banned the teaching of evolution in schools.<ref name="Discover" /><ref name="BurtonIRNKSA">{{cite journal |last=Burton |first=Elise K. |date=May–June 2010 |title=Teaching Evolution in Muslim States:Iran and Saudi Arabia Compared |url=http://www.academia.edu/870964/Evolution_Education_in_Muslim_States_Iran_and_Saudi_Arabia_Compared |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=National Center for Science Education |volume=30 |issue=3 |pages=25–29 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2014-01-13}}</ref> In recent times, creationism has become more widespread in other Islamic countries.<ref name="Economist_2007">{{cite news |author= |date=April 19, 2007 |title=In the beginning |url=http://www.economist.com/node/9036706 |work=[[The Economist]] |location=London |publisher=[[Economist Group]] |issn=0013-0613 |accessdate=2007-04-25}}This article gives a worldwide overview of recent developments on the subject of the controversy.</ref>

The results of a survey of the adherence to creation science of 5,700 teachers from 14 countries was presented during the 2008 XIII IOSTE Symposium in [[Izmir]], Turkey. [[Lebanese people|Lebanon]], [[Senegal]], [[Tunis]]ia, [[Moroccan people|Morocco]] and [[Algerian people|Algeria]] had 62% to 81% of creationist teachers (with no difference between biologists and others). Romania and [[Burkina Faso]] had 45% to 48% of creationist teachers in Romania and Burkina Faso, with no difference between biologists and other in Romania, but a clear difference (p<0.001) in Burkina Faso (with 61% of creationists for the not biology teachers). [[Portuguese people|Portugal]] and [[Cyprus]] had 15% to 30% of creationist teachers, with no significant difference between biologists, but a significant difference in Portugal (p=0.004, 17% and 26%).<ref name="IOSTE_survey">{{cite conference |url=https://repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt/bitstream/1822/8934/1/IOSTE_Evolution.pdf |title=Science and Religion: Evolutionism and Creationism in Education. A survey of teachers conceptions in 14 countries |first1=Pierre |last1=Clément |first2=Marie Pierre |last2=Quessada |first3=Charline |last3=Laurent |first4=Graça |last4=Carvalho |date=September 21–26, 2008 |conference=XIII IOSTE Symposium |location=Izmir, Turkey |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-04-24}}</ref>

====Iran====
[[Iranian peoples|Iranian]] [[Science and technology in Iran|scientific development]], especially the health-related aspects of biology, has been a goal of the Islamic government since the [[Iranian revolution|revolution of 1979]].<ref name="BurtonIRNKSA" /> Since Iranian traditional practice of [[Shi'a]] religion is not preoccupied with Qur'anic literalism as in case of Saudi Wahhabism but [[ijtihad]], many influential Iranian Shi'ite scholars, including several who were closely involved in [[Iranian Revolution]], are not opposed to evolutionary ideas in general, disagreeing that evolution necessarily conflicts with the Muslim mainstream.<ref name="BurtonIRNKSA" /> Iranian pupils, since 5th grade of elementary school, learn only about evolution, thus portraying geologists and scientists in general as authoritative voices of scientific knowledge.<ref name="BurtonIRNKSA" />

====Turkey====
Since the 1980s, creationism in Turkey has grown significantly and is now the government's official position on origins.<ref name="Bennett 4">{{cite news |last=Bennett |first=Drake |date=October 25, 2009 |title=Islam's Darwin problem |url=http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/10/25/in_the_muslim_world_creationism_is_on_the_rise/?page=full |newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]] |location=Boston, MA |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20091030044754/http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/10/25/in_the_muslim_world_creationism_is_on_the_rise/?page=full |archivedate=2009-10-30 |accessdate=2014-03-21}}</ref> In 1985, the conservative political party then in control of the country’s education ministry added creationist explanations alongside the passages on evolution in the standard high school biology textbook. In Turkey, unlike in the US, the public school curriculum is set by the national government. In 2008, [[Richard Dawkins]]' website was banned in Turkey.<ref>{{cite news |last=Salter |first=Jessica |date=September 19, 2008 |title=Richard Dawkins website banned in Turkey |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/turkey/2987807/Richard-Dawkins-website-banned-in-Turkey.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> However, the ban was lifted in July 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://richarddawkins.net/articles/642074-rd-net-no-longer-banned-in-turkey |title=RD.net no longer banned in Turkey! |author=RDFRS UK |date=July 8, 2011 |website=RichardDawkins.net |publisher=[[Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science]] |location=Washington, D.C. |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111105060322/http://richarddawkins.net/articles/642074-rd-net-no-longer-banned-in-turkey |archivedate=2011-11-05 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> In 2009, the Turkish government agency [[Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey]] (TÜBİTAK), publisher of the popular Turkish science magazine ''[[Bilim ve Teknik]]'' (''Science and Technology''), was accused of stripping a cover story about the life and work of Charles Darwin from the March 2009 issue of the Council's publication just before it went to press. The planned portrait of Darwin for the magazine's cover was replaced and the editor of the magazine, Çiğdem Atakuman, claims that she was removed from her post.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.com/news/2009/090310/full/news.2009.150.html |title=Turkish scientists claim Darwin censorship |last=Abbott |first=Alison |date=March 10, 2009 |website=Nature News |publisher=Nature Publishing Group |location=London |doi=10.1038/news.2009.150 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author= |date=March 19, 2009 |title=Turkey censors evolution |url=http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v458/n7236/full/458259a.html |journal=[[Nature (journal)|Nature]] |type=Editorial |location=London |publisher=Nature Publishing Group |volume=458 |issue=259 |doi=10.1038/458259a |issn=0028-0836 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author= |date=May 2009 |title=Evolution Stirs Tempest in Turkish Teapot |url=http://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/200905/evolution.cfm |journal=APS News |type=News |location=College Park, MD |publisher=[[American Physical Society]] |volume=18 |issue=5 |issn=1058-8132 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author= |date=March 16, 2009 |title=Darwin issue ends in finger pointing |url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/domestic/11214930.asp?gid=244 |newspaper=[[Hürriyet Daily News]] |location=Üsküdar, Turkey |publisher=[[Doğan Media Group]] |issn=1300-0721 |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> Most of the Turkish population expressed support for the censorship.<ref>{{cite news |last=Steinvorth |first=Daniel |date=March 17, 2009 |title=Darwin in Turkey: 'Most Express Sympathy for the Censorship' |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/darwin-in-turkey-most-express-sympathy-for-the-censorship-a-613768.html |work=Spiegel Online |location=Hamburg, Germany |publisher=Spiegel Online GmbH |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> In 2012, it was found that the government's internet content filter, designed to prevent the public having access to pornographic websites, also blocked the words 'evolution' and 'Darwin' on one mode of the filter.<ref>{{cite news |last=Chivers |first=Tom |date=December 10, 2011 |title=Darwin censored by the Turkish government's porn filter |url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tomchiversscience/100123035/darwin-censored-by-the-turkish-governments-porn-filter/ |work=Telegraph Blogs |type=Blog |location=London |publisher=Telegraph Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

===Australia===
[[File:KenHam.JPG|thumb|right|150px|[[Ken Ham]] is a young Earth creationist who helped start [[Creation Ministries International#History|Creation Science Foundation]] (CSF) in [[Queensland]], Australia.]]
In the late 1970s, Answers in Genesis, a creationist research organization, was founded in Australia. In 1994, Answers in Genesis expanded from Australia and New Zealand to the US.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answersingenesis.org/us/history.asp |title=A Brief History Of Answers in Genesis–USA |work=AnswersOnline |publisher=Answers in Genesis Ministries International |location=Hebron, KY |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816033826/http://www.answersingenesis.org/us/history.asp |archivedate=2000-08-16}}</ref> It subsequently expanded into the UK, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. Creationists in Australia have been the leading influence on the development of creation science in the US for the last 20 years. Two of the three main international creation science organizations all have original roots within Australia—Answers in Genesis and Creation Ministries. [[Ken Ham]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/08/1/l_081_04.html |title=Ken Ham: Biblical Literalist |author= |year=2001 |website=[[PBS]] |publisher=[[WGBH-TV|WGBH Educational Foundation]]; Clear Blue Sky Productions, Inc. |accessdate=2008-12-17}} Supplemental website material for the documentary series ''[[Evolution (TV series)|Evolution]]'' (2001).</ref> Andrew Snelling,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.answersingenesis.org/arj |title=Answers Research Journal - Creation, Evolution, Scientific Research - Answers Research Journal |website=Answers Research Journal |publisher=Answers in Genesis |location=Hebron, KY |issn=1937-9056 |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> Jason Lisle,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://creation.com/dr-jason-lisle |title=Dr Jason Lisle, Ph.D. |website=Creation.com |publisher=[[Creation Ministries International]] |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> Jonathan Sarfati<ref>{{cite web |url=http://creation.com/dr-jonathan-sarfati |title=Dr. Jonathan Sarfati |website=Creation.com |publisher=Creation Ministries International |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> and Tasman Bruce Walker <ref>{{cite web |url=http://creation.com/dr-tasman-bruce-walker |title=Dr Tasman Bruce Walker |website=Creation.com |publisher=Creation Ministries International |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> have all had significant impact on the development of creationism in Australia, and have brought their teaching to the US.

In 1980, the [[Queensland]] state government of [[Joh Bjelke-Petersen]] allowed the teaching of creationism as science to school children. On May 29, 2010, it was announced that creationism and intelligent design will be discussed in history classes as part of the new national curriculum. It will be placed in the subject of ancient history, under the topic of "controversies."<ref>{{cite news |last=Hennessy |first=Carly |date=May 30, 2010 |title=Intelligent design to be taught in Queensland schools under national curriculum |url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/intelligent-design-to-be-taught-in-queensland-schools-under-national-curriculum/story-e6freoof-1225872896736 |newspaper=[[The Courier-Mail]] |location=Surry Hills, Australia |publisher=[[News Corp Australia|News Limited]] |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref> One Australian scientist who adheres to creation science is Dr Pierre Gunnar Jerlström.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://creation.com/dr-pierre-gunnar-jerlstrom |title=Dr Pierre Gunnar Jerlström |website=Creation.com |publisher=Creation Ministries International |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref>

Professor [[Ian Plimer]], an anti-creationist geologist, reported being attacked by creationists.<ref name="Skeptictank">{{cite journal |last=Plimer |first=Ian |authorlink=Ian Plimer |date=December 12, 1998 |title=EVOLUTION V. CREATION DOWN UNDER |url=http://www.skeptictank.org/hs/aevdnun.htm |work=[[Skeptic (U.S. magazine)|Skeptic Mag Hotline]] |location=Altadena, CA |publisher=[[The Skeptics Society]] |issn=2168-3360 |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> A few public lectures have been given in rented rooms at universities, by visiting American speakers, and speakers with doctorates purchased by mail from Florida sites.<ref>[[#Plimer 1994|Plimer 1994]]</ref> A court case taken by Plimer against prominent creationists found "that the creationists had stolen the work of others for financial profit, that the creationists told lies under oath and that the creationists were engaged in fraud."<ref name="Skeptictank" /> The debate was featured on the science television program ''[[Quantum (TV series)|Quantum]]''.<ref>{{cite episode |title='Telling Lies for God'? - One Man's Crusade |url=http://www.abc.net.au/quantum/info/97lies.htm |accessdate=2010-10-29 |series=[[Quantum (TV series)|Quantum]] |first=Ian |last=Plimer |network=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |date=July 17, 1997 |season=12 |number=12 |transcript=Transcript |transcripturl=http://www.abc.net.au/quantum/info/lxp.htm}}</ref> In 1989, Plimer debated American creationist [[Duane Gish]].

===Asia===

====South Korea====
Since 1981, the Korea Association for Creation Research has grown to 16 branches, with 1000 members and 500 Ph.Ds. On August 22–24, 1991, recognizing the 10th anniversary of KACR, an International Symposium on Creation Science was held with 4,000 in attendance.<ref name="Chon-Ho_Hyon">{{cite journal |author=Chon-Ho Hyon |date=October 1997 |title=The Creation Science Movement in Korea |url=http://www.icr.org/article/creation-science-movement-korea/ |journal=Acts & Facts |location=San Diego, CA |publisher=Institute for Creation Research |volume=25 |issue=10 |issn=1094-8562 |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.creation.or.kr/ |title=한국창조과학회 |website=Korea Association for Creation Research |publisher=Korea Association for Creation Research |location=Seoul, South Korea |trans_title=Korea Association for Creation Research |accessdate=2010-10-29}}</ref> In 1990, the book ''The Natural Sciences'' was written by Dr. [[Kim Young-gil|Young-Gil Kim]] and 26 other fellow scientists in Korea with a creationist viewpoint. The textbook drew the interest of college communities, and today, many South Korean universities are using it.

Since 1991, creation science has become a regular university course at [[Myongji University]], which has a centre for creation research. Since that time, other universities have begun to offer creation science courses. At [[Handong Global University]], creationist Dr. Young-Gil Kim was inaugurated as president in March 1995. At Myongji University, creationist Dr. Woongsang Lee is a biology professor. The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology is where the Research Association of Creation Science was founded and many graduate students are actively involved.<ref name="Chon-Ho_Hyon" /> In 2008, a survey found that 36% of South Koreans disagreed with the statement that "Human beings, as we know them today, developed from earlier species of animals." In May 2012, publishers of high school science textbooks decided to remove references to evolution following a petition by a creationist group.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Soo Bin Park |date=June 7, 2012 |title=South Korea surrenders to creationist demands |url=http://www.nature.com/news/south-korea-surrenders-to-creationist-demands-1.10773 |journal=Nature |location=London |publisher=Nature Publishing Group |volume=486 |issue=7401 |page=14 |doi=10.1038/486014a |issn=0028-0836 |accessdate=2012-07-03 |pmid=22678257}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/news/2012/06/creationist-success-south-korea-007434 |title=Creationist success in South Korea? |author= |date=June 5, 2012 |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2012-07-03}}</ref> However, the ensuing controversy prompted the government to appoint a panel of scientists to look into the matter, and the government urged the publishers to keep the references to evolution following the recommendation of the panel.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.com/news/science-wins-over-creationism-in-south-korea-1.11377 |title=Science wins over creationism in South Korea |author=Soo Bin Park |date=September 6, 2012 |website=Nature News |publisher=Nature Publishing Group |location=London |doi=10.1038/nature.2012.11377 |accessdate=2013-06-18}}</ref>

===Americas===

====Brazil====
[[Brazilians|Brazil]] has had two creationist societies since the 1970s—the Brazilian Association for Creation Research and the Brazilian Creation Society. According to a 2004 survey, 31% of Brazil believe that "the first humans were created no more than 10,000 years ago."<ref name="Numbers 2006" />

====United States====
{{See also|Intelligent design|Creation science}}
[[File:AIG museum.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Creation Museum]] is a young Earth creationism museum run by [[Answers in Genesis]] (AiG) in [[Petersburg, Boone County, Kentucky|Petersburg, Kentucky]].]]
In the US some religious communities have refused to accept naturalistic explanations and tried to counter them. The term started to become associated with Christian fundamentalist opposition to human evolution and belief in a young Earth in 1929.<ref name="Numbers_Antievolutionists">{{cite web |url=http://www.counterbalance.net/history/anticreat-frame.html |title=Antievolutionists and Creationists |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L |website=Counterbalance Interactive Library |publisher=Counterbalance Foundation |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2007-08-15}}</ref> Several US states passed laws against the teaching of evolution in public schools, as upheld in the [[Scopes Trial]]. Evolution was omitted entirely from school textbooks in most of the US until the 1960s. Since then, renewed efforts to introduce teaching [[Creation and evolution in public education#United States|creationism in American public schools]] in the form of Flood geology, creation science, and intelligent design have been consistently held to contravene the [[United States Constitution|constitutional]] [[Separation of church and state in the United States|separation of church and state]] by a succession of legal judgments.<ref name="Flank_April2006">{{cite web |url=http://www.talkreason.org/articles/HistoryID.cfm |title=Creationism/ID: A Short Legal History |last=Flank |first=Lenny |website=Talk Reason |date=April 24, 2006 |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref> The meaning of the term creationism was contested, but by the 1980s it had been co-opted by proponents of creation science and Flood geology.<ref name="Numbers_Antievolutionists" />

Most of the anti-evolutionists of the 1920s believed in forms of old Earth creationism, which accepts geological findings and other methods of dating the Earth and believes that these findings do not contradict the Book of Genesis, but rejects evolution. At that time only a minority held to young Earth creationism, proponents of which believe that the Earth is thousands rather than billions of years old, and typically believe that the days in chapter one of the Book of Genesis are 24 hours in length. In the 1960s, this became the most prominent form of anti-evolution. From the 1860s forms of theistic evolution had developed; this term refers to beliefs in creation which are compatible with the scientific view of evolution and the age of the Earth, as held by mainstream Christian denominations. There are other religious people who support creationism, but in terms of allegorical interpretations of the Book of Genesis.

By the start of the 20th century, evolution was widely accepted and was beginning to be taught in American public schools. After [[World War I]], popular belief that German aggression resulted from a Darwinian doctrine of "survival of the fittest" inspired [[William Jennings Bryan]] to campaign against the teaching of Darwinian ideas of human evolution.<ref name="encarta" /> In the 1920s, the [[Fundamentalist–Modernist Controversy]] led to an upsurge of fundamentalist religious fervor in which schools were prevented from teaching evolution through state laws such as Tennessee’s 1925 [[Butler Act]],<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper">{{cite web |url=http://www.centerforinquiry.net/uploads/attachments/intelligent-design.pdf |title=Understanding the Intelligent Design Creationist Movement: Its True Nature and Goals |last=Forrest |first=Barbara |authorlink=Barbara Forrest |date=May 2007 |website=[[Center for Inquiry]] |publisher=Center for Inquiry |location=Washington, D.C. |type=A Position Paper from the Center for Inquiry, Office of Public Policy |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite court |litigants=Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District |vol=04 |reporter=cv |opinion=2688 |date=December 20, 2005}}, [[s:Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District/2:Context#Page 19 of 139|Context, p. 19]].</ref> and by getting evolution removed from biology textbooks nationwide. ''Creationism'' became associated in common usage with opposition to evolution.<ref name="tolenny">{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/origins/postmonth/mar06.html |title=The History of Creationism |last=Flank |first=Lenny |date=March 2006 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |type=Post of the Month |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref>

In 1961 in the US, an attempt to repeal the Butler Act failed.<ref name="Flank_April2006" /> ''[[The Genesis Flood]]'' by [[Henry M. Morris]] brought the [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventist]] [[Bible|biblically]] literal Flood geology of [[George McCready Price]] to a wider audience, popularizing the idea of young Earth creationism,<ref name="rsf" /> and by 1965 the term "scientific creationism" had gained currency.<ref name="mclean">{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/mclean-v-arkansas.html |title=McLean v. Arkansas Board of Education |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2014-03-27}} Decision, January 5, 1982.</ref> The 1968 ''Epperson v. Arkansas'' judgment ruled that state laws prohibiting the teaching of evolution violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution which prohibits state aid to religion.<ref name="eva">{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/edwards-v-aguillard.html |title=Edwards v. Aguillard |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2011-03-10}}</ref> and when in 1975 ''Daniel v. Waters'' ruled that a state law requiring biology textbooks discussing "origins or creation of man and his world" to give equal treatment to creation as per the Book of Genesis was unconstitutional, a new group identifying themselves as creationists promoted 'creation science' which omitted explicit biblical references.<ref name="Flank_April2006" />

In 1981, the state of [[Arkansas]] passed a law, Act 590, mandating that "creation science" be given equal time in public schools with evolution, and defining creation science as positing the "creation of the universe, energy, and life from nothing," as well as explaining the Earth's geology by "the occurrence of a worldwide flood."<ref name="mclean" /> This was ruled unconstitutional at ''[[McLean v. Arkansas]]'' in January 1982 as the creationists' methods were not scientific but took the literal wording of the Book of Genesis and attempted to find scientific support for it.<ref name="mclean" /> Louisiana introduced similar legislation that year. A series of judgments and appeals led to the 1987 Supreme Court ruling in ''Edwards v. Aguillard'' that it too violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" />

"Creation science" could no longer be taught in public schools, and in drafts of the creation science school textbook ''[[Of Pandas and People]]'' all references to creation or creationism were changed to refer to intelligent design.<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" /> Proponents of the intelligent design movement organised widespread campaigning to considerable effect. They officially denied any links to creation or religion, and claimed that "creationism" only referred to young Earth creationism with Flood geology;<ref name="witt">{{cite web |url=http://www.evolutionnews.org/2005/12/post_6001764.html |title=Dover Judge Regurgitates Mythological History of Intelligent Design |last=Witt |first=Jonathan |date=December 20, 2005 |website=Evolution News & Views |publisher=Discovery Institute |location=Seattle, WA |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref> but in ''Kitzmiller v. Dover'' the court found intelligent design to be religious, and unable to dissociate itself from its creationist roots, as part of the ruling that teaching intelligent design in public school science classes was unconstitutional.<ref name="ForrestMay2007Paper" />

The percentage of people in the US who accept the idea of human evolution declined from 45% in 1985 to 40% in 2005.<ref name="Science survey" /> A [[Gallup (company)|Gallup]] poll reported that the percentage of people in the US who believe in a strict interpretation of creationism had fallen to 40% in 2010 after a high of 46% in 2006. The highest the percentage has risen between 1982 and 2010 was 47% in 1994 and 2000 according to the report. The report found that Americans who are less educated are more likely to hold a creationist view while those with a college education are more likely to hold a view involving evolution. 47% of those with no more than a high school education believe in creationism while 22% of those with a post graduate education hold that view. The poll also found that church attendance dramatically increased adherence to a strict creationist view (22% for those who do not attend church, 60% for those who attend weekly).<ref name="gallup">{{cite web |url=http://www.gallup.com/poll/145286/Four-Americans-Believe-Strict-Creationism.aspx |title=Four in 10 Americans Believe in Strict Creationism |last=Newport |first=Frank |date=December 17, 2010 |website=Gallup.com |location=Omaha, NE |publisher=[[Gallup (company)|Gallup, Inc.]] |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref> The higher percentage of [[Republican Party (United States)|Republicans]] who identified with a creationist view is described as evidence of the strong relationship between religion and politics in the US. Republicans also attend church weekly more than [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] or [[Independent (voter)|independent]] voters. Non-Republican voters are twice as likely to hold a [[nontheism|nontheistic]] view of evolution than Republican voters.<ref name="gallup" />

Among US states, acceptance of evolution has a strong negative correlation with [[religiosity]] and a strong positive relationship with science degrees awarded, bachelor's degree attainment, advanced degree attainment, average teacher salary, and [[Gross domestic product|GDP]] per capita. In other words, states in which more people say that religion is very important to their lives tend to show less acceptance of evolution. The better the education of individuals, their educational system, or the higher their income, the more they accept evolution, though the US as a country has a comparatively well educated population but lower acceptance of evolution than other countries.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Heddy |first1=Benjamin C. |last2=Nadelson |first2=Louis S. |date=March 26, 2013 |title=The variables related to public acceptance of evolution in the United States |url=http://www.evolution-outreach.com/content/6/1/3 |journal=Evolution: Education and Outreach |location=Heidelberg, Germany |publisher=[[Springer Science+Business Media]] |volume=6 |issue=3 |pages=1–14 |doi=10.1186/1936-6434-6-3 |issn=1936-6434 |accessdate=2013-03-28}}</ref>

==Prevalence==
{{Main|Level of support for evolution}}
[[File:Views on Evolution.svg|thumb|right|440px|Views on human evolution in various countries<ref>{{cite journal |last=Le Page |first=Michael |date=April 19, 2008 |title=Evolution myths: It doesn't matter if people don't grasp evolution |url=http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19826523.000-evolution-myths-it-doesnt-matter-if-people-dont-grasp-evolution.html |journal=[[New Scientist]] |location=London |publisher=[[Reed Business Information]] |volume=198 |issue=2652 |page=31 |doi=10.1016/S0262-4079(08)60984-7 |issn=0262-4079 |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Hecht |first=Jeff |date=August 19, 2006 |title=Why doesn't America believe in evolution? |url=http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn9786-why-doesnt-america-believe-in-evolution.html |journal=New Scientist |location=London |publisher=Reed Business Information |volume=191 |issue=2565 |page=11 |doi=10.1016/S0262-4079(06)60136-X |issn=0262-4079 |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>]]

Most vocal literalist creationists are from the US, and strict creationist views are much less common in other developed countries. According to a study published in ''[[Science (journal)|Science]]'', a survey of the US, Turkey, [[Japan]] and Europe showed that public acceptance of evolution is most prevalent in Iceland, Denmark and Sweden at 80% of the population.<ref name="Science survey" /> There seems to be no significant correlation between believing in evolution and understanding evolutionary science.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.culturalcognition.net/blog/2014/5/24/weekend-update-youd-have-to-be-science-illiterate-to-think-b.html |title=Weekend update: You'd have to be science illiterate to think 'belief in evolution' measures science literacy |last=Kahan |first=Dan |authorlink=Dan Kahan |date=May 24, 2014 |website=[[Cultural cognition#Cultural cognition project at Yale Law School|Cultural Cognition Project]] |publisher=[[Yale Law School]] |location=New Haven, CT |type=Blog |accessdate=2015-03-23}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Shtulman |first=Andrew |date=March 2006 |title=Qualitative differences between naïve and scientific theories of evolution |url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010028505000745 |journal=Cognitive Psychology |location=Amsterdam, the Netherlands |publisher=[[Elsevier]] |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=170–194 |doi=10.1016/j.cogpsych.2005.10.001 |issn=0010-0285 |accessdate=2015-03-23}}</ref>

===Australia===
A 2009 [[Nielsen Holdings|Nielsen]] poll showed that almost a quarter of Australians believe "the biblical account of human origins." Forty-two percent believe in a "wholly scientific" explanation for the origins of life, while 32 percent believe in an evolutionary process "guided by God."<ref>{{cite news |last=Maley |first=Jacqueline |date=December 19, 2009 |title=God is still tops but angels rate well |url=http://www.theage.com.au/national/god-is-still-tops-but-angels-rate-well-20091218-l5v9.html |newspaper=[[The Age]] |location=Melbourne, Australia |publisher=Fairfax Media |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

===Canada===
A 2012 survey by [[Angus Reid Public Opinion]] revealed that 61 percent of Canadians believe in evolution. The poll asked "Where did human beings come from — did we start as singular cells millions of year ago and evolve into our present form, or did God create us in his image 10,000 years ago?"<ref>{{cite news |author= |title=Believe In Evolution: Canadians More Likely Than Americans To Endorse Evolution |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09/06/believe-in-evolution_n_1861373.html |date=September 6, 2012 |work=[[The Huffington Post#International editions|HuffPost Canada]] |publisher=[[AOL]] |accessdate=2012-04-28}}
*{{cite press release |last=Canseco |first=Mario |date=September 5, 2012 |title=Britons and Canadians More Likely to Endorse than Americans |url=http://www.angusreidglobal.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/2012.09.05_CreEvo.pdf |format=PDF |location=New York |publisher=[[Angus Reid Public Opinion]] |accessdate=2014-05-11}}</ref>

===Europe===
In Europe, literalist creationism is more widely rejected, though regular opinion polls are not available. Most people accept that evolution is the most widely accepted scientific theory as taught in most schools. In countries with a Roman Catholic majority, [[Catholic Church and evolution|papal acceptance of evolutionary creationism]] as worthy of study has essentially ended debate on the matter for many people.

In the UK, a 2006 poll on the "origin and development of life" asked participants to choose between three different perspectives on the origin of life: 22% chose creationism, 17% opted for intelligent design, 48% selected evolutionary theory, and the rest did not know.<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=January 26, 2006 |title=Britons unconvinced on evolution |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4648598.stm |work=BBC News |location=London |publisher=BBC |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/poll.aspx?oItemId=262 |title=BBC Survey On The Origins Of Life |author= |date=January 30, 2006 |website=[[Ipsos MORI]] |publisher=Ipsos MORI |location=London |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref> A subsequent 2010 [[YouGov]] poll on the correct explanation for the origin of humans found that 9% opted for creationism, 12% intelligent design, 65% evolutionary theory and 13% didn't know.<ref name="YouGov">{{cite web |url=http://cdn.yougov.com/today_uk_import/YG-Archives-Pol-Prospect-Evolution-181110.pdf |title=The origin of humans |date=November 20, 2010 |website=YouGov Global |publisher=[[YouGov|YouGov Plc]] |location=London |type=Prospect Survey Results |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-24}}</ref> The former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, head of the worldwide [[Anglican Communion]], views the idea of teaching creationism in schools as a mistake.<ref name="Archbishop_2006">{{cite news |last=Bates |first=Stephen |date=March 20, 2006 |title=Archbishop: stop teaching creationism |url=http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2006/mar/21/religion.topstories3 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |publisher=Guardian Media Group |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

In Italy, Education Minister [[Letizia Moratti]] wanted to retire evolution from the secondary school level; after one week of massive protests, she reversed her opinion.<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=May 3, 2004 |title=Italy Keeps Darwin in its Classrooms |url=http://www.dw.de/italy-keeps-darwin-in-its-classrooms/a-1188423-1 |work=Deutsche Welle |location=Bonn, Germany |publisher=ARD |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Lorenzi |first=Rossella |date=April 28, 2004 |title=No evolution for Italian teens |url=http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/22817/title/No-evolution-for-Italian-teens/ |journal=[[The Scientist]] |location=London |publisher=[[Faculty of 1000]] |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

There continues to be scattered and possibly mounting efforts on the part of religious groups throughout Europe to introduce creationism into public education.<ref name="Economist_2007" /> In response, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has released a draft report titled ''The dangers of creationism in education'' on June 8, 2007,<ref name="Doc11297">{{cite web |url=http://www.assembly.coe.int/ASP/Doc/XrefViewHTML.asp?FileID=11678&Language=EN |title=The dangers of creationism in education |date=June 8, 2007 |work=Committee on Culture, Science and Education |publisher=Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe |type=Report |id=Doc. 11297 |accessdate=2014-03-22}}</ref> reinforced by a further proposal of banning it in schools dated October 4, 2007.<ref name="R1580" />

Serbia suspended the teaching of evolution for one week in September 2004, under education minister [[Ljiljana Čolić]], only allowing schools to reintroduce evolution into the curriculum if they also taught creationism.<ref name="Serbian_schools" /> "After a deluge of protest from scientists, teachers and opposition parties" says the BBC report, Čolić's deputy made the statement, "I have come here to confirm Charles Darwin is still alive" and announced that the decision was reversed.<ref name="Serbia_Darwin" /> Čolić resigned after the government said that she had caused "problems that had started to reflect on the work of the entire government."<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=September 16, 2004 |title='Anti-Darwin' Serb minister quits |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3663196.stm |work=BBC News |location=London |publisher=BBC |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

Poland saw a major controversy over creationism in 2006 when the Deputy Education Minister, [[Mirosław Orzechowski]], denounced evolution as "one of many lies" taught in Polish schools. His superior, Minister of Education [[Roman Giertych]], has stated that the theory of evolution would continue to be taught in Polish schools, "as long as most scientists in our country say that it is the right theory." Giertych's father, [[Member of the European Parliament]] [[Maciej Giertych]], has opposed the teaching of evolution and has claimed that [[dinosaur]]s and humans co-existed.<ref>{{cite news |author= |date=December 18, 2006 |title=And finally... |url=http://www.wbj.pl/?command=article&id=35336&type=wbj |newspaper=[[Warsaw Business Journal]] |location=Warsaw, Poland |publisher=Valkea Media |accessdate=2014-03-27}}</ref>

===United States===
[[File:Creationist car.jpg|230px|right|thumb|Anti-evolution car in [[Athens, Georgia]]]]
According to a 2014 Gallup poll,<ref name="Gallup2014">{{cite web |url=http://www.gallup.com/poll/170822/believe-creationist-view-human-origins.aspx |title=In U.S., 42% Believe Creationist View of Human Origins |last=Newport |first=Frank |date=November 19, 2004 |website=Gallup.com |publisher=Gallup, Inc. |location=Omaha, NE |accessdate=2014-05-10}}</ref> about 42% of Americans believe that "God created human beings pretty much in their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years or so."<ref name="Gallup2014" /> Another 31% believe that "human beings have developed over millions of years from less advanced forms of life, but God guided this process,"and 19% believe that "human beings have developed over millions of years from less advanced forms of life, but God had no part in this process."<ref name="Gallup2014" />

Belief in creationism is inversely correlated to education; of those with [[postgraduate degree]]s, 74% accept evolution.<ref>{{cite AV media |people=Newport, Frank (Host) |date=June 11, 2007 |title=Evolution Beliefs |url=http://www.gallup.com/video/27838/Evolution-Beliefs.aspx |series=The Gallup Poll Daily Briefing |accessdate=2014-03-27 |location=Omaha, NE |publisher=Gallup, Inc.}}</ref><ref name="Robinson_BA">{{cite web |url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/ev_publi.htm |title=Beliefs of the U.S. public about evolution and creation |last=Robinson |first=Bruce A. |date=November 1995 |website=ReligiousTolerance.org |publisher=Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance |location=Kingston, Canada |accessdate=2007-11-11}}</ref> In 1987, ''[[Newsweek]]'' reported: "By one count there are some 700 scientists with respectable academic credentials (out of a total of 480,000 U.S. earth and life scientist) who give credence to creation-science, the general theory that complex life forms did not evolve but appeared 'abruptly.'"<ref name="Robinson_BA" /><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Martz |first1=Larry |last2=McDaniel |first2=Ann |date=June 29, 1987 |title=Keeping God Out of the Classroom |url=http://kgov.com/files/docs/Newsweek-1987-God-Classroom.pdf |format=PDF |journal=[[Newsweek]] |location=New York |publisher=Newsweek LLC |pages=23–24 |issn=0028-9604 |accessdate=2015-09-25}}</ref>

A 2000 poll for [[People for the American Way]] found 70% of the US public felt that evolution was compatible with a belief in God.<ref name="pfaw">{{cite web |url=http://media.pfaw.org/pdf/creationism/creationism-poll.pdf |title=Evolution and Creationism In Public Education: An In-depth Reading Of Public Opinion |author= |date=March 2000 |website=[[People For the American Way]] |publisher=People For the American Way |location=Washington, D.C. |format=PDF |accessdate=2014-03-28}}</ref>

According to a study published in ''Science'', between 1985 and 2005 the number of adult [[North America]]ns who accept evolution declined from 45% to 40%, the number of adults who reject evolution declined from 48% to 39% and the number of people who were unsure increased from 7% to 21%. Besides the US the study also compared data from 32 European countries, Turkey, and Japan. The only country where acceptance of evolution was lower than in the US was Turkey (25%).<ref name="Science survey" />

According to a 2011 Fox News poll, 45% of Americans believe in Creationism, down from 50% in a similar poll in 1999.<ref name="Fox Creationism Poll">{{cite news |author= |date=September 7, 2011 |title=Fox News Poll: Creationism |url=http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/07/fox-news-poll-creationism/ |work=[[Fox News Channel|Fox News]] |publisher=[[News Corporation]] |accessdate=2011-09-22}}</ref> 21% believe in 'the theory of evolution as outlined by
Darwin and other scientists' (up from 15% in 1999), and 27% answered that both are true (up from 26% in 1999).<ref name="Fox Creationism Poll" />

In September 2012, educator and television personality Bill Nye spoke with the [[Associated Press]] and aired his fears about acceptance of creationist theory, believing that teaching children that creationism is the only true answer and without letting them understand the way science works will prevent any future innovation in the world of science.<ref name="APNews-20120924" /><ref name="Youtube-20120823" /><ref name="NYT-20141103-JD" /> In February 2014, Nye defended [[Creation–evolution controversy|evolution in the classroom]] in a [[Bill Nye–Ken Ham debate|debate]] with creationist Ken Ham on the topic of whether creation is a viable model of origins in today's modern, [[History of science#Modern science|scientific era]].<ref name="NBC-20140204">{{cite news |last=Boyle |first=Alan |authorlink=Alan Boyle |date=February 5, 2014 |title=Bill Nye Wins Over the Science Crowd at Evolution Debate |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/bill-nye-wins-over-science-crowd-evolution-debate-n22836 |work=[[NBCNews.com]] |accessdate=2014-02-06}}</ref><ref name="TG-20140204">{{cite news |last=Kopplin |first=Zack |authorlink=Zack Kopplin |date=February 4, 2014 |title=Why Bill Nye the Science Guy is trying to reason with America's creationists |url=http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/04/bill-nye-science-guy-evolution-debate-creationists |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |publisher=Guardian Media Group |accessdate=2014-02-06}}</ref><ref name="Debate-20140204">{{cite web |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6kgvhG3AkI |title=Bill Nye Debates Ken Ham - HD (Official) |last=Foreman |first=Tom (Moderator) |authorlink=Tom Foreman |date=February 4, 2014 |website=YouTube |publisher=Answers in Genesis |location=Hebron, KY |accessdate=2014-02-05}} Program begins at 13:14.</ref>

====Education controversies====
[[File:Truth fish.jpg|thumb|right|The Truth fish, one of the many creationist responses to the [[Parodies of the ichthys symbol|Darwin fish]].]]
{{Main|Creation–evolution controversy}}
In the US, creationism has become centered in the political controversy over [[Creation and evolution in public education#United States|creation and evolution in public education]], and whether teaching creationism in science classes conflicts with the separation of church and state. Currently, the controversy comes in the form of whether advocates of the intelligent design movement who wish to "[[Teach the Controversy]]" in science classes have conflated [[Relationship between religion and science|science with religion]].<ref name="kitz" />

[[People for the American Way]] polled 1500 North Americans about the teaching of evolution and creationism in November and December 1999. They found that most North Americans were not familiar with Creationism, and most North Americans had heard of evolution, but many did not fully understand the basics of the theory. The main findings were:
{{bar box
|title= Americans believe that:<ref name="pfaw" />
|barwidth=200px
|width=100%
|bars=
{{bar percent|Public schools should teach evolution only|silver|60|20%}}
{{bar percent|Only evolution should be taught in science classes, religious explanations can be discussed in another class|gray|51|17%}}
{{bar percent|Creationism can be discussed in science class as a 'belief,' not a scientific theory|silver|87|29%}}
{{bar percent|Creationism and evolution should be taught as 'scientific theories' in science class|gray|39|13%}}
{{bar percent|Only Creationism should be taught|silver|48|16%}}
{{bar percent|Teach both evolution and Creationism, but unsure how to do so|gray|12|4%}}
{{bar percent|No opinion|silver|3|1%}}
}}

In such political contexts, creationists argue that their particular religiously based origin belief is superior to those of other [[belief system]]s, in particular those made through secular or scientific rationale. Political creationists are opposed by many individuals and organizations who have made detailed critiques and given testimony in various court cases that the [[objections to evolution|alternatives to scientific reasoning offered by creationists]] are opposed by the [[scientific consensus|consensus]] of the scientific community.<ref name="aaas" /><ref>{{cite journal |last=Delgado |first=Cynthia |date=July 28, 2006 |title=Finding the Evolution in Medicine |url=http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov/newsletters/2006/07_28_2006/story03.htm |journal=[[NIH Record]] |location=Bethesda, MD |publisher=[[United States Department of Health and Human Services]]; [[National Institutes of Health]] |issn=1057-5871 |accessdate=2014-03-31}} "...While 99.9 percent of scientists accept evolution, 40 to 50 percent of college students do not accept evolution and believe it to be 'just' a theory." — [[Brian Alters]]</ref>

==Criticism==

===Christian criticism===
Many Christians disagree with the teaching of creationism. Several religious organizations, among them the [[Catholic Church]], hold that their faith does not conflict with the scientific consensus regarding evolution.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/media/voices/religion |title=Statements from Religious Organizations |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2011-03-10}}</ref> The [[Clergy Letter Project]], which has collected more than 13,000 signatures, is an "endeavor designed to demonstrate that religion and science can be compatible."

In his 2002 article "Intelligent Design as a Theological Problem," George Murphy argues against the view that life on Earth, in all its forms, is direct evidence of God's act of creation (Murphy quotes [[Phillip E. Johnson]]'s claim that he is speaking "of a God who acted openly and left his fingerprints on all the evidence."). Murphy argues that this view of God is incompatible with the Christian understanding of God as "the one revealed in the cross and resurrection of Christ." The basis of this theology is [[Isaiah]] 45:15, "Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour."

Murphy observes that the execution of a Jewish carpenter by [[Roman Empire|Roman]] authorities is in and of itself an ordinary event and did not require [[Miracle|divine action]]. On the contrary, for the crucifixion to occur, God had to limit or "empty" Himself. It was for this reason that [[Paul the Apostle]] wrote, in [[Epistle to the Philippians|Philippians]] 2:5-8:

: "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."

Murphy concludes that,<blockquote>"Just as the Son of God limited himself by taking human form and dying on a cross, God limits divine action in the world to be in accord with rational laws which God has chosen. This enables us to understand the world on its own terms, but it also means that natural processes hide God from scientific observation."</blockquote>For Murphy, a theology of the cross requires that Christians accept a [[Naturalism (philosophy)#Methodological naturalism|''methodological'' naturalism]], meaning that one cannot invoke God to explain natural phenomena, while recognizing that such acceptance does not require one to accept a [[Metaphysical naturalism|''metaphysical'' naturalism]], which proposes that nature is all that there is.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Murphy |first=George L. |year=2002 |title=Intelligent Design as a Theological Problem |url=http://puffin.creighton.edu/nrcse/IDTHG.html |journal=Covalence: The Bulletin of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Alliance for Faith, Science and Technology |location=Chicago, IL |publisher=Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Division for Ministry |volume=IV |issue=2 |oclc=52753579 |accessdate=2014-03-31}} Reprinted with permission.</ref>

===Teaching of creationism===
Other Christians have expressed qualms about teaching creationism. In March 2006, then Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the leader of the world's Anglicans, stated his discomfort about teaching creationism, saying that creationism was "a kind of [[category mistake]], as if the Bible were a theory like other theories." He also said: "My worry is creationism can end up reducing the doctrine of creation rather than enhancing it." The views of the [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal Church]] - a major American-based branch of the Anglican Communion - on teaching creationism resemble those of Williams.<ref name="Archbishop_2006" />

In April 2010, the [[American Academy of Religion]] issued ''Guidelines for Teaching About Religion in K‐12 Public Schools in the United States'' which included guidance that creation science or intelligent design should not be taught in science classes, as "Creation science and intelligent design represent worldviews that fall outside of the realm of science that is defined as (and limited to) a method of inquiry based on gathering observable and measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning." However, they, as well as other "worldviews that focus on speculation regarding the origins of life represent another important and relevant form of human inquiry that is appropriately studied in literature or social sciences courses. Such study, however, must include a diversity of worldviews representing a variety of religious and philosophical perspectives and must avoid privileging one view as more legitimate than others."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/news/2010/07/american-academy-religion-teaching-creationism-005712 |title=American Academy of Religion on teaching creationism |date=July 23, 2010 |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2010-08-09}}</ref>

Randy Moore and Sehoya Cotner, from the biology program at the [[University of Minnesota]], reflect on the relevance of teaching creationism in the article ''The Creationist Down the Hall: Does It Matter When Teachers Teach Creationism?'' They conclude that "Despite decades of science education reform, numerous legal decisions declaring the teaching of creationism in public-school science classes to be unconstitutional, overwhelming evidence supporting evolution, and the many denunciations of creationism as nonscientific by professional scientific societies, creationism remains popular throughout the United States."<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Moore |first1=Randy |last2=Cotner |first2=Sehoya |date=May 2009 |title=The Creationist Down the Hall: Does It Matter When Teachers Teach Creationism? |journal=[[BioScience]] |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Oxford University Press on behalf of the [[American Institute of Biological Sciences]] |volume=59 |issue=5 |pages=429–435 |doi=10.1525/bio.2009.59.5.10 |issn=0006-3568 |jstor=25502451}}</ref>

===Scientific criticism===
{{Main|Creation–evolution controversy}}
Science is a system of knowledge based on observation, empirical evidence, and the development of theories that yield testable explanations and predictions of natural phenomena. By contrast, creationism is often based on literal interpretations of the narratives of particular religious texts.<ref>[[#NAS 2008|NAS 2008]], [http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=11876&page=12 p. 12]</ref> Some creationist beliefs involve purported forces that lie outside of nature, such as supernatural intervention, and often do not allow predictions at all. Therefore, these can neither be confirmed nor disproved by scientists.<ref name="SEaC">[[#NAS 2008|NAS 2008]], [http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=11876&page=10 p. 10], "In science, explanations must be based on naturally occurring phenomena. Natural causes are, in principle, reproducible and therefore can be checked independently by others. If explanations are based on purported forces that are outside of nature, scientists have no way of either confirming or disproving those explanations."</ref> However, many creationist beliefs can be framed as testable predictions about phenomena such as the age of the Earth, its [[geological history of Earth|geological history]] and the origins, [[biogeography|distributions]] and [[Phylogenetics|relationships]] of living organisms found on it. [[History of science|Early science]] incorporated elements of these beliefs, but as science developed these beliefs were gradually [[Falsifiability|falsified]] and were replaced with understandings based on accumulated and reproducible evidence that often allows the accurate prediction of future results.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/index.html |title=An Index to Creationist Claims |editor-last=Isaak |editor-first=Mark |year=2006 |website=TalkOrigins Archive |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2012-12-09}}</ref><ref>[[#Futuyma 2005|Futuyma 2005]]</ref> Some scientists, such as [[Stephen Jay Gould]],<ref name="RoA">[[#Gould 1999|Gould 1999]]</ref> consider science and religion to be two compatible and complementary fields, with authorities in distinct areas of human experience, so-called [[non-overlapping magisteria]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Gould |first=Stephen Jay |date=March 1997 |title=Nonoverlapping Magisteria |url=http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_noma.html |journal=[[Natural History (magazine)|Natural History]] |location=Research Triangle Park, NC |publisher=Natural History Magazine, Inc. |volume=106 |pages=16–22 |issue=3 |issn=0028-0712 |accessdate=2014-03-31}}</ref> This view is also held by many theologians, who believe that [[Unmoved mover|ultimate origins]] and [[meaning of life|meaning]] are addressed by religion, but favor verifiable scientific explanations of natural phenomena over those of creationist beliefs. Other scientists, such as [[Richard Dawkins]],<ref>[[#Dawkins 2006|Dawkins 2006]], p. 5</ref> reject the non-overlapping magisteria and argue that, in disproving literal interpretations of creationists, the scientific method also undermines religious texts as a source of truth. Irrespective of this diversity in viewpoints, since creationist beliefs are not supported by empirical evidence, the scientific consensus is that any attempt to teach creationism as science should be rejected.<ref name="RoyalSociety_2006" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://ncse.com/taking-action/ten-major-court-cases-evolution-creationism |title=Ten Major Court Cases about Evolution and Creationism |last1=Matsumura |first1=Molleen |last2=Mead |first2=Louise |date=February 14, 2001 |website=National Center for Science Education |publisher=National Center for Science Education |location=Berkeley, CA |accessdate=2008-11-04}} Updated 2007-07-31.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2006/06/ann_coulter_no_evidence_for_ev.php |title=Ann Coulter: No evidence for evolution? |last=Myers |first=PZ |authorlink=PZ Myers |date=June 18, 2006 |website=[[Pharyngula (blog)|Pharyngula]] |publisher=[[ScienceBlogs|ScienceBlogs LLC]] |type=Blog |accessdate=2007-09-12}}</ref>

==Organizations==
{| style="width:100%;"
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
|width=47%|
'''Creationism (in general)'''
* [[American Scientific Affiliation]]
* [[Christians in Science]]

'''Young Earth Creationism'''
* [[Answers in Genesis]], a group promoting young Earth creationism
* [[Creation Ministries International]], an organisation promoting biblical creation
* [[Creation Research Society]]
* [[Institute for Creation Research]]

'''Old Earth Creationism'''
* Old Earth Ministries (OEM), formerly Answers In Creation (AIC), led by Greg Neyman<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oldearth.org/about_aic.htm |title=About Old Earth Ministries? |website=Old Earth Ministries |publisher=Old Earth Ministries |location=Springfield, OH |accessdate=2014-03-09}}</ref>
* [[Reasons To Believe|Reasons to Believe]], led by [[Hugh Ross (creationist)|Hugh Ross]]
|width=6%|
|width=47%|
'''Intelligent design'''
* [[Access Research Network]]
* [[Centre for Intelligent Design]]
* [[Center for Science and Culture]]

'''Evolutionary creationism'''
* [[BioLogos Foundation]]

'''Evolution'''
* [[National Center for Science Education]]
* [[TalkOrigins Archive]]
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Creationism}}
{{Wikipedia books
|1=Evolution
|3=Creationism and Intelligent Design
}}
* [[Abiogenesis]]
* [[Biblical inerrancy]]
* [[Biogenesis]]
* [[Cosmological argument]]
* [[Flying Spaghetti Monster]]
* [[Teleological argument]]
* [[Watchmaker analogy]]

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|group="note"|refs=
<ref name="myth" group="note">[[#Patton & Doniger 1996|Patton & Doniger 1996]], [http://books.google.com/books?id=OgsTmeRHpeUC&pg=147 p. 147]. While the term ''[[myth]]'' is often used colloquially to refer to "a false story," this article uses the term in the academic meaning of "a sacred narrative explaining how the world and mankind came to be in their present form."</ref>}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
*{{cite book |author=`Abdu'l-Bahá |authorlink=`Abdu'l-Bahá |year=1982 |origyear=Originally published 1922–1925 |title=The Promulgation of Universal Peace: Talks Delivered by `Abdu'l-Bahá during His Visit to the United States and Canada in 1912 |others=Compiled by Howard MacNutt |edition=2nd |location=Wilmette, IL |publisher=Bahá’í Publishing Trust |isbn=0-8774-3172-8 |lccn=81021689 |oclc=853066452 |ref=`Abdu'l-Bahá 1982}}
*{{cite book |last=Aviezer |first=Nathan |authorlink=Nathan Aviezer |year=1990 |title=In the Beginning—: Biblical Creation and Science |location=Hoboken, NJ |publisher=KTAV Publishing House |isbn=0-88125-328-6 |lccn=89049127 |oclc=20800545 |ref=Aviezer 1990}}
*{{cite journal |editor-last=Barlow |editor-first=Nora |editor-link=Nora Barlow |year=1963 |title=Darwin's Ornithological Notes |url=http://darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?pageseq=1&itemID=F1577&viewtype=side |journal=Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Historical Series |location=London |publisher=[[List of trustees of the British Museum|Trustees of the British Museum]] |volume=2 |issue=7 |pages=201–278 |issn=0068-2306 |accessdate=2009-06-10 |ref=Barlow 1963}}
*{{cite book |last=Bowler |first=Peter J. |year=2003 |title=Evolution: The History of an Idea |edition=3rd |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |isbn=0-520-23693-9 |lccn=2002007569 |oclc=49824702 |ref=Bowler 2003}}
*{{cite book |last=Bucaille |first=Maurice |authorlink=Maurice Bucaille |year=1977 |origyear=Original French edition published 1976 |title=The Bible, The Qur'an and Science: The Holy Scriptures Examined in the Light of Modern Knowledge |others=translated from the French by Alastair D. Pannell and the author |location=Paris |publisher=Seghers |lccn=76488005 |oclc=373529514 |ref=Bucaille 1977}}
*{{cite book |last=Bucaille |first=Maurice |year=1976 |title=The Qur'an and Modern Science |url=http://www.sultan.org/articles/QScience.html |type=Booklet |location=Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |publisher=Cooperative Offices for Call & Guidance at Al-Badiah & Industrial Area |oclc=52246825 |accessdate=2014-03-21 |ref=Bucaille 1976}}
*{{cite book |editor1-last=Carmell |editor1-first=Aryeh |editor2-last=Domb |editor2-first=Cyril |year=1976 |title=Challenge: Torah Views on Science and its Problems |location=Jerusalem; New York |publisher=[[Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists]]; [[Feldheim Publishers]] |isbn=0-87306-174-8 |lccn=77357516 |oclc=609518840 |ref=Carmell & Domb 1976}}
*{{cite book |editor1-last=Carper |editor1-first=James C. |editor2-last=Hunt |editor2-first=Thomas C. |year=2009 |title=The Praeger Handbook of Religion and Education in the United States |volume=1: A–L |location=Westport, CT |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group|Praeger Publishers]] |isbn=978-0-275-99228-6 |lccn=2008041156 |oclc=246888936 |ref=Carper & Hunt 2009}}
*{{cite book |last=Collins |first=Francis S. |authorlink=Francis Collins |year=2006 |title=[[The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief]] |location=New York |publisher=[[Free Press (publisher)|Free Press]] |isbn=978-0-7432-8639-8 |lccn=2006045316 |oclc=65978711 |ref=Collins 2006}}
*{{cite book |last=Dasgupta |first=Surendranath |authorlink=Surendranath Dasgupta |year=1922 |title=A History of Indian Philosophy |volume=1 |location=Cambridge, England |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |lccn=22018463 |oclc=4235820 |ref=Dasgupta 1922}}
*{{cite book |last=Dawkins |first=Richard |authorlink=Richard Dawkins |year=2006 |title=The God Delusion |location=London |publisher=[[Bantam Press]] |isbn=978-0-5930-5548-9 |lccn=2006015506 |oclc=70671839 |ref=Dawkins 2006}}
*{{cite book |last=Desmond |first=Adrian |authorlink=Adrian Desmond |year=1989 |title=The Politics of Evolution: Morphology, Medicine, and Reform in Radical London |series=Science and its Conceptual Foundations |location=Chicago, IL |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |isbn=0-226-14346-5 |lccn=89005137 |oclc=828159401 |ref=Desmond 1989}}
*{{cite book |last=Desmond |first=Adrian |last2=Moore |first2=James |author2-link=James Moore (biographer) |year=1991 |title=Darwin |location=London; New York |publisher=[[Michael Joseph (publisher)|Michael Joseph]]; [[Viking Press|Viking Penguin]] |isbn=0-7181-3430-3 |lccn=92196964 |oclc=26502431 |ref=Desmond & Moore 1991}}
*{{cite book |last=Dewey |first=John |authorlink=John Dewey |year=1994 |chapter=The Influence of Darwinism on Philosophy |editor=Martin Gardner |editor-link=Martin Gardner |title=Great Essays in Science |location=Buffalo, NY |publisher=[[Prometheus Books]] |isbn=0-87975-853-8 |lccn=93035453 |oclc=28846489 |ref=Dewey 1994}}
*{{cite book |last=Draper |first=Paul R. |authorlink=Paul Draper (philosopher) |year=2005 |chapter=God, Science, and Naturalism |editor-last=Wainwright |editor-first=William J. |title=The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy of Religion |url=http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/0195138090.001.0001/acprof-9780195138092-chapter-12 |location=Oxford; New York |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |doi=10.1093/0195138090.003.0012 |isbn=978-0-1951-3809-2 |lccn=2004043890 |oclc=54542845 |accessdate=2014-03-15 |ref=Draper 2005}}
*{{cite book |last=Dundes |first=Alan |authorlink=Alan Dundes |year=1984 |chapter=Introduction |editor-last=Dundes |editor-first=Alan |title=Sacred Narrative: Readings in the Theory of Myth |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-5200-5192-0 |lccn=83017921 |oclc=9944508 |ref=Dundes 1984}}
*{{cite book |last=Dundes |first=Alan |year=1996 |chapter=Madness in Method, Plus a Plea for Projective Inversion in Myth |editor1-last=Patton |editor1-first=Laurie L. |editor1-link=Laurie L. Patton |editor2-last=Doniger |editor2-first=Wendy |editor2-link=Wendy Doniger |title=Myth and Method |location=Charlottesville; London |publisher=[[University of Virginia Press]] |isbn=0-8139-1657-7 |lccn=96014672 |oclc=34516050 |ref=Patton & Doniger 1996}}
*{{cite book |last=Eddy |first=Mary Baker |authorlink=Mary Baker Eddy |year=1934 |origyear=Originally published 1875 as ''Science and Health''; Christian Scientist Publishing Company: Boston, MA |title=[[Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures]] |edition=Sunday school |location=Boston, MA |publisher=[[Christian Science Publishing Society]] for the Trustees under the will of Mary Baker G. Eddy |lccn=42044682 |oclc=4579118 |ref=Eddy 1934}}
*{{cite book |last1=Forrest |first1=Barbara |authorlink1=Barbara Forrest |last2=Gross |first2=Paul R. |authorlink2=Paul R. Gross |year=2004 |title=[[Creationism's Trojan Horse: The Wedge of Intelligent Design]] |location=Oxford; New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-515742-7 |oclc=50913078 |lccn=2002192677 |ref=Forrest & Gross 2004}}
*{{cite book |last1=Forster |first1=Roger |authorlink1=Roger T. Forster |last2=Marston |first2=V. Paul |year=1999 |chapter=Genesis Through History |title=Reason, Science, and Faith |location=Crowborough, East Sussex |publisher=Monarch Books |isbn=1-85424-441-8 |lccn=99488551 |oclc=41159110 |ref=Forster & Marston 1999}}
*{{cite book |last=Futuyma |first=Douglas J. |authorlink=Douglas J. Futuyma |year=2005 |chapter=Evolutionary Science, Creationism, and Society |title=Evolution |location=Sunderland, MA |publisher=[[Sinauer Associates]] |isbn=0-87893-187-2 |lccn=2004029808 |oclc=57311264 |ref=Futuyma 2005}}
*{{cite book |last1=Giberson |first1=Karl W. |last2=Yerxa |first2=Donald A. |year=2002 |title=Species of Origins: America's Search for a Creation Story |location=Lanham, MD |publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield]] |isbn=0-7425-0764-5 |lccn=2002002365 |oclc=49031109 |ref=Giberson & Yerxa 2002}}
*{{cite book |last=Gosse |first=Philip Henry |authorlink=Philip Henry Gosse |year=1857 |title=[[Omphalos (book)|Omphalos: An Attempt to Untie the Geological Knot]] |location=London |publisher=[[John Van Voorst|J. Van Voorst]] |lccn=11004351 |oclc=7631539 |ref=Gosse 1857}}
*{{cite book |last=Gould |first=Stephen Jay |authorlink=Stephen Jay Gould |year=1999 |title=[[Rocks of Ages|Rocks of Ages: Science and Religion in the Fullness of Life]] |series=Library of Contemporary Thought |edition=1st |location=New York |publisher=[[Ballantine Books|Ballantine Publishing Group]] |isbn=0-345-43009-3 |lccn=98031335 |oclc=39886951 |ref=Gould 1999}}
*{{cite book |last=Gunn |first=Angus M. |year=2004 |title=Evolution and Creationism in the Public Schools: A Handbook for Educators, Parents, and Community Leaders |location=Jefferson, NC |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |isbn=0-7864-2002-2 |lccn=2004018788 |oclc=56319812 |ref=Gunn 2004}}
*{{cite book |last=Hayward |first=James L. |year=1998 |title=The Creation/Evolution Controversy: An Annotated Bibliography |series=Magill Bibliographies |location=Lanham, MD; Pasadena, CA |publisher=Scarecrow Press; Salem Press |page=253 |isbn=0-8108-3386-7 |lccn=98003138 |oclc=38496519 |ref=Hayward 1998}}
*{{cite book |last=Lamoureux |first=Denis O. |authorlink=Denis Lamoureux |year=1999 |chapter=Evangelicals Inheriting the Wind: The Phillip E. Johnson Phenomenon |title=Darwinism Defeated?: The Johnson-Lamoureux Debate on Biological Origins |others=Foreword by [[J. I. Packer]] |location=Vancouver, B.C. |publisher=[[Regent College#Media|Regent College Publishing]] |isbn=1-57383-133-6 |oclc=40892139 |ref=Lamoureux 1999}}
*{{cite book |last=Masood |first=Steven |year=1994 |origyear=Originally published 1986 |title=Jesus and the Indian Messiah |location=Oldham, England |publisher=Word of Life |isbn=1-898868-00-X |lccn=94229476 |oclc=491161526 |ref=Masood 1994}}
*{{cite book |last=McComas |first=William F. |year=2002 |chapter=Science and Its Myths |editor-last=Shermer |editor-first=Michael |editor-link=Michael Shermer |title=[[The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience]] |volume=1 |location=Santa Barbara, CA |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |isbn=1-57607-653-9 |lccn=2002009653 |oclc=50155642 |ref=Shermer 2002}}
*{{cite book |last=McGrath |first=Alister E. |authorlink=Alister McGrath |year=2010 |title=Science and Religion: A New Introduction |edition=2nd |location=Malden, MA |publisher=[[Wiley-Blackwell]] |isbn=978-1-4051-8790-9 |lccn=2009020180 |oclc=366494307 |ref=McGrath 2010}}
*{{cite book |author=National Academy of Sciences |authorlink=National Academy of Sciences |year=1999 |title=Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences |url=http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=6024 |edition=2nd |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=[[National Academies Press|National Academy Press]] |isbn=0-309-06406-6 |lccn=99006259 |oclc=43803228 |accessdate=2014-11-22 |ref=NAS 1999}}
*{{cite book |author1=National Academy of Sciences |author2=Institute of Medicine |authorlink2=Institute of Medicine |year=2008 |title=Science, Evolution, and Creationism |url=http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11876 |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=National Academy Press |isbn=978-0-309-10586-6 |lccn=2007015904 |oclc=123539346 |accessdate=2014-11-22 |ref=NAS 2008}}
*{{cite book |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L. |authorlink=Ronald Numbers |year=1998 |title=Darwinism Comes to America |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |isbn=0-674-19312-1 |lccn=98016212 |oclc=38747194 |ref=Numbers 1998}}
*{{cite book |last=Numbers |first=Ronald L. |year=2006 |origyear=Originally published 1992 as ''The Creationists: The Evolution of Scientific Creationism''; New York: [[Alfred A. Knopf]] |title=[[The Creationists|The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design]] |edition=Expanded ed., 1st Harvard University Press pbk. |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=[[Harvard University Press]] |isbn=0-674-02339-0 |lccn=2006043675 |oclc=69734583 |ref=Numbers 2006}}
*{{cite book |last=Okasha |first=Samir |year=2002 |title=Philosophy of Science: A Very Short Introduction |series=Very Short Introductions |volume=67 |location=Oxford; New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-280283-6 |lccn=2002510456 |oclc=48932644 |ref=Okasha 2002}}
*{{cite book |last=Pennock |first=Robert T. |authorlink=Robert T. Pennock |year=1999 |title=Tower of Babel: The Evidence Against the New Creationism |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=[[MIT Press]] |isbn=0-262-16180-X |lccn=98027286 |oclc=44966044 |ref=Pennock 1999}}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Pennock |editor-first=Robert T |editor-link=Robert T. Pennock |year=2001 |title=Intelligent Design Creationism and Its Critics: Philosophical, Theological, and Scientific Perspectives |location=Cambridge, MA |publisher=[[MIT Press]] |isbn=0-262-66124-1 |lccn=2001031276 |oclc=46729201 |accessdate=2014-01-10 |ref=Pennock 2001}}
*{{cite book |author=Philo, of Alexandria |authorlink=Philo |year=1854–55 |chapter=The First Book of the Treatise on The Allegories of the Sacred Laws, after the Work of the Six Days of Creation |chapterurl=http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book2.html |title=The Works of Philo Judaeus |url=https://archive.org/details/worksofphilojuda01yonguoft |series=Bohn's Classical Library |others=Translated from the Greek, by [[Charles Duke Yonge|C. D. Yonge]] |location=London |publisher=[[Henry George Bohn|H.G. Bohn]] |lccn=20007801 |oclc=1429769 |accessdate=2014-03-09 |ref=Philo}}
*{{cite book |last=Plimer |first=Ian |authorlink=Ian Plimer |year=1994 |title=Telling Lies for God: Reason vs Creationism |location=Milsons Point, NSW |publisher=[[Random House|Random House Australia]] |isbn=0-09-182852-X |lccn=94237744 |oclc=32608689 |ref=Plimer 1994}}
*{{cite book |last=Polkinghorne |first=John |authorlink=John Polkinghorne |year=1998 |title=Science and Theology: An Introduction |location=Minneapolis, MN |publisher=[[Fortress Press]] |isbn=0-8006-3153-6 |lccn=98229115 |oclc=40117376 |ref=Polkinghorne 1998}}
*{{cite book |last=Quammen |first=David |authorlink=David Quammen |year=2006 |title=The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution |series=Great Discoveries |location=New York |publisher=[[James Atlas|Atlas Books/W. W. Norton & Company]] |isbn=978-0-393-05981-6 |lccn=2006009864 |oclc=65400177 |ref=Quammen 2006}}
*{{cite book |last=Rainey |first=David |title=Faith Reads: A Selective Guide to Christian Nonfiction |year=2008 |location=Westport, CT |publisher=Libraries Unlimited |isbn=978-1-59158-602-9 |lccn=2008010352 |oclc=213599217 |ref=Rainey 2012}}
*{{cite book |last=Schroeder |first=Gerald L. |authorlink=Gerald Schroeder |year=1998 |origyear=Originally published 1997; New York: [[Free Press (publisher)|Free Press]] |title=The Science of God: The Convergence of Scientific and Biblical Wisdom |edition=1st Broadway Books trade paperback |location=New York |publisher=[[Broadway Books]] |isbn=0-7679-0303-X |lccn=97014978 |oclc=39162332 |ref=Schroeder 1998}}
*{{cite book |last=Scott |first=Eugenie C. |authorlink=Eugenie Scott |year=1999 |chapter=Science, Religion, and Evolution |editor1-last=Springer |editor1-first=Dale A. |editor2-last=Scotchmoor |editor2-first=Judy |title=Evolution: Investigating the Evidence |url=http://www.ncseweb.org/resources/articles/528_science_religion_and_evoluti_6_19_2001.asp |type=Reprint |series=The Paleontological Society Special Publications |volume=9 |location=Pittsburgh, PA |publisher=[[Paleontological Society]] |lccn=00274093 |oclc=42725350 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20030628210954/http://www.ncseweb.org/resources/articles/528_science_religion_and_evoluti_6_19_2001.asp |archivedate=2003-06-28 |ref=Scott 1999}} "Presented as a Paleontological Society short course at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America, Denver, Colorado, October 24, 1999."
*{{cite book |last=Scott |first=Eugenie C. |authorlink=Eugenie Scott |year=2005 |origyear=Originally published 2004; Westport, CT: [[Greenwood Publishing Group|Greenwood Press]] |title=Evolution vs. Creationism: An Introduction |others=Foreword by [[Niles Eldredge]] |edition=1st paperback |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-520-24650-0 |lccn=2005048649 |oclc=60420899 |ref=Scott 2005}}
*{{cite book |last=Secord |first=James A. |title=Victorian Sensation: The Extraordinary Publication, Reception, and Secret Authorship of Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation |location=Chicago, IL |publisher=University of Chicago Press |year=2000 |isbn=0-226-74410-8 |lccn=00009124 |oclc=43864195 |ref=Secord 2000}}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Stewart |editor-first=Melville Y. |editor-link=Melville Y. Stewart |year=2010 |title=Science and Religion in Dialogue |location=Malden, MA |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-8921-7 |lccn=2009032180 |oclc=430678957 |ref=Stewart 2010}}
*{{cite book |editor1-last=Sweet |editor1-first=William |editor1-link=William Sweet |editor2-last=Feist |editor2-first=Richard |year=2007 |title=Religion and the Challenges of Science |location=Aldershot, England; Burlington, VT |publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing|Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.]] |isbn=978-0-7546-5715-6 |lccn=2006030598 |oclc=71778930 |ref=Sweet & Feist 2007}}
*{{cite book |last=Wilder-Smith |first=A. E. |authorlink=A. E. Wilder-Smith |year=1978 |title=Die Naturwissenschaften kennen keine Evolution: Empirische und theoretische Einwände gegen die Evolutionstheorie |trans_title=The Natural Sciences Know Nothing of Evolution |location=Basel, Switzerland |publisher=Schwabe Verlag |isbn=3-7965-0691-7 |lccn=80067425 |oclc=245955034 |ref=Wilder-Smith 1978}}
*{{cite book |last=Young |first=Davis A. |year=1995 |title=The Biblical Flood: A Case Study of the Church's Response to Extrabiblical Evidence |location=Grand Rapids, MI |publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company|Eerdmans]] |isbn=0-8028-0719-4 |lccn=95001899 |oclc=246813515 |ref=Young 1995}}
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite book |last=Anderson |first=Bernard W. |authorlink=Bernhard Anderson |year=1967 |title=Creation versus Chaos: The Reinterpretation of Mythical Symbolism in the Bible |location=New York |publisher=Association Press |lccn=67014578 |oclc=671184 |ref=Anderson 1967}}
*{{cite book |editor-last=Anderson |editor-first=Bernhard W. |year=1984 |title=Creation in the Old Testament |series=Issues in Religion and Theology |volume=6 |others=Introduction by Bernhard W. Anderson |location=Philadelphia; London |publisher=Fortress Press; [[Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge]] |isbn=0-8006-1768-1 |lccn=83048910 |oclc=10374840 |ref=Anderson 1984}}
*{{cite book |last=Barbour |first=Ian G. |authorlink=Ian Barbour |year=1997 |title=Religion and Science: Historical and Contemporary Issues |edition=1st HarperCollins revised |location=San Francisco, CA |publisher=[[HarperCollins|HarperSanFrancisco]] |isbn=0-06-060938-9 |lccn=97006294 |oclc=36417827 |ref=Barbour 1997}}
*{{cite book |last=Barbour |first=Ian G. |year=2000 |title=When Science Meets Religion |edition=1st |location=San Francisco, CA |publisher=HarperSanFrancisco |isbn=0-06-060381-X |lccn=99055579 |oclc=42752713 |ref=Barbour 2000}}
*{{cite book |last=Clark |first=Kelly James |year=2014 |title=Religion and the Sciences of Origins: Historical and Contemporary Discussions |edition=1st |location=Basingstoke, UK |publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] |isbn=978-1-137-41483-0 |lccn=2014466739 |oclc=889777438 |ref=Clark 2014}}
*{{cite book |last=Darwin |first=Charles |authorlink=Charles Darwin |year=1958 |editor-last=Barlow |editor-first=Nora |title=The Autobiography of Charles Darwin, 1809-1882: With original omissions restored; Edited and with Appendix and Notes by his grand-daughter, Nora Barlow |url=http://darwin-online.org.uk/content/frameset?itemID=F1497&viewtype=side&pageseq=1 |location=London |publisher=Collins |lccn=93017940 |oclc=869541868 |accessdate=2009-01-09 |ref=Darwin 1958}}
*{{cite book |last=Kaplan |first=Aryeh |authorlink=Aryeh Kaplan |year=1993 |title=Immortality, Resurrection, and the Age of the Universe: A Kabbalistic View |others=With an appendix Derush Or ha-Hayyim by Israel Lipschitz; translated and annotated by Yaakov Elman |location=Hoboken, NJ |publisher=KTAV Publishing House in association with the [[Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists]] |isbn=0-88125-345-6 |lccn=92036917 |oclc=26800167 |ref=Kaplan 1993}}
*{{cite book |last=Kauffman |first=Stuart A. |authorlink=Stuart Kauffman |year=2008 |title=Reinventing the Sacred: A New View of Science, Reason and Religion |location=New York |publisher=[[Basic Books]] |isbn=978-0-465-00300-6 |lccn=2007052263 |oclc=191023778 |ref=Kauffman 2008}}
*{{cite book |last1=Leeming |first1=David Adams |last2=Leeming |first2=Margaret |year=1995 |title=A Dictionary of Creation Myths |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-510275-4 |lccn=95039961 |oclc=33160980 |ref=Leeming & Leeming 1995}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Primack |first1=Joel R. |authorlink1=Joel Primack |last2=Abrams |first2=Nancy Ellen |date=Jan–Feb 1995 |title=In a Beginning...: Quantum Cosmology and Kabbalah |url=http://physics.ucsc.edu/cosmo/primack_abrams/InABeginningTikkun1995.pdf |format=PDF |journal=[[Tikkun (magazine)|Tikkun]] |location=Durham, NC |publisher=[[Duke University Press]] |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=66–73 |issn=0887-9982 |accessdate=2014-04-24}}
*{{cite book |last=Roberts |first=Michael |year=2008 |title=Evangelicals and Science |series=Greenwood Guides to Science and Religion |location=Westport, CT |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=978-0-313-33113-8 |lccn=2007041059 |oclc=174138819 |ref=Roberts 2008}}

==External links==

{{Commons|Creationism}}{{Wikiquote}}

* [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/creationism/ "Creationism"] at the [[Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy]] by [[Michael Ruse]]
* [http://www.howstuffworks.com/creationism.htm "How Creationism Works"] at [[HowStuffWorks]] by Julia Layton
* [http://www.allviewpoints.org/RESOURCES/EVOLUTION/timeline.htm "TIMELINE: Evolution, Creationism and Intelligent Design"] Focuses on major historical and recent events in the scientific and political debate
* {{PDF|[http://images.derstandard.at/20051012/Evolution-and-Creationism.pdf "Evolution and Creationism: A Guide for Museum Docents"]|204 KB}} by Warren D. Allmon, Director of the [[Museum of the Earth]]
* [http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/wic.html "What is creationism?"] at [[talk.origins]] by Mark Isaak
* [http://ncse.com/creationism/general/creationevolution-continuum "The Creation/Evolution Continuum"] by [[Eugenie Scott]]
* [http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/15-answers-to-creationist/ "15 Answers to Creationist Nonsense"] by [[John Rennie (editor)|John Rennie]], editor in chief of ''[[Scientific American]]'' magazine

{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Creationism| ]]
[[Category:Christian terminology]]
[[Category:Creation myths]]
[[Category:Denialism]]
[[Category:Obsolete biological theories]]
[[Category:Origin of life]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience]]
[[Category:Religious cosmologies]]
[[Category:Theism]]

Pseudoscience

2015-10-06T19:52:05Z

Auspicies:

'''Pseudoscience''' is [[theory]] or [[speculation]] which has the trappings and [[rhetoric]] of [[science]], and is presented as science, but does not follow the [[scientific method]]. Pseudoscientific theories are typically not [[falsifiable]], and their purveyors show unwillingness to allow outsiders to observe, test, or replicate their findings.

== Falsifiability ==
The most cited element of scientific theory is [[falsifiability]], established by [[philosopher]] [[Karl Popper]]<ref>[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/popper/#BacHisTho Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, see in particular sections 2 and 3]</ref>. A falsifiable theory makes predictions, which can be used to test it. Thus, the theory of gravity is falsifiable, as it predicts that an apple held above the ground and released will fall. If it fails the test, it is discarded, and if it passes, it is not proven, but better supported.

== Disproven Science ==
The term pseudoscience is also often applied to theories which ''are'' falsifiable and have in fact been falsified and discarded. [[Phrenology]] predicted that psychological traits could be inferred from the shape of the skull, but no actual link was ever found. Various [[astrology|astrological]] theories predicted regular planetary effects on the earth and human health, but testing those failed.

The existence of [[God]] is thus not considered scientific theory, as no test can possibly be conceived which categorically disproves His existence. The same is the case for [[string theory]], which is a mathematical unification of scientific theory, but makes no predictions. Such things fall outside the realm of science.

== Charlatanism ==
The label ''pseudoscientist'' is commonly given to cranks and [[charlatan]]s, who claim abnormal powers and abilities, but refuse to demonstrate them in objective, controlled, monitored environments. For example, Uri Geller claims to be able to bend spoons without applying pressure to them, but he cannot do it in front of scientists or journalists<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3vGGf-ZIkc Uri Geller debunked by James Randi and Johnny Carson</ref>. Countless conjurers and mediums claim to be able to speak with the dead, but controlled circumstances revealed that they were really only conducting clever psychological tricks.

== Metaphysics ==
[[Spiritual]], [[metaphysical]], [[philosophical]], and [[religious belief]]s are occasionally confused with pseudoscience, as there is often an overlap in rhetoric, and charlatans blur the lines between scientific and philosophical ideas of knowledge.

== Public belief ==
Despite evidence and logic against pseudoscientific theories, many remain popular among the public. Homeopathic medicine is available at most health-food stores and is a multi-billion dollar business, and 31% of Americans believe in astrology.

Notably, twice as many [[Democrats]] believe in astrology as [[Republicans]], showing a strong bent of irrationality and scientific [[illiteracy]] among [[liberals]].<ref>http://www.harrisinteractive.com/harris_poll/index.asp?PID=359</ref>

There is no definitive or objective definition of the term "pseudoscience", so it is also sometimes used as a pejorative term. Pseudoscientists consider their work to be real science rather than pseudoscience. In addition to this, oftentimes theories which conflict with their theories are considered by them to be pseudoscience. Theories which are considered to be psuedoscience by the public may transition into being considered science if substantial evidence is found to support the theory. For example, before the theory of plate tectonics was fully developed, it was considered pseudoscience, whilst its predecessors, theories which involved an expanding Earth, are now considered pseudoscience.<ref>R. G. A. Dolby, ''Uncertain Knowledge: An Image of Science for a Changing World'', Published by Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN 0521892627, 9780521892629, 380 pages. [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=xd3ylT3WTLEC&pg=PA191&dq=pseudoscience+pejorative&num=100&as_brr=3 Page 191]</ref><ref>Brian Stableford, ''Science Fact and Science Fiction'', Published by CRC Press, 2006, ISBN 0415974607, 9780415974608, 729 pages. [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=uefwmdROKTAC&pg=PA410&dq=pseudoscience+pejorative&num=100&as_brr=3 Page 410]</ref>

==Examples of pseudosciences==
[[Image:5712dawkins.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Within the [[evolution|evolutionary]] science community and the [[creation science]] community, Richard Dawkins has faced charges of engaging in pseudoscience and also has faced charges of committing elementary errors.<ref>http://www.truefreethinker.com/articles/send-clowns-–-richard-dawkins-obliges</ref><ref>http://creation.com/the-greatest-hoax-on-earth/main.php</ref> For more information, please see: [[Richard Dawkins and pseudoscience]] ]]
* [[Animal magnetism]]
* [[Astrology]]
* Much of the work of [[Richard Dawkins]]<ref>http://www.truefreethinker.com/articles/send-clowns-–-richard-dawkins-obliges</ref><ref>http://creation.com/the-greatest-hoax-on-earth/main.php</ref> (see: [[Richard Dawkins and pseudoscience]])
* [[Biodynamic agriculture]]
* [[Dianetics]]
* [[Dominionism]]
* [[Creationism]]
* [[Free Energy]]
* [[Graphology]]
* [[Homeopathy]]
* [[Iridology]]
* [[Lysenkoism]]
* [[Mesmerism]]
* [[Orgone therapy]]
* [[Parapsychology]]
* [[Phrenology]]
* [[Pseudoarchaeology]]
* [[Psychoanalysis]]
* [[Reflexology]]
* [[Self-projection as God]] (also known as [[vicarious autotheism]])
* Much of the work of [[Carl Sagan]]
* [[Ufology]]

== See also ==
* [[Scientism]]

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Pseudoscience]]

Bible

2015-10-06T19:48:43Z

Auspicies:

[[Image:800px-Crop Book of Isaiah 2006-06-06.jpg|thumb|300px|right|The Holy Bible, opened to the Book of Isaiah.]]
{{Bible}}

The '''Bible''' is the most logical, insightful and influential collection of books and letters ever written. It includes the most beautiful book ever written, the [[Gospel of Luke]], the most profound book ever written, the [[Gospel of John]], and the most intellectual letter ever written, the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]]. [[Biblical scientific foreknowledge]] has anticipated or guided nearly every great human achievement. The '''Bible''' is unique in the literature of the world,<ref name=LiteraryCriticism>See [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)]], in particular the findings of the following supportive sources of literary criticism:
*The Bible’s message is both ‘divine’ and ‘human’. —[http://www.saintjohnsabbey.org/liturgy-answers/bibles-message-both-divine-and-human/ St. John's Abbey: ''The Bible’s message is both ‘divine’ and ‘human’.'' Friday, January 17th, 2014, Benedictine Father Michael Kwatera, a monk of St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, MN.]
*The more conservative theologians who employ the historical-critical method believe that the Scriptures are more than the writings of mortal men. —[http://www.wlsessays.net/files/BeckerHistorical.pdf The Historical-Critical Method of Bible Interpretation, By Siegbert W. Becker], page 4.
*Unique among all the world's literature, the Bible is really God's word in human language. —[http://bibleasliterature.wordpress.com/lesson-1/ The Bible as Literature: The Bible ~ A Literary Work and an Artistic Presentation of Human Experience].</ref> and was extensively studied by the greatest modern thinkers, including [[Isaac Newton]], [[Louis Pasteur]], [[Bernhard Riemann]], [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John von Neumann]], and [[Kurt Godel]].

Shorter than you might think, the Bible consists of two parts: 27 short books and letters of the [[New Testament]] of the [[Christian]] [[faith]], and 39 Hebrew and Aramaic books recognized by both Christianity and Judaism, which are included among the collection of writings known as the [[Old Testament]].<ref>Christianity adds a few additional books to the Jewish [[Old Testament]]. See [[Biblical Canon]].</ref> The text of the Old Testament was originally written in [[Hebrew]] and [[Aramaic]], and was later translated and expanded in [[Greek]] by rabbinical scholars in the [[Septuagint]] Bible of the Greek-speaking Jews which was the Bible of the apostles;<ref>"Bible of the apostles". See the following four sources:
*[http://www.scripturecatholic.com/septuagint.html Septuagint Quotes in the New Testament]
*[http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html The Septuagint (LXX): History of the Septuagint]
*[http://www.cresourcei.org/canonot.html Canons of the Hebrew Bible]
*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]</ref> but the [[New Testament]] itself was originally written in Greek and was soon afterward added to the Septuagint, making the Greek Bible of the ancient Christian church. Both Old and New Testaments have been translated into more than 2000 languages.

The Bible is the biggest-selling book in history, a testament to its timeless and compelling message.<ref>The Bible continues to be the best-selling book ever. Americans alone buy 25 million Bibles a year, according to Publisher's Weekly. Bible sales are now reaching $609 million a year, with specialty Bibles available for myriad "niche" audiences, from motorcycle riders to campers, brides and archaeologists. "Immerse," a water-resistant Bible for troops overseas, is now available from publisher Bardin & Marsee. [http://www.washtimes.com/national/20070529-111815-7952r.htm Polls: Most believe Bible as God's word] - Jennifer Harper, ''The Washington Times'' - May 30, 2007] </ref> In addition, the Bible has had an immense, positive influence on literature, culture, and history.

[[Jesus Christ]] himself may have authored the perfectly written [[Epistle to the Hebrews]], which was composed in magnificent Greek and which discloses information that could have been known only to Jesus.<ref>The [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] contains an explanation of the stature of Jesus relative to angels. For a contrary view that fails to discuss the likelihood that Jesus wrote the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] or the information in that book which would be known only to Jesus, one commentator suggests that [[Barnabas]] or [[Apollos]] may have been the author (see [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%2018:24-28&version=KJV Acts 18:24-28]). [http://www.judaismvschristianity.com/hebrews.htm Judaism versus Christianity. The Book of Hebrews. Who wrote the Book of Hebrews?] (judaismvschristianity.com). See also [https://bible.org/article/argument-hebrews The Argument of Hebrews] (bible.org).</ref>

Most [[Christians]], Protestant and Catholic, agree on the 27 books of the [[New Testament]], and while the Old Testament of the Orthodox Bible includes 50 books, for a total of 77, and the Old Testament of the Catholic Bible includes 46 books, for a total of 73, the Protestant Bible includes only the 39 books of the [[Old Testament]] which entirely correspond to the [[Biblical Canon#Palestinian canon (A.D. 4th century)|24 books of the Hebrew canon of the Jews]], for a total of 66.<ref>The Protestant Bible excludes the following books which have always been included in the Catholic Bible, the same books excluded from the canon by the Jews after the rise of Christianity in the 1st century:
# The Wisdom of Solomon
# Tobit
# Sirach
# Judith
# 1st Maccabees
# 2nd Maccabees
# Baruch [http://www.catholicbible101.com/theholybible.htm]
The Orthodox Greek Bible since the 1st century has always included Psalm 151 as appended to Psalm 150, and the Third Book of the Maccabees, and, in an appendix to the Old Testament, the Fourth Book of the Maccabees, a treatise on the superiority of wisdom. These were never included among the Protestant Apocrypha in the 16th century—but they also have never been included among the books of the Old Testament in Protestant Bibles. Martin Luther and the leaders of the Reformation did not address their canonical status, and did not discuss them. The Book of 1 Esdras has always been included in the Orthodox Bible among the Historical Books between 2 Chronicles and Ezra, but is regarded since the Council of Trent by both Catholics and Protestants as non-canonical and apocryphal and is not included by them in the Old Testament. The Latin apocalyptic 2 Esdras, which was never part of the Greek Old Testament, but was included in the Vulgate, is not included in the canon of standard Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Bibles, and is included with 1 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh in the Protestant Apocrypha. The same 2 Esdras is included as ''Ezra Sutuel'' in the canon of the Ethiopic Bible of the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Orthodox Ethiopian Church]], which as a whole differs both in the Old and New Testament from that of any other churches. The Ethiopic canonical books, written in the [[Geez language]] and on parchment, are numerous. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has 46 books of the Old Testament and 35 books of the New Testament, bringing the total of canonized books of the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible to 81. The canon of the Ethiopic Bible appears to date back to the 5th century. See [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1292150/Worlds-illustrated-Christian-bible-discovered-Ethiopian-monastery.html World's first illustrated Christian bible discovered at Ethiopian monastery, By Daily Mail Reporter. Updated: 11:33 EST, 5 July 2010] Carbon dating gives a date between 330 and 650.</ref> The English King James Version of the Protestant Bible has 593,493 words in the Old Testament and 181,253 words in the New Testament.<ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/bible/about.html ChristianAnswers.Net. About the Bible] (christiananswers.net)</ref>

==Name==
The word "Bible" had its origins in an ancient [[Phoenicia]]n seaport called [[Byblos]], which was so-named as a result of the trade and manufacture of writing material based on the [[papyrus]] or byblos reed, used extensively in antiquity for making [[scroll]]s and [[book]]s. The [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''biblos'' was based upon this, and it came to be the word for ''book'' (a small book was termed ''biblion''), and by the 2nd century A.D. Greek [[Christianity|Christians]] had called the Scriptures ''ta Biblia'' ('''τα βιβλία''' ''the books''), which was transferred to [[Latin]] by dropping the ''ta''; the word made its way to [[Old French]] where the plural was dropped in favor of the singular, hence becoming the [[English]] word ''Bible''. (Unger, pg 143; Moulton; Blass)

==Unique witness to truth==

The Bible is the most ancient collective document of writings in antiquity witnessing to the revelation of the one living God to the community of the people he has chosen and formed to be his priests and witnesses to all the peoples of the earth. This people chosen and called out from every nation and language on earth testifies that God is one being of three Persons, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, who loves all that he has created, and that there is nothing in all the whole created universe that he did not create through the power of his Word. The Bible is the collective testimony of this community of people chosen out of all the peoples of the earth that God is the one original cause of all existence, creator of the universe and all that it contains both visible and invisible. They have borne witness in the several sacred scriptures contained in the Bible that this one unique God has acted and continues to act in history.

The Bible is unique in antiquity in its witness that God has made one of his creations, the whole human race, to be above the physical animal nature of the body and be like himself with dominion over the whole earth and all its creatures. The Bible testifies that God himself has called this human creature, male and female, to a personal relationship with him as a whole community of love and goodness and mercy in his image as his living temple and dwelling place on earth and to give evidence of his reality and to acknowledge him in all they do and say.

The Bible is unique in all of ancient literature in that it testifies to the rebellion and fall of the human race, to the reality of sin and its effects, to the facts of evil and of righteousness, to objective physical and moral standards of right and wrong, of justice and judgment, and to the reality of invisible intelligent beings, both those who have rebelled against God and those who perpetually serve him.

The Bible contains the only stable, reliable written witness of his own community to the rest of the world that the '''Word''' of this one God is the perfect image of his own divinity, his only-begotten Son, who became one with us, in solidarity with each human being and the whole of the fallen human community, as a sinless flesh-and-blood man whose act of complete renunciation and self-sacrifice made perfect reparation for the offense of the whole of the human community, to save us from the merited ruin which is going to come on the whole rebellious, resistant, fallen human community occupied with its own selfishness. The Bible is the witness of God's people that his Word is his Son, that his name is Jesus, and that he is the supreme Anointed One ("''Christos''") of the people of Israel. The Bible is the unique written witness of the people he has called to himself that he established his Church as the holy temple of his Holy Spirit, with the divine commission to testify to him to the whole world and make disciples of those who are willing to come to him and worship in word and deed. The Bible is their unique written record that in the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ God the Father has called all humanity to partake in a share of his own divinity, in selfless goodness, mercy and love, in eternal, everlasting life, as the gift of his love.

The Bible is the first book in antiquity to declare the revelation that death is not final, and that there will be a physical resurrection of all the dead at the end of time. In its collected writings the people of God have testified to the revelation of the total condemnation of the wicked who have chosen to reject both him and the gift of communion with him, and in it they have collectively testified to the revelation of the total salvation from ruin and the gift of communion with him of those who have not resisted him and his way of living and acting and whom he has made holy by his own power alone. No other book is like it. The whole community of believers past and present in its leadership has discerned and testified to this day that the whole collection of the books of the Bible is inspired by God, and that God is their true author. The Bible is the Word of God expressed in the written form of human language. Its chief value is as a stable unchanging resource for understanding the mind of God, for establishing a just society with just laws and true justice, for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that each leader of the community (each "''man of God''") may be fully equipped for every good work as a witness to the one true God. [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2timothy%203:16-17&version=KJV 2 Timothy 3:16-17]

But just as Jesus has appeared to many to be no more than an ordinary human being, and just as Christianity has appeared to many to be no more than a merely human institution of religion, so the Bible too has appeared to many to be no more than a traditional collection of ordinary human literature. However, even the tools of [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|ordinary literary criticism]] have clearly shown the Bible to be more than a collection of merely human literature, and its scriptures to be much more than ordinary human writings.<ref name=LiteraryCriticism/>

==Books of the Bible==
===The Old Testament===
{| border="1" align="right" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="360" style="margin-left:5px" class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2" align="center" style="color: black; height: 30px; background: tan no-repeat scroll top left;"|Old Testament layout
|-
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Jewish
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Christian Protestant
|-
|1 [[Genesis]]
|Genesis
|-
|2 Exodus
|Exodus
|-
|3 Leviticus
|Leviticus
|-
|4 Numbers
|Numbers
|-
|5 Deuteronomy
|Deuteronomy
|-
|6 Joshua
|Joshua
|-
|7 Samuel
|Judges
|-
|8 Kings
|Ruth
|-
|9 Isaiah
|1st Samuel
|-
|10 Jeremiah
|2nd Samuel
|-
|11 Ezekiel
|1st Kings
|-
|12 The Minor Prophets
|2nd Kings
|-
|13 Psalms
|1st Chronicles
|-
|14 Proverbs
|2nd Chronicles
|-
|15 Job
|Ezra
|-
|16 Song of Songs
|Nehemiah
|-
|17 Ruth
|Esther
|-
|18 Lamentations
|Job
|-
|19 Ecclesiastes
|Psalms
|-
|20 Esther
|Proverbs
|-
|21 Daniel
|Ecclesiastes
|-
|22/23 Ezra (with Nehemiah)
|Song of Solomon
|-
|24 Chronicles
|Isaiah
|-
|
|Jeremiah
|-
|
|Lamentations
|-
|
|Ezekiel
|-
|
|Daniel
|-
|
|The Minor Prophets
|-
!colspan="2" align="center" style="color: black; height: 30px; background: tan no-repeat scroll top left;"|Dates of each Book
|-
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Protestant Old Testament
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|New Testament
|-
|Genesis, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Matthew, A.D. 60-65
|-
|Exodus, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Mark, A.D. 60-65
|-
|Leviticus, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Luke, A.D. 58-65
|-
|Numbers, 1440-1400 B.C.
|John, A.D. 95
|-
|Deuteronomy, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Acts, A.D. 58-65
|-
|Joshua, 1400-1360 B.C.
|Romans, A.D. 58
|-
|Judges, c. 1020 B.C.
|1st Corinthians, A.D. 57
|-
|Ruth, c. 1090 B.C.
|2nd Corinthians, A.D. 57
|-
|1st Samuel, c. 931–722/21 B.C.
|Galatians, A.D. 56
|-
|2nd Samuel <ref>[https://bible.org/article/introduction-book-first-samuel Bible.org Introduction to First Samuel]</ref>
|Ephesians, A.D. 62-63
|-
|1st Kings, 609-600 B.C.
|Philippians, A.D. 58-60
|-
|2nd Kings, 609-600 B.C.
|Colosians, A.D. 61-63
|-
|1st Chronicles, c. 400 B.C.
|1st Thessalonians, A.D. 52
|-
|2nd Chronicles, c. 400 B.C.
|2nd Thessalonians, A.D. 53
|-
|Ezra, c. 400 B.C.
|1st Timothy, A.D. 62-65
|-
|Nehemiah, c. 400 B.C.
|2nd Timothy, A.D. 65-66
|-
|Esther, 464-425 B.C.
|Titus, A.D. 65
|-
|Job, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Philemon, A.D. 65
|-
|Psalms, 1004-965 B.C.
|Hebrews, A.D. 63-64
|-
|Proverbs, 965-925 B.C.
|James, A.D. 63-64
|-
|Eccleisiastes, 965-925 B.C.
|1st Peter, A.D. 64
|-
|Song of Solomon, 965-925 B.C.
|2nd Peter, A.D. 65
|-
|Isaiah, 785-697 B.C.
|1st John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Jeremiah, 587-538 B.C.
|2nd John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Lamentations, 587-538 B.C.
|3rd John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Ezekiel, 592-572 B.C.
|Jude, c. A.D. 70-75
|-
|Daniel, 539-520 B.C.
|Revelation, A.D. 96-98
|-
|Hosea, 753-731 B.C.
|
|-
|Joel, 835-796 B.C.
|
|-
|Amos, 787-747 B.C.
|
|-
|Obadiah, 848-841 B.C.
|
|-
|Jonah, 771-754 B.C.
|
|-
|Micah, 715-687 B.C.
|
|-
|Nahum, 661-612 B.C.
|
|-
|Habbakuk, 625-608 B.C.
|
|-
|Zephaniah, 621-608 B.C.
|
|-
|Haggai, 520 B.C.
|
|-
|Zechariah, 520 B.C.
|
|-
|Malachi, 455 B.C.
|
|}
The Hebrew [[Old Testament]] of the Bible, also called Tanakh, consists of twenty-four books. The books themselves were originally written in [[Hebrew]], and later on in the [[Aramaic]] language of Palestine (the original texts of the Hebrew books of Daniel and Ezra, for example, have major portions written in Aramaic). The Greek language version written after the conquest of [[Alexander the Great]] is known as the [[Septuagint]], and to it the Jews added more texts that they also valued for their piety, wisdom and history, most of them translated from Hebrew or Aramaic originals. By A.D. the 1st century this Septuagint collection had become the Greek Old Testament Bible of the apostles.<ref>Most Protestant Christians are unaware that the overwhelming majority of Old Testament quotations and references in the New Testament are numerous quotations from the Septuagint including the books Martin Luther separated as [[Apocrypha]]. See the following four sources:
*[http://www.scripturecatholic.com/septuagint.html Septuagint Quotes in the New Testament]
*[http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html The Septuagint (LXX): History of the Septuagint]
*[http://www.cresourcei.org/canonot.html Canons of the Hebrew Bible]
*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]
Biblical researchers in the 20th and 21st centuries have also discovered manuscripts and linguistic evidence that appear to prove that most of the Apocrypha, except the Book of Wisdom (originally written in Greek?), were originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic (Syriac) prior to the Christian era. [http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/ Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Apocrypha] [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha] (jewishvirtuallibrary.org)</ref> [[Melito]],<ref>[http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1017 Catholic Online: St. Melito of Sardis], [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/melito.html Early Christian Writings: Melito of Sardis]</ref> a bishop of [[Sardis]] in [[Lydia]] (in what is now [[Turkey]]), is said to have coined the phrase ''Old Testament'' about A.D. 170. The Greek Old Testament has been a continuous part of the Christian Bible in the eastern Churches in Palestine, Greece, Turkey, and the whole of the [[Levant]] since the 1st century.

The Hebrew Old Testament is divided in three parts within the Jewish community: the [[Torah|'''T'''orah]] ("Law"), or [[Pentateuch]], the five books of [[Moses]]; the [[Nevi'im|'''N'''evi'im]] ("Prophets"), and the [[Ketuvim|'''K'''etuvim]] ("Writings,” or [[Hagiographa]]) (abbreviated '''T'''a'''N'''a'''K'''h, hence, "Tanakh", ). Here the arrangement of the books differs somewhat from the Old Testament as used by Christians, with three of the twenty-four (Samuel, Kings, Chronicles) each being divided into two books, and Ezra being divided into Ezra and Nehemiah; however the actual writing of each book remains the same. The Christian order of the books of the Bible follows the Chronology of the events and the personages being related, according to their arrangement in the Septuagint, while in the Jewish order, though there is a chronological framework, the order follows more the importance, influence, "weight of usage" within Judaism. Thus, for orthodox Judaism, The Torah of [[Moses]] comes first (the 5 books of Moses), and is the most authoritative of all Scripture. Under the [[Pharisee|Pharasaic]] theory that Moses was also given the Oral law, explicating how the Written law was to be applied, at the same time as he was given the written law contained in the Bible, the Oral Law too was passed on through the generations, and was later in A.D. the 3rd century first put into writing in the Mishna (compiled by [[Judah haNasi]] <ref>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/hanasi.html Yehudah HaNasi (Judah the Prince) (A.D. 135 - 219)], [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8963-judah-i Jewish Encyclopedia: Judah I]</ref>) and the Gemara (gathered by the [[Amoriam]] <ref>Amoraim (Aramaic: plural אמוראים [ʔamoʁaˈʔim], singular Amora אמורא [ʔamoˈʁa]; "those who say" or "those who speak over the people", or "spokesmen"), were renowned Jewish scholars who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah, from about 200 to 500 CE in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. See [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0002_0_01018.html Jewish Virtual Library: AMORAIM]</ref>) finally composing the [[Talmud]], and is regarded as equally authoritative with the Torah of Moses.<ref>There is a similar teaching in the Christian New Testament, in the Second Letter to the Thessalonians ([http://biblehub.com/multi/2_thessalonians/2-15.htm 2:15]) and in the First Letter to the Corinthians ([http://biblehub.com/multi/1_corinthians/11-2.htm 11:2]). This seems to be the Biblical justification for the Catholic and Orthodox teaching that the fullness of the Christian faith is contained in both scripture and tradition, "letter" and "word". See [[Sola scriptura]]</ref> Then the Prophets come next in authority. But the category of the Hebrew Prophets for the Jews is much broader than the category of the Prophets as considered by the Christian ordering. The "Prophets" in the Tanakh includes what Christians consider "History" - such as the books of the Kings - but it also includes what Christians call the Former and the Latter, or the Major and the Minor prophets. The last in authority for every day life of the Jew, in terms of "regulation", actually form a great influence in the Synagogue worship - the Writings, with a heavy emphasis on the Psalms.

====Torah====
The Five books of Moses, in their Hebrew and English names:
*<big>בְּרֵאשִׁית</big> Bereisheet ("in the beginning"), or [[Genesis]]
*<big>שְׁמוֹת</big> Shemot (“names”), or [[Exodus]]
*<big>וַיִּקְרָא</big> Vayikra (“and God called”), or [[Leviticus]]
*<big>בְּמִדְבַּר</big> Bemidbar (“in the Wilderness”), or [[Numbers]]
*<big>דְּבָרִים</big> Devarim (“words”), or [[Deuteronomy]]

The first eleven chapters of ''Genesis'' provide the account of the [[Creation]], the history of God's early relationship with humanity, and the [[Deluge]] of [[Noah]]. The remaining thirty-nine chapters detail the account of God's covenant with the early Hebrew nation, led by the patriarchs [[Abraham]], [[Isaac]] and [[Jacob]] (or Israel), and one of Jacob's children, [[Joseph]]. It tells the beginnings of God's chosen people, of how God commanded Abraham to leave his family and home to settle in the land of [[Canaan]], and how the Children of Israel later moved to Egypt. The remainder of the Torah, beginning with ''Exodus'' and ending with ''Deuteronomy'', tells the story of the great Hebrew leader [[Moses]], and of the Hebrews through their sojourn and slavery in Egypt, their escape from bondage, and their wanderings in the desert until finally they stand ready to enter the Promised Land.

====Nevi'im====
The [[Nevi'im]] ("Prophets") is the story of the rise toward, and ultimately reaching, the Hebrew monarchy; the sad period of anarchy and revolt leading to the division into the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel; and the prophets who judged the kings of both in God's name. It ends with the conquest and dissolution of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and its Assyrian exile, and then the conquest of the Kingdom of Judah, the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, and the Babylonian exile. The Minor Prophets are considered a single book in the Nevi'im; in Christianity they have been split into twelve separate books and named for their authors.
*<big>יְהוֹשֻׁעַ</big> [[Joshua (Biblical book)|Joshua]]
*<big>שׁוֹפְטִים</big> [[Judges (Biblical book)|Judges]]
*<big>שְׁמוּאֵל א</big> [[I Samuel]]
*<big>שְׁמוּאֵל ב</big> [[II Samuel]]
*<big>מְלָכִים א</big> [[I Kings]]
*<big>מְלָכִים ב</big> [[II Kings]]
*<big>יְשַׁעְיָהוּ</big> [[Isaiah (Biblical book)|Isaiah]]
*<big>יִרְמְיָהוּ</big> [[Jeremiah (Biblical book)|Jeremiah]]
*<big>יְחֶזְקֵאל</big> [[Ezekiel (Biblical book)|Ezekiel]]
* [[The Minor Prophets]]
**<big>הוֹשֵׁעַ</big> [[Hosea (Biblical book)|Hosea]]
**<big>יוֹאֵל</big> [[Joel (Biblical book)|Joel]]
**<big>עָמוֹס</big> [[Amos (Biblical book)|Amos]]
**<big>עֹבַדְיָה</big> [[Obadiah (Biblical book)|Obadiah]]
**<big>יוֹנָה</big> [[Jonah (Biblical book)|Jonah]]
**<big>מִיכָה</big> [[Micah (Biblical book)|Micah]]
**<big>נַחוּם</big> [[Nahum (Biblical book)|Nahum]]
**<big>חֲבַקּוּק</big> [[Habakkuk (Biblical book)|Habakkuk]]
**<big>צְפַנְיָה</big> [[Zephaniah (Biblical book)|Zephaniah]]
**<big>חַגַּי</big> [[Haggai (Biblical book)|Haggai]]
**<big>זְכַרְיָה</big> [[Zechariah (Biblical book)|Zechariah]]
**<big>מַלְאָכִי</big> [[Malachi (Biblical book)|Malachi]]

====Ketuvim====
The [[Ketuvim]], or "Writings," contain lyrical poetry, philosophical reflections on life, and the writings of the prophets and other Jewish leaders during the exile in [[Babylon]].
*<big>תְּהִלִּים</big> [[Psalms]]
*<big>מִשְׁלֵי</big> [[Proverbs]]
*<big>אִיּוֹב</big> [[Book of Job]]
*<big>שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים</big> [[Song of Songs]], also called [[Song of Solomon]] in the Protestant Christian Bible.
*<big>רוּת</big> [[Book of Ruth]]
*<big>אֵיכָה</big> [[Lamentations]]
*<big>קֹהֶלֶת</big> [[Ecclesiastes]]
*<big>אֶסְתֵּר</big> [[Esther]]
*<big>דָּנִיֵּאל</big> [[Daniel (Biblical book)|Daniel]]
*<big>עֶזְרָא</big> [[Ezra]], divided into the two books of <big>עֶזְרָא</big> Ezra and <big>נְחֶמְיָה</big> [[Nehemiah]] in the Christian Bible.
*<big>דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים א</big> ''and'' <big>דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים ב</big> [[Books of Chronicles]]

[[David]] has been named as the author of the ''Psalms''; [[Solomon]] is traditionally believed to have written ''Song of Songs'' in his youth, the ''Proverbs'' in his prime, and ''Ecclesiastes'' during his old age. The prophet [[Jeremiah]] is thought to have written the aptly-named ''Lamentations'' at the beginning of the exile to Babylon. The ''Book of Ruth'' is the only biblical book that centers entirely on a non-Jew, a [[Moabite]] who married a Jew and became an ancestor of both David and [[Jesus Christ]]. ''Esther'' is unique as it is the only book in the Hebrew Tanakh not to mention God. [[Moses]] is traditionally considered to be the author of ''Job''.

===The melodies of the Old Testament===
The Hebrew of the present day Old Testament is composed of the Hebrew consonants and, added on by the [[Masoretic Text|Masoretes]] at a later stage, the vowels. Along with these two elements, other signs were added which indicated the melodies that were sung along with the words or phrases. Some of the signs were positioned above the individual consonants, some below, and some to the side. Some of these melody signs were associated with others providing a musical pattern that corresponds with the opening of a thought, similar to the beginning of a sentence (ex. "merkha"), the continuation of a thought (ex. "munakh"), tying in one word with the following, as one melody flowed into the next, the "resting" or completion of a thought, much in "the same way that a comma (ex. "azla"), though not ending a sentence, makes for the "semi"-ending or minor completion of a thought, a major break in the run of thoughts ("etnachta"), though the run of thought would be resumed until the major completion ("sof pasuq"), much in the same way the a period brings to a stop and a completion as a sentence ends. Thus the musical signs in the Hebrew text also provide an interpretation of the text current to the times in which the signs were incorporated as part of the text, the Masoretic vowel-pointing excluding those former tonal readings which clearly represented Christian textual interpretations. The signs that tie one word to another providing one thought are called "conjunctive" signs and the signs that separate words and the thought of them are called "disjunctive". An example of the use of these signs to interpret the Hebrew text is the well known prophesy of the One to come. The Hebrew letters can either be understood to read "His name shall be called Wonderful counsellor of (''from, sent by, representing'') the mighty God", or "His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God". The melody signs (called in Hebrew "Ta'mei HaMikra) decide for the latter. After "Wonderful" there is a disjunctive, after "Counsellor" there is a disjunctive, and after "Mighty" (but adj. after the noun in Hebrew order) there is a conjunctive. It is possible to reconstruct to some extent the melody and the interpretation of the Old Testament current in the first century and therefore the melody and the interpretation used by Jesus Himself.<ref name=Steinberg>[http://www.adath-shalom.ca/history_of_hebrew2a.htm History of the Ancient and Modern Hebrew Language, By David Steinberg. Phonemic Structure of Hebrew] David.Steinberg@houseofdavid.ca. http://www.houseofdavid.ca Home page
http://www.adath-shalom.ca/history_of_hebrewtoc.htm </ref> This is because of the following: the present day melodies of the various dispersions of the Jews are to a great extent different one from the other. Some of these dispersions are the Ashkenazi, representing the Jews exiled from Israel by the Romans in A.D. 70 and then on to the Rhine Valley, and then onto parts of Eastern Europe, Western Europe, America, etc., the Sephardim who saw the beginnings of their dispersion from Spain in the 15th Century and then on to Greece, Turkey, North Africa. Holland, and America, the Yemenites, the Bnei Israel of India, the Jews of Ethiopia, etc. etc, Yet, with the diversity in melodies of the Scriptures, there are certain features which are either identical or strikingly similar. Musicologist, [[Joel Segal]], pointed out over 40 years ago, that this could only have been possible if these dispersions were at one time together in the same place. The only time that all these dispersions were together in the same place was prior to the great dispersion of the first century and the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.

===Old Testament Apocrypha===
The deuterocanonical books and others that the Reformation designated [[Apocrypha]] were written during the four hundred years between the time of Ezra and Malachi and the birth of Christ (one of them, 2 Esdras, possibly in A.D. the 1st century). The term itself comes from the Greek word ''apokruphos'' ("hidden" or "concealed") which was first applied to them by Jerome according to the opinions of the Jewish sources he consulted in Palestine, and although the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, among others, have always included the deuterocanonical Apocrypha in their versions of the Bible, considering them to be canonical (and they do have an actual history and literary value) the fourteen texts (10 books and portions of 2 others) which make up the whole of the Protestant Apocrypha have been rejected as non-canonical by both the Jewish faith since the 2nd century and by most Protestant denominations of the Christian church since the 16th century due to what, according to Reformation doctrine, they consider to be "''historical, geographical, or literal inaccuracies; the teaching of doctrines which contradict inspired Scripture; and a lack of elements and structure which give genuine Scripture its unique characteristic''" (Unger, pg. 70<ref>See also the following sources for more extensive expression of this Evangelical Christian opinion: Unger, Merril F. Unger's Bible Dictionary, Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1966; new edition 2006); Unger, Merril F. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary, (2006); 1416pp; Unger, Merril F. Unger's Bible Handbook, Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1967).</ref>). Three of the Apocrypha, 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, although part of Jerome's Vulgate, were not included among the canonical books listed at the Council of Trent and are considered by Catholics to be apocryphal works, and as not among the accepted deuterocanonicals. See [[Biblical Canon]].

Protestants do not include Psalm 151 and 3 and 4 Maccabees among the Apocrypha, but they also do not include these in their Bibles. The Reformation did not address the question of their canonical status. The Catholic Church did not include them in the canon of the Council of Trent, and they do not appear in regular editions of the Catholic Bible. They continue to be part of the [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox Bible]].

The Apocryphal books had been used in both Israel and Egypt and (except the Latin 2 Esdras which was part of the Vulgate) are part of the Old Testament in the Greek language used by Jews all over the Greek speaking world - particularly Alexandria, Egypt. This version is called the Septuaginta. The Septuaginta after the 1st century fell into disuse among Jews for two reasons -
:1. Greek speaking Christians were using the Septuaginta in their efforts to bring Jews to faith in Jesus Christ
:2. A number of the Apocryphal books were also apocalyptic, that is, focusing on the last days, the Kingdom of God in battle against the kingdoms of this world and the downfall of this world's empires. This was considered dangerous and liable to provoke Rome against the Jews.
Alternative Greek translations to the Septuaginta, which was considered "loose" by the Rabbis, were adopted. These were the translations of three proselytes to Judaism, Theodosious, Aquillas, and Symmachus. The Jewish Rabbinic "Council" of Jamnia (Yavneh on the Mediterraenian coast of Israel) in A.D. 90, under the leadership of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, effectively excluded the Apocryphal books (along with the Septuaginta) from the Jewish Canon by requiring, for a book to be considered canonical, that it have been written in Hebrew (and Aramaic). This immediately excludes ''all'' of the Christian scriptures included in the entire New Testament, since they were written in Greek and in the 1st century. Actually, a number of the apocryphal books, or portions thereof, had been written originally in Hebrew, most notably, the Book of Ben Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) found in Hebrew at Qumran with the rest of the Dead Sea Scrolls, but this was unknown to Yohanan Ben Zakkai and the Council of Jamnia in the first century. Under the impetus of Renaissance learning, Protestant scholars went directly to the Hebrew text and began to translate the Bible directly from the original languages of Hebrew and Greek, instead of having to go through the Latin Vulgate. But they consulted the Hebrew text of the Talmudic rabbinical version of the synagogue (eventually to be called the "Masoretic text") of the canon of books that had been recommended by the Council of Jamnia and afterward consistently authorized by subsequent rabbinical authorities representing Judaism. They also disregarded the witness of the canonical listing of the books of the Christian Orthodox Greek Bible, which had not been determined by the Council of Trent under the Roman Pontiff but had always been the traditional Old Testament as read from the time of the apostles and the most ancient Christian Church. In this way, most Protestant churches came to not include the Apocryphal books in their Canon of Scripture. One of the reasons the Roman Catholic Church held to the Vulgate was because it had been translated by Jerome from the Hebrew text before the text had been revised and altered by the Masoretes, and today it is considered a valuable witness to the earlier Hebrew Bible.
:"It has also proved of primary importance as an early and excellent witness to the sacred text."
::—The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)<ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/vulgate1.html The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915) The Vulgate, by Samuel Angus.]</ref>

The following are the books which are most frequently referred to by the title ''Apocrypha'':
*[[1 Esdras]]
*[[2 Esdras]]
*[[1 Maccabees]]
*[[2 Maccabees]]
*[[Book of Tobit]]
*[[Book of Judith]]
*[[Book of Wisdom]]
*[[Book of Sirach|Ecclesiasticus]], also known as Sirach
*[[Book of Baruch]]
:*[[Epistle of Jeremiah]] is sometimes listed as separate book or the last chapter of Baruch
*[[Prayer of Manasseh]]
*Greek language additions to the [[Book of Esther]]

Additions to the book of Daniel
*[[The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children]]
*[[Story of Susanna]]
*[[Bel and the Dragon]]

With the exception of 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, the remaining 7 books and parts of Esther and Daniel listed here are regarded as apocryphal by less than a third of Christian believers. With the exception of 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, these 7 books and parts of Esther and Daniel are accepted as divinely inspired, canonical scriptures in the Holy Bible by the majority of Christian believers in the United States and throughout the world.<ref>The '''Catholic Church''' is the world's largest [[Christianity|Christian]] body comprised of several distinct [https://www.ewtn.com/expert/answers/catholic_rites_and_churches.htm "Rites"]. The [[Catholic Church|Catholic Church (Latin Rite)]] is the largest religious body in the United States, with over 60 million adherents (4 times as large as the second largest church, the Orthodox). [http://www.pewforum.org/2013/02/13/the-global-catholic-population/ “The Global Catholic Population,” © 2011, Pew Research Center.] [http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_romcath.html The Largest Catholic Communities] 
The '''Eastern Orthodox Church''', officially called the '''Orthodox Catholic Church''', and also referred to as the '''[[Orthodox Church]]''' and '''Orthodoxy''', is the second largest [[Christianity|Christian church]] in the world, with an estimated 225–300 million adherents, most of whom live in [[Eastern Europe]], the [[Middle East]], and [[Russia]]. {{cite web |last1=Calivas |first1=Rev. Alciviadis C. |title=The Greek (Eastern) Orthodox Church |publisher=Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Of America |year=1983 |url=http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith7061 |accessdate=7 May 2014 |ref=none }} {{cite web |last1=Fairchild |first1=Mary |title=Christianity:Basics:Eastern Orthodox Church Denomination |publisher=about.com |url=http://christianity.about.com/od/easternorthodoxy/p/orthodoxprofile.htm |accessdate=22 May 2014 |ref=none }} {{cite web |title=Christianity |work=Major Branches of Religions Ranked by Number of Adherents |publisher=adherents.com |url=http://www.adherents.com/adh_branches.html#Christianity |accessdate=22 May 2014 |ref=none }}</ref><ref name=Prot>See [http://www.888c.com/worldChristianDenominations.htm Percentage of Christians in Protestant Denominations (29.5%)].</ref>

====The problem with rabbinical authority defining the biblical canon====

According to the ordinary reading of the New Testament and the consensus of the majority of Christians from the 1st century to this day, the authority of the kingdom of God had been wholly taken away from the Jews in the 1st century and given to the leaders of the Gentiles and Jews in Christ long before the Council of Jamnia. See:
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2015:13-14&version=KJV Matthew 15:13-14]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2016:18-19&version=KJV Matthew 16:18-19]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2018:17-18&version=KJV Matthew 18:17-18]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2021:43&version=KJV Matthew 21:43]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2028:18-20&version=KJV Matthew 28:18-20]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%201:32-33&version=KJV Luke 1:32-33]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2010:16&version=KJV Luke 10:16]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2022:29-30&version=KJV Luke 22:29-30]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%207:51-53&version=KJV Acts 7:51-53]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1corinthians%204:1&version=KJV 1 Corinthians 4:1]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1corinthians%206:2-3&version=KJV 1 Corinthians 6:2-3]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1timothy%203:14-15&version=KJV 1 Timothy 3:14-15]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews%2013:17&version=KJV Hebrews 13:17]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1john%204:2-6&version=KJV 1 John 4:2-6]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2john%201:9-11&version=KJV 2 John 9-ll]

Between A.D. 90-95, long after the descent of the Holy Spirit of God at Pentecost and the spread of Christianity and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the devastation of the city and the expulsion of the Jews, the Jewish [[Council of Jamnia]] revised the canon of the Old Testament, by ensuring that the books involved conformed to the Torah, were written in the Hebrew language, written in Palestine, and written before 400 B.C. As a result, the Apocrypha was excluded from the Hebrew canon.<ref>[https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/canon1.html The Jewish Canon and the Christian Canon] (web.cn.edu) Linguistic evidence shows that other Septuagint books which were excluded by rabbinical authority after A.D. 90 certainly had an original Hebrew or Aramaic text. See
*[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html Jewish Virtual Library. Jewish Holy Scriptures: The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, by Michael E. Stone]
*[http://archive.churchsociety.org/crossway/documents/Cway_102_ApocryphaBackground.pdf BACKGROUND AND HISTORY TO THE APOCRYPHA, By David Phillips] Article reprinted from Cross†Way Issue Autumn 2006 No. 102 (archive.churchsociety.org)
*[http://churchsociety.org/issues_new/doctrine/misc/apocrypha/iss_doctrine_misc_apocrypha_origin.asp The Origin of the Apocrypha]
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=dtlDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA203&lpg=PA203&dq=apocryphal+books+having+evidence+of+hebrew+or+aramaic+origin&source=bl&ots=CkMPwQMciG&sig=y6w4tnI_wvIqyzCWqCoN3xo8mvQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VGGcVP2RH4r2yQT7toKYAw&ved=0CFMQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=apocryphal%20books%20having%20evidence%20of%20hebrew%20or%20aramaic%20origin&f=false The Apocrypha of the Old Testament: With Historical Introductions, a Revised Translation, and Notes Critical and Explanatory, by Edwin Cone Bissell. Scribner, 1890. 680 pages], page 208ff, citing evidence that the "additions to Esther" were also translated from the Hebrew. (Google eBook)</ref> The books excluded by this criteria were relatively recent Jewish contributions of the 3rd through the 1st centuries before Christ which had become part of Jewish culture. The rabbinical authorities simultaneously excluded as condemned and false the writings of the "heretics" (the ''minim'', including Christians, called nozrim, no§rim, "Nazarenes"), and cursed Christians in a synagogue service "benediction" against them and others. Palestinian texts of the Eighteen Benedictions from the Cairo Genizah <ref>[http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/treasures-in-the-wall The New Yorker: Page-Turner. March 1, 2013 Treasures in the Wall, by Emily Greenhouse] (newyorker.com) [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Genizah.html Jewish Virtual Library: Modern Jewish History: The Cairo Genizah, by Alden Oreck]</ref> present a text of the benediction which identifies the minim:<blockquote>"''For the apostates may there be no hope unless they return to Your Torah. As for the no§rim and the minim, may they perish immediately. Speedily may they be erased from the Book of Life, and may they not be registered among the righteous. Blessed are You, O Lord, Who subdues the wicked.''"</blockquote>While other specimens of the Palestinian liturgy show slight variation, the no§rim, (usually translated “Christians”) and minim are included in the best texts of this benediction. The fact remains that the no§rim were included with apostates and heretics and the wicked in the Genizah documents.<ref>[http://lawrenceschiffman.com/?s=the+benediction+against+the+minim Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman: The Benediction Against the Minim] (lawrenceschiffman.com) [http://www.defendingthebride.com/bb/curse.html DEFENDING THE BRIDE. THE CURSE AGAINST CHRISTIANS AT JAMNIA ABOUT 90 AD] (defendingthebride.com) [http://www.academia.edu/6811953/The_Jewish_Council_of_Jamnia_and_Its_Impact_on_the_Old_Testament_Canon_and_New_Testament_Studies The Jewish “Council” of Jamnia and Its Impact on the Old Testament Canon and New Testament Studies, Tim Gordon October 20, 2007] (academia.edu/6811953)</ref> Martin Luther and the leaders of the [[Reformation]] cite as authoritative and determinative the canon of the Hebrew Bible as defined by rabbinical authorities who excluded and condemned as false the entire New Testament scriptures and Jesus as the Messiah <ref name=Luther>Luther rejected the seven books of the Old Testament, citing the Palestinian Canon as his authority. Clearly his reasons were doctrinal. However, his decision poses serious difficulties. What authority from God would Jews have in the Christian era to determine which books of the Old Testament were or were not divinely inspired? In 1529, Luther proposed adoption of the 39-book canon of rabbinic Judaism as the Old Testament canon of the Christian Bible. He justified his decision to exclude seven books from the Old Testament canon of 46 books by an appeal to precedent, citing Jerome who, around A.D. 400 had expressed concerns also voiced by his rabbinical sources that these books in Greek had no Hebrew counterparts. Research into the Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran has discovered Hebrew copies of some of the disputed books, which makes their rejection on this ground unsupportable. Luther's principal reason for opposing these Old Testament books seems to be that they contain textual support for doctrines he had rejected, such as praying for the dead (2 Maccabees 12:42-45). See [http://www.totustuus.com/luther Luther and the Canon of the Bible, by Jim Seghers] [http://www.olswahiawa.org/uploads/2/1/8/4/21845996/session_3.pdf The Canon of the Bible] [http://catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2011/07/can-protestants-rely-upon-council-of.html Wednesday, July 20, 2011. Can Protestants Rely Upon the "Council of Jamnia" for Their Bible?]</ref> because "''unto them were committed the oracles of God.''" (see [http://biblehub.com/multi/romans/3-2.htm Romans 3:2]). This is an historical fact, and it presents a serious problem, known in logic ''as [[non sequitur]]''. If the Jews have been so entrusted with the word of God that they had therefore been given the divine authority to also determine the ''canon'' of sacred scripture, as Luther and the Reformation Protestants maintain, then the whole New Testament is excluded from the canon of the holy Bible because it does not meet the four established rabbinical criteria for what is sacred inspired scripture. See [[Logical fallacy]]

===The New Testament===
The [[New Testament]] is a collection of twenty-seven books and letters, written by the early Christian community, and written primarily in [[Greek]]. The emphasis of the New Testament is the life, teachings, and gift of salvation from the central figure of the whole work, Jesus of Nazareth. These books are grouped into the following:

====[[Gospels|The Gospels]]====
The ''Gospels'' contain the history of Jesus. The ''Acts of the Apostles'' are a continuance of the Gospels, documenting the history of the early church, beginning immediately following Jesus' death and resurrection. Of the authors, only Matthew and John had met Jesus; they were among His disciples during His earthly ministry. Eusebius, in his ''Ecclesiastical History'', says:<blockquote>"Matthew and John are the only ones that have left us recorded comments, and even they, tradition says, undertook it from necessity. Matthew also, having '''first proclaimed the Gospel in Hebrew''' when on the point of going also to other nations, '''committed it to writing in his native tongue''', and thus supplied the want of his presence to them by his writings. But after, when Mark and John had already published their Gospels, they say that John, who during all this time was proclaiming the gospel without writing, at length proceeded to write it on the following occasion. The three Gospels previously written, having been distributed among all, and also handed to him, they say that he admitted them, giving his testimony to their truth; but that there was only wanting in the narrative the account of the things done by Christ, among the first of his deeds, and at the commencement of the Gospel. And this was the truth." —Book III, Chapter XXIV.<ref>''The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine'', translated from the Greek, by the Rev. C. F. Crusé, A.M., assistant professor in the University of Pennsylvania. With Notes from the Edition of Valesius. London: George Bell and Sons, York Street, Covent Garden. 1874. ''Legacy Reprint Series''. Book III, Chapter XXIV The order of the Gospels. page 97</ref> (''book in the public domain. Boldface emphasis added'') .</blockquote> Eusebius relates the already-existing tradition in his day that Matthew wrote the first Gospel. In every manuscript of the New Testament, Matthew is always placed first, and for almost 1900 years the traditional view prevailed unchallenged that Matthew was the first Gospel written. This is called the [[Augustinian Hypothesis]], which holds that Matthew was the first Gospel, written by Matthew the Evangelist. Mark, according to tradition a Roman, and a companion of Peter, was author of the second Gospel, but beginning in the 19th century [[Heinrich Julius Holtzmann]] together with other German scholars, abusing the literary tools of [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|historical-critical methods]] in opposition to Christian tradition, declared on their authority as German scholars that Mark's gospel was the first to be written down, about A.D. 50. This theory is called "Marcan priority", and it was aggressively spread as part of [[Otto von Bismarck|Bismarck's]] anti-Catholic 'Kulturkampf' policy.<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/SCRIPTUR/KULTGOS.TXT Kulturkampf and the Gospel, by John Beaumont] [http://www.churchinhistory.org/pages/booklets/farmer%28n%29.htm Church in History. The ChurchinHistory Information Centre. BISMARCK AND THE FOUR GOSPELS 1870 - 1914, by William R. Farmer (University of Dallas) Editor of A NEW CATHOLIC BIBLE COMMENTARY. The theory that Mark's Gospel was published before Matthew's is widely held in German and English speaking countries. This article shows how this theory, with little supporting evidence, came to be spread as part of Bismarck's anti-Catholic 'Kulturkampf' policy. BIBLIOTHECA EPHEMERIDUM THEOLOGICARUM LOVANIENSIUM. THE FOUR GOSPELS. 1992] (churchinhistory.org)</ref> This view is widely held by liberal biblical scholars in German and English speaking countries. In the United States acceptance of Marcan Priority has often been a test of the "academic competency" of those faculty members who teach Biblical Studies.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=UYKvAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA282&lpg=PA282&dq=academic+persecution+regarding+Augustinian+hypothesis&source=bl&ots=iDysvbe5ii&sig=oNOrQku42-Tx-n-yBzhQtzAeQls&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VHKkVNa7IceiyAStsYKYAw&ved=0CEQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=academic%20persecution%20regarding%20Augustinian%20hypothesis&f=false Mark's Gospel--Prior or Posterior?: A Reappraisal of the Phenomenon of Order, By David Neville]</ref> Luke is traditionally considered to be the author of both the third Gospel and the ''Acts''.
*[[Gospel of Matthew]]
*[[Gospel of Mark]]
*[[Gospel of Luke]]
*[[Gospel of John]]
*[[Acts of the Apostles]]

====[[Pauline Epistles]]====
The Pauline Epistles are letters (epistles) written to early Christian communities written by the [[Apostle Paul]].
*[[Epistle to the Romans]]
*[[First Epistle to the Corinthians]]
*[[Second Epistle to the Corinthians]]
*[[Galatians|Epistle to the Galatians]]
*[[Epistle to the Philippians]]
*[[Epistle to Philemon]]
*[[First Epistle to the Thessalonians]]
*[[Second Epistle to the Thessalonians]]
*[[Ephesians|Epistle to the Ephesians]]
*[[Epistle to the Colossians]]
*[[First Epistle to Timothy]]
*[[Second Epistle to Timothy]]
*[[Epistle to Titus]]
*''Possibly the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]]''

[[Liberal]] Bible scholarship over the last two centuries has denied that Paul wrote Ephesians, 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus; and doubted that he wrote Colossians and 2 Thessalonians. However, all the epistles listed above except Hebrews say they are written by Paul. As they are authoritative Scripture which "cannot lie", their claims should be believed.

There is speculation that Paul may have written the ''Epistle to the Hebrews'', which does not mention an author; however, under the pure divine power of the Holy Spirit of God the Father through Jesus Christ himself—"he has spoken through the Prophets"—it could easily have been written by any early Christian except for Timothy, who is mentioned by name in the final chapter. The controversy, however, does not affect the genuineness of the epistle. <ref>Unger, pg. 748; Eusebius ''The History of the Church'' 3:3</ref>

The Council of Trent (1546) dogmatically affirmed that the Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the fourteen genuine epistles of Paul.
:—[http://www.bible-researcher.com/trent1.html Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent. The Fourth Session. Celebrated on the eighth day of the month of April, in the year 1546. English translation by James Waterworth (London, 1848)]

====[[General Epistles]]====
*[[Epistle of James]]
*[[First Epistle of Peter]]
*[[Second Epistle of Peter]]
*[[First Epistle of John]]
*[[Second Epistle of John]]
*[[Third Epistle of John]]
*[[Epistle of Jude]]

====Revelation====
The [[Book of Revelation]] is the last work in the New Testament as well as the whole Bible, written close to A.D. 100 by the [[Apostle John]] during his exile on the Greek island of [[Patmos]]. Revelation is concerned with the condition of the [[Seven Churches of Asia]] before going deeply into a description of the [[Last Days]] prior to the beginning of the [[Millennial Age]].

Most [[Fundamentalism|Fundamentalists]] hold to "[[Dispensationalism]]", an interpretive theory of the meaning of Revelation and other prophecies that was developed in the 19th century by British theologian [[John Nelson Darby]] (1800–82) and the [[Plymouth Brethren]], and is summarized in the ''[[Scofield Reference Bible]]'' edited and [[Christian Zionism#Dispensationalism|annotated]] by [http://poweredbychrist.homestead.com/files/cyrus/scofield.htm Cyrus I. Scofield] (1909, 1917). See [http://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/scofield-reference-notes/ Scofield's Reference Notes]

==Non-uniformity of language and style of original Scriptures==

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament, in the original languages of Hebrew (and Aramaic) and Greek, exhibit a non uniformity of style and language. This is in sharp contrast to most modern translations which treat the Scriptures throughout as if they are one book instead of the many books they are. Modern translations can be erudite, dignified, folksy and common, clear and geared for the "common man", or replete with language resonant with literary associations for the "accomplished" reader. But they are that way throughout. The Biblical originals, on the other hand, for example, embedded in the Hebrew within the narrative of the deeds of the prophetess Debora, have in the Song of Deborah (Judges chapter 5) a much more ancient and even archaic Hebrew than that of the main text of the book, probably emanating from a chant from the time of Deborah herself, plainly evident to any person who has studied Hebrew language. The same with the narrative and poetic portions concerning Moses. The human authors, inspired by God, were careful to preserve the integrity of the original inspired songs which they had faithfully recorded or otherwise copied and included in their narratives. There are even different Hebrew languages (rather dialects) from the same historical period but from different authors living during the same time, having come from different origins and cultural levels.<ref name=Steinberg/>

For the New Testament, an example of non-uniformity can be found in the stark differences of language in the Gospel of Luke, written by Luke the physician. The early accounts, those concerning the birth of Jesus and early life, are written in a stilted and often crude Greek while the rest of the Gospel is written in fine Greek befitting of the background and ability of a learned physician. But when the stilted and crude Greek is retranslated, word for word and phrase for phrase, into the Hebrew current in the first century in most parts of Israel (a technique called "back translation"), it becomes excellent Hebrew - Mishnaic Hebrew. This is because of the intent and fastidiousness of Luke, who derived his material, as he says, from people that had been "on the scene", and his success in transmitting it faithfully as he had received it. Both the Old and New Testaments, for various reasons, exhibit little or no concern to "level through" or override the content of what they are saying by stylistic considerations.

===Inspiration===
Although the Old Testament is written by many [[homo sapiens|human]] authors, New Testament authors know that these men were writing under the inspiration of God.

The apostle [[Paul]] wrote that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).
Similarly the apostle [[Saint Peter|Peter]] wrote, "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:20-21).

====Formation of New Testament and Jewish technical transmission====
In the first century and prior, the ear was more important than the eye, as far as retaining in memory. Jews would receive orally, that is, from hearing, the laws that they believed originated with Moses and then passed them on to others, down through the generations. It was important to link the present rabbis by names who taught it with the rabbis by name who had passed it on to them, on back as far as possible to Moses on Mt. Sinai. This was the startling difference of Jesus. By saying "You have heard it said, but I say unto you...", He was by-passing Moses and the others after and getting His teaching direct from the Father.

This Jewish way of receiving (QBL) and handing on (MSR) is summed up in the lead saying of the "Ethics of the Fathers" tractate of the [[Mishna]], "Moses received Torah from God at Sinai. He transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the elders, the elders to the prophets, the prophets to the members of the Great Assembly [Sanhedrin] (1:1)." The teaching thus transmitted was memorized word for word by groups of disciples (Talmidim) together, thereby minimizing, by the common knowledge and public repetitions, all innovations and errors, though there might well have been "stylizing" for ease of retention and recall, receiving and handing on (transmission).

This methodology, with its technical Hebrew terminology appears in the New Testament with the same technical meaning and purpose, for how the earliest Christian teaching was carried on prior to the formation of the New Testament and during the time of its formation. This ensured the validity of the teaching and its authenticity going back, not to Moses, but to the time of Jesus Himself. "For I handed over (Gk. pare'doka, Heb. MSR) to you at the first what I also received (Gk. pare'labon, Heb. QBL) that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, and that He was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures..." l Cor. 15:3. Paul knew all of the "deposit of faith" three ways, in the usual "collaborative" way of God - from Scriptures (the Old Testament), from experience (seeing the living Christ on the road to Damascas), and from authenticated oral tradition/transmission involving "receiving" and "handing on".

==Authority of Bible in religious communities==
The role of the Bible in the life of differing communities varies widely by both the inner tenents of the community and the outer influences bearing on the community.
===Judaism===
Orthodox Judaism through the centuries, while it was only marginally affected by growing secularization and modern learning, held to a "differing levels of authority" understanding of the authority of the Hebrew Bible. This did not imply different levels of inspiration, but rather that importance to the regulation of life was prime for the Torah of Moses, the 5 books of the Law. But the Pharasaic teaching also posited an Oral Law given to Moses by God that was passed on through the centuries through Joshua, the prophets, pairs of Rabbis, until this day. The Oral law is found in the Talmud (Mishna and the Gemara together). The oral law became the decisive interpreter, teacher and regulator of the Written Law and determined the course of Jewish Orthodox life. The second section of the Old Testament, the Prophets, is known to the Jewish Community primarily through the synagogue readings of the prophets, the Haftorah, that are assigned to conclude the weekly reading of the Law. The Psalms, the most formative of all the Writings, besides being common throughout the synagogue services, are used in various devotional prayer contexts. Orthodox Judaism has little been affected by modern Higher Criticism of the Bible. Reformed Judaism, originally developed in Germany, and Conservative Judaism, to a lesser extent, have been greatly affected.

===Mainline Protestants===
Mainline Protestantism, represented in the major Protestant churches, denominations, sects and their seminaries, has greatly been affected by "modernism" based on advanced scholarly research, especially from Germany in the 19th century. Those who abused the legitimate tools "Higher Criticism" chose as a fundamental liberal [[premise]] to ignore God's participation in the production of Scripture. Prime among these theories is the Documentary theory of Penteteuch origins (Wellhausen-Graff) that posits that Moses wrote little or nothing. Instead, they propose that the Bible originated in four unknown hypothetical sources coming from various periods. These four sources are termed J (for the use of "Jehovah" for the name of God), E (for the use of "Elohim"), P (priestly), and D (Deuteronomic). The "spirit" of the New Testament (according to their understanding of what they think is the probable main attitude of the writers, derived from the overall impression gained from a generally humanist religious point of view) is far more important than the text of either Testament for modern Protestant theology.

====Orthodox Jewish critique of Documentary theory====
Jewish Orthodox scholars have pointed to flaws in the Documentary Hypothesis. For instance, Orthodox Jewish Scholar Cassuto has pointed out that rather than the names for God varying according to author and period, they vary according to emphasis from the same period, that of Moses - "Jehovah" being used for God in his dealing with His covenental people Israel, and "Elohim" being used when His dealings with mankind are emphasized. Likewise the two terms usually translated "making a covenant", ''lkhrot brit'' (to "cut" a covenant) and ''lehaqim brit'' (to "raise" a covenenat) are not from two sources but mean two different things - to initiate a covenant and to fulfill a covenant.

===Evangelical Protestants===
Evangelical Protestantism believes strongly in the divine inspiration and inerrancy of the whole Bible and has been the most receptive of the doctrine of the full sufficiency of Biblical Authority. Believing in full inspiration of the whole of Scripture does not mean to evangelicalism the equal importance of all Scriptures for the healthy growth of the Christian community. This is because Evangelicalism, following Scripture's own self-disclosure, believes in progressive revelation throughout Biblical time, culminating in Jesus Christ, and no further (thus obviating the role of Tradition). Thus Evangelicalism, does not hold to the application of Mosaic Legislation, and other biblical elements that Orthodox Judaism holds to. This applies to faith and to morals. The Mosaic regulation on executing a rebellious child does not present a problem for evangelical thought as, according to Paul and Hebrews, the Law has been rendered obsolete by the New Covenant. The Destruction of the Temple and of the place for sacrifice of all kinds, present no problem for evangelicalism, as they did for Judasim, as Christ's sacrifice on the cross has now "fulfilled" the prescriptions of the Law and the ceremonials attached. Thus there is a sort of "levels of authority" understanding for evangelicalism similar to the levels of authority of Judaism (but for different reasons).

Evangelical Churches vigorously promote the reading of Scripture through Sunday sermons and Bible study programs. Emphasis is placed on "each one understanding". Coupled with American individualism, and lack of traditional vehicles of authority, this sometimes leads to splintering of worshiping communities and the insistence that each man's interpretation "is as good as any other". Nevertheless, "The Fundamentals" defined in 1910 are strongly retained by the Evangelical Churches - the divinity of Christ, His death for sins and Resurrection from the dead, His second coming.<ref>''[http://web.archive.org/web/20030101082327/http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/6528/fundcont.htm The Fundamentals: A Testimony To The Truth'', 1910–1915, 4 Vol.] [http://www.biola.edu/about/history/ Bible Institute of Los Angeles,] ed. [http://www.dbts.edu/journals/1996_1/ACDIXON.PDF A. C. Dixon], [[Reuben Archer Torrey]].</ref>

===Eastern Orthodox===
The Orthodox Churches throughout the world, whether Greek, Russian, Romanian, the various middle eastern varieties, emphasize the role of the synod (Council) of Bishops, based on the example of the "Council" of Jerusalem in the book of Acts, as the divinely authorized agent of interpretation and application of the Scriptures. Understanding that Jesus' words, "He (the Holy Spirit) will lead you into all truth", Orthodoxy believes that the synod of bishops, no one of whom is held to be individually infallible, are given guidance from the Holy Spirit so that the Scriptures are rightly applied to the Christian Community, enabling the Church to never stray from Christ, that is, the Church is given "indefectability". A minority of Orthodox Church thought holds to "infallibility" in synodal decision rather than, or instead of, "indefectability". The Scriptures in the Orthodox churches are buttressed by creedal formulations, the decisions of belief of past synods, and are less susceptible to the liberalist abuses of the legitimate methods of modern Higher Criticism. The Resurrection of Christ, virgin birth, return of Christ from Heaven to Earth, are all part and parcel of these churches. Individual interpretation of Scripture and manner of life are limited, then, by the teaching authority (the magisterium) granted to the Episcopate - the Synod of bishops.

===Roman Catholic===
The Roman Catholic Church, like the Orthodox Churches, has a strong sense of the Authority ([[Magisterium]]) given to the Bishops by Christ to teach, interpret, defend the Faith and therefore to exercise the responsibility to interpret to the Faithful both Holy Scripture and Apostolic Tradition. But since Vatican II, there has been an increased effort to bring Scriptural knowledge to the laity, and now there has been an increase of Scripture reading and study programs throughout most sections of the Church. This as been abetted by the Catholic Charismatic movement which has had the effect of promoting individual appropriation of the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, and with that, the correlate devotional and intellectual use of Holy Scriptures. However, the role of "Magisterium", that is the Teaching Authority, sets firm limits to individual interpretation. The Roman Catholic church understands that, though Magisterial authority is given to all the bishops, the definitive exercise of the Magisterium is limited to one bishop - the bishop of Rome, the Pope, and to the bishops in communion together with him. Further, Catholicism teaches that the Pope, when he declares dogma (teaching) ''ex-Cathedra'' (from the chair), he speaks infallibly (on matters of faith and morals). The first time the Pope promulgated dogma ''ex-cathedra'' formally was to promulgate the doctrine itself of Papal Infallibility, based on Scripture, history, and reason.<ref>[http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum20.htm Papal Encyclicals Online. Decrees of the First Vatican Council] [http://www.catholic.com/tracts/papal-infallibility Catholic Answers. Papal Infallibility]</ref> The Pope, through the Vatican prelates and all the bishops can regulate much of Catholic community life, and some of the regulation is based on the interpretation of Scripture or the application of the traditional interpretation of Scripture. An example of this is the prohibition of abortion. The Church has accepted in a fundamentally modified form most of the legitimate modern [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|Higher Critical methodology]] of studying Scripture, including the [[Documentary Hypothesis]] of origins first developed within German Protestantism. But the effects of this on the tenets of the Christian Faith are profoundly mitigated due to the creedal affirmations of the Church developed centuries ago and to the discernment of Papal authority. Thus the Roman Catholic Church does not waver on the Deity of Christ, the Trinity, the death and resurrection of Christ, and the Second Coming.

==Evangelical Understanding of the History of the Bible==
Rejecting the "Higher Criticism" accepted by the mainline Protestant denominations, Evangelicals and many Catholics hold to a more traditional history of the Bible. This section summarizes their views.

[[Image:Gospel of Luke in Arab.gif|thumb|This tenth-century Egyptian codex was donated to Pope Eugenius IV by the Coptic delegates at the Council of Ferrara-Florence. Translated from a Coptic original, it is one of the earliest Arabic versions of any part of the New Testament, none of which can be dated before the late eighth or ninth centuries.]]

Traditionally, the oldest books of the Bible are certainly the five books of the Torah and the Book of Job. In 1st Kings 6:1, Solomon is stated to have begun building the Temple "''in the 480th year after the children of Israel were come up out of the land of Egypt''". It has been established by a majority of conservative scholars and historians that Solomon had begun building the Temple in the fourth year of his reign, apparently in 961 B.C., making the probable [[date of the Exodus]] under Moses 1441 B.C. During the following forty years Moses wrote the Torah and the Book of Job, completing them before his death at [[Mt. Nebo]] about 1400 B.C. According to Biblical scholar and historian Robert D. Wilson the Torah as it stands dates from the time of Moses, the five books constitute one continuous work, and was written by a single individual, Moses himself (Wilson, pg 11).<ref>Wilson, Robert D. ''A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament'', Sunday School Times, Inc, Philadelphia, PA (1926)</ref>

The remaining books of the Old Testament were written at various times since the death of Moses, with ''Malachi'', the last Hebrew Old Testament book, being written about 455 B.C. During this period each of the books was written and re-written on parchment or papyrus, with editors taking great care in their work; a single Biblical book hand-written today can take weeks to complete. The older scrolls were disposed of by burial or storage in a ''Geniza'' room when worn from normal usage (the Cairo Geniza is famous for the antiquity of the scrolls discovered within it) because the Jews have a devout horror of destroying the sacred script containing the transmitted revelation of God; as a result, the oldest surviving examples of Biblical manuscripts are those which have been carefully preserved either by direct actions of people (such as monasteries), or by removal from forces of decay. Currently, the oldest surviving manuscripts are those found carefully stored in clay jars within the caves of Qumran in 1948 and known as the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]], dating between 250 B.C. to A.D. 70; the complete ''Isaiah'' scroll of this collection dates to 150 B.C.

Around 200 B.C. the [[Septuagint]], a Greek-language version of the Old Testament, was completed. This was due to the Hellenization of large areas of the Middle East after the conquest of Alexander the Great, making Greek the defacto language for everyday communications and business. The Septuagint marks the first time in history that the Bible was translated into a foreign language. An ancient fragment of the Septuagint containing the Tetragrammaton (Greek, "four letters", that is, of the name of God, YHWH) has been dated between 50 B.C. and A.D. 50.<ref>[http://www.eliyah.com/lxx.html Tetragrammaton Found in Earliest Copies of the Septuagint]</ref>

See [[Literalist Bible chronology]].

===Early New Testament history===
In 1st Timothy 5:8, Paul quoted as scripture ''"the laborer is worthy of his hire."'' This line is found nowhere else in the Bible except Matthew 10:10 and Luke 5:7. In 2nd Peter 3:15-16, Peter classes Paul's letters with "other scriptures". Both lines are indicative of the writing down and general use of the New Testament prior to A.D. 60 (Halley, pg. 741-742).<ref>Halley, Henry H. Halley's Bible Handbook, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI (1965)</ref> Spurious "gospels" which are known to have appeared by A.D. 100, make references to the New Testament. [[Clement of Rome]], writing in his own letter to the Corinthians in A.D. 95, refers to ''Matthew'', ''Luke'', ''Corinthians'', ''Hebrews'', ''1st Timothy'', and ''1st Peter'' (Halley, pg. 743).

The oldest surviving New Testament fragment of which there is a reliable date is the [[John Rylands Fragment]] (P52) of the ''Gospel of John'', dating from 117-138 A.D., just decades from when the Gospel was first written. <ref>[http://www.biblefacts.org/history/oldtext.html N.T. Ancient Manuscripts]</ref> The time span between the writing of the New Testament and the oldest surviving fragments are well under two hundred years. By comparison, Greek classics such as [[Herodotus]], [[Plato]], [[Euripides]], and [[Homer]] have a time span well over a thousand years each between the date of the oldest known fragment of writing and the time period they were first written.

==Translations==
===The Peshitta===
The second translated version of the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament (after the Greek Septuaginta) was in the Aramaic language, the Peshitta (Aram. "''simple, common''"). In A.D. 36, both the Queen of Adiabene (the last existing Province of that Assyrian Empire hated and feared by the Jews), known in Greek as Queen Helena (not the mother of Constantine), and known to the Jews as Queen Shlom Zion ("Peace of Zion"), and her son King Ezad were converted to Judaism. Queen Helena's conversion, as well as others of the Kingdom, furthered the already developing translation of the Hebrew Scriptures in her Kingdom's language -Aramaic. That developing translation came to be known as the Peshitta - meaning simple or common speech, in much the same way as the Hebrew Bible would be translated into Latin by Jerome, with extensive help from a Rabbi, and the resultant translation would be called the Vulgate - meaning simple or common speech. The Peshitta, retaining elements of the then Jewish "[[Targum]]ic" (interpretive) and other Jewish understandings of the Hebrew Bible (see [[Midrash]]), is primarily based on the Pre-Masoretic Hebrew Scriptures - though certain books, such as the Prophet Isaiah, are translations primarily from the Septuagint. The development of the Old Testament Peshitta translation is held by some to have taken place alternatively in Adiabene's nearby neighbor Edessa.

As Thomas and his followers went to India, others (possibly Adai [Thaddeus] among them, the Galilean from Caesarea Phillipi) arrived in [[Adiabene]]. Having gone probably to the synagogues first, as did the Apostle Paul, they found already there, if not a populous citizenry, then an elite governmental element, conversant with the Biblical message in Aramaic. From these people, hearing the preaching of the messengers from Israel, came believers in Jesus Christ, and soon after, came the translation of the Greek New Testament Scriptures into Aramaic, and so the Peshitta was increased by inclusion of the New Testament in Aramaic. Most of the deuterocanonical and apocryphal books of the Old Testament are found in the Syriac, held to have been translated from the Hebrew and not from the Septuagint. The rest of the Old Testament known to the early Syrian church was substantially that of the Palestinian Jews but it arranged them in a different order. First there was the Pentateuch, then Job, Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Book of Sirach and most of the deuterocanonical and apocryphal books of the Old Testament, Ruth, Canticles, Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, Isaiah followed by the Twelve Minor Prophets, Jeremiah and Lamentations, Ezekiel, and lastly Daniel. Unlike the Greek canon of the New Testament Scriptures, the Peshitta originally did not include the following books: the Second Epistle of Peter, the Second Epistle of John, the Third Epistle of John, the Epistle of Jude and the Book of Revelation. But these books translated into the Syriac (as Christian Aramaic is known) are now part of the Peshitta and used by the Aramaic based churches today, primarily in India and the Middle East - the Syrian Catholic Church, the Assyrian Church of the East (Holy Apostolic and Catholic Church of the East), the Indian Orthodox Church, the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Maronite Church, the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, the Syro-Malabar Church and the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.<ref>See the following articles and resources:
*[http://www.bible-researcher.com/syriac-isbe.html International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915) Article: Syriac Versions. Thomas Nicol]
*[http://www.peshitta.org/initial/peshitta.html History of the Peshitta]
*[http://www.peshitta.org/ Aramaic/English Interlinear New Testament]
*[http://scrollandscreen.com/syriac/index.htm Biblical Studies and Technological Tools. Syriac Tools and Resources] ''access to Syriac Old and New Testaments''
*[http://aramaicnt.org/articles/problems-with-peshitta-primacy/ Problems with Peshitta Primacy]
*[http://madenkha.net/holy_bible/ Index of Holy Bible] ''online access to Aramaic Text of Old and New Testaments of Peshitta''</ref>

Adiabene and its surroundings then became the sending center for a mission to the East that would eventually take advantage of the newly rediscovered monsoon winds blowing for months across the Arabian sea, making it possible for ships' pilots to no longer hug the coasts. And taking advantage of the "[[Silk Road]]" all the way from Antioch in Syria to China, they took the message of Jesus Christ to India (bringing about the Aramaic [Syriac] language churches of Kerala) and even to China itself. And so, the Peshitta, written in the Middle East, for a while became the Scriptures of the Far East Churches of Jesus Christ, particularly in India.

See [[Monophysite]]

===The Vulgate===
[[Jerome]], a Latin scholar deeply interested in the study of the Scriptures, completed the second edition of the Bible in the Latin language. The ''[[Vulgate]]'' was meant to replace the inaccuracies of the earlier ''[[Vetus Latina]]'' (the Old Latin version), the standard Bible of the early Catholic Church in Latin. Jerome had moved to [[Jerusalem]] in 382, and set to work on what eventually became a fresh Latin translation of the Old Testament from the Greek of the ''Septuagint'' and a translation of the Greek New Testament into Latin; then from 390-405 he decided to re-translate his Old Testament directly from the Hebrew text then in use by the Jewish community, which pre-dated the revision of the [[Masoretic Text|Hebrew text]] later written by the Masoretic Hebrew scholars of Judaism between the 7th and 10th centuries. The ''Vulgate'' Bible of 76 books (49 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books) had a marked influence in church history, and it remained the standard Latin Bible in the Roman Catholic Church for centuries. After the Council of Trent defined the canon of the holy Bible as 73 books of scripture "with all their parts", and 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh had been placed in an appendix to the definitive Clementine Vulgate critical edition, the Vulgate was henceforth the dogmatically defined canonical Bible of the Catholic Church. After 1450 years of use the Vulgate was finally replaced by the ''[[Nova Vulgata]]'' in 1979. The earliest surviving complete manuscript of the entire Latin Bible is the Codex Amiatinus, produced in eighth century England at the double monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow.<ref>The Codex Amiatinus is the most celebrated manuscript of the Latin Vulgate Bible, remarkable as the best witness to the true text of St. Jerome and as a fine specimen of medieval calligraphy. [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04081a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Codex Amiatinus] [http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-27372773 BBC News Tyne and Wear. 15 May 2014. Codex Amiatinus Bible returns to its home in Jarrow] [http://www.facsimilefinder.com/facsimiles/codex-amiatinus-facsimile Codex Amiatinus Facsimile Edition]</ref>

===Early English translations authorized by Rome===

Vernacular translations into English and other languages have been authorized by the [[Holy See]] since as early as A.D. 600. Partial translations of the Bible into languages of the English people can be traced back to the end of the 7th century, including translations into Old English and Middle English.<ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/anglosaxon.html Anglo-Saxon Versions of Scripture (A.D. 600–1150)] (bible-researcher.com)</ref> A number of Old English Bible translations survive, as do many instances of glosses in the vernacular, especially in the Gospels and the Psalms.<ref>See Roberts, Jane (2011). “Some Psalter Glosses in Their Immediate Context”, in ''Palimpsests and the Literary Imagination of Medieval England'', eds. Leo Carruthers, Raeleen Chai-Elsholz, Tatjana Silec. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 61-79, which looks at three Anglo-Saxon glossed psalters and how layers of gloss and text, language and layout, speak to the meditative reader. See Marsden, Richard (2011), "The Bible in English in the Middle Ages", in The Practice of the Bible in the Middle Ages: Production, Reception and Performance in Western Christianity (New York: Columbia University Press, 2011), pp. 272-295.</ref>

The age of Middle English (1066-1500) beginning with the Norman conquest and ending about 1500 covers the period of authorized and unauthorized Middle English Bible translations.

===Heresies based on abusive use of vernacular translations===

The abuse of vernacular translations of Sacred Scripture made available to the common people was a prominent feature of heresies during the roughly 400 year period from 1100 to 1500.

For example, the Albigensians (also called Cathari "''the pure''"), prevalent during the 12th and 13th centuries in western Europe, particularly in southern France and northern Italy, rejected the authority of Church and State. They appealed to the Scriptures as authority for their doctrines, mostly the New Testament, because the Old Law was regarded by them according to their teaching as mainly a demoniacal creation. Like [[Marcion]] in the 2nd century, they taught the [[Manichaean]] doctrine of two Gods, and that the evil God created matter and the whole physical universe to entrap and enslave divine spirits of light, and was the God of the Old Testament and the God of the Jews. They forbade marriage, sexual relations between spouses, condemned the begetting of children, and praised those who chose to starve themselves to death.<ref>[http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Heresies_Heretics/Heresies_Heretics_006.htm Albigensianism, by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.] [http://www.stisidore-yubacity.org/faqalbigenses.html What is the Albigenses/Albigensian Heresy? Albigenses] [http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=31727 Dictionary: Albigensians] (catholicculture.org)</ref>

Another example is Waldo (Valdo), from the city of Lyons, also variously referred to as Valdes, Valdesius, Valdensius. References to the movement he founded call his disciples "Waldensians", "the poor of Lyons", "the Leonese", "the Poor of Lombardy", or simply "the Poor". He arranged for the Gospels and some other books of the Bible to be translated into common speech which he read very often, but without understanding their real meaning. The translations produced were full of mistakes and mistranslations which changed the meaning of the scriptures. Infatuated with his own interpretation of these defective scriptures he usurped authority by presuming to preach the Gospel in the streets, where he made many disciples, and involved them, both men and women, in a similar act of presumption by sending them out, in turn, to preach. These people, ignorant and illiterate, went about through the towns, entering houses and even churches, disturbing families, disrupting worship services, ignoring civil statutes and laws, and spreading many errors. The principal heresy of the Waldensians was contempt for (ignoring of) ecclesiastical power and rejection of governmental authority. They capitalized on the fact that the common people were scandalized by evident corruption and abuses of legitimate authority by individuals in Church and in secular government who, like [[Balaam]] and [[Judas]], betrayed Christ for the sake of gain, in direct and indifferent disobedience to the teaching of the Church. And they opportunistically misrepresented these clearly [http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/aberration aberrent] scandals as if they were authentically representative of the actual teaching and doctrine of the Church (thereby committing what has been defined as sins of [[calumny]] and [[detraction]], fueled by actual [[scandal]]). The Waldensian dispute then, centered on the issue of authority. The fact that they translated the scriptures badly, studied these translations, drew their own conclusions as to what they meant, and "presumed" to preach whatever they believed, without reference to the clergy, was unacceptable.<ref>[http://www.xenos.org/essays/waldensian-movement-waldo-reformation Xenos Christian Fellowship. The Waldensian Movement From Waldo to the Reformation, by Dennis McCallum] (xenos.org)</ref>

A similar phenomenon has animated movements in the 20th and 21st centuries, "[[cult]]s" which claim authority from their founders' particular interpretations of the Bible, doctrines which have resulted in bizarre and self-destructive behavior, all "''based on the Word of God''", such as [[Jonestown]], the [[Branch Davidians]] of [[David Koresh]], and the [[Heaven's Gate]] U.F.O. group. In the 21st century in the United States, the extremist teaching of [[Fred Phelps]] and the [[Westboro Baptist Church]] presents a milder example, claiming the authority of the Bible for their disruptive activities.

In the late Middle Ages, because of the evident, ongoing, and repeated "''[[clear and present danger]]''" to society and to the mental, moral and physical health of the people, so consistently resulting from the direct and apparent association of heretical movements with the act of translating the Bible into the vernacular for anyone to read and interpret as he or she pleased, the Catholic Church began to severely curtail authorization for new translations into the vernacular and subsequently rarely granted permission to anyone who desired to undertake the task during that troubled period, in an attempt to avoid contributing to the problem by providing additional material which, in those days, would certainly give only more occasion for abuse of the meaning of the ''Holy Scriptures'', added to contempt for the authority of the office of the leaders of the Church and the stability of society under the legitimate authority of the office of duly appointed governors, princes and kings.

See [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%207:6&version=NABRE Matthew 7:6], also [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2corinthians%202:17&version=NABRE 2 Corinthians 2:17] and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2corinthians%2011:2-20&version=NABRE 11:2-20], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=galatians%201:6-9&version=NABRE Galatians 1:6-9], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=colossians%202:18-19&version=NABRE Colossians 2:18-19], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2peter%201:20-2:3&version=NABRE 2 Peter 1:20-2:3] and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2peter%203:14-17&version=NABRE 3:14-17]. —See also [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2022:27&version=NABRE Exodus 22:27( KJV 22:28 )], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2016:1-11&version=NABRE Numbers 16:1-11],[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%2013:1-5&version=NABRE Romans 13:1-5], and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:8&version=NABRE Jude 8], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:11&version=NABRE 11], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:17-19&version=NABRE 17-19]. Compare [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%202:17-24&version=NABRE Romans 2:17-24]

See [[Cafeteria Christianity]] and [[Cafeteria Catholic]].

''For a more detailed treatment, see '''[http://www.catholic.com/tracts/the-great-heresies The Great Heresies''']''

==Printing==
[[Image:Gutenburg1.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Printers copy of a page from a Gutenberg Bible, printed in Germany about 1469.]]
[[Johannes Gutenberg]] of [[Mainz]], [[Germany]] invented the first mechanical printing press in 1448. His machine consisted of a large press which when cranked down, pressed a sheet of paper upon a platform in which were set thousands of inked metal letter typefaces (called "movable type"), set in place to read for a particular page. The first book in history printed by this method was the [[Gutenberg Bible]], in the ''Vulgate'' Latin version, of which 180 were printed, and approximately 50 survive today in varying conditions around the world.

The Gutenberg Bible marked another first: printed Bibles could be mass produced to get them into the hands of many people at a low cost. They first had to be translated out of Latin into a common language, and [[Martin Luther]] made the great German translation, 1522-1534. The Protestant Reformers emphasized that laymen should study the Bible, and printing made it possible for them to go beyond the interpretations shown in [[stained glass windows]] (the "Bible of the illiterate") to the actual text.

==English language versions of the Bible==

===Wycliff's Bible===
The first translation of the whole Latin Bible into English by dissident scholars in the English Catholic Church was made under the supervision of the English cleric [[John Wyclif]] in the 1380's, with the assistance of Nicholas Hereford and John Purvey. Wyclif held that the Bible should be placed directly in the hands of the people, but was this was opposed by the English Church hierarchy of his day; indeed, one of Wyclif's opponents, Henry Knighton, compared giving the Bible to the people in English to "casting pearls before swine". Archbishop Arundel of Canterbury promulgated a ban on all English Bibles in 1407, and possession of one was considered evidence of [[heresy]].

Wyclif's was a scholarly translation, based on the [[Latin]], [[Greek]], and [[Hebrew]] texts, but was found to be unwieldy due to its adherence to Latin grammar (in which, for instance, verbs tend to be at the end of sentences). A second Wycliffite translation was prepared late in this period, which avoided this problem, but due to the fact that it could only be distributed in manuscript form, it was an expensive volume. Outside of the nobility and gentry, it was more common to see only a single [[The Gospels|Gospel]], or a copy of the Psalms, rather than an entire Bible, which cost more than the average working person could earn in a year.

Over the next century, its form of English gradually became antiquated, leading English Protestants such as [[William Tyndale]] to feel that an entirely new translation was needed.

===Tyndale===
During the middle of the 16th century there was a renewed sense of the need to get the Bible directly into the hands of the common man; prior to that the Bible was restricted to readings in the Church alone. The Reformers were a group of people who were shocked at the differences between what the Roman Catholic Church was practicing as opposed to their readings (interpretations) of what the Bible stated can or cannot be done (this was one of the causes of the [[Reformation]]). At great cost to themselves, the Reformers began the work of translating the Bible in the various languages of Europe; the printing press would ensure the newly-translated Bibles would be mass-produced.

[[William Tyndale]] was committed to getting the Bible into the hands of his English countrymen. Expressing open defiance of the Pope, Tyndale declared that if God would spare his life he would make it possible for even an ordinary farmer to know more about the Scriptures than the Pope. <ref>[http://creationwiki.org/Biblical_canon#Tyndale CreationWiki. Bible Canon#Tyndale] (creationwiki.org)</ref> Tyndale's translation of the New Testament was completed on the Continent by 1525. By April, 1526, 6,000 copies were printed and delivered to England. Official opposition led to the destruction of most of them, not because of the translation of the Biblical text itself, but because Tyndale also held and published views which were considered heretical, first by the Catholic Church, and later by the Church of England, which was established by King [[Henry VIII]] in 1536.<ref>Act of Supremacy, (1534) English act of Parliament that recognized Henry VIII as the “Supreme Head of the Church of England.” [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574743/Act-of-Supremacy Encyclopedia Britannica. Act of Supremacy: England [1534] [http://www.britainexpress.com/History/tudor/supremacy-henry-text.htm Henry VIII 's Act of Supremacy (1534) - original text]</ref> His Bible translation also included notes and commentary promoting these views.<ref>[http://www.tyndale-bible.com/tyndale-bible-history.html TYNDALE BIBLE HISTORY. William Tyndale (1494-1536). The History of William Tyndale and his Bibles] [http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=4749&CFID=4143742&CFTOKEN=81204680 Tyndale's Heresy, by Matthew A. C. Newsome] [http://www.bible-researcher.com/tyndale4.html Tyndale] (bible-researcher.com) [http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/william-tyndale.html English Bible History. William Tyndale] (greatsite.com) [http://wesley.nnu.edu/sermons-essays-books/william-tyndales-translation/ The Wesley Center Online: '''William Tyndale's Translation'''] ''online access to the text of Tyndale's Bible''.</ref> Tyndale's translation was banned by the authorities. Even King Henry VIII in 1531 condemned the Tyndale Bible as a corruption of Scripture. In the words of King Henry's advisors: "the translation of the Scripture corrupted by William Tyndale should be utterly expelled, rejected, and put away out of the hands of the people, and not be suffered to go abroad among his subjects." <ref>Henry Grey Graham, Where we got the Bible: Our debt to the Catholic Church © 1977 Tan Books and Publishers, Inc. 153 pages. ASIN: B0006YDQ5Q p. 128-130.</ref> Bishop [[Tunstall]] of London <ref>[http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/tunstall.htm Cuthbert Tunstall]</ref> declared that there were upwards of 2,000 errors in Tyndale's Bible.<ref>[http://catholicapologetics.info/apologetics/general/charge.htm The Charge of Burning Bibles]</ref> The following year Tyndale himself, at the instigation of agents of Henry VIII and the Anglican Church, was arrested and, for his efforts, charged with heresy, and, on May 21, 1536, was executed, burned at the stake. Nevertheless, the printing press rendered it impossible to completely suppress such a book, and new copies were printed on the Continent and smuggled into [[England]]. His efforts at translating the Bible led to the [[Matthews Bible]] (1537) and the [[Bishop's Bible]] (1568), but with many of his notes radically edited by censors or editors, or entirely removed, and these versions led to the [[Geneva Bible]] (1599), and finally to the [[King James Bible|King James Version]], where ninety percent of the text closely follows Tyndale's translation.

===Authorised or King James Version===
[[Image:E-sword.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The internet has increased the availability of the Bible world-wide. Shown here is a screenshot to [[E-Sword]], a freely-downloadable Bible study program. <ref>[http://www.e-sword.net E-Sword]</ref> (Rick Meyers, 2007)]]
In 1601 King [[James I]] selected forty-seven of the ablest scholars in [[England]] to undertake the creation of a standard Bible in English, based upon careful translations of the [[Masoretic Text]] used by the Jewish community, and the best Greek translations (especially the ''[[Textus Receptus]]'') then available. The scholars were divided into six committees in [[Oxford]], [[Westminster]], and [[Cambridge]], with each scholar dedicating himself to doing a portion of the Bible, often consulting each other to check the flow and harmony of the work in progress. The result was the 1611 Authorised Version, known in [[United States of America|America]] as the [[King James Bible|King James Version]].

In its early days, the KJV was heavily criticized; but in time, with official pressure, it won the field and became "the Bible" for English-reading people—a position it held for almost 400 years.<ref>''Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary''. "Bible Translations", Jack P. Lewis and Charles W. Draper. p. 214.</ref>

The effects of the Authorised Version were profound. Using less than 2,500 different words in its vocabulary, this Bible was written in a poetic style matched by few. The work influenced the writings of [[Shakespeare]]. [[John Milton]] has numerous images taken from this Bible in his ''[[Paradise Lost]]''. The direct style of writing caused it to be easily available to the common man. Poets and writers, such as [[Herman Melville]], [[Walt Whitman]], [[Emily Dickinson]] and many others were deeply inspired by it. It altered the course of English history, with England growing to a world power since the book's publication. When asked by a visiting dignitary what made England great, [[Queen Victoria]] pulled out her copy of the Bible and declared "This is the secret of England's greatness."

====Problems with the King James Version====

{{main|Badger skins (Bible)}}

Beginning in the 17th century, the same century in which it was published, Protestant scholars, orientalists, hebraists and linguists began pointing out defects in the [[King James Bible|Authorized King James Version]].<ref>[[Isaac H. Hall]]. [http://www.bible-researcher.com/kjvdefects.html ''The Revised New Testament and History of Revision'' (1881) "Defects of the King James Version"]
:"Our translators of the seventeenth century, in a great many instances, misunderstood the sense."</ref> One of these was the translation of 'orot tachashim as "badgers' skins", because it so plainly violates the biblical context of [[Leviticus]] [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:4-8&version=KJV chapter 11:4-8], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:24-28&version=KJV 24-29], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:42-45&version=KJV 42-45], and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205&version=KJV Leviticus chapter 5]. "Badgers' skins" is the King James Version (AV) translation of the Hebrew word '''תחשׁ''' '''''taḥash''''', and of the Hebrew term (singular) '''עור תחשׁ''' '''''uwr taḥash / 'or taḥash''' "skin taḥash"'', and of the plural form '''ערת תחשׁים''' '''''uwr't taḥashim / 'orot taḥashim''' "skins taḥashim"''. [[Adam Clarke]] himself ([http://biblehub.com/commentaries/clarke/exodus/25.htm ''Adam Clarke's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible'' (1831) Exodus 25]) has pointed out the substantial inaccuracy of the KJV interpretive translation:
:"badgers' skins, (rather violet-coloured skins)...Badgers' skins — ערת תחשים oroth techashim. Few terms have afforded greater perplexity to critics and commentators than this."
See [[Badger skins (Bible)#Protestant commentaries 17th through 19th centuries|Protestant commentaries 17th through 19th centuries]]

The original meaning of ''' תחשׁ ''t'''a'''ḥ'''a'''š / taḥash / tachash / techash / t'khesh''''' has been debated for centuries. According to ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' the AV and JPS 1917 translation ''[[badger]]'' has no basis in fact.<ref name=Enc.Jud.>''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' 2nd Edition Volume 19:435. TAḤASH.</ref><ref>''Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary'' page 161. Badger Skins</ref> Translating ערת תחשׁים ''skins taḥashim'' as "badgers' skins" also presents a [[contradiction]]. The Book of Leviticus, chapter 11, forbids touching the carcasses of all animals that walk on '''paws''', because they are '''טָמֵא''' ''tame'' [[Taboo|unclean]]. This is no trivial matter, as [[God]] Himself is thus represented in the KJV as commanding the handling and use of skins of carcasses He forbids the Israelites to touch, and as commanding them to cover the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant with unclean skins and then commanding them to remove from the camp all that is unclean so that nothing unclean will be seen by Him in the camp ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%205:2-3&version=KJV Numbers 5:2-3]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy%2023:14&version=KJV Deuteronomy 23:14]). They are forbidden to defile the tabernacle, the sanctuary of the LORD ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2020:2-3&version=KJV Leviticus 20:2-3]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2021:10-12&version=KJV 21:10-12]), and they are commanded to cover it with '''טָמֵא''' ''tame'' [http://bibleapps.com/hebrew/2931.htm unclean/polluting/defiling "badgers' skins" (KJV).] Even on the sole [[hermeneutics|hermeneutical principle]] of "Scripture interprets Scripture" this is not accurate, and it presents a serious difficulty. [[John Grigg Hewlett]], D.D. (''Bible difficulties explained'' 1860) says:<blockquote>"It would involve a great inconsistency, that the ark of the covenant, which was considered so holy, that no human hand could touch it with impunity, except the hands of those who had been consecrated to God, that it should constantly be covered with the skins of unclean animals...Therefore the coverings of purple, or blue, which our translators have called 'badgers' skins', were of a material that was accounted pure, and could not impart any impurity to those who prepared them, or to those whose office it was to adjust them amidst the vicissitudes of the camp of Israel."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=J5kCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA159&SOURCE=gbs_toc_r&cad=3#v=onepage&q=badger&f=false ''Bible difficulties explained'' (1860) "Badgers' skins" pages 159–163].</ref></blockquote>

The KJV was first published in 1611, a year after the [[Douay-Rheims|Douay-Rheims Bible]]. The later KJV revision of 1769 <ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon10.html Changes in the King James Version]</ref> is the version generally published today as the [[King James Bible]], and is the form of the text cited here:

[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:2&version=KJV Leviticus 5:2] "if a soul touch any unclean thing...he also shall be unclean and guilty"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:5-6&version=KJV Leviticus 5:5-6] "he shall confess that he hath sinned"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:5-8&version=KJV Leviticus 11:5-8] "and their carcase shall ye not touch, they are unclean to you"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:24-28&version=KJV Leviticus 11:24-28] "and whatsoever goeth upon his paws...those are unclean unto you"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:43-44&version=KJV Leviticus 11:43-44] "Ye shall not make yourselves abominable...neither shall ye make yourselves unclean...neither shall ye defile yourselves"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2022&version=KJV Leviticus 22] "Say unto them, Whosoever ''he be'' of all your seed among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from my presence: I ''am'' the LORD."
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%204:15-20&version=KJV Numbers 4:15-20] "but they shall not touch ''any'' holy thing, lest they die"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy%2023:14&version=KJV Deuteronomy 23:14] "For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee."

The Committee appointed by [[James I of England]] that was tasked with the translation of the Bible was made of men who had read the Bible in Hebrew and Greek and Latin and knew these passages. Yet they chose to translate ''tachashim'' as unclean badgers "''that goeth upon paws''" whose carcasses the Israelites were forbidden to touch.

[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2025:1-8&version=KJV Exodus 25:1-8] "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering...rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2026:14&version=KJV Exodus 26:14] "and a covering above of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2035:7&version=KJV Exodus 35:7] "and rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2035:23&version=KJV Exodus 35:23] "and red skins of rams, and badger skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2036:19&version=KJV Exodus 36:19] "and a covering of badgers' skins above that"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2039:34&version=KJV Exodus 39:34] "And the covering of rams' skins dyed red, and the covering of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%204:6-25&version=KJV Numbers 4:6-25] "a covering of badgers' skins...the covering of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ezekiel%2016:10&version=KJV Ezekiel 16:10] "and shod thee with badgers' skin"

Readers of the KJV saw a grave difficulty here because of the apparently great inconsistency that the holy ark of the covenant and the Tabernacle of the LORD should be constantly covered with skins of unclean animals which made unclean anyone who touched them. The Douay-Rheims Bible had translated the skins as [[Badger skins (Bible)#Douay-Rheims Bible|"''violet skins''"]].

The ''[[motivation]]'' for interpreting and translating ''tachash skins'' in the Bible as being skins of creatures the Israelites are clearly forbidden to touch is unclear, and a mystery, what is known in [[Logic]] as a [[non sequiter]] (Lat. "''it does not follow''"). The ''[[purpose]]'' being served by a deliberate translation of תחשׁ as badger and of ערת תחשׁים as badgers' skins, by scholars who have a thorough knowledge of the whole of the Bible, and of the history of the Hebrew language and of the ''fauna'' and varied customs of the ancient Middle East, is also a ''non sequiter'' mystery, involving an [[Evidence|evident]] contradiction of the context of the Bible. Alternate word choices, harmoniously consistent with the biblical context, and attested by the ancient sources as cited in scholarly published commentaries both technical and general, were available to the translators, who chose not to use them. Their translation covers the tabernacle, the ark and the sacred vessels with the equivalent of ''' טָמֵא ''' ''tame'' unclean [[Pig|swine]]s' skins ([http://biblehub.com/multi/leviticus/11-8.htm Leviticus 11:3-8], [http://biblehub.com/multi/leviticus/11-27.htm 11:24-28]). The inconsistency is not in the ancient biblical text, but in the interpretations of translators which violate its context.<blockquote>"A text without a context is a pretext for a [[Cafeteria Christianity#Proof texts|proof text]]." Donald A. Carson, ''Exegetical Fallacies''.<ref>Carson, Donald A., Ph.D. ''Exegetical Fallacies'', Nov. 30, 1983, 2nd edition Mar. 1, 1996. Baker Publishing Group. 160 pages. ISBN 978-0801020865.</ref></blockquote>

Study Bible footnotes, along with published articles, Bible dictionaries, commentaries, encyclopedias, and books on the Bible, and a multitude of internet online blogs and pages, which strongly support the translation of ערת תחשׁים as badgers' skins or as the skins of any kind of sea mammal, often omit the fact that within the context of the Bible these creatures are classified as unclean, defiling '''שִׁקַּץ ''' ''sheqats'' abominations, as loathsome, abhorrent, detestible, filthy and disgusting for the people of Israel. Those that do mention it offer various speculative [[Excuse|rationale]]s, [[debate]]s and [[Editorial|discussions]] to explain why in their [[opinion]] God would command the Israelites to cover the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant and the sacred vessels for worship with skins of unclean animals and abominations they are explicitly forbidden to touch, skins and hides that according to the word of the LORD defile any Israelites who touch them. Many of them assert that the prohibitions in Leviticus 11 are ''dietary'' rules only ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:2&version=KJV Lev. 11:2], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:46-47&version=KJV 11:46-47]), and declare that touching and wearing skins and leather of unclean animals is permitted as long as their flesh is not eaten.<ref name=opinion>Eight examples:
*[http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9912/jewish/Chapter-11.htm#showrashi=true Chabad.ORG —Rashi's commentary Vayikra-Leviticus-Chapter 11],
*[http://ravkooktorah.org/TRUMA61.htm Terumah: Tachash Skins in the Tabernacle, Rabbi Chaim Morrison],
*[http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/681556/jewish/Can-I-wear-pigskin-shoes.htm Can I wear pigskin shoes? By Shmuel Kogan],
*[http://www.jewishtreats.org/2012/11/picking-up-pigskin.html Jewish Treats: Juicy Bits of Judaism, Daily: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2012 —Picking Up Pigskin],
*[http://www.jewsingreen.com/2005/08/pigskin-boots Jews in Green: Jews serving proudly:—News: Pigskin Boots, Posted by Lt Joe Friedman on 03 Aug 2005],
*[http://www.jewfaq.org/animals.htm Judaism 101. Treatment of Animals. Tza'ar Ba'alei Chayim <big>'''צער בעלי החיים'''</big>: Cruelty to Animals © Copyright 5756-5771 (1995-2011), Tracey R Rich],
*[http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003867 Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY: Insight, Volume 2 it-2 pp. 883-884 Sealskin. Copyright © 2014 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania],
*[http://www.kjvtoday.com/home/badgers-skin-or-another-type-of-leather-in-exodus-255-et-al KJV Today: "Badgers' skin" or another type of leather in Exodus 25:5 et al.?] —''compare multiple commentaries on:'' [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/5-2.htm Leviticus 5:2]; [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/11-8.htm 11:8] and [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/11-27.htm 11:27]</ref> These commentaries say that touching the carcass of these animals is only a minor offense which did not require an atoning sacrifice, and that it applied only to ''kohanim'' (priests) and applied to the laity only during the three feasts of Passover/Unleavened Bread, Weeks/Pentecost, and Booths/Tabernacles (Deut. 16). And some cite the ''Talmud'' as their authority, for example, Tractate ''Rosh Hashana'' 16b,<ref>[http://halakhah.com/pdf/moed/Rosh_HaShanah.pdf Babylonian Talmud, Seder ''Mo'ed'', Tractate ''Rosh Hashana'', Folio 16b] —''scroll down to page'' 40</ref> and the ''Sifra'', ''Torath Kohanim'' 11:74,<ref>'''Sifra''' (Aramaic <big>'''סִפְרָא'''</big>, "book" or "The Book"), a ''midrash halakhah'' from the school of R. Akiva on the Book of Leviticus. See [http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13646-sifra ''Jewish Encyclopedia'': Sifra]; ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' Vol 18 San-Sol 18:560-562 SIFRA; See [http://he.wikisource.org/wiki/%D7%A1%D7%A4%D7%A8%D7%90 Sifra Hebrew text, ed. I. H. Weiss 1862 Vienna.]</ref> and Rashi's commentary,<ref name=opinion/> providing us with an example of what the prophet Jeremiah said, <blockquote>"How can you say, 'We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us'? But behold, the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie" ([http://biblehub.com/multi/jeremiah/8-8.htm Jeremiah 8:8]).</blockquote> They omit any reference to that part of Leviticus which decrees that wilfully touching the carcasses of unclean animals (which must be done to harvest their skins) is a '''sin''', which even Rashi's commentary confirms. No mention is made by them of the law in the Torah which says: "Ye shall not make yourselves abominable...neither shall ye make yourselves unclean...neither shall ye defile yourselves" (Leviticus 11:43-44) <ref>See: '''Exodus''' 31:14; '''Leviticus''' 7:19, 21; 10:10; 11:43-44; 18:20, 24, 30; 20:25; 21:4, 11; 22:8; '''Numbers''' 5:3; 6:7; 19:13, 20; 35:33-34; '''Deuteronomy''' 23:14; 27:26.</ref> and that anyone who wilfully does this will be cut off.<ref>see [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:2-6&version=KJV Leviticus 5:2-6], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:17-19&version=KJV 5:17-19]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2015:29-31&version=KJV Numbers 15:29-31]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2019:20&version=KJV 19:20.]</ref> Some commentaries on the Old Testament supporting ''badgers' skins'' and ''sea mammals' skins'' as the covering of the tabernacle cite the [[New Testament]] example of [[Saint Paul]] working with Simon the tanner (Acts 9:43; 10:6, 32), as if both of them were examples of Jews wilfully working with the skins of ''non-kosher'' beasts. Some cite Pliny's ''Natural History'' 2:56,<ref>previously cited in the 19th century: [http://www.biblicalcyclopedia.com/B/badger.html ''McClintock and Strong's Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature'' (1887) B: badger]; [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/clarke/exodus/25.htm ''Adam Clarke's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible'' (1831) Exodus 25]</ref> which says that [pagan] temples had roofs of sealskin, as if this applied to the Israelites under the Law of Moses, and cite Eduard Rüppell's short-lived ''taxonomic'' designation of the dugong as ''Halicore tabernaculi'' "dugong of the tabernacle" as an additional support for their opinion.<ref>While travelling the Middle East around the Red Sea and the [[Arabian Peninsula]], Rüppell observed a variety of [[dugong]] which he subsequently designated ''[[Taxonomy|taxonomically]]'' as ''Halicore tabernaculi'' (1843) according to his view that the skin of this animal was certainly used as the outer covering of the tabernacle of the Hebrews, because the Bedouin harvested its skin for tent-curtains and for shoes and called it ''tukhesh, duchash''. His taxonomic designation ''Halicore tabernaculi'' did not last long (1843-1847) and has since been recombined several times, more recently as ''Dugong dugon'' (1963-1998). Three sources:
*[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/512932/Eduard-Ruppell ''Encyclopaedia Britannica''. "Eduard Rüppell"]
*[http://www.probertencyclopedia.com/B_DUGONG.HTM The Probert Encyclopedia of Nature. "Dugong".] "A variety [of dugong] was discovered in the Red Sea by Ruppell, and called Halicore tabernaculi."
*[http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no65051&is_real_user=0 The Paleobiology Database:] —''when the page comes up, at'' "You must enter a taxon name" ''move cursor to'' "Full search"—''menu will appear; select'' "classifications of taxa in groups" ''and click—when'' "Taxonomic classification search form" ''appears enter '''''Halicore tabernaculi''''' in the top search field (ignore the rest), click'' [Show classification]—''page will display "Halicore tabernaculi'' Rüppell 1843"—''click highlighted link'' "Halicore tabernaculi"–''page will show list "Dugong dugon'' Illiger 1811: Classification of '''Trichechus dugon''' (''Halicore tabernaculi'' Ruppell/Rupell 1843): the listing of the zoological taxonomic nomenclature of the dugong on that page is here rearranged in chronological order:
:'''''Trichechus dugung''''' Erxleben 1777 (this nomenclature lasted 22 years)
:'''''Dugong indicus''''' Lacépède 1799 (this nomenclature lasted 12 years)
:'''''Dugong dugong''''' Illiger 1811 (this nomenclature lasted 21 years)
:'''''Halicore hemprichii''''' and '''''Halicore lottum''''' Ehrenberg 1832 (this nomenclature lasted 11 years)
:'''''Halicore tabernaculi''''' Rüppell 1843 (4 years)
:'''''Halicore australis''''' Owen 1847 (this nomenclature lasted 51 years)
:'''''Halicore cetacea''''' Heuglin, recombined as '''''Halicore dugung''''' Trouessart 1898 (this nomenclature lasted 65 years)
:It was recombined as "'''''Dugong dugon'''''" Scheffer and Rice 1963 also Husar 1978, Domning 1994, 1996, and Rice 1998 (this nomenclature has lasted for 35 years+).</ref> The 1843 published ''scientific'' nomen ''Halicore tabernaculi'', expressing as it did the personal opinion of a ''professional zoologist'', Eduard Rüppell, was soon discarded by the scientific community, but it has nevertheless persuaded many to this day that science has established that the ''dugong'' was indeed the animal whose skins were used to cover the tabernacle. However, it has no fins or scales. According to the Bible this creature is an abomination to the Jews (loathsome / abhorrent / detestible / filthy / disgusting) (Leviticus 11:10-12).<ref>[http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003867?q=Bible&p=sen Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY: Insight, Volume 2 it-2 pp. 883-884 Sealskin.]</ref> [[Jesus]] himself commented on the practice of constantly seeking pretexts for making exceptions to the ''[[Torah]]:''<blockquote>"You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition!" (Mark 7:9 RSV).<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark%207:9-13&version=KJV Mark 7:9-13]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2015:1-9&version=KJV Matthew 15:1-9]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2023:16-22&version=KJV 23:16-22]</ref></blockquote>

====King James Only====

Advocates of the [[King James Only]] movement are fully persuaded that the translators of the King James Version of the Bible always chose the correct reading [interpretation] of the biblical text, under the infallible guidance of the Holy Spirit Himself, and that therefore the translation ''badgers' skins'' is the most accurate possible English translation of the Hebrew ערת תחשׁים and עור תחשׁ and תחשׁ . They declare without reservation that the King James Bible is the divinely preserved, infallible Word of God, and that it is the only and final authority on all matters of faith and morals and practice for the whole of the English-speaking world.<ref>James D. Price. [http://www.truth.sg/resources/KJV%20Onlyism%20-%20a%20New%20Sect%20-%20Introduction%20-%20Dr%20J%20Price.pdf ''King James Onlyism: A New Sect.'' Introduction: The King James Only Doctrine Is a New Idea].</ref>
:–See the [http://www.kjvbibles.com/kjpreface.htm '''''Preface to the King James Version of 1611'''''].<blockquote>"...wee affirme and avow, that the very meanest translation of the Bible in English, set foorth by men of our profession (for wee have seene none of theirs of the whole Bible as yet) containeth the word of God, nay, '''is the word of God'''..."</blockquote>

::::—''from the'' Preface to the King James Version of 1611: The Translators to the Reader. (''boldface emphasis added'')

See '''[[Logical fallacy]]'''.

=== Other versions ===

Today, the Bible is available in many versions across the English-speaking world, and has been translated into languages spoken by the vast majority of people on Earth, and even portions into a recently-created language from the fictional world of [[Star Trek]], [[Klingon]]. <ref>[http://www.kli.org/wiki/index.php?Klingon%20Bible%20Translation%20Project Klingon Bible Translation Project]</ref> The past two decades saw the emergence of [[Internet]] use; the creation of the Bible as a software program was inevitable, and several, such as [[E-Sword]] and Theophilos, are available at no cost with a wealth of Bible-study material as well.

==Bible Scientific Foreknowledge==

[[Bible scientific foreknowledge]] is the claim that the Bible contains scientific foreknowledge that preceeded the actual scientific discovery usually many centuries or millennia later. However, from a literalist perspective of the Bible this claim has been discredited quite convincingly by discoveries in [[Biology]], [[Geology]], [[Chemistry]], [[Physics]] and other fields of science. The book of [[Genesis]] gets many aspects of the origin of the [[Universe]] completely wrong. [[Evolution]] and many other scientific theories show us that the origin of the life dates to approximately 3.8 billion years ago and the origins of humanity more than 100,000 years ago.

Many scientists who are fundamentalists Christians and apologists such as the scientists and apologists at [[Creation Ministries International]], [[Answers in Genesis]], and [[CreationWiki]] assert that the [http://creationwiki.org/index.php/Bible_scientific_foreknowledge Bible contains knowledge that shows an understanding of scientific knowledge beyond that believed to exist at the time the Bible was composed].<ref>[http://creationwiki.org/index.php/Bible_scientific_foreknowledge Bible Scientific Foreknowledge]</ref><ref>[http://www.clarifyingchristianity.com/science.shtml Clarifying Christianity. Science and the Bible] (clarifyingchristianity.com)</ref><ref>[http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v17/i1/medicine.asp Modern medicine? It's not so modern! by David A. Wise] (answersingenesis.org)</ref>

These organisations however are known to promote [[Pseudoscience]] and go against the [[Scientific method]] and have no
[[Evidence]] for their conclusions whatsoever and all the evidence available contradicts their claims.

==Humor in the Bible==

{{main|Humor in the Bible}}

The Bible, especially the Old Testament, contains irony, puns, sarcasm, etc. It may be noted that the sense of what is humorous varies from people to people and from nation to nation, as well as varying from age to age. What caused a chuckle, smile, or laughter in the biblical "genre" was more connected with ''satisfaction'' at the vindication of righteousness among men. Thus to our day and age, and the commonality of people, for believers and non believers, the meaning of the spewing up of Jonah on the shores (even the great fish could not stomach him!) might be viewed as God working out His original will in history. Jonah's flight from responsiblity being aborted, for the people in the "days and ages" of the Bible, there was the added satisfaction derived from the understanding that God was not mocked by the rebellion of Jonah. Likewise that the "many cattle" also found repentence and acceptance by God, would not have brought the smile of glee, mingled with doubt, but the smile of satisfaction that God's wide heart found its exultant victory over the measly, narrow perspective of the renagade prophet. There was no shame to stifle the Biblical chuckle at the "hows" of the vindication of God's justice. Yet, what we consider humorous also appears:

For example:

*After noticing that his father-in-law Laban was not treating him as in the past, Jacob decided to flee with his family. Rachel, one of Jacob’s wives, stole her father Laban’s teraphim (statues used for idolatry and/or divination). Laban pursued them and intercepted them in the Gilead mountains (Genesis 31:30): "Why have you stolen my gods?" Laban said to Jacob. The Midrash comments that it cannot be much of a god if it can be stolen (Midrash Genesis Rabbah 74:8). Jonsson (1985, 44-45) suggests that there is humor (albeit "rough" humor) in the fact that, not only was Laban deceived, but his idols were actually underneath his daughter Rachel’s posterior while she claimed that the "manner of women" was upon her. This idol did not get much respect. [http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/economic/friedman/bibhumor.htm]

*In the Orthodox Bible, in the Epistle of Jeremiah, the prophet declares with delightful contempt the stupidity of the idols of Babylon. Their faces have to be wiped to get the dust off them. They have weapons in their hands but cannot punish anyone who offends them. They are as useless as a broken dish. Their eyes are clogged with dust from the feet of the worshippers entering to adore them. Their priests lock them up like a man who has offended the king and has been sentenced to death. Bats, swallows and birds perch on their heads, and so do cats. If they are tipped over, they cannot get up. Their priests howl and shout before them as some do at a funeral feast for a man who has died. When fire breaks out in their temples the priests run away and the idols are burned in two like logs. Robbers strip them naked and they cannot help themselves. The door of a house that protects its contents, or a wooden pillar in a palace holding up the roof is better than these useless gods. Like a scarecrow in a cucumber patch guarding nothing, so are these gods.

*In the book of Esther, Haman, the prime minister of King Ahasuerus of Persia who hates Mordecai the Jew and has built a gallows 50 cubits high to hang him on it, has entered the court to ask for Mordecai's death. The king, meanwhile, not being able to sleep, hears in the reading of the records that Mordecai once saved the king from assassination, and that Mordecai received no reward. The king seeks an opinion from one of his court and asks who is immediately available. Haman enters, and the king asks him what should be done to honor the man who pleases the king, and Haman thinks to himself, "Who should the king wish to honor more than me?" So he makes his recommendation, to dress the man in the king's own robes, to set a crown on his head, to set him on the king's own horse, and have the king's most noble prince conduct him throughout the city proclaiming, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor." The king then told Haman, "Quickly! Take the robes and the horse, as you said, and do it to Mordecai the Jew. Omit nothing you mentioned." When he had obeyed the king, he ran home, mourning, with his head covered.

*In the [[Acts of the Apostles]] is a serious incident which has some wonderfully slapstick comedic overtones (19:11-16). God had been doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, and even cloths that he had touched were applied to the sick and to possessed persons and they were completely cured. So some traveling Jewish [[Exorcism|exorcists]] decided to use the Name of Jesus as a ''word of power'' over people who were possessed, by saying, "I ''adjure'' you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches".<ref>[http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/adjure "adjure"] (oxforddictionaries.com). See [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01142c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: adjuration]. [http://www.stubbornthings.org/authority-justice-law/ Authority, Justice, Law] (stubbornthings.org) ''the authority required to legitimately adjure''.</ref> When the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, did this, the evil spirit said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know: ''but who are you?''", and he leaped on them and beat them so badly they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

==Bible Translations==
The Bible has been translated many times and in many ways so anyone, from the youngest child to the most learned scholar, can read the entire scripture in their own language and at their own reading level. Early versions in the languages of their people include the [[Septuagint]], Syriac [http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/sacredtexts/syriacbib.html Peshitta] and [[Vulgate]], also the [http://archive.org/details/rosettaproject_arb_gen-1 Arabic], the [http://lexicity.com/coptic-biblical-texts.html Coptic], and Persic [http://www.wordproject.org/bibles/parallel/g/farsi.htm Farsi]. Here are some common English versions:

*[[American Standard Version]]
*[[Amplified Bible]]
*[[Douay-Rheims]]
*[[English Standard Version]]
*[[Good News Version]]
*[[King James Version]]
*[[Living Bible]]
*[[New American Standard Version]]
*[[New English Bible]]
*[[New International Version]]
*[[New King James Version]]
*[[Revised Standard Version]]
*[[Revised Version]]
*[[Septuagint]]
*[[Wycliffe Bible]]
*[[Conservative Bible]] - still a work-in-progress here at Conservapedia

==Bible versions==
Apart from Bibles that include the [[Apocrypha]], ''The [[New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures]]'' is a distinct version that was produced to justify many of the unique doctrines of [[Jehovah's Witnesses]].

[[Joseph Smith]], founder of [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints]] also produced his own version of the Bible which was published after his death: see [http://www.help4rlds.com/pwtu/PWTUChap9.pdf Joseph Smith’s ''Inspired Version'' of the Bible pdf]

Online multiple versions are also available for comparison by entering '''Bibles online''' in the search-engine window of the computer.
:Simultaneous multiple versions of any one Bible verse are available at biblehub.com.
:A drop-down menu of a multiple selection of Bible translations and versions is available on the biblegateway.com site.

:For example: See a sample of the biblehub.com site with multilingual versions and translations of [http://biblehub.com/multi/john/3-16.htm '''John 3:16'''].

:For example: See a sample of the biblegateway.com site with drop-down menu feature: [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%203:16&version=NABRE '''John 3:16 NABRE''']

Below at External links is featured online access to several versions of the Bible in English: '''[[Bible#English]]'''

===Greek Bible online===

'''''Greek/English Bible''''' [http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/septuagint/ Greek original according to the text used by the Church of Greece. English translation by L.C.L. Brenton, published side by side] Greek Septuagint and Greek New Testament

===Clementine Vulgate online===

'''''The Clementine Vulgate''''' [http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/The%20Clementine%20Vulgate%20-%20%28vulsearch.sourceforge.net%29.pdf BIBLIA SACRA JUXTA VULGATAM CLEMENTINAM EDITIO ELECTRONICA PLURIMIS CONSULTIS EDITIONIBUS DILIGENTER PRÆPARATA A MICHAELE TVVEEDALE .pdf]

===1611 Authorized Version online===

'''''Authorized Version''''' [http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611-Bible/ Official King James Bible Online. original 1611 King James Bible, Old Testament, New Testament, Apocrypha]

== See also ==
*[[Bible exegesis]]
*[[Biblical Canon]]
*[[Christian apologetics|Evidence supporting the Bible]]
*[[Bible apologetics website resources]]
*[[Bible prophecy]]
*[[Biblical accuracy]]
*[[Famous Bible paintings]]
*[[Midrash]]
*[[Targum]]
*[[Pseudepigrapha]]
*[[Aramaic Church]]
*[[Judaism]]
*[[Essay: The Way of Salvation]]
*[[Essay: How to choose a Bible]]
*[[Conservative Bible Project]]
*[[Inspiration of Holy Scripture: An Eastern Christian and Jewish Perspective]]
*[[New Testament understanding through the Jewish perspective]]
*[[Messianic Prophecies]]
*[[Gospel reading in the Church: the Turgama]]
*[[Wicked Bible]]
*[[Badger skins (Bible)]]
*[[Biblical timeline]]
*[[Literalist Bible chronology]]

==External links==
===Bible societies ===
*[http://www.americanbible.org/ American Bible Society]
*[http://www.biblesociety.org/ United Bible Society]
*[http://www.ibs.org/ The International Bible Society (New York/Colorado Springs)]
*[http://www.wbtc.com/site/PageServer World Bible Translation Center]
*[http://www.wycliffe.org/home.htm Wycliffe Bible Translators]
*[http://www.labibliaweb.com/ La Biblia] In Spanish.

===Online, internet, and downloadable Bibles===
====Hebrew====
* [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0.htm Hebrew-English Bible] ([[Jewish Publication Society of America|JPS]] 1917 translation; includes Hebrew audio)
* [http://tanakhml2.alacartejava.net/cocoon/tanakhml/d13.php2xml?sfr=1&prq=1&pnt=tru&acc=tru&dia=tru&enc=heb XML Hebrew-English (KJV) Bible]
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/Hebrew_OT/ Old Testament in Hebrew]

====Greek====
* [http://www.ccel.org/w/westcott/gnt/toc.htm Koine Greek New Testament]
* [http://www.htmlbible.com/sacrednamebiblecom/moderngreek/ Modern Greek Bible]

====Latin====
* [http://www.LatinVulgate.com/ Latin Vulgate] — Latin Vulgate with parallel Douay-Rheims and King James English translations
* [http://www.sacredbible.org/ SacredBible.org] — Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/Vulgate/ Jerome's Latin Vulgate (405 A.D.)]

====English====
* [http://www.audio-bible.com/bible/bible.html AudioBible] — Audio version of the King James Version.
* [http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Blue Letter Bible] — On-line interactive reference library continuously updated from the teachings and commentaries of selected pastors and teachers who hold to the conservative, historical Christian faith.
* [http://www.e-sword.net E-sword] — Downloadable Bible for Windows.
* [http://www.onlinebible.net/ The Online Bible North America] — Downloadable Bible for Windows.
* [http://www.theophilos.sk/ Theophilos Bible program]
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/ASB/ American Standard Version].
* [http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/ English Standard Version] from Good News/Crossway (the publisher).
* [http://www.verselink.org/ King James Version with dictionary].
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/KJV/ King James Version].
* [http://www.newlivingtranslation.com New Living Translation]
* [http://bible.oremus.org/ New Revised Standard Version].
* [http://www.europepourchrist.org/biblesite/WEB/ World English Bible].
* [http://www.dynamicbible.com/ King James Version built using AJAX technologies], with Strongs and Greek Morphological Codes by Robinson.
* [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/index.htm#index The Hypertext Bible] with side-by-side translations in English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew at the [[Internet Sacred Text Archive]]
* [http://www.biblegateway.com/ Bible Gateway at GospelCom.net] text search in any one of many translations in numerous languages.
* [http://www.biblereadthrough.com/ Bible Read-Through] — read through the Bible in a year aid.
* [http://www.TheFreeBible.com/ TheFreeBible.com] Bible software downloads
* [http://www.scripture4all.org/ Interlinear (word-by-word) translation of the Christian Bible] Hebrew and Koine Greek
* [http://www.aramaicpeshitta.com/aramaic_nt_resources.htm Aramaic New Testament resources]
* [http://www.spcm.org/en/versions.php Over 40 versions of the Bible]
* [http://www.armenianchurchlibrary.com/Bibletranslationsandstudies.html Eastern and Western Armenian Bible]
* [http://www.bible9.com/ Online Bible (King James Version & Old Testament)]
* [http://www.spcm.org/LSG_FR/ Bible — Louis Segond de 1910]
* [http://www.latinvulgate.com/christverse.aspx Complete Sayings of Christ]
* [http://bible.crosswalk.com/ParallelBible/ Crosswalk.com Parallel Bible]
* [http://www.blueletterbible.org/search.html#verse Blue Letter Bible]
* [http://recoveryversion.org/ Recovery Version Bible]

====Spanish====

* [http://www.wbtc.com/site/PageServer?pagename=downloads_spanish Spanish Bible] PDT version
* [http://www.labibliaweb.com/cid/1 Versiones de la Biblia] In Spanish.

====Turkish====
* [http://www.incil.info Turkish Bible] (Turkish Old and New Testament)

====Finnish====
* [http://www.raamattu-kirja.com Finnish Bible] (Finnish Old and New Testament)
* [http://vastaus.net Raamattu] (Study Finnish Bible)

====Japanese====
*[http://www.ibsstl.org/bibles/japanese/index.php On-line version hosted by the International Bible Society]
*[http://www.bible.or.jp/e/index.html Japan Bible Society]

====Others====
* [http://agards-bible-timeline.com/q2_bible_english.html Bible Timeline]
* [http://www.myjewishlearning.com/texts/bible/TO_Torah_880.htm?OVRAW=Torah&OVKEY=torah&OVMTC=standard My Jewish Learning.com]
* [http://search.americanbible.org/ American Bible Society] to search NASB, KJV, CEV, ASV and others.
* [http://etext.virginia.edu/kjv.browse.html University of Virginia Library] KJV word proximity search.
* [http://www.1enormousidea.com/Default.aspx?tabid=42 Many translations in English, verse by verse]
* [http://www.bible-marathi.com Nava Karar] NT Translation from Greek to Marathi
* [http://www.bible-researcher.com/links12.html Gender-neutral Bible translations].
* [http://www.evangelicalbible.com/why.htm Word-for-Word vs.Thought-for-Thought translation] Outlines the difference between formal and dynamic equivalent translation philosopy.
* [http://www.kli.org/wiki/index.php?Klingon%20Bible%20Translation%20Project Klingon Bible].

===Commentaries and analysis===

* [http://bibleseo.com/ Bible study topics] - Bible studies and exposition online
* [http://www.ldolphin.org/icc-am.html Biblical chronology] by Alan Montgomery, B.Sc.(Hon)
* [http://www.dinur.org/resources/resourceCategoryDisplay.aspx?categoryID=411&rsid=478 Biblical History], The Jewish History Resource Center — Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
* [http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?aid=63255 Judaica Press Translation] — online Jewish translation of the Tanakh.
* [http://www.angdatingdaan.org/biblicaltopics/bib_bible_1.htm Reading and Understanding the Bible].
* [http://en.bibleinfo.com/ Source for Bible Answers].
* [http://www.amazingfacts.org/school/af_logon.asp Amazing Facts Bible Studies].
* [http://www.iishj.org/images/Bible.pdf Learning Bible Today] — a historical approach the Bible.
* [http://eword.gospelcom.net/comments/gill/ John Gill's Exposition of the Bible] — verse by verse commentary.
* [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/henry/mhc.i.html/ Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible] — unabridged.
*[http://www.verselink.org/ Topical References]
*[http://www.verselink.org/ Bible Dictionaries and Encyclopedia]

==Bibliography==
* Achtemeier, Paul J., ed. ''Harper's Bible Dictionary'' (1985), 1190pp; mainstream scholarship
* Ackroyd, P.R., ed. ''The Cambridge History of the Bible: From the Beginnings to Jerome; the West from the Fathers to the Reformation; the West from the Reformation to the Present Day'' (3 vol 1978), standard summary of scholarship; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Beginnings-Jerome/dp/0521099730/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search vol 1]; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Fathers-Reformation/dp/0521290171/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search vol 2]; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Reformation-Present/dp/0521290163/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search vol 3]
* Coggins, R.J. ''Introducing the Old Testament'' (Oxford University Press: 1990), 172pp. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=22765464 online edition]
* Morgan, Robert, and John Barton. ''Biblical Interpretation'' (Oxford University Press: 1988), 342 pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=74356941 online edition]
* Sakenfeld, Katharine Doob, ed. ''The New Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible'' ('''NIDB''') (5 vol 2009), the latest mainstream scholarship
*Unger, Merril F. ''Unger's Bible Dictionary'', Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1966; new edition 2006); Evangelical
**Unger, Merril F. ''The New Unger's Bible Dictionary'', (2006); 1416pp; Evangelical
*Unger, Merril F. ''Unger's Bible Handbook'', Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1967); Evangelical.
*Halley, Henry H. ''Halley's Bible Handbook'', Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI (1965); Evangelical
* Sandys-Wunsch, John. ''What Have They Done to the Bible: A History of Modern Biblical Interpretation'' 2005) Scholarly history of transations and interpretations to 1900; [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0814650287 excerpt and text search]
* Williamspn, Peter. ''Catholic principles for interpreting scripture: a study of the Pontifical Biblical Commission's The interpretation of the Bible in the Church'' (2001); Catholic; [http://books.google.com/books?id=kooFtFGQsfsC&dq=intitle:bible+intitle:interpretation&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=2000&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpts and text search]
*Wilson, Robert D. ''A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament'', Sunday School Times, Inc, Philadelphia, PA (1926).

===Language===
*Blass, Frederich, and others. ''A Greek Grammar of the New Testament and other early Christian literature,'' translated by Robert W. Funk; University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL (1961); German edition ''Grammatik des Neutestamentlichen Griechisch'' Friedrich Rehkopf, editor, 14th edition. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1976.
*Moulton, James H., and others. ''A Grammar of New Testament Greek'' (two volumes), edited by Wilbert Francis Howard, T&T Clark Publishers, Harrisburg, PA (1985); originally published 1920, Edinburgh, Scotland.
*Bauer, Walter. ''Griechisch-Deutsches Wörterbuch zu den Scriften des Neuen Testaments und der frühchristlichen Litteratur''. Kurt Aland and Barbara Aland, editors; 6th edition. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, Germany (1988). Heading βιβλίον, columns 281-82.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Bible| ]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Book of Worship]]
[[Category:Featured articles]]

Bible

2015-10-06T19:46:14Z

Auspicies:

[[Image:800px-Crop Book of Isaiah 2006-06-06.jpg|thumb|300px|right|The Holy Bible, opened to the Book of Isaiah.]]
{{Bible}}

The '''Bible''' is the most logical, insightful and influential collection of books and letters ever written. It includes the most beautiful book ever written, the [[Gospel of Luke]], the most profound book ever written, the [[Gospel of John]], and the most intellectual letter ever written, the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]]. [[Biblical scientific foreknowledge]] has anticipated or guided nearly every great human achievement. The '''Bible''' is unique in the literature of the world,<ref name=LiteraryCriticism>See [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)]], in particular the findings of the following supportive sources of literary criticism:
*The Bible’s message is both ‘divine’ and ‘human’. —[http://www.saintjohnsabbey.org/liturgy-answers/bibles-message-both-divine-and-human/ St. John's Abbey: ''The Bible’s message is both ‘divine’ and ‘human’.'' Friday, January 17th, 2014, Benedictine Father Michael Kwatera, a monk of St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, MN.]
*The more conservative theologians who employ the historical-critical method believe that the Scriptures are more than the writings of mortal men. —[http://www.wlsessays.net/files/BeckerHistorical.pdf The Historical-Critical Method of Bible Interpretation, By Siegbert W. Becker], page 4.
*Unique among all the world's literature, the Bible is really God's word in human language. —[http://bibleasliterature.wordpress.com/lesson-1/ The Bible as Literature: The Bible ~ A Literary Work and an Artistic Presentation of Human Experience].</ref> and was extensively studied by the greatest modern thinkers, including [[Isaac Newton]], [[Louis Pasteur]], [[Bernhard Riemann]], [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John von Neumann]], and [[Kurt Godel]].

Shorter than you might think, the Bible consists of two parts: 27 short books and letters of the [[New Testament]] of the [[Christian]] [[faith]], and 39 Hebrew and Aramaic books recognized by both Christianity and Judaism, which are included among the collection of writings known as the [[Old Testament]].<ref>Christianity adds a few additional books to the Jewish [[Old Testament]]. See [[Biblical Canon]].</ref> The text of the Old Testament was originally written in [[Hebrew]] and [[Aramaic]], and was later translated and expanded in [[Greek]] by rabbinical scholars in the [[Septuagint]] Bible of the Greek-speaking Jews which was the Bible of the apostles;<ref>"Bible of the apostles". See the following four sources:
*[http://www.scripturecatholic.com/septuagint.html Septuagint Quotes in the New Testament]
*[http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html The Septuagint (LXX): History of the Septuagint]
*[http://www.cresourcei.org/canonot.html Canons of the Hebrew Bible]
*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]</ref> but the [[New Testament]] itself was originally written in Greek and was soon afterward added to the Septuagint, making the Greek Bible of the ancient Christian church. Both Old and New Testaments have been translated into more than 2000 languages.

The Bible is the biggest-selling book in history, a testament to its timeless and compelling message.<ref>The Bible continues to be the best-selling book ever. Americans alone buy 25 million Bibles a year, according to Publisher's Weekly. Bible sales are now reaching $609 million a year, with specialty Bibles available for myriad "niche" audiences, from motorcycle riders to campers, brides and archaeologists. "Immerse," a water-resistant Bible for troops overseas, is now available from publisher Bardin & Marsee. [http://www.washtimes.com/national/20070529-111815-7952r.htm Polls: Most believe Bible as God's word] - Jennifer Harper, ''The Washington Times'' - May 30, 2007] </ref> In addition, the Bible has had an immense, positive influence on literature, culture, and history.

[[Jesus Christ]] himself may have authored the perfectly written [[Epistle to the Hebrews]], which was composed in magnificent Greek and which discloses information that could have been known only to Jesus.<ref>The [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] contains an explanation of the stature of Jesus relative to angels. For a contrary view that fails to discuss the likelihood that Jesus wrote the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] or the information in that book which would be known only to Jesus, one commentator suggests that [[Barnabas]] or [[Apollos]] may have been the author (see [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%2018:24-28&version=KJV Acts 18:24-28]). [http://www.judaismvschristianity.com/hebrews.htm Judaism versus Christianity. The Book of Hebrews. Who wrote the Book of Hebrews?] (judaismvschristianity.com). See also [https://bible.org/article/argument-hebrews The Argument of Hebrews] (bible.org).</ref>

Most [[Christians]], Protestant and Catholic, agree on the 27 books of the [[New Testament]], and while the Old Testament of the Orthodox Bible includes 50 books, for a total of 77, and the Old Testament of the Catholic Bible includes 46 books, for a total of 73, the Protestant Bible includes only the 39 books of the [[Old Testament]] which entirely correspond to the [[Biblical Canon#Palestinian canon (A.D. 4th century)|24 books of the Hebrew canon of the Jews]], for a total of 66.<ref>The Protestant Bible excludes the following books which have always been included in the Catholic Bible, the same books excluded from the canon by the Jews after the rise of Christianity in the 1st century:
# The Wisdom of Solomon
# Tobit
# Sirach
# Judith
# 1st Maccabees
# 2nd Maccabees
# Baruch [http://www.catholicbible101.com/theholybible.htm]
The Orthodox Greek Bible since the 1st century has always included Psalm 151 as appended to Psalm 150, and the Third Book of the Maccabees, and, in an appendix to the Old Testament, the Fourth Book of the Maccabees, a treatise on the superiority of wisdom. These were never included among the Protestant Apocrypha in the 16th century—but they also have never been included among the books of the Old Testament in Protestant Bibles. Martin Luther and the leaders of the Reformation did not address their canonical status, and did not discuss them. The Book of 1 Esdras has always been included in the Orthodox Bible among the Historical Books between 2 Chronicles and Ezra, but is regarded since the Council of Trent by both Catholics and Protestants as non-canonical and apocryphal and is not included by them in the Old Testament. The Latin apocalyptic 2 Esdras, which was never part of the Greek Old Testament, but was included in the Vulgate, is not included in the canon of standard Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Bibles, and is included with 1 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh in the Protestant Apocrypha. The same 2 Esdras is included as ''Ezra Sutuel'' in the canon of the Ethiopic Bible of the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Orthodox Ethiopian Church]], which as a whole differs both in the Old and New Testament from that of any other churches. The Ethiopic canonical books, written in the [[Geez language]] and on parchment, are numerous. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has 46 books of the Old Testament and 35 books of the New Testament, bringing the total of canonized books of the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible to 81. The canon of the Ethiopic Bible appears to date back to the 5th century. See [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1292150/Worlds-illustrated-Christian-bible-discovered-Ethiopian-monastery.html World's first illustrated Christian bible discovered at Ethiopian monastery, By Daily Mail Reporter. Updated: 11:33 EST, 5 July 2010] Carbon dating gives a date between 330 and 650.</ref> The English King James Version of the Protestant Bible has 593,493 words in the Old Testament and 181,253 words in the New Testament.<ref>[http://www.christiananswers.net/bible/about.html ChristianAnswers.Net. About the Bible] (christiananswers.net)</ref>

==Name==
The word "Bible" had its origins in an ancient [[Phoenicia]]n seaport called [[Byblos]], which was so-named as a result of the trade and manufacture of writing material based on the [[papyrus]] or byblos reed, used extensively in antiquity for making [[scroll]]s and [[book]]s. The [[Greek language|Greek]] word ''biblos'' was based upon this, and it came to be the word for ''book'' (a small book was termed ''biblion''), and by the 2nd century A.D. Greek [[Christianity|Christians]] had called the Scriptures ''ta Biblia'' ('''τα βιβλία''' ''the books''), which was transferred to [[Latin]] by dropping the ''ta''; the word made its way to [[Old French]] where the plural was dropped in favor of the singular, hence becoming the [[English]] word ''Bible''. (Unger, pg 143; Moulton; Blass)

==Unique witness to truth==

The Bible is the most ancient collective document of writings in antiquity witnessing to the revelation of the one living God to the community of the people he has chosen and formed to be his priests and witnesses to all the peoples of the earth. This people chosen and called out from every nation and language on earth testifies that God is one being of three Persons, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, who loves all that he has created, and that there is nothing in all the whole created universe that he did not create through the power of his Word. The Bible is the collective testimony of this community of people chosen out of all the peoples of the earth that God is the one original cause of all existence, creator of the universe and all that it contains both visible and invisible. They have borne witness in the several sacred scriptures contained in the Bible that this one unique God has acted and continues to act in history.

The Bible is unique in antiquity in its witness that God has made one of his creations, the whole human race, to be above the physical animal nature of the body and be like himself with dominion over the whole earth and all its creatures. The Bible testifies that God himself has called this human creature, male and female, to a personal relationship with him as a whole community of love and goodness and mercy in his image as his living temple and dwelling place on earth and to give evidence of his reality and to acknowledge him in all they do and say.

The Bible is unique in all of ancient literature in that it testifies to the rebellion and fall of the human race, to the reality of sin and its effects, to the facts of evil and of righteousness, to objective physical and moral standards of right and wrong, of justice and judgment, and to the reality of invisible intelligent beings, both those who have rebelled against God and those who perpetually serve him.

The Bible contains the only stable, reliable written witness of his own community to the rest of the world that the '''Word''' of this one God is the perfect image of his own divinity, his only-begotten Son, who became one with us, in solidarity with each human being and the whole of the fallen human community, as a sinless flesh-and-blood man whose act of complete renunciation and self-sacrifice made perfect reparation for the offense of the whole of the human community, to save us from the merited ruin which is going to come on the whole rebellious, resistant, fallen human community occupied with its own selfishness. The Bible is the witness of God's people that his Word is his Son, that his name is Jesus, and that he is the supreme Anointed One ("''Christos''") of the people of Israel. The Bible is the unique written witness of the people he has called to himself that he established his Church as the holy temple of his Holy Spirit, with the divine commission to testify to him to the whole world and make disciples of those who are willing to come to him and worship in word and deed. The Bible is their unique written record that in the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ God the Father has called all humanity to partake in a share of his own divinity, in selfless goodness, mercy and love, in eternal, everlasting life, as the gift of his love.

The Bible is the first book in antiquity to declare the revelation that death is not final, and that there will be a physical resurrection of all the dead at the end of time. In its collected writings the people of God have testified to the revelation of the total condemnation of the wicked who have chosen to reject both him and the gift of communion with him, and in it they have collectively testified to the revelation of the total salvation from ruin and the gift of communion with him of those who have not resisted him and his way of living and acting and whom he has made holy by his own power alone. No other book is like it. The whole community of believers past and present in its leadership has discerned and testified to this day that the whole collection of the books of the Bible is inspired by God, and that God is their true author. The Bible is the Word of God expressed in the written form of human language. Its chief value is as a stable unchanging resource for understanding the mind of God, for establishing a just society with just laws and true justice, for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that each leader of the community (each "''man of God''") may be fully equipped for every good work as a witness to the one true God. [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2timothy%203:16-17&version=KJV 2 Timothy 3:16-17]

But just as Jesus has appeared to many to be no more than an ordinary human being, and just as Christianity has appeared to many to be no more than a merely human institution of religion, so the Bible too has appeared to many to be no more than a traditional collection of ordinary human literature. However, even the tools of [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|ordinary literary criticism]] have clearly shown the Bible to be more than a collection of merely human literature, and its scriptures to be much more than ordinary human writings.<ref name=LiteraryCriticism/>

==Books of the Bible==
===The Old Testament===
{| border="1" align="right" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" width="360" style="margin-left:5px" class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2" align="center" style="color: black; height: 30px; background: tan no-repeat scroll top left;"|Old Testament layout
|-
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Jewish
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Christian Protestant
|-
|1 [[Genesis]]
|Genesis
|-
|2 Exodus
|Exodus
|-
|3 Leviticus
|Leviticus
|-
|4 Numbers
|Numbers
|-
|5 Deuteronomy
|Deuteronomy
|-
|6 Joshua
|Joshua
|-
|7 Samuel
|Judges
|-
|8 Kings
|Ruth
|-
|9 Isaiah
|1st Samuel
|-
|10 Jeremiah
|2nd Samuel
|-
|11 Ezekiel
|1st Kings
|-
|12 The Minor Prophets
|2nd Kings
|-
|13 Psalms
|1st Chronicles
|-
|14 Proverbs
|2nd Chronicles
|-
|15 Job
|Ezra
|-
|16 Song of Songs
|Nehemiah
|-
|17 Ruth
|Esther
|-
|18 Lamentations
|Job
|-
|19 Ecclesiastes
|Psalms
|-
|20 Esther
|Proverbs
|-
|21 Daniel
|Ecclesiastes
|-
|22/23 Ezra (with Nehemiah)
|Song of Solomon
|-
|24 Chronicles
|Isaiah
|-
|
|Jeremiah
|-
|
|Lamentations
|-
|
|Ezekiel
|-
|
|Daniel
|-
|
|The Minor Prophets
|-
!colspan="2" align="center" style="color: black; height: 30px; background: tan no-repeat scroll top left;"|Dates of each Book
|-
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|Protestant Old Testament
!align ="center" style="color: white; height: 30px; background: navy no-repeat scroll top left;"|New Testament
|-
|Genesis, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Matthew, A.D. 60-65
|-
|Exodus, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Mark, A.D. 60-65
|-
|Leviticus, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Luke, A.D. 58-65
|-
|Numbers, 1440-1400 B.C.
|John, A.D. 95
|-
|Deuteronomy, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Acts, A.D. 58-65
|-
|Joshua, 1400-1360 B.C.
|Romans, A.D. 58
|-
|Judges, c. 1020 B.C.
|1st Corinthians, A.D. 57
|-
|Ruth, c. 1090 B.C.
|2nd Corinthians, A.D. 57
|-
|1st Samuel, c. 931–722/21 B.C.
|Galatians, A.D. 56
|-
|2nd Samuel <ref>[https://bible.org/article/introduction-book-first-samuel Bible.org Introduction to First Samuel]</ref>
|Ephesians, A.D. 62-63
|-
|1st Kings, 609-600 B.C.
|Philippians, A.D. 58-60
|-
|2nd Kings, 609-600 B.C.
|Colosians, A.D. 61-63
|-
|1st Chronicles, c. 400 B.C.
|1st Thessalonians, A.D. 52
|-
|2nd Chronicles, c. 400 B.C.
|2nd Thessalonians, A.D. 53
|-
|Ezra, c. 400 B.C.
|1st Timothy, A.D. 62-65
|-
|Nehemiah, c. 400 B.C.
|2nd Timothy, A.D. 65-66
|-
|Esther, 464-425 B.C.
|Titus, A.D. 65
|-
|Job, 1440-1400 B.C.
|Philemon, A.D. 65
|-
|Psalms, 1004-965 B.C.
|Hebrews, A.D. 63-64
|-
|Proverbs, 965-925 B.C.
|James, A.D. 63-64
|-
|Eccleisiastes, 965-925 B.C.
|1st Peter, A.D. 64
|-
|Song of Solomon, 965-925 B.C.
|2nd Peter, A.D. 65
|-
|Isaiah, 785-697 B.C.
|1st John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Jeremiah, 587-538 B.C.
|2nd John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Lamentations, 587-538 B.C.
|3rd John, A.D. 90-100
|-
|Ezekiel, 592-572 B.C.
|Jude, c. A.D. 70-75
|-
|Daniel, 539-520 B.C.
|Revelation, A.D. 96-98
|-
|Hosea, 753-731 B.C.
|
|-
|Joel, 835-796 B.C.
|
|-
|Amos, 787-747 B.C.
|
|-
|Obadiah, 848-841 B.C.
|
|-
|Jonah, 771-754 B.C.
|
|-
|Micah, 715-687 B.C.
|
|-
|Nahum, 661-612 B.C.
|
|-
|Habbakuk, 625-608 B.C.
|
|-
|Zephaniah, 621-608 B.C.
|
|-
|Haggai, 520 B.C.
|
|-
|Zechariah, 520 B.C.
|
|-
|Malachi, 455 B.C.
|
|}
The Hebrew [[Old Testament]] of the Bible, also called Tanakh, consists of twenty-four books. The books themselves were originally written in [[Hebrew]], and later on in the [[Aramaic]] language of Palestine (the original texts of the Hebrew books of Daniel and Ezra, for example, have major portions written in Aramaic). The Greek language version written after the conquest of [[Alexander the Great]] is known as the [[Septuagint]], and to it the Jews added more texts that they also valued for their piety, wisdom and history, most of them translated from Hebrew or Aramaic originals. By A.D. the 1st century this Septuagint collection had become the Greek Old Testament Bible of the apostles.<ref>Most Protestant Christians are unaware that the overwhelming majority of Old Testament quotations and references in the New Testament are numerous quotations from the Septuagint including the books Martin Luther separated as [[Apocrypha]]. See the following four sources:
*[http://www.scripturecatholic.com/septuagint.html Septuagint Quotes in the New Testament]
*[http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html The Septuagint (LXX): History of the Septuagint]
*[http://www.cresourcei.org/canonot.html Canons of the Hebrew Bible]
*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]
Biblical researchers in the 20th and 21st centuries have also discovered manuscripts and linguistic evidence that appear to prove that most of the Apocrypha, except the Book of Wisdom (originally written in Greek?), were originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic (Syriac) prior to the Christian era. [http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/ Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Apocrypha] [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha] (jewishvirtuallibrary.org)</ref> [[Melito]],<ref>[http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1017 Catholic Online: St. Melito of Sardis], [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/melito.html Early Christian Writings: Melito of Sardis]</ref> a bishop of [[Sardis]] in [[Lydia]] (in what is now [[Turkey]]), is said to have coined the phrase ''Old Testament'' about A.D. 170. The Greek Old Testament has been a continuous part of the Christian Bible in the eastern Churches in Palestine, Greece, Turkey, and the whole of the [[Levant]] since the 1st century.

The Hebrew Old Testament is divided in three parts within the Jewish community: the [[Torah|'''T'''orah]] ("Law"), or [[Pentateuch]], the five books of [[Moses]]; the [[Nevi'im|'''N'''evi'im]] ("Prophets"), and the [[Ketuvim|'''K'''etuvim]] ("Writings,” or [[Hagiographa]]) (abbreviated '''T'''a'''N'''a'''K'''h, hence, "Tanakh", ). Here the arrangement of the books differs somewhat from the Old Testament as used by Christians, with three of the twenty-four (Samuel, Kings, Chronicles) each being divided into two books, and Ezra being divided into Ezra and Nehemiah; however the actual writing of each book remains the same. The Christian order of the books of the Bible follows the Chronology of the events and the personages being related, according to their arrangement in the Septuagint, while in the Jewish order, though there is a chronological framework, the order follows more the importance, influence, "weight of usage" within Judaism. Thus, for orthodox Judaism, The Torah of [[Moses]] comes first (the 5 books of Moses), and is the most authoritative of all Scripture. Under the [[Pharisee|Pharasaic]] theory that Moses was also given the Oral law, explicating how the Written law was to be applied, at the same time as he was given the written law contained in the Bible, the Oral Law too was passed on through the generations, and was later in A.D. the 3rd century first put into writing in the Mishna (compiled by [[Judah haNasi]] <ref>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/hanasi.html Yehudah HaNasi (Judah the Prince) (A.D. 135 - 219)], [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8963-judah-i Jewish Encyclopedia: Judah I]</ref>) and the Gemara (gathered by the [[Amoriam]] <ref>Amoraim (Aramaic: plural אמוראים [ʔamoʁaˈʔim], singular Amora אמורא [ʔamoˈʁa]; "those who say" or "those who speak over the people", or "spokesmen"), were renowned Jewish scholars who "said" or "told over" the teachings of the Oral Torah, from about 200 to 500 CE in Babylonia and the Land of Israel. See [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0002_0_01018.html Jewish Virtual Library: AMORAIM]</ref>) finally composing the [[Talmud]], and is regarded as equally authoritative with the Torah of Moses.<ref>There is a similar teaching in the Christian New Testament, in the Second Letter to the Thessalonians ([http://biblehub.com/multi/2_thessalonians/2-15.htm 2:15]) and in the First Letter to the Corinthians ([http://biblehub.com/multi/1_corinthians/11-2.htm 11:2]). This seems to be the Biblical justification for the Catholic and Orthodox teaching that the fullness of the Christian faith is contained in both scripture and tradition, "letter" and "word". See [[Sola scriptura]]</ref> Then the Prophets come next in authority. But the category of the Hebrew Prophets for the Jews is much broader than the category of the Prophets as considered by the Christian ordering. The "Prophets" in the Tanakh includes what Christians consider "History" - such as the books of the Kings - but it also includes what Christians call the Former and the Latter, or the Major and the Minor prophets. The last in authority for every day life of the Jew, in terms of "regulation", actually form a great influence in the Synagogue worship - the Writings, with a heavy emphasis on the Psalms.

====Torah====
The Five books of Moses, in their Hebrew and English names:
*<big>בְּרֵאשִׁית</big> Bereisheet ("in the beginning"), or [[Genesis]]
*<big>שְׁמוֹת</big> Shemot (“names”), or [[Exodus]]
*<big>וַיִּקְרָא</big> Vayikra (“and God called”), or [[Leviticus]]
*<big>בְּמִדְבַּר</big> Bemidbar (“in the Wilderness”), or [[Numbers]]
*<big>דְּבָרִים</big> Devarim (“words”), or [[Deuteronomy]]

The first eleven chapters of ''Genesis'' provide the account of the [[Creation]], the history of God's early relationship with humanity, and the [[Deluge]] of [[Noah]]. The remaining thirty-nine chapters detail the account of God's covenant with the early Hebrew nation, led by the patriarchs [[Abraham]], [[Isaac]] and [[Jacob]] (or Israel), and one of Jacob's children, [[Joseph]]. It tells the beginnings of God's chosen people, of how God commanded Abraham to leave his family and home to settle in the land of [[Canaan]], and how the Children of Israel later moved to Egypt. The remainder of the Torah, beginning with ''Exodus'' and ending with ''Deuteronomy'', tells the story of the great Hebrew leader [[Moses]], and of the Hebrews through their sojourn and slavery in Egypt, their escape from bondage, and their wanderings in the desert until finally they stand ready to enter the Promised Land.

====Nevi'im====
The [[Nevi'im]] ("Prophets") is the story of the rise toward, and ultimately reaching, the Hebrew monarchy; the sad period of anarchy and revolt leading to the division into the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel; and the prophets who judged the kings of both in God's name. It ends with the conquest and dissolution of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and its Assyrian exile, and then the conquest of the Kingdom of Judah, the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, and the Babylonian exile. The Minor Prophets are considered a single book in the Nevi'im; in Christianity they have been split into twelve separate books and named for their authors.
*<big>יְהוֹשֻׁעַ</big> [[Joshua (Biblical book)|Joshua]]
*<big>שׁוֹפְטִים</big> [[Judges (Biblical book)|Judges]]
*<big>שְׁמוּאֵל א</big> [[I Samuel]]
*<big>שְׁמוּאֵל ב</big> [[II Samuel]]
*<big>מְלָכִים א</big> [[I Kings]]
*<big>מְלָכִים ב</big> [[II Kings]]
*<big>יְשַׁעְיָהוּ</big> [[Isaiah (Biblical book)|Isaiah]]
*<big>יִרְמְיָהוּ</big> [[Jeremiah (Biblical book)|Jeremiah]]
*<big>יְחֶזְקֵאל</big> [[Ezekiel (Biblical book)|Ezekiel]]
* [[The Minor Prophets]]
**<big>הוֹשֵׁעַ</big> [[Hosea (Biblical book)|Hosea]]
**<big>יוֹאֵל</big> [[Joel (Biblical book)|Joel]]
**<big>עָמוֹס</big> [[Amos (Biblical book)|Amos]]
**<big>עֹבַדְיָה</big> [[Obadiah (Biblical book)|Obadiah]]
**<big>יוֹנָה</big> [[Jonah (Biblical book)|Jonah]]
**<big>מִיכָה</big> [[Micah (Biblical book)|Micah]]
**<big>נַחוּם</big> [[Nahum (Biblical book)|Nahum]]
**<big>חֲבַקּוּק</big> [[Habakkuk (Biblical book)|Habakkuk]]
**<big>צְפַנְיָה</big> [[Zephaniah (Biblical book)|Zephaniah]]
**<big>חַגַּי</big> [[Haggai (Biblical book)|Haggai]]
**<big>זְכַרְיָה</big> [[Zechariah (Biblical book)|Zechariah]]
**<big>מַלְאָכִי</big> [[Malachi (Biblical book)|Malachi]]

====Ketuvim====
The [[Ketuvim]], or "Writings," contain lyrical poetry, philosophical reflections on life, and the writings of the prophets and other Jewish leaders during the exile in [[Babylon]].
*<big>תְּהִלִּים</big> [[Psalms]]
*<big>מִשְׁלֵי</big> [[Proverbs]]
*<big>אִיּוֹב</big> [[Book of Job]]
*<big>שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים</big> [[Song of Songs]], also called [[Song of Solomon]] in the Protestant Christian Bible.
*<big>רוּת</big> [[Book of Ruth]]
*<big>אֵיכָה</big> [[Lamentations]]
*<big>קֹהֶלֶת</big> [[Ecclesiastes]]
*<big>אֶסְתֵּר</big> [[Esther]]
*<big>דָּנִיֵּאל</big> [[Daniel (Biblical book)|Daniel]]
*<big>עֶזְרָא</big> [[Ezra]], divided into the two books of <big>עֶזְרָא</big> Ezra and <big>נְחֶמְיָה</big> [[Nehemiah]] in the Christian Bible.
*<big>דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים א</big> ''and'' <big>דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים ב</big> [[Books of Chronicles]]

[[David]] has been named as the author of the ''Psalms''; [[Solomon]] is traditionally believed to have written ''Song of Songs'' in his youth, the ''Proverbs'' in his prime, and ''Ecclesiastes'' during his old age. The prophet [[Jeremiah]] is thought to have written the aptly-named ''Lamentations'' at the beginning of the exile to Babylon. The ''Book of Ruth'' is the only biblical book that centers entirely on a non-Jew, a [[Moabite]] who married a Jew and became an ancestor of both David and [[Jesus Christ]]. ''Esther'' is unique as it is the only book in the Hebrew Tanakh not to mention God. [[Moses]] is traditionally considered to be the author of ''Job''.

===The melodies of the Old Testament===
The Hebrew of the present day Old Testament is composed of the Hebrew consonants and, added on by the [[Masoretic Text|Masoretes]] at a later stage, the vowels. Along with these two elements, other signs were added which indicated the melodies that were sung along with the words or phrases. Some of the signs were positioned above the individual consonants, some below, and some to the side. Some of these melody signs were associated with others providing a musical pattern that corresponds with the opening of a thought, similar to the beginning of a sentence (ex. "merkha"), the continuation of a thought (ex. "munakh"), tying in one word with the following, as one melody flowed into the next, the "resting" or completion of a thought, much in "the same way that a comma (ex. "azla"), though not ending a sentence, makes for the "semi"-ending or minor completion of a thought, a major break in the run of thoughts ("etnachta"), though the run of thought would be resumed until the major completion ("sof pasuq"), much in the same way the a period brings to a stop and a completion as a sentence ends. Thus the musical signs in the Hebrew text also provide an interpretation of the text current to the times in which the signs were incorporated as part of the text, the Masoretic vowel-pointing excluding those former tonal readings which clearly represented Christian textual interpretations. The signs that tie one word to another providing one thought are called "conjunctive" signs and the signs that separate words and the thought of them are called "disjunctive". An example of the use of these signs to interpret the Hebrew text is the well known prophesy of the One to come. The Hebrew letters can either be understood to read "His name shall be called Wonderful counsellor of (''from, sent by, representing'') the mighty God", or "His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God". The melody signs (called in Hebrew "Ta'mei HaMikra) decide for the latter. After "Wonderful" there is a disjunctive, after "Counsellor" there is a disjunctive, and after "Mighty" (but adj. after the noun in Hebrew order) there is a conjunctive. It is possible to reconstruct to some extent the melody and the interpretation of the Old Testament current in the first century and therefore the melody and the interpretation used by Jesus Himself.<ref name=Steinberg>[http://www.adath-shalom.ca/history_of_hebrew2a.htm History of the Ancient and Modern Hebrew Language, By David Steinberg. Phonemic Structure of Hebrew] David.Steinberg@houseofdavid.ca. http://www.houseofdavid.ca Home page
http://www.adath-shalom.ca/history_of_hebrewtoc.htm </ref> This is because of the following: the present day melodies of the various dispersions of the Jews are to a great extent different one from the other. Some of these dispersions are the Ashkenazi, representing the Jews exiled from Israel by the Romans in A.D. 70 and then on to the Rhine Valley, and then onto parts of Eastern Europe, Western Europe, America, etc., the Sephardim who saw the beginnings of their dispersion from Spain in the 15th Century and then on to Greece, Turkey, North Africa. Holland, and America, the Yemenites, the Bnei Israel of India, the Jews of Ethiopia, etc. etc, Yet, with the diversity in melodies of the Scriptures, there are certain features which are either identical or strikingly similar. Musicologist, [[Joel Segal]], pointed out over 40 years ago, that this could only have been possible if these dispersions were at one time together in the same place. The only time that all these dispersions were together in the same place was prior to the great dispersion of the first century and the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.

===Old Testament Apocrypha===
The deuterocanonical books and others that the Reformation designated [[Apocrypha]] were written during the four hundred years between the time of Ezra and Malachi and the birth of Christ (one of them, 2 Esdras, possibly in A.D. the 1st century). The term itself comes from the Greek word ''apokruphos'' ("hidden" or "concealed") which was first applied to them by Jerome according to the opinions of the Jewish sources he consulted in Palestine, and although the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, among others, have always included the deuterocanonical Apocrypha in their versions of the Bible, considering them to be canonical (and they do have an actual history and literary value) the fourteen texts (10 books and portions of 2 others) which make up the whole of the Protestant Apocrypha have been rejected as non-canonical by both the Jewish faith since the 2nd century and by most Protestant denominations of the Christian church since the 16th century due to what, according to Reformation doctrine, they consider to be "''historical, geographical, or literal inaccuracies; the teaching of doctrines which contradict inspired Scripture; and a lack of elements and structure which give genuine Scripture its unique characteristic''" (Unger, pg. 70<ref>See also the following sources for more extensive expression of this Evangelical Christian opinion: Unger, Merril F. Unger's Bible Dictionary, Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1966; new edition 2006); Unger, Merril F. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary, (2006); 1416pp; Unger, Merril F. Unger's Bible Handbook, Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1967).</ref>). Three of the Apocrypha, 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, although part of Jerome's Vulgate, were not included among the canonical books listed at the Council of Trent and are considered by Catholics to be apocryphal works, and as not among the accepted deuterocanonicals. See [[Biblical Canon]].

Protestants do not include Psalm 151 and 3 and 4 Maccabees among the Apocrypha, but they also do not include these in their Bibles. The Reformation did not address the question of their canonical status. The Catholic Church did not include them in the canon of the Council of Trent, and they do not appear in regular editions of the Catholic Bible. They continue to be part of the [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox Bible]].

The Apocryphal books had been used in both Israel and Egypt and (except the Latin 2 Esdras which was part of the Vulgate) are part of the Old Testament in the Greek language used by Jews all over the Greek speaking world - particularly Alexandria, Egypt. This version is called the Septuaginta. The Septuaginta after the 1st century fell into disuse among Jews for two reasons -
:1. Greek speaking Christians were using the Septuaginta in their efforts to bring Jews to faith in Jesus Christ
:2. A number of the Apocryphal books were also apocalyptic, that is, focusing on the last days, the Kingdom of God in battle against the kingdoms of this world and the downfall of this world's empires. This was considered dangerous and liable to provoke Rome against the Jews.
Alternative Greek translations to the Septuaginta, which was considered "loose" by the Rabbis, were adopted. These were the translations of three proselytes to Judaism, Theodosious, Aquillas, and Symmachus. The Jewish Rabbinic "Council" of Jamnia (Yavneh on the Mediterraenian coast of Israel) in A.D. 90, under the leadership of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, effectively excluded the Apocryphal books (along with the Septuaginta) from the Jewish Canon by requiring, for a book to be considered canonical, that it have been written in Hebrew (and Aramaic). This immediately excludes ''all'' of the Christian scriptures included in the entire New Testament, since they were written in Greek and in the 1st century. Actually, a number of the apocryphal books, or portions thereof, had been written originally in Hebrew, most notably, the Book of Ben Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) found in Hebrew at Qumran with the rest of the Dead Sea Scrolls, but this was unknown to Yohanan Ben Zakkai and the Council of Jamnia in the first century. Under the impetus of Renaissance learning, Protestant scholars went directly to the Hebrew text and began to translate the Bible directly from the original languages of Hebrew and Greek, instead of having to go through the Latin Vulgate. But they consulted the Hebrew text of the Talmudic rabbinical version of the synagogue (eventually to be called the "Masoretic text") of the canon of books that had been recommended by the Council of Jamnia and afterward consistently authorized by subsequent rabbinical authorities representing Judaism. They also disregarded the witness of the canonical listing of the books of the Christian Orthodox Greek Bible, which had not been determined by the Council of Trent under the Roman Pontiff but had always been the traditional Old Testament as read from the time of the apostles and the most ancient Christian Church. In this way, most Protestant churches came to not include the Apocryphal books in their Canon of Scripture. One of the reasons the Roman Catholic Church held to the Vulgate was because it had been translated by Jerome from the Hebrew text before the text had been revised and altered by the Masoretes, and today it is considered a valuable witness to the earlier Hebrew Bible.
:"It has also proved of primary importance as an early and excellent witness to the sacred text."
::—The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)<ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/vulgate1.html The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915) The Vulgate, by Samuel Angus.]</ref>

The following are the books which are most frequently referred to by the title ''Apocrypha'':
*[[1 Esdras]]
*[[2 Esdras]]
*[[1 Maccabees]]
*[[2 Maccabees]]
*[[Book of Tobit]]
*[[Book of Judith]]
*[[Book of Wisdom]]
*[[Book of Sirach|Ecclesiasticus]], also known as Sirach
*[[Book of Baruch]]
:*[[Epistle of Jeremiah]] is sometimes listed as separate book or the last chapter of Baruch
*[[Prayer of Manasseh]]
*Greek language additions to the [[Book of Esther]]

Additions to the book of Daniel
*[[The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children]]
*[[Story of Susanna]]
*[[Bel and the Dragon]]

With the exception of 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, the remaining 7 books and parts of Esther and Daniel listed here are regarded as apocryphal by less than a third of Christian believers. With the exception of 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh, these 7 books and parts of Esther and Daniel are accepted as divinely inspired, canonical scriptures in the Holy Bible by the majority of Christian believers in the United States and throughout the world.<ref>The '''Catholic Church''' is the world's largest [[Christianity|Christian]] body comprised of several distinct [https://www.ewtn.com/expert/answers/catholic_rites_and_churches.htm "Rites"]. The [[Catholic Church|Catholic Church (Latin Rite)]] is the largest religious body in the United States, with over 60 million adherents (4 times as large as the second largest church, the Orthodox). [http://www.pewforum.org/2013/02/13/the-global-catholic-population/ “The Global Catholic Population,” © 2011, Pew Research Center.] [http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_romcath.html The Largest Catholic Communities] 
The '''Eastern Orthodox Church''', officially called the '''Orthodox Catholic Church''', and also referred to as the '''[[Orthodox Church]]''' and '''Orthodoxy''', is the second largest [[Christianity|Christian church]] in the world, with an estimated 225–300 million adherents, most of whom live in [[Eastern Europe]], the [[Middle East]], and [[Russia]]. {{cite web |last1=Calivas |first1=Rev. Alciviadis C. |title=The Greek (Eastern) Orthodox Church |publisher=Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Of America |year=1983 |url=http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith7061 |accessdate=7 May 2014 |ref=none }} {{cite web |last1=Fairchild |first1=Mary |title=Christianity:Basics:Eastern Orthodox Church Denomination |publisher=about.com |url=http://christianity.about.com/od/easternorthodoxy/p/orthodoxprofile.htm |accessdate=22 May 2014 |ref=none }} {{cite web |title=Christianity |work=Major Branches of Religions Ranked by Number of Adherents |publisher=adherents.com |url=http://www.adherents.com/adh_branches.html#Christianity |accessdate=22 May 2014 |ref=none }}</ref><ref name=Prot>See [http://www.888c.com/worldChristianDenominations.htm Percentage of Christians in Protestant Denominations (29.5%)].</ref>

====The problem with rabbinical authority defining the biblical canon====

According to the ordinary reading of the New Testament and the consensus of the majority of Christians from the 1st century to this day, the authority of the kingdom of God had been wholly taken away from the Jews in the 1st century and given to the leaders of the Gentiles and Jews in Christ long before the Council of Jamnia. See:
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2015:13-14&version=KJV Matthew 15:13-14]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2016:18-19&version=KJV Matthew 16:18-19]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2018:17-18&version=KJV Matthew 18:17-18]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2021:43&version=KJV Matthew 21:43]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2028:18-20&version=KJV Matthew 28:18-20]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%201:32-33&version=KJV Luke 1:32-33]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2010:16&version=KJV Luke 10:16]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2022:29-30&version=KJV Luke 22:29-30]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts%207:51-53&version=KJV Acts 7:51-53]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1corinthians%204:1&version=KJV 1 Corinthians 4:1]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1corinthians%206:2-3&version=KJV 1 Corinthians 6:2-3]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1timothy%203:14-15&version=KJV 1 Timothy 3:14-15]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews%2013:17&version=KJV Hebrews 13:17]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1john%204:2-6&version=KJV 1 John 4:2-6]
:[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2john%201:9-11&version=KJV 2 John 9-ll]

Between A.D. 90-95, long after the descent of the Holy Spirit of God at Pentecost and the spread of Christianity and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and the devastation of the city and the expulsion of the Jews, the Jewish [[Council of Jamnia]] revised the canon of the Old Testament, by ensuring that the books involved conformed to the Torah, were written in the Hebrew language, written in Palestine, and written before 400 B.C. As a result, the Apocrypha was excluded from the Hebrew canon.<ref>[https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/canon1.html The Jewish Canon and the Christian Canon] (web.cn.edu) Linguistic evidence shows that other Septuagint books which were excluded by rabbinical authority after A.D. 90 certainly had an original Hebrew or Aramaic text. See
*[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html Jewish Virtual Library. Jewish Holy Scriptures: The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, by Michael E. Stone]
*[http://archive.churchsociety.org/crossway/documents/Cway_102_ApocryphaBackground.pdf BACKGROUND AND HISTORY TO THE APOCRYPHA, By David Phillips] Article reprinted from Cross†Way Issue Autumn 2006 No. 102 (archive.churchsociety.org)
*[http://churchsociety.org/issues_new/doctrine/misc/apocrypha/iss_doctrine_misc_apocrypha_origin.asp The Origin of the Apocrypha]
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=dtlDAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA203&lpg=PA203&dq=apocryphal+books+having+evidence+of+hebrew+or+aramaic+origin&source=bl&ots=CkMPwQMciG&sig=y6w4tnI_wvIqyzCWqCoN3xo8mvQ&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VGGcVP2RH4r2yQT7toKYAw&ved=0CFMQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=apocryphal%20books%20having%20evidence%20of%20hebrew%20or%20aramaic%20origin&f=false The Apocrypha of the Old Testament: With Historical Introductions, a Revised Translation, and Notes Critical and Explanatory, by Edwin Cone Bissell. Scribner, 1890. 680 pages], page 208ff, citing evidence that the "additions to Esther" were also translated from the Hebrew. (Google eBook)</ref> The books excluded by this criteria were relatively recent Jewish contributions of the 3rd through the 1st centuries before Christ which had become part of Jewish culture. The rabbinical authorities simultaneously excluded as condemned and false the writings of the "heretics" (the ''minim'', including Christians, called nozrim, no§rim, "Nazarenes"), and cursed Christians in a synagogue service "benediction" against them and others. Palestinian texts of the Eighteen Benedictions from the Cairo Genizah <ref>[http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/treasures-in-the-wall The New Yorker: Page-Turner. March 1, 2013 Treasures in the Wall, by Emily Greenhouse] (newyorker.com) [http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Genizah.html Jewish Virtual Library: Modern Jewish History: The Cairo Genizah, by Alden Oreck]</ref> present a text of the benediction which identifies the minim:<blockquote>"''For the apostates may there be no hope unless they return to Your Torah. As for the no§rim and the minim, may they perish immediately. Speedily may they be erased from the Book of Life, and may they not be registered among the righteous. Blessed are You, O Lord, Who subdues the wicked.''"</blockquote>While other specimens of the Palestinian liturgy show slight variation, the no§rim, (usually translated “Christians”) and minim are included in the best texts of this benediction. The fact remains that the no§rim were included with apostates and heretics and the wicked in the Genizah documents.<ref>[http://lawrenceschiffman.com/?s=the+benediction+against+the+minim Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman: The Benediction Against the Minim] (lawrenceschiffman.com) [http://www.defendingthebride.com/bb/curse.html DEFENDING THE BRIDE. THE CURSE AGAINST CHRISTIANS AT JAMNIA ABOUT 90 AD] (defendingthebride.com) [http://www.academia.edu/6811953/The_Jewish_Council_of_Jamnia_and_Its_Impact_on_the_Old_Testament_Canon_and_New_Testament_Studies The Jewish “Council” of Jamnia and Its Impact on the Old Testament Canon and New Testament Studies, Tim Gordon October 20, 2007] (academia.edu/6811953)</ref> Martin Luther and the leaders of the [[Reformation]] cite as authoritative and determinative the canon of the Hebrew Bible as defined by rabbinical authorities who excluded and condemned as false the entire New Testament scriptures and Jesus as the Messiah <ref name=Luther>Luther rejected the seven books of the Old Testament, citing the Palestinian Canon as his authority. Clearly his reasons were doctrinal. However, his decision poses serious difficulties. What authority from God would Jews have in the Christian era to determine which books of the Old Testament were or were not divinely inspired? In 1529, Luther proposed adoption of the 39-book canon of rabbinic Judaism as the Old Testament canon of the Christian Bible. He justified his decision to exclude seven books from the Old Testament canon of 46 books by an appeal to precedent, citing Jerome who, around A.D. 400 had expressed concerns also voiced by his rabbinical sources that these books in Greek had no Hebrew counterparts. Research into the Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran has discovered Hebrew copies of some of the disputed books, which makes their rejection on this ground unsupportable. Luther's principal reason for opposing these Old Testament books seems to be that they contain textual support for doctrines he had rejected, such as praying for the dead (2 Maccabees 12:42-45). See [http://www.totustuus.com/luther Luther and the Canon of the Bible, by Jim Seghers] [http://www.olswahiawa.org/uploads/2/1/8/4/21845996/session_3.pdf The Canon of the Bible] [http://catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2011/07/can-protestants-rely-upon-council-of.html Wednesday, July 20, 2011. Can Protestants Rely Upon the "Council of Jamnia" for Their Bible?]</ref> because "''unto them were committed the oracles of God.''" (see [http://biblehub.com/multi/romans/3-2.htm Romans 3:2]). This is an historical fact, and it presents a serious problem, known in logic ''as [[non sequitur]]''. If the Jews have been so entrusted with the word of God that they had therefore been given the divine authority to also determine the ''canon'' of sacred scripture, as Luther and the Reformation Protestants maintain, then the whole New Testament is excluded from the canon of the holy Bible because it does not meet the four established rabbinical criteria for what is sacred inspired scripture. See [[Logical fallacy]]

===The New Testament===
The [[New Testament]] is a collection of twenty-seven books and letters, written by the early Christian community, and written primarily in [[Greek]]. The emphasis of the New Testament is the life, teachings, and gift of salvation from the central figure of the whole work, Jesus of Nazareth. These books are grouped into the following:

====[[Gospels|The Gospels]]====
The ''Gospels'' contain the history of Jesus. The ''Acts of the Apostles'' are a continuance of the Gospels, documenting the history of the early church, beginning immediately following Jesus' death and resurrection. Of the authors, only Matthew and John had met Jesus; they were among His disciples during His earthly ministry. Eusebius, in his ''Ecclesiastical History'', says:<blockquote>"Matthew and John are the only ones that have left us recorded comments, and even they, tradition says, undertook it from necessity. Matthew also, having '''first proclaimed the Gospel in Hebrew''' when on the point of going also to other nations, '''committed it to writing in his native tongue''', and thus supplied the want of his presence to them by his writings. But after, when Mark and John had already published their Gospels, they say that John, who during all this time was proclaiming the gospel without writing, at length proceeded to write it on the following occasion. The three Gospels previously written, having been distributed among all, and also handed to him, they say that he admitted them, giving his testimony to their truth; but that there was only wanting in the narrative the account of the things done by Christ, among the first of his deeds, and at the commencement of the Gospel. And this was the truth." —Book III, Chapter XXIV.<ref>''The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine'', translated from the Greek, by the Rev. C. F. Crusé, A.M., assistant professor in the University of Pennsylvania. With Notes from the Edition of Valesius. London: George Bell and Sons, York Street, Covent Garden. 1874. ''Legacy Reprint Series''. Book III, Chapter XXIV The order of the Gospels. page 97</ref> (''book in the public domain. Boldface emphasis added'') .</blockquote> Eusebius relates the already-existing tradition in his day that Matthew wrote the first Gospel. In every manuscript of the New Testament, Matthew is always placed first, and for almost 1900 years the traditional view prevailed unchallenged that Matthew was the first Gospel written. This is called the [[Augustinian Hypothesis]], which holds that Matthew was the first Gospel, written by Matthew the Evangelist. Mark, according to tradition a Roman, and a companion of Peter, was author of the second Gospel, but beginning in the 19th century [[Heinrich Julius Holtzmann]] together with other German scholars, abusing the literary tools of [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|historical-critical methods]] in opposition to Christian tradition, declared on their authority as German scholars that Mark's gospel was the first to be written down, about A.D. 50. This theory is called "Marcan priority", and it was aggressively spread as part of [[Otto von Bismarck|Bismarck's]] anti-Catholic 'Kulturkampf' policy.<ref>[http://www.ewtn.com/library/SCRIPTUR/KULTGOS.TXT Kulturkampf and the Gospel, by John Beaumont] [http://www.churchinhistory.org/pages/booklets/farmer%28n%29.htm Church in History. The ChurchinHistory Information Centre. BISMARCK AND THE FOUR GOSPELS 1870 - 1914, by William R. Farmer (University of Dallas) Editor of A NEW CATHOLIC BIBLE COMMENTARY. The theory that Mark's Gospel was published before Matthew's is widely held in German and English speaking countries. This article shows how this theory, with little supporting evidence, came to be spread as part of Bismarck's anti-Catholic 'Kulturkampf' policy. BIBLIOTHECA EPHEMERIDUM THEOLOGICARUM LOVANIENSIUM. THE FOUR GOSPELS. 1992] (churchinhistory.org)</ref> This view is widely held by liberal biblical scholars in German and English speaking countries. In the United States acceptance of Marcan Priority has often been a test of the "academic competency" of those faculty members who teach Biblical Studies.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=UYKvAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA282&lpg=PA282&dq=academic+persecution+regarding+Augustinian+hypothesis&source=bl&ots=iDysvbe5ii&sig=oNOrQku42-Tx-n-yBzhQtzAeQls&hl=en&sa=X&ei=VHKkVNa7IceiyAStsYKYAw&ved=0CEQQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=academic%20persecution%20regarding%20Augustinian%20hypothesis&f=false Mark's Gospel--Prior or Posterior?: A Reappraisal of the Phenomenon of Order, By David Neville]</ref> Luke is traditionally considered to be the author of both the third Gospel and the ''Acts''.
*[[Gospel of Matthew]]
*[[Gospel of Mark]]
*[[Gospel of Luke]]
*[[Gospel of John]]
*[[Acts of the Apostles]]

====[[Pauline Epistles]]====
The Pauline Epistles are letters (epistles) written to early Christian communities written by the [[Apostle Paul]].
*[[Epistle to the Romans]]
*[[First Epistle to the Corinthians]]
*[[Second Epistle to the Corinthians]]
*[[Galatians|Epistle to the Galatians]]
*[[Epistle to the Philippians]]
*[[Epistle to Philemon]]
*[[First Epistle to the Thessalonians]]
*[[Second Epistle to the Thessalonians]]
*[[Ephesians|Epistle to the Ephesians]]
*[[Epistle to the Colossians]]
*[[First Epistle to Timothy]]
*[[Second Epistle to Timothy]]
*[[Epistle to Titus]]
*''Possibly the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]]''

[[Liberal]] Bible scholarship over the last two centuries has denied that Paul wrote Ephesians, 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus; and doubted that he wrote Colossians and 2 Thessalonians. However, all the epistles listed above except Hebrews say they are written by Paul. As they are authoritative Scripture which "cannot lie", their claims should be believed.

There is speculation that Paul may have written the ''Epistle to the Hebrews'', which does not mention an author; however, under the pure divine power of the Holy Spirit of God the Father through Jesus Christ himself—"he has spoken through the Prophets"—it could easily have been written by any early Christian except for Timothy, who is mentioned by name in the final chapter. The controversy, however, does not affect the genuineness of the epistle. <ref>Unger, pg. 748; Eusebius ''The History of the Church'' 3:3</ref>

The Council of Trent (1546) dogmatically affirmed that the Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the fourteen genuine epistles of Paul.
:—[http://www.bible-researcher.com/trent1.html Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent. The Fourth Session. Celebrated on the eighth day of the month of April, in the year 1546. English translation by James Waterworth (London, 1848)]

====[[General Epistles]]====
*[[Epistle of James]]
*[[First Epistle of Peter]]
*[[Second Epistle of Peter]]
*[[First Epistle of John]]
*[[Second Epistle of John]]
*[[Third Epistle of John]]
*[[Epistle of Jude]]

====Revelation====
The [[Book of Revelation]] is the last work in the New Testament as well as the whole Bible, written close to A.D. 100 by the [[Apostle John]] during his exile on the Greek island of [[Patmos]]. Revelation is concerned with the condition of the [[Seven Churches of Asia]] before going deeply into a description of the [[Last Days]] prior to the beginning of the [[Millennial Age]].

Most [[Fundamentalism|Fundamentalists]] hold to "[[Dispensationalism]]", an interpretive theory of the meaning of Revelation and other prophecies that was developed in the 19th century by British theologian [[John Nelson Darby]] (1800–82) and the [[Plymouth Brethren]], and is summarized in the ''[[Scofield Reference Bible]]'' edited and [[Christian Zionism#Dispensationalism|annotated]] by [http://poweredbychrist.homestead.com/files/cyrus/scofield.htm Cyrus I. Scofield] (1909, 1917). See [http://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/scofield-reference-notes/ Scofield's Reference Notes]

==Non-uniformity of language and style of original Scriptures==

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament, in the original languages of Hebrew (and Aramaic) and Greek, exhibit a non uniformity of style and language. This is in sharp contrast to most modern translations which treat the Scriptures throughout as if they are one book instead of the many books they are. Modern translations can be erudite, dignified, folksy and common, clear and geared for the "common man", or replete with language resonant with literary associations for the "accomplished" reader. But they are that way throughout. The Biblical originals, on the other hand, for example, embedded in the Hebrew within the narrative of the deeds of the prophetess Debora, have in the Song of Deborah (Judges chapter 5) a much more ancient and even archaic Hebrew than that of the main text of the book, probably emanating from a chant from the time of Deborah herself, plainly evident to any person who has studied Hebrew language. The same with the narrative and poetic portions concerning Moses. The human authors, inspired by God, were careful to preserve the integrity of the original inspired songs which they had faithfully recorded or otherwise copied and included in their narratives. There are even different Hebrew languages (rather dialects) from the same historical period but from different authors living during the same time, having come from different origins and cultural levels.<ref name=Steinberg/>

For the New Testament, an example of non-uniformity can be found in the stark differences of language in the Gospel of Luke, written by Luke the physician. The early accounts, those concerning the birth of Jesus and early life, are written in a stilted and often crude Greek while the rest of the Gospel is written in fine Greek befitting of the background and ability of a learned physician. But when the stilted and crude Greek is retranslated, word for word and phrase for phrase, into the Hebrew current in the first century in most parts of Israel (a technique called "back translation"), it becomes excellent Hebrew - Mishnaic Hebrew. This is because of the intent and fastidiousness of Luke, who derived his material, as he says, from people that had been "on the scene", and his success in transmitting it faithfully as he had received it. Both the Old and New Testaments, for various reasons, exhibit little or no concern to "level through" or override the content of what they are saying by stylistic considerations.

===Inspiration===
Although the Old Testament is written by many [[homo sapiens|human]] authors, New Testament authors know that these men were writing under the inspiration of God.

The apostle [[Paul]] wrote that "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).
Similarly the apostle [[Saint Peter|Peter]] wrote, "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit" (2 Peter 1:20-21).

====Formation of New Testament and Jewish technical transmission====
In the first century and prior, the ear was more important than the eye, as far as retaining in memory. Jews would receive orally, that is, from hearing, the laws that they believed originated with Moses and then passed them on to others, down through the generations. It was important to link the present rabbis by names who taught it with the rabbis by name who had passed it on to them, on back as far as possible to Moses on Mt. Sinai. This was the startling difference of Jesus. By saying "You have heard it said, but I say unto you...", He was by-passing Moses and the others after and getting His teaching direct from the Father.

This Jewish way of receiving (QBL) and handing on (MSR) is summed up in the lead saying of the "Ethics of the Fathers" tractate of the [[Mishna]], "Moses received Torah from God at Sinai. He transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the elders, the elders to the prophets, the prophets to the members of the Great Assembly [Sanhedrin] (1:1)." The teaching thus transmitted was memorized word for word by groups of disciples (Talmidim) together, thereby minimizing, by the common knowledge and public repetitions, all innovations and errors, though there might well have been "stylizing" for ease of retention and recall, receiving and handing on (transmission).

This methodology, with its technical Hebrew terminology appears in the New Testament with the same technical meaning and purpose, for how the earliest Christian teaching was carried on prior to the formation of the New Testament and during the time of its formation. This ensured the validity of the teaching and its authenticity going back, not to Moses, but to the time of Jesus Himself. "For I handed over (Gk. pare'doka, Heb. MSR) to you at the first what I also received (Gk. pare'labon, Heb. QBL) that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures, and that He was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures..." l Cor. 15:3. Paul knew all of the "deposit of faith" three ways, in the usual "collaborative" way of God - from Scriptures (the Old Testament), from experience (seeing the living Christ on the road to Damascas), and from authenticated oral tradition/transmission involving "receiving" and "handing on".

==Authority of Bible in religious communities==
The role of the Bible in the life of differing communities varies widely by both the inner tenents of the community and the outer influences bearing on the community.
===Judaism===
Orthodox Judaism through the centuries, while it was only marginally affected by growing secularization and modern learning, held to a "differing levels of authority" understanding of the authority of the Hebrew Bible. This did not imply different levels of inspiration, but rather that importance to the regulation of life was prime for the Torah of Moses, the 5 books of the Law. But the Pharasaic teaching also posited an Oral Law given to Moses by God that was passed on through the centuries through Joshua, the prophets, pairs of Rabbis, until this day. The Oral law is found in the Talmud (Mishna and the Gemara together). The oral law became the decisive interpreter, teacher and regulator of the Written Law and determined the course of Jewish Orthodox life. The second section of the Old Testament, the Prophets, is known to the Jewish Community primarily through the synagogue readings of the prophets, the Haftorah, that are assigned to conclude the weekly reading of the Law. The Psalms, the most formative of all the Writings, besides being common throughout the synagogue services, are used in various devotional prayer contexts. Orthodox Judaism has little been affected by modern Higher Criticism of the Bible. Reformed Judaism, originally developed in Germany, and Conservative Judaism, to a lesser extent, have been greatly affected.

===Mainline Protestants===
Mainline Protestantism, represented in the major Protestant churches, denominations, sects and their seminaries, has greatly been affected by "modernism" based on advanced scholarly research, especially from Germany in the 19th century. Those who abused the legitimate tools "Higher Criticism" chose as a fundamental liberal [[premise]] to ignore God's participation in the production of Scripture. Prime among these theories is the Documentary theory of Penteteuch origins (Wellhausen-Graff) that posits that Moses wrote little or nothing. Instead, they propose that the Bible originated in four unknown hypothetical sources coming from various periods. These four sources are termed J (for the use of "Jehovah" for the name of God), E (for the use of "Elohim"), P (priestly), and D (Deuteronomic). The "spirit" of the New Testament (according to their understanding of what they think is the probable main attitude of the writers, derived from the overall impression gained from a generally humanist religious point of view) is far more important than the text of either Testament for modern Protestant theology.

====Orthodox Jewish critique of Documentary theory====
Jewish Orthodox scholars have pointed to flaws in the Documentary Hypothesis. For instance, Orthodox Jewish Scholar Cassuto has pointed out that rather than the names for God varying according to author and period, they vary according to emphasis from the same period, that of Moses - "Jehovah" being used for God in his dealing with His covenental people Israel, and "Elohim" being used when His dealings with mankind are emphasized. Likewise the two terms usually translated "making a covenant", ''lkhrot brit'' (to "cut" a covenant) and ''lehaqim brit'' (to "raise" a covenenat) are not from two sources but mean two different things - to initiate a covenant and to fulfill a covenant.

===Evangelical Protestants===
Evangelical Protestantism believes strongly in the divine inspiration and inerrancy of the whole Bible and has been the most receptive of the doctrine of the full sufficiency of Biblical Authority. Believing in full inspiration of the whole of Scripture does not mean to evangelicalism the equal importance of all Scriptures for the healthy growth of the Christian community. This is because Evangelicalism, following Scripture's own self-disclosure, believes in progressive revelation throughout Biblical time, culminating in Jesus Christ, and no further (thus obviating the role of Tradition). Thus Evangelicalism, does not hold to the application of Mosaic Legislation, and other biblical elements that Orthodox Judaism holds to. This applies to faith and to morals. The Mosaic regulation on executing a rebellious child does not present a problem for evangelical thought as, according to Paul and Hebrews, the Law has been rendered obsolete by the New Covenant. The Destruction of the Temple and of the place for sacrifice of all kinds, present no problem for evangelicalism, as they did for Judasim, as Christ's sacrifice on the cross has now "fulfilled" the prescriptions of the Law and the ceremonials attached. Thus there is a sort of "levels of authority" understanding for evangelicalism similar to the levels of authority of Judaism (but for different reasons).

Evangelical Churches vigorously promote the reading of Scripture through Sunday sermons and Bible study programs. Emphasis is placed on "each one understanding". Coupled with American individualism, and lack of traditional vehicles of authority, this sometimes leads to splintering of worshiping communities and the insistence that each man's interpretation "is as good as any other". Nevertheless, "The Fundamentals" defined in 1910 are strongly retained by the Evangelical Churches - the divinity of Christ, His death for sins and Resurrection from the dead, His second coming.<ref>''[http://web.archive.org/web/20030101082327/http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Parthenon/6528/fundcont.htm The Fundamentals: A Testimony To The Truth'', 1910–1915, 4 Vol.] [http://www.biola.edu/about/history/ Bible Institute of Los Angeles,] ed. [http://www.dbts.edu/journals/1996_1/ACDIXON.PDF A. C. Dixon], [[Reuben Archer Torrey]].</ref>

===Eastern Orthodox===
The Orthodox Churches throughout the world, whether Greek, Russian, Romanian, the various middle eastern varieties, emphasize the role of the synod (Council) of Bishops, based on the example of the "Council" of Jerusalem in the book of Acts, as the divinely authorized agent of interpretation and application of the Scriptures. Understanding that Jesus' words, "He (the Holy Spirit) will lead you into all truth", Orthodoxy believes that the synod of bishops, no one of whom is held to be individually infallible, are given guidance from the Holy Spirit so that the Scriptures are rightly applied to the Christian Community, enabling the Church to never stray from Christ, that is, the Church is given "indefectability". A minority of Orthodox Church thought holds to "infallibility" in synodal decision rather than, or instead of, "indefectability". The Scriptures in the Orthodox churches are buttressed by creedal formulations, the decisions of belief of past synods, and are less susceptible to the liberalist abuses of the legitimate methods of modern Higher Criticism. The Resurrection of Christ, virgin birth, return of Christ from Heaven to Earth, are all part and parcel of these churches. Individual interpretation of Scripture and manner of life are limited, then, by the teaching authority (the magisterium) granted to the Episcopate - the Synod of bishops.

===Roman Catholic===
The Roman Catholic Church, like the Orthodox Churches, has a strong sense of the Authority ([[Magisterium]]) given to the Bishops by Christ to teach, interpret, defend the Faith and therefore to exercise the responsibility to interpret to the Faithful both Holy Scripture and Apostolic Tradition. But since Vatican II, there has been an increased effort to bring Scriptural knowledge to the laity, and now there has been an increase of Scripture reading and study programs throughout most sections of the Church. This as been abetted by the Catholic Charismatic movement which has had the effect of promoting individual appropriation of the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, and with that, the correlate devotional and intellectual use of Holy Scriptures. However, the role of "Magisterium", that is the Teaching Authority, sets firm limits to individual interpretation. The Roman Catholic church understands that, though Magisterial authority is given to all the bishops, the definitive exercise of the Magisterium is limited to one bishop - the bishop of Rome, the Pope, and to the bishops in communion together with him. Further, Catholicism teaches that the Pope, when he declares dogma (teaching) ''ex-Cathedra'' (from the chair), he speaks infallibly (on matters of faith and morals). The first time the Pope promulgated dogma ''ex-cathedra'' formally was to promulgate the doctrine itself of Papal Infallibility, based on Scripture, history, and reason.<ref>[http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Councils/ecum20.htm Papal Encyclicals Online. Decrees of the First Vatican Council] [http://www.catholic.com/tracts/papal-infallibility Catholic Answers. Papal Infallibility]</ref> The Pope, through the Vatican prelates and all the bishops can regulate much of Catholic community life, and some of the regulation is based on the interpretation of Scripture or the application of the traditional interpretation of Scripture. An example of this is the prohibition of abortion. The Church has accepted in a fundamentally modified form most of the legitimate modern [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)|Higher Critical methodology]] of studying Scripture, including the [[Documentary Hypothesis]] of origins first developed within German Protestantism. But the effects of this on the tenets of the Christian Faith are profoundly mitigated due to the creedal affirmations of the Church developed centuries ago and to the discernment of Papal authority. Thus the Roman Catholic Church does not waver on the Deity of Christ, the Trinity, the death and resurrection of Christ, and the Second Coming.

==Evangelical Understanding of the History of the Bible==
Rejecting the "Higher Criticism" accepted by the mainline Protestant denominations, Evangelicals and many Catholics hold to a more traditional history of the Bible. This section summarizes their views.

[[Image:Gospel of Luke in Arab.gif|thumb|This tenth-century Egyptian codex was donated to Pope Eugenius IV by the Coptic delegates at the Council of Ferrara-Florence. Translated from a Coptic original, it is one of the earliest Arabic versions of any part of the New Testament, none of which can be dated before the late eighth or ninth centuries.]]

Traditionally, the oldest books of the Bible are certainly the five books of the Torah and the Book of Job. In 1st Kings 6:1, Solomon is stated to have begun building the Temple "''in the 480th year after the children of Israel were come up out of the land of Egypt''". It has been established by a majority of conservative scholars and historians that Solomon had begun building the Temple in the fourth year of his reign, apparently in 961 B.C., making the probable [[date of the Exodus]] under Moses 1441 B.C. During the following forty years Moses wrote the Torah and the Book of Job, completing them before his death at [[Mt. Nebo]] about 1400 B.C. According to Biblical scholar and historian Robert D. Wilson the Torah as it stands dates from the time of Moses, the five books constitute one continuous work, and was written by a single individual, Moses himself (Wilson, pg 11).<ref>Wilson, Robert D. ''A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament'', Sunday School Times, Inc, Philadelphia, PA (1926)</ref>

The remaining books of the Old Testament were written at various times since the death of Moses, with ''Malachi'', the last Hebrew Old Testament book, being written about 455 B.C. During this period each of the books was written and re-written on parchment or papyrus, with editors taking great care in their work; a single Biblical book hand-written today can take weeks to complete. The older scrolls were disposed of by burial or storage in a ''Geniza'' room when worn from normal usage (the Cairo Geniza is famous for the antiquity of the scrolls discovered within it) because the Jews have a devout horror of destroying the sacred script containing the transmitted revelation of God; as a result, the oldest surviving examples of Biblical manuscripts are those which have been carefully preserved either by direct actions of people (such as monasteries), or by removal from forces of decay. Currently, the oldest surviving manuscripts are those found carefully stored in clay jars within the caves of Qumran in 1948 and known as the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]], dating between 250 B.C. to A.D. 70; the complete ''Isaiah'' scroll of this collection dates to 150 B.C.

Around 200 B.C. the [[Septuagint]], a Greek-language version of the Old Testament, was completed. This was due to the Hellenization of large areas of the Middle East after the conquest of Alexander the Great, making Greek the defacto language for everyday communications and business. The Septuagint marks the first time in history that the Bible was translated into a foreign language. An ancient fragment of the Septuagint containing the Tetragrammaton (Greek, "four letters", that is, of the name of God, YHWH) has been dated between 50 B.C. and A.D. 50.<ref>[http://www.eliyah.com/lxx.html Tetragrammaton Found in Earliest Copies of the Septuagint]</ref>

See [[Literalist Bible chronology]].

===Early New Testament history===
In 1st Timothy 5:8, Paul quoted as scripture ''"the laborer is worthy of his hire."'' This line is found nowhere else in the Bible except Matthew 10:10 and Luke 5:7. In 2nd Peter 3:15-16, Peter classes Paul's letters with "other scriptures". Both lines are indicative of the writing down and general use of the New Testament prior to A.D. 60 (Halley, pg. 741-742).<ref>Halley, Henry H. Halley's Bible Handbook, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI (1965)</ref> Spurious "gospels" which are known to have appeared by A.D. 100, make references to the New Testament. [[Clement of Rome]], writing in his own letter to the Corinthians in A.D. 95, refers to ''Matthew'', ''Luke'', ''Corinthians'', ''Hebrews'', ''1st Timothy'', and ''1st Peter'' (Halley, pg. 743).

The oldest surviving New Testament fragment of which there is a reliable date is the [[John Rylands Fragment]] (P52) of the ''Gospel of John'', dating from 117-138 A.D., just decades from when the Gospel was first written. <ref>[http://www.biblefacts.org/history/oldtext.html N.T. Ancient Manuscripts]</ref> The time span between the writing of the New Testament and the oldest surviving fragments are well under two hundred years. By comparison, Greek classics such as [[Herodotus]], [[Plato]], [[Euripides]], and [[Homer]] have a time span well over a thousand years each between the date of the oldest known fragment of writing and the time period they were first written.

==Translations==
===The Peshitta===
The second translated version of the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament (after the Greek Septuaginta) was in the Aramaic language, the Peshitta (Aram. "''simple, common''"). In A.D. 36, both the Queen of Adiabene (the last existing Province of that Assyrian Empire hated and feared by the Jews), known in Greek as Queen Helena (not the mother of Constantine), and known to the Jews as Queen Shlom Zion ("Peace of Zion"), and her son King Ezad were converted to Judaism. Queen Helena's conversion, as well as others of the Kingdom, furthered the already developing translation of the Hebrew Scriptures in her Kingdom's language -Aramaic. That developing translation came to be known as the Peshitta - meaning simple or common speech, in much the same way as the Hebrew Bible would be translated into Latin by Jerome, with extensive help from a Rabbi, and the resultant translation would be called the Vulgate - meaning simple or common speech. The Peshitta, retaining elements of the then Jewish "[[Targum]]ic" (interpretive) and other Jewish understandings of the Hebrew Bible (see [[Midrash]]), is primarily based on the Pre-Masoretic Hebrew Scriptures - though certain books, such as the Prophet Isaiah, are translations primarily from the Septuagint. The development of the Old Testament Peshitta translation is held by some to have taken place alternatively in Adiabene's nearby neighbor Edessa.

As Thomas and his followers went to India, others (possibly Adai [Thaddeus] among them, the Galilean from Caesarea Phillipi) arrived in [[Adiabene]]. Having gone probably to the synagogues first, as did the Apostle Paul, they found already there, if not a populous citizenry, then an elite governmental element, conversant with the Biblical message in Aramaic. From these people, hearing the preaching of the messengers from Israel, came believers in Jesus Christ, and soon after, came the translation of the Greek New Testament Scriptures into Aramaic, and so the Peshitta was increased by inclusion of the New Testament in Aramaic. Most of the deuterocanonical and apocryphal books of the Old Testament are found in the Syriac, held to have been translated from the Hebrew and not from the Septuagint. The rest of the Old Testament known to the early Syrian church was substantially that of the Palestinian Jews but it arranged them in a different order. First there was the Pentateuch, then Job, Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, 1 and 2 Chronicles, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Book of Sirach and most of the deuterocanonical and apocryphal books of the Old Testament, Ruth, Canticles, Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, Isaiah followed by the Twelve Minor Prophets, Jeremiah and Lamentations, Ezekiel, and lastly Daniel. Unlike the Greek canon of the New Testament Scriptures, the Peshitta originally did not include the following books: the Second Epistle of Peter, the Second Epistle of John, the Third Epistle of John, the Epistle of Jude and the Book of Revelation. But these books translated into the Syriac (as Christian Aramaic is known) are now part of the Peshitta and used by the Aramaic based churches today, primarily in India and the Middle East - the Syrian Catholic Church, the Assyrian Church of the East (Holy Apostolic and Catholic Church of the East), the Indian Orthodox Church, the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Maronite Church, the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, the Syro-Malabar Church and the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.<ref>See the following articles and resources:
*[http://www.bible-researcher.com/syriac-isbe.html International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915) Article: Syriac Versions. Thomas Nicol]
*[http://www.peshitta.org/initial/peshitta.html History of the Peshitta]
*[http://www.peshitta.org/ Aramaic/English Interlinear New Testament]
*[http://scrollandscreen.com/syriac/index.htm Biblical Studies and Technological Tools. Syriac Tools and Resources] ''access to Syriac Old and New Testaments''
*[http://aramaicnt.org/articles/problems-with-peshitta-primacy/ Problems with Peshitta Primacy]
*[http://madenkha.net/holy_bible/ Index of Holy Bible] ''online access to Aramaic Text of Old and New Testaments of Peshitta''</ref>

Adiabene and its surroundings then became the sending center for a mission to the East that would eventually take advantage of the newly rediscovered monsoon winds blowing for months across the Arabian sea, making it possible for ships' pilots to no longer hug the coasts. And taking advantage of the "[[Silk Road]]" all the way from Antioch in Syria to China, they took the message of Jesus Christ to India (bringing about the Aramaic [Syriac] language churches of Kerala) and even to China itself. And so, the Peshitta, written in the Middle East, for a while became the Scriptures of the Far East Churches of Jesus Christ, particularly in India.

See [[Monophysite]]

===The Vulgate===
[[Jerome]], a Latin scholar deeply interested in the study of the Scriptures, completed the second edition of the Bible in the Latin language. The ''[[Vulgate]]'' was meant to replace the inaccuracies of the earlier ''[[Vetus Latina]]'' (the Old Latin version), the standard Bible of the early Catholic Church in Latin. Jerome had moved to [[Jerusalem]] in 382, and set to work on what eventually became a fresh Latin translation of the Old Testament from the Greek of the ''Septuagint'' and a translation of the Greek New Testament into Latin; then from 390-405 he decided to re-translate his Old Testament directly from the Hebrew text then in use by the Jewish community, which pre-dated the revision of the [[Masoretic Text|Hebrew text]] later written by the Masoretic Hebrew scholars of Judaism between the 7th and 10th centuries. The ''Vulgate'' Bible of 76 books (49 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books) had a marked influence in church history, and it remained the standard Latin Bible in the Roman Catholic Church for centuries. After the Council of Trent defined the canon of the holy Bible as 73 books of scripture "with all their parts", and 1 and 2 Esdras and Prayer of Manasseh had been placed in an appendix to the definitive Clementine Vulgate critical edition, the Vulgate was henceforth the dogmatically defined canonical Bible of the Catholic Church. After 1450 years of use the Vulgate was finally replaced by the ''[[Nova Vulgata]]'' in 1979. The earliest surviving complete manuscript of the entire Latin Bible is the Codex Amiatinus, produced in eighth century England at the double monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow.<ref>The Codex Amiatinus is the most celebrated manuscript of the Latin Vulgate Bible, remarkable as the best witness to the true text of St. Jerome and as a fine specimen of medieval calligraphy. [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04081a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Codex Amiatinus] [http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-27372773 BBC News Tyne and Wear. 15 May 2014. Codex Amiatinus Bible returns to its home in Jarrow] [http://www.facsimilefinder.com/facsimiles/codex-amiatinus-facsimile Codex Amiatinus Facsimile Edition]</ref>

===Early English translations authorized by Rome===

Vernacular translations into English and other languages have been authorized by the [[Holy See]] since as early as A.D. 600. Partial translations of the Bible into languages of the English people can be traced back to the end of the 7th century, including translations into Old English and Middle English.<ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/anglosaxon.html Anglo-Saxon Versions of Scripture (A.D. 600–1150)] (bible-researcher.com)</ref> A number of Old English Bible translations survive, as do many instances of glosses in the vernacular, especially in the Gospels and the Psalms.<ref>See Roberts, Jane (2011). “Some Psalter Glosses in Their Immediate Context”, in ''Palimpsests and the Literary Imagination of Medieval England'', eds. Leo Carruthers, Raeleen Chai-Elsholz, Tatjana Silec. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 61-79, which looks at three Anglo-Saxon glossed psalters and how layers of gloss and text, language and layout, speak to the meditative reader. See Marsden, Richard (2011), "The Bible in English in the Middle Ages", in The Practice of the Bible in the Middle Ages: Production, Reception and Performance in Western Christianity (New York: Columbia University Press, 2011), pp. 272-295.</ref>

The age of Middle English (1066-1500) beginning with the Norman conquest and ending about 1500 covers the period of authorized and unauthorized Middle English Bible translations.

===Heresies based on abusive use of vernacular translations===

The abuse of vernacular translations of Sacred Scripture made available to the common people was a prominent feature of heresies during the roughly 400 year period from 1100 to 1500.

For example, the Albigensians (also called Cathari "''the pure''"), prevalent during the 12th and 13th centuries in western Europe, particularly in southern France and northern Italy, rejected the authority of Church and State. They appealed to the Scriptures as authority for their doctrines, mostly the New Testament, because the Old Law was regarded by them according to their teaching as mainly a demoniacal creation. Like [[Marcion]] in the 2nd century, they taught the [[Manichaean]] doctrine of two Gods, and that the evil God created matter and the whole physical universe to entrap and enslave divine spirits of light, and was the God of the Old Testament and the God of the Jews. They forbade marriage, sexual relations between spouses, condemned the begetting of children, and praised those who chose to starve themselves to death.<ref>[http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Heresies_Heretics/Heresies_Heretics_006.htm Albigensianism, by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.] [http://www.stisidore-yubacity.org/faqalbigenses.html What is the Albigenses/Albigensian Heresy? Albigenses] [http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=31727 Dictionary: Albigensians] (catholicculture.org)</ref>

Another example is Waldo (Valdo), from the city of Lyons, also variously referred to as Valdes, Valdesius, Valdensius. References to the movement he founded call his disciples "Waldensians", "the poor of Lyons", "the Leonese", "the Poor of Lombardy", or simply "the Poor". He arranged for the Gospels and some other books of the Bible to be translated into common speech which he read very often, but without understanding their real meaning. The translations produced were full of mistakes and mistranslations which changed the meaning of the scriptures. Infatuated with his own interpretation of these defective scriptures he usurped authority by presuming to preach the Gospel in the streets, where he made many disciples, and involved them, both men and women, in a similar act of presumption by sending them out, in turn, to preach. These people, ignorant and illiterate, went about through the towns, entering houses and even churches, disturbing families, disrupting worship services, ignoring civil statutes and laws, and spreading many errors. The principal heresy of the Waldensians was contempt for (ignoring of) ecclesiastical power and rejection of governmental authority. They capitalized on the fact that the common people were scandalized by evident corruption and abuses of legitimate authority by individuals in Church and in secular government who, like [[Balaam]] and [[Judas]], betrayed Christ for the sake of gain, in direct and indifferent disobedience to the teaching of the Church. And they opportunistically misrepresented these clearly [http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/aberration aberrent] scandals as if they were authentically representative of the actual teaching and doctrine of the Church (thereby committing what has been defined as sins of [[calumny]] and [[detraction]], fueled by actual [[scandal]]). The Waldensian dispute then, centered on the issue of authority. The fact that they translated the scriptures badly, studied these translations, drew their own conclusions as to what they meant, and "presumed" to preach whatever they believed, without reference to the clergy, was unacceptable.<ref>[http://www.xenos.org/essays/waldensian-movement-waldo-reformation Xenos Christian Fellowship. The Waldensian Movement From Waldo to the Reformation, by Dennis McCallum] (xenos.org)</ref>

A similar phenomenon has animated movements in the 20th and 21st centuries, "[[cult]]s" which claim authority from their founders' particular interpretations of the Bible, doctrines which have resulted in bizarre and self-destructive behavior, all "''based on the Word of God''", such as [[Jonestown]], the [[Branch Davidians]] of [[David Koresh]], and the [[Heaven's Gate]] U.F.O. group. In the 21st century in the United States, the extremist teaching of [[Fred Phelps]] and the [[Westboro Baptist Church]] presents a milder example, claiming the authority of the Bible for their disruptive activities.

In the late Middle Ages, because of the evident, ongoing, and repeated "''[[clear and present danger]]''" to society and to the mental, moral and physical health of the people, so consistently resulting from the direct and apparent association of heretical movements with the act of translating the Bible into the vernacular for anyone to read and interpret as he or she pleased, the Catholic Church began to severely curtail authorization for new translations into the vernacular and subsequently rarely granted permission to anyone who desired to undertake the task during that troubled period, in an attempt to avoid contributing to the problem by providing additional material which, in those days, would certainly give only more occasion for abuse of the meaning of the ''Holy Scriptures'', added to contempt for the authority of the office of the leaders of the Church and the stability of society under the legitimate authority of the office of duly appointed governors, princes and kings.

See [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%207:6&version=NABRE Matthew 7:6], also [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2corinthians%202:17&version=NABRE 2 Corinthians 2:17] and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2corinthians%2011:2-20&version=NABRE 11:2-20], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=galatians%201:6-9&version=NABRE Galatians 1:6-9], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=colossians%202:18-19&version=NABRE Colossians 2:18-19], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2peter%201:20-2:3&version=NABRE 2 Peter 1:20-2:3] and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2peter%203:14-17&version=NABRE 3:14-17]. —See also [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2022:27&version=NABRE Exodus 22:27( KJV 22:28 )], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2016:1-11&version=NABRE Numbers 16:1-11],[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%2013:1-5&version=NABRE Romans 13:1-5], and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:8&version=NABRE Jude 8], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:11&version=NABRE 11], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jude%201:17-19&version=NABRE 17-19]. Compare [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%202:17-24&version=NABRE Romans 2:17-24]

See [[Cafeteria Christianity]] and [[Cafeteria Catholic]].

''For a more detailed treatment, see '''[http://www.catholic.com/tracts/the-great-heresies The Great Heresies''']''

==Printing==
[[Image:Gutenburg1.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Printers copy of a page from a Gutenberg Bible, printed in Germany about 1469.]]
[[Johannes Gutenberg]] of [[Mainz]], [[Germany]] invented the first mechanical printing press in 1448. His machine consisted of a large press which when cranked down, pressed a sheet of paper upon a platform in which were set thousands of inked metal letter typefaces (called "movable type"), set in place to read for a particular page. The first book in history printed by this method was the [[Gutenberg Bible]], in the ''Vulgate'' Latin version, of which 180 were printed, and approximately 50 survive today in varying conditions around the world.

The Gutenberg Bible marked another first: printed Bibles could be mass produced to get them into the hands of many people at a low cost. They first had to be translated out of Latin into a common language, and [[Martin Luther]] made the great German translation, 1522-1534. The Protestant Reformers emphasized that laymen should study the Bible, and printing made it possible for them to go beyond the interpretations shown in [[stained glass windows]] (the "Bible of the illiterate") to the actual text.

==English language versions of the Bible==

===Wycliff's Bible===
The first translation of the whole Latin Bible into English by dissident scholars in the English Catholic Church was made under the supervision of the English cleric [[John Wyclif]] in the 1380's, with the assistance of Nicholas Hereford and John Purvey. Wyclif held that the Bible should be placed directly in the hands of the people, but was this was opposed by the English Church hierarchy of his day; indeed, one of Wyclif's opponents, Henry Knighton, compared giving the Bible to the people in English to "casting pearls before swine". Archbishop Arundel of Canterbury promulgated a ban on all English Bibles in 1407, and possession of one was considered evidence of [[heresy]].

Wyclif's was a scholarly translation, based on the [[Latin]], [[Greek]], and [[Hebrew]] texts, but was found to be unwieldy due to its adherence to Latin grammar (in which, for instance, verbs tend to be at the end of sentences). A second Wycliffite translation was prepared late in this period, which avoided this problem, but due to the fact that it could only be distributed in manuscript form, it was an expensive volume. Outside of the nobility and gentry, it was more common to see only a single [[The Gospels|Gospel]], or a copy of the Psalms, rather than an entire Bible, which cost more than the average working person could earn in a year.

Over the next century, its form of English gradually became antiquated, leading English Protestants such as [[William Tyndale]] to feel that an entirely new translation was needed.

===Tyndale===
During the middle of the 16th century there was a renewed sense of the need to get the Bible directly into the hands of the common man; prior to that the Bible was restricted to readings in the Church alone. The Reformers were a group of people who were shocked at the differences between what the Roman Catholic Church was practicing as opposed to their readings (interpretations) of what the Bible stated can or cannot be done (this was one of the causes of the [[Reformation]]). At great cost to themselves, the Reformers began the work of translating the Bible in the various languages of Europe; the printing press would ensure the newly-translated Bibles would be mass-produced.

[[William Tyndale]] was committed to getting the Bible into the hands of his English countrymen. Expressing open defiance of the Pope, Tyndale declared that if God would spare his life he would make it possible for even an ordinary farmer to know more about the Scriptures than the Pope. <ref>[http://creationwiki.org/Biblical_canon#Tyndale CreationWiki. Bible Canon#Tyndale] (creationwiki.org)</ref> Tyndale's translation of the New Testament was completed on the Continent by 1525. By April, 1526, 6,000 copies were printed and delivered to England. Official opposition led to the destruction of most of them, not because of the translation of the Biblical text itself, but because Tyndale also held and published views which were considered heretical, first by the Catholic Church, and later by the Church of England, which was established by King [[Henry VIII]] in 1536.<ref>Act of Supremacy, (1534) English act of Parliament that recognized Henry VIII as the “Supreme Head of the Church of England.” [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/574743/Act-of-Supremacy Encyclopedia Britannica. Act of Supremacy: England [1534] [http://www.britainexpress.com/History/tudor/supremacy-henry-text.htm Henry VIII 's Act of Supremacy (1534) - original text]</ref> His Bible translation also included notes and commentary promoting these views.<ref>[http://www.tyndale-bible.com/tyndale-bible-history.html TYNDALE BIBLE HISTORY. William Tyndale (1494-1536). The History of William Tyndale and his Bibles] [http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=4749&CFID=4143742&CFTOKEN=81204680 Tyndale's Heresy, by Matthew A. C. Newsome] [http://www.bible-researcher.com/tyndale4.html Tyndale] (bible-researcher.com) [http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/william-tyndale.html English Bible History. William Tyndale] (greatsite.com) [http://wesley.nnu.edu/sermons-essays-books/william-tyndales-translation/ The Wesley Center Online: '''William Tyndale's Translation'''] ''online access to the text of Tyndale's Bible''.</ref> Tyndale's translation was banned by the authorities. Even King Henry VIII in 1531 condemned the Tyndale Bible as a corruption of Scripture. In the words of King Henry's advisors: "the translation of the Scripture corrupted by William Tyndale should be utterly expelled, rejected, and put away out of the hands of the people, and not be suffered to go abroad among his subjects." <ref>Henry Grey Graham, Where we got the Bible: Our debt to the Catholic Church © 1977 Tan Books and Publishers, Inc. 153 pages. ASIN: B0006YDQ5Q p. 128-130.</ref> Bishop [[Tunstall]] of London <ref>[http://www.luminarium.org/encyclopedia/tunstall.htm Cuthbert Tunstall]</ref> declared that there were upwards of 2,000 errors in Tyndale's Bible.<ref>[http://catholicapologetics.info/apologetics/general/charge.htm The Charge of Burning Bibles]</ref> The following year Tyndale himself, at the instigation of agents of Henry VIII and the Anglican Church, was arrested and, for his efforts, charged with heresy, and, on May 21, 1536, was executed, burned at the stake. Nevertheless, the printing press rendered it impossible to completely suppress such a book, and new copies were printed on the Continent and smuggled into [[England]]. His efforts at translating the Bible led to the [[Matthews Bible]] (1537) and the [[Bishop's Bible]] (1568), but with many of his notes radically edited by censors or editors, or entirely removed, and these versions led to the [[Geneva Bible]] (1599), and finally to the [[King James Bible|King James Version]], where ninety percent of the text closely follows Tyndale's translation.

===Authorised or King James Version===
[[Image:E-sword.jpg|thumb|200px|right|The internet has increased the availability of the Bible world-wide. Shown here is a screenshot to [[E-Sword]], a freely-downloadable Bible study program. <ref>[http://www.e-sword.net E-Sword]</ref> (Rick Meyers, 2007)]]
In 1601 King [[James I]] selected forty-seven of the ablest scholars in [[England]] to undertake the creation of a standard Bible in English, based upon careful translations of the [[Masoretic Text]] used by the Jewish community, and the best Greek translations (especially the ''[[Textus Receptus]]'') then available. The scholars were divided into six committees in [[Oxford]], [[Westminster]], and [[Cambridge]], with each scholar dedicating himself to doing a portion of the Bible, often consulting each other to check the flow and harmony of the work in progress. The result was the 1611 Authorised Version, known in [[United States of America|America]] as the [[King James Bible|King James Version]].

In its early days, the KJV was heavily criticized; but in time, with official pressure, it won the field and became "the Bible" for English-reading people—a position it held for almost 400 years.<ref>''Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary''. "Bible Translations", Jack P. Lewis and Charles W. Draper. p. 214.</ref>

The effects of the Authorised Version were profound. Using less than 2,500 different words in its vocabulary, this Bible was written in a poetic style matched by few. The work influenced the writings of [[Shakespeare]]. [[John Milton]] has numerous images taken from this Bible in his ''[[Paradise Lost]]''. The direct style of writing caused it to be easily available to the common man. Poets and writers, such as [[Herman Melville]], [[Walt Whitman]], [[Emily Dickinson]] and many others were deeply inspired by it. It altered the course of English history, with England growing to a world power since the book's publication. When asked by a visiting dignitary what made England great, [[Queen Victoria]] pulled out her copy of the Bible and declared "This is the secret of England's greatness."

====Problems with the King James Version====

{{main|Badger skins (Bible)}}

Beginning in the 17th century, the same century in which it was published, Protestant scholars, orientalists, hebraists and linguists began pointing out defects in the [[King James Bible|Authorized King James Version]].<ref>[[Isaac H. Hall]]. [http://www.bible-researcher.com/kjvdefects.html ''The Revised New Testament and History of Revision'' (1881) "Defects of the King James Version"]
:"Our translators of the seventeenth century, in a great many instances, misunderstood the sense."</ref> One of these was the translation of 'orot tachashim as "badgers' skins", because it so plainly violates the biblical context of [[Leviticus]] [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:4-8&version=KJV chapter 11:4-8], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:24-28&version=KJV 24-29], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:42-45&version=KJV 42-45], and [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205&version=KJV Leviticus chapter 5]. "Badgers' skins" is the King James Version (AV) translation of the Hebrew word '''תחשׁ''' '''''taḥash''''', and of the Hebrew term (singular) '''עור תחשׁ''' '''''uwr taḥash / 'or taḥash''' "skin taḥash"'', and of the plural form '''ערת תחשׁים''' '''''uwr't taḥashim / 'orot taḥashim''' "skins taḥashim"''. [[Adam Clarke]] himself ([http://biblehub.com/commentaries/clarke/exodus/25.htm ''Adam Clarke's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible'' (1831) Exodus 25]) has pointed out the substantial inaccuracy of the KJV interpretive translation:
:"badgers' skins, (rather violet-coloured skins)...Badgers' skins — ערת תחשים oroth techashim. Few terms have afforded greater perplexity to critics and commentators than this."
See [[Badger skins (Bible)#Protestant commentaries 17th through 19th centuries|Protestant commentaries 17th through 19th centuries]]

The original meaning of ''' תחשׁ ''t'''a'''ḥ'''a'''š / taḥash / tachash / techash / t'khesh''''' has been debated for centuries. According to ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' the AV and JPS 1917 translation ''[[badger]]'' has no basis in fact.<ref name=Enc.Jud.>''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' 2nd Edition Volume 19:435. TAḤASH.</ref><ref>''Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary'' page 161. Badger Skins</ref> Translating ערת תחשׁים ''skins taḥashim'' as "badgers' skins" also presents a [[contradiction]]. The Book of Leviticus, chapter 11, forbids touching the carcasses of all animals that walk on '''paws''', because they are '''טָמֵא''' ''tame'' [[Taboo|unclean]]. This is no trivial matter, as [[God]] Himself is thus represented in the KJV as commanding the handling and use of skins of carcasses He forbids the Israelites to touch, and as commanding them to cover the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant with unclean skins and then commanding them to remove from the camp all that is unclean so that nothing unclean will be seen by Him in the camp ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%205:2-3&version=KJV Numbers 5:2-3]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy%2023:14&version=KJV Deuteronomy 23:14]). They are forbidden to defile the tabernacle, the sanctuary of the LORD ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2020:2-3&version=KJV Leviticus 20:2-3]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2021:10-12&version=KJV 21:10-12]), and they are commanded to cover it with '''טָמֵא''' ''tame'' [http://bibleapps.com/hebrew/2931.htm unclean/polluting/defiling "badgers' skins" (KJV).] Even on the sole [[hermeneutics|hermeneutical principle]] of "Scripture interprets Scripture" this is not accurate, and it presents a serious difficulty. [[John Grigg Hewlett]], D.D. (''Bible difficulties explained'' 1860) says:<blockquote>"It would involve a great inconsistency, that the ark of the covenant, which was considered so holy, that no human hand could touch it with impunity, except the hands of those who had been consecrated to God, that it should constantly be covered with the skins of unclean animals...Therefore the coverings of purple, or blue, which our translators have called 'badgers' skins', were of a material that was accounted pure, and could not impart any impurity to those who prepared them, or to those whose office it was to adjust them amidst the vicissitudes of the camp of Israel."<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=J5kCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA159&SOURCE=gbs_toc_r&cad=3#v=onepage&q=badger&f=false ''Bible difficulties explained'' (1860) "Badgers' skins" pages 159–163].</ref></blockquote>

The KJV was first published in 1611, a year after the [[Douay-Rheims|Douay-Rheims Bible]]. The later KJV revision of 1769 <ref>[http://www.bible-researcher.com/canon10.html Changes in the King James Version]</ref> is the version generally published today as the [[King James Bible]], and is the form of the text cited here:

[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:2&version=KJV Leviticus 5:2] "if a soul touch any unclean thing...he also shall be unclean and guilty"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:5-6&version=KJV Leviticus 5:5-6] "he shall confess that he hath sinned"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:5-8&version=KJV Leviticus 11:5-8] "and their carcase shall ye not touch, they are unclean to you"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:24-28&version=KJV Leviticus 11:24-28] "and whatsoever goeth upon his paws...those are unclean unto you"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:43-44&version=KJV Leviticus 11:43-44] "Ye shall not make yourselves abominable...neither shall ye make yourselves unclean...neither shall ye defile yourselves"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2022&version=KJV Leviticus 22] "Say unto them, Whosoever ''he be'' of all your seed among your generations, that goeth unto the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from my presence: I ''am'' the LORD."
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%204:15-20&version=KJV Numbers 4:15-20] "but they shall not touch ''any'' holy thing, lest they die"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=deuteronomy%2023:14&version=KJV Deuteronomy 23:14] "For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee."

The Committee appointed by [[James I of England]] that was tasked with the translation of the Bible was made of men who had read the Bible in Hebrew and Greek and Latin and knew these passages. Yet they chose to translate ''tachashim'' as unclean badgers "''that goeth upon paws''" whose carcasses the Israelites were forbidden to touch.

[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2025:1-8&version=KJV Exodus 25:1-8] "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering...rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2026:14&version=KJV Exodus 26:14] "and a covering above of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2035:7&version=KJV Exodus 35:7] "and rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2035:23&version=KJV Exodus 35:23] "and red skins of rams, and badger skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2036:19&version=KJV Exodus 36:19] "and a covering of badgers' skins above that"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=exodus%2039:34&version=KJV Exodus 39:34] "And the covering of rams' skins dyed red, and the covering of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%204:6-25&version=KJV Numbers 4:6-25] "a covering of badgers' skins...the covering of badgers' skins"
 [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ezekiel%2016:10&version=KJV Ezekiel 16:10] "and shod thee with badgers' skin"

Readers of the KJV saw a grave difficulty here because of the apparently great inconsistency that the holy ark of the covenant and the Tabernacle of the LORD should be constantly covered with skins of unclean animals which made unclean anyone who touched them. The Douay-Rheims Bible had translated the skins as [[Badger skins (Bible)#Douay-Rheims Bible|"''violet skins''"]].

The ''[[motivation]]'' for interpreting and translating ''tachash skins'' in the Bible as being skins of creatures the Israelites are clearly forbidden to touch is unclear, and a mystery, what is known in [[Logic]] as a [[non sequiter]] (Lat. "''it does not follow''"). The ''[[purpose]]'' being served by a deliberate translation of תחשׁ as badger and of ערת תחשׁים as badgers' skins, by scholars who have a thorough knowledge of the whole of the Bible, and of the history of the Hebrew language and of the ''fauna'' and varied customs of the ancient Middle East, is also a ''non sequiter'' mystery, involving an [[Evidence|evident]] contradiction of the context of the Bible. Alternate word choices, harmoniously consistent with the biblical context, and attested by the ancient sources as cited in scholarly published commentaries both technical and general, were available to the translators, who chose not to use them. Their translation covers the tabernacle, the ark and the sacred vessels with the equivalent of ''' טָמֵא ''' ''tame'' unclean [[Pig|swine]]s' skins ([http://biblehub.com/multi/leviticus/11-8.htm Leviticus 11:3-8], [http://biblehub.com/multi/leviticus/11-27.htm 11:24-28]). The inconsistency is not in the ancient biblical text, but in the interpretations of translators which violate its context.<blockquote>"A text without a context is a pretext for a [[Cafeteria Christianity#Proof texts|proof text]]." Donald A. Carson, ''Exegetical Fallacies''.<ref>Carson, Donald A., Ph.D. ''Exegetical Fallacies'', Nov. 30, 1983, 2nd edition Mar. 1, 1996. Baker Publishing Group. 160 pages. ISBN 978-0801020865.</ref></blockquote>

Study Bible footnotes, along with published articles, Bible dictionaries, commentaries, encyclopedias, and books on the Bible, and a multitude of internet online blogs and pages, which strongly support the translation of ערת תחשׁים as badgers' skins or as the skins of any kind of sea mammal, often omit the fact that within the context of the Bible these creatures are classified as unclean, defiling '''שִׁקַּץ ''' ''sheqats'' abominations, as loathsome, abhorrent, detestible, filthy and disgusting for the people of Israel. Those that do mention it offer various speculative [[Excuse|rationale]]s, [[debate]]s and [[Editorial|discussions]] to explain why in their [[opinion]] God would command the Israelites to cover the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant and the sacred vessels for worship with skins of unclean animals and abominations they are explicitly forbidden to touch, skins and hides that according to the word of the LORD defile any Israelites who touch them. Many of them assert that the prohibitions in Leviticus 11 are ''dietary'' rules only ([http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:2&version=KJV Lev. 11:2], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%2011:46-47&version=KJV 11:46-47]), and declare that touching and wearing skins and leather of unclean animals is permitted as long as their flesh is not eaten.<ref name=opinion>Eight examples:
*[http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9912/jewish/Chapter-11.htm#showrashi=true Chabad.ORG —Rashi's commentary Vayikra-Leviticus-Chapter 11],
*[http://ravkooktorah.org/TRUMA61.htm Terumah: Tachash Skins in the Tabernacle, Rabbi Chaim Morrison],
*[http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/681556/jewish/Can-I-wear-pigskin-shoes.htm Can I wear pigskin shoes? By Shmuel Kogan],
*[http://www.jewishtreats.org/2012/11/picking-up-pigskin.html Jewish Treats: Juicy Bits of Judaism, Daily: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2012 —Picking Up Pigskin],
*[http://www.jewsingreen.com/2005/08/pigskin-boots Jews in Green: Jews serving proudly:—News: Pigskin Boots, Posted by Lt Joe Friedman on 03 Aug 2005],
*[http://www.jewfaq.org/animals.htm Judaism 101. Treatment of Animals. Tza'ar Ba'alei Chayim <big>'''צער בעלי החיים'''</big>: Cruelty to Animals © Copyright 5756-5771 (1995-2011), Tracey R Rich],
*[http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003867 Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY: Insight, Volume 2 it-2 pp. 883-884 Sealskin. Copyright © 2014 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania],
*[http://www.kjvtoday.com/home/badgers-skin-or-another-type-of-leather-in-exodus-255-et-al KJV Today: "Badgers' skin" or another type of leather in Exodus 25:5 et al.?] —''compare multiple commentaries on:'' [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/5-2.htm Leviticus 5:2]; [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/11-8.htm 11:8] and [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/leviticus/11-27.htm 11:27]</ref> These commentaries say that touching the carcass of these animals is only a minor offense which did not require an atoning sacrifice, and that it applied only to ''kohanim'' (priests) and applied to the laity only during the three feasts of Passover/Unleavened Bread, Weeks/Pentecost, and Booths/Tabernacles (Deut. 16). And some cite the ''Talmud'' as their authority, for example, Tractate ''Rosh Hashana'' 16b,<ref>[http://halakhah.com/pdf/moed/Rosh_HaShanah.pdf Babylonian Talmud, Seder ''Mo'ed'', Tractate ''Rosh Hashana'', Folio 16b] —''scroll down to page'' 40</ref> and the ''Sifra'', ''Torath Kohanim'' 11:74,<ref>'''Sifra''' (Aramaic <big>'''סִפְרָא'''</big>, "book" or "The Book"), a ''midrash halakhah'' from the school of R. Akiva on the Book of Leviticus. See [http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13646-sifra ''Jewish Encyclopedia'': Sifra]; ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' Vol 18 San-Sol 18:560-562 SIFRA; See [http://he.wikisource.org/wiki/%D7%A1%D7%A4%D7%A8%D7%90 Sifra Hebrew text, ed. I. H. Weiss 1862 Vienna.]</ref> and Rashi's commentary,<ref name=opinion/> providing us with an example of what the prophet Jeremiah said, <blockquote>"How can you say, 'We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us'? But behold, the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie" ([http://biblehub.com/multi/jeremiah/8-8.htm Jeremiah 8:8]).</blockquote> They omit any reference to that part of Leviticus which decrees that wilfully touching the carcasses of unclean animals (which must be done to harvest their skins) is a '''sin''', which even Rashi's commentary confirms. No mention is made by them of the law in the Torah which says: "Ye shall not make yourselves abominable...neither shall ye make yourselves unclean...neither shall ye defile yourselves" (Leviticus 11:43-44) <ref>See: '''Exodus''' 31:14; '''Leviticus''' 7:19, 21; 10:10; 11:43-44; 18:20, 24, 30; 20:25; 21:4, 11; 22:8; '''Numbers''' 5:3; 6:7; 19:13, 20; 35:33-34; '''Deuteronomy''' 23:14; 27:26.</ref> and that anyone who wilfully does this will be cut off.<ref>see [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:2-6&version=KJV Leviticus 5:2-6], [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=leviticus%205:17-19&version=KJV 5:17-19]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2015:29-31&version=KJV Numbers 15:29-31]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=numbers%2019:20&version=KJV 19:20.]</ref> Some commentaries on the Old Testament supporting ''badgers' skins'' and ''sea mammals' skins'' as the covering of the tabernacle cite the [[New Testament]] example of [[Saint Paul]] working with Simon the tanner (Acts 9:43; 10:6, 32), as if both of them were examples of Jews wilfully working with the skins of ''non-kosher'' beasts. Some cite Pliny's ''Natural History'' 2:56,<ref>previously cited in the 19th century: [http://www.biblicalcyclopedia.com/B/badger.html ''McClintock and Strong's Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature'' (1887) B: badger]; [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/clarke/exodus/25.htm ''Adam Clarke's Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible'' (1831) Exodus 25]</ref> which says that [pagan] temples had roofs of sealskin, as if this applied to the Israelites under the Law of Moses, and cite Eduard Rüppell's short-lived ''taxonomic'' designation of the dugong as ''Halicore tabernaculi'' "dugong of the tabernacle" as an additional support for their opinion.<ref>While travelling the Middle East around the Red Sea and the [[Arabian Peninsula]], Rüppell observed a variety of [[dugong]] which he subsequently designated ''[[Taxonomy|taxonomically]]'' as ''Halicore tabernaculi'' (1843) according to his view that the skin of this animal was certainly used as the outer covering of the tabernacle of the Hebrews, because the Bedouin harvested its skin for tent-curtains and for shoes and called it ''tukhesh, duchash''. His taxonomic designation ''Halicore tabernaculi'' did not last long (1843-1847) and has since been recombined several times, more recently as ''Dugong dugon'' (1963-1998). Three sources:
*[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/512932/Eduard-Ruppell ''Encyclopaedia Britannica''. "Eduard Rüppell"]
*[http://www.probertencyclopedia.com/B_DUGONG.HTM The Probert Encyclopedia of Nature. "Dugong".] "A variety [of dugong] was discovered in the Red Sea by Ruppell, and called Halicore tabernaculi."
*[http://paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?action=checkTaxonInfo&taxon_no65051&is_real_user=0 The Paleobiology Database:] —''when the page comes up, at'' "You must enter a taxon name" ''move cursor to'' "Full search"—''menu will appear; select'' "classifications of taxa in groups" ''and click—when'' "Taxonomic classification search form" ''appears enter '''''Halicore tabernaculi''''' in the top search field (ignore the rest), click'' [Show classification]—''page will display "Halicore tabernaculi'' Rüppell 1843"—''click highlighted link'' "Halicore tabernaculi"–''page will show list "Dugong dugon'' Illiger 1811: Classification of '''Trichechus dugon''' (''Halicore tabernaculi'' Ruppell/Rupell 1843): the listing of the zoological taxonomic nomenclature of the dugong on that page is here rearranged in chronological order:
:'''''Trichechus dugung''''' Erxleben 1777 (this nomenclature lasted 22 years)
:'''''Dugong indicus''''' Lacépède 1799 (this nomenclature lasted 12 years)
:'''''Dugong dugong''''' Illiger 1811 (this nomenclature lasted 21 years)
:'''''Halicore hemprichii''''' and '''''Halicore lottum''''' Ehrenberg 1832 (this nomenclature lasted 11 years)
:'''''Halicore tabernaculi''''' Rüppell 1843 (4 years)
:'''''Halicore australis''''' Owen 1847 (this nomenclature lasted 51 years)
:'''''Halicore cetacea''''' Heuglin, recombined as '''''Halicore dugung''''' Trouessart 1898 (this nomenclature lasted 65 years)
:It was recombined as "'''''Dugong dugon'''''" Scheffer and Rice 1963 also Husar 1978, Domning 1994, 1996, and Rice 1998 (this nomenclature has lasted for 35 years+).</ref> The 1843 published ''scientific'' nomen ''Halicore tabernaculi'', expressing as it did the personal opinion of a ''professional zoologist'', Eduard Rüppell, was soon discarded by the scientific community, but it has nevertheless persuaded many to this day that science has established that the ''dugong'' was indeed the animal whose skins were used to cover the tabernacle. However, it has no fins or scales. According to the Bible this creature is an abomination to the Jews (loathsome / abhorrent / detestible / filthy / disgusting) (Leviticus 11:10-12).<ref>[http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003867?q=Bible&p=sen Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY: Insight, Volume 2 it-2 pp. 883-884 Sealskin.]</ref> [[Jesus]] himself commented on the practice of constantly seeking pretexts for making exceptions to the ''[[Torah]]:''<blockquote>"You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition!" (Mark 7:9 RSV).<ref>[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark%207:9-13&version=KJV Mark 7:9-13]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2015:1-9&version=KJV Matthew 15:1-9]; [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2023:16-22&version=KJV 23:16-22]</ref></blockquote>

====King James Only====

Advocates of the [[King James Only]] movement are fully persuaded that the translators of the King James Version of the Bible always chose the correct reading [interpretation] of the biblical text, under the infallible guidance of the Holy Spirit Himself, and that therefore the translation ''badgers' skins'' is the most accurate possible English translation of the Hebrew ערת תחשׁים and עור תחשׁ and תחשׁ . They declare without reservation that the King James Bible is the divinely preserved, infallible Word of God, and that it is the only and final authority on all matters of faith and morals and practice for the whole of the English-speaking world.<ref>James D. Price. [http://www.truth.sg/resources/KJV%20Onlyism%20-%20a%20New%20Sect%20-%20Introduction%20-%20Dr%20J%20Price.pdf ''King James Onlyism: A New Sect.'' Introduction: The King James Only Doctrine Is a New Idea].</ref>
:–See the [http://www.kjvbibles.com/kjpreface.htm '''''Preface to the King James Version of 1611'''''].<blockquote>"...wee affirme and avow, that the very meanest translation of the Bible in English, set foorth by men of our profession (for wee have seene none of theirs of the whole Bible as yet) containeth the word of God, nay, '''is the word of God'''..."</blockquote>

::::—''from the'' Preface to the King James Version of 1611: The Translators to the Reader. (''boldface emphasis added'')

See '''[[Logical fallacy]]'''.

=== Other versions ===

Today, the Bible is available in many versions across the English-speaking world, and has been translated into languages spoken by the vast majority of people on Earth, and even portions into a recently-created language from the fictional world of [[Star Trek]], [[Klingon]]. <ref>[http://www.kli.org/wiki/index.php?Klingon%20Bible%20Translation%20Project Klingon Bible Translation Project]</ref> The past two decades saw the emergence of [[Internet]] use; the creation of the Bible as a software program was inevitable, and several, such as [[E-Sword]] and Theophilos, are available at no cost with a wealth of Bible-study material as well.

==Bible Scientific Foreknowledge==

[[Bible scientific foreknowledge]] is the claim that the Bible contains scientific foreknowledge that preceeded the actual scientific discovery usually many centuries or millennia later. However, from a literalist perspective of the Bible this claim has been discredited quite convincingly by discoveries in [[Biology]], [[Geology]], [[Chemistry]], [[Physics]] and other fields of science. The book of [[Genesis]] gets many aspects of the origin of the [[Universe]] completely wrong. [[Evolution]] and many other scientific theories show us that the origin of the life dates to approximately 3.8 billion years ago and the origins of humanity more than 100,000 years ago.

Many scientists who are fundamentalists Christians and apologists such as the scientists and apologists at [[Creation Ministries International]], [[Answers in Genesis]], and [[CreationWiki]] assert that the [http://creationwiki.org/index.php/Bible_scientific_foreknowledge Bible contains knowledge that shows an understanding of scientific knowledge beyond that believed to exist at the time the Bible was composed].<ref>[http://creationwiki.org/index.php/Bible_scientific_foreknowledge Bible Scientific Foreknowledge]</ref><ref>[http://www.clarifyingchristianity.com/science.shtml Clarifying Christianity. Science and the Bible] (clarifyingchristianity.com)</ref><ref>[http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v17/i1/medicine.asp Modern medicine? It's not so modern! by David A. Wise] (answersingenesis.org)</ref>

These organisations however are known to promote [[Pseudoscience]] and go against the [[Scientific Method]] and have no
[[Evidence]] for their conclusions whatsoever and all the evidence available contradicts their claims.

==Humor in the Bible==

{{main|Humor in the Bible}}

The Bible, especially the Old Testament, contains irony, puns, sarcasm, etc. It may be noted that the sense of what is humorous varies from people to people and from nation to nation, as well as varying from age to age. What caused a chuckle, smile, or laughter in the biblical "genre" was more connected with ''satisfaction'' at the vindication of righteousness among men. Thus to our day and age, and the commonality of people, for believers and non believers, the meaning of the spewing up of Jonah on the shores (even the great fish could not stomach him!) might be viewed as God working out His original will in history. Jonah's flight from responsiblity being aborted, for the people in the "days and ages" of the Bible, there was the added satisfaction derived from the understanding that God was not mocked by the rebellion of Jonah. Likewise that the "many cattle" also found repentence and acceptance by God, would not have brought the smile of glee, mingled with doubt, but the smile of satisfaction that God's wide heart found its exultant victory over the measly, narrow perspective of the renagade prophet. There was no shame to stifle the Biblical chuckle at the "hows" of the vindication of God's justice. Yet, what we consider humorous also appears:

For example:

*After noticing that his father-in-law Laban was not treating him as in the past, Jacob decided to flee with his family. Rachel, one of Jacob’s wives, stole her father Laban’s teraphim (statues used for idolatry and/or divination). Laban pursued them and intercepted them in the Gilead mountains (Genesis 31:30): "Why have you stolen my gods?" Laban said to Jacob. The Midrash comments that it cannot be much of a god if it can be stolen (Midrash Genesis Rabbah 74:8). Jonsson (1985, 44-45) suggests that there is humor (albeit "rough" humor) in the fact that, not only was Laban deceived, but his idols were actually underneath his daughter Rachel’s posterior while she claimed that the "manner of women" was upon her. This idol did not get much respect. [http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/economic/friedman/bibhumor.htm]

*In the Orthodox Bible, in the Epistle of Jeremiah, the prophet declares with delightful contempt the stupidity of the idols of Babylon. Their faces have to be wiped to get the dust off them. They have weapons in their hands but cannot punish anyone who offends them. They are as useless as a broken dish. Their eyes are clogged with dust from the feet of the worshippers entering to adore them. Their priests lock them up like a man who has offended the king and has been sentenced to death. Bats, swallows and birds perch on their heads, and so do cats. If they are tipped over, they cannot get up. Their priests howl and shout before them as some do at a funeral feast for a man who has died. When fire breaks out in their temples the priests run away and the idols are burned in two like logs. Robbers strip them naked and they cannot help themselves. The door of a house that protects its contents, or a wooden pillar in a palace holding up the roof is better than these useless gods. Like a scarecrow in a cucumber patch guarding nothing, so are these gods.

*In the book of Esther, Haman, the prime minister of King Ahasuerus of Persia who hates Mordecai the Jew and has built a gallows 50 cubits high to hang him on it, has entered the court to ask for Mordecai's death. The king, meanwhile, not being able to sleep, hears in the reading of the records that Mordecai once saved the king from assassination, and that Mordecai received no reward. The king seeks an opinion from one of his court and asks who is immediately available. Haman enters, and the king asks him what should be done to honor the man who pleases the king, and Haman thinks to himself, "Who should the king wish to honor more than me?" So he makes his recommendation, to dress the man in the king's own robes, to set a crown on his head, to set him on the king's own horse, and have the king's most noble prince conduct him throughout the city proclaiming, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honor." The king then told Haman, "Quickly! Take the robes and the horse, as you said, and do it to Mordecai the Jew. Omit nothing you mentioned." When he had obeyed the king, he ran home, mourning, with his head covered.

*In the [[Acts of the Apostles]] is a serious incident which has some wonderfully slapstick comedic overtones (19:11-16). God had been doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, and even cloths that he had touched were applied to the sick and to possessed persons and they were completely cured. So some traveling Jewish [[Exorcism|exorcists]] decided to use the Name of Jesus as a ''word of power'' over people who were possessed, by saying, "I ''adjure'' you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches".<ref>[http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/adjure "adjure"] (oxforddictionaries.com). See [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01142c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: adjuration]. [http://www.stubbornthings.org/authority-justice-law/ Authority, Justice, Law] (stubbornthings.org) ''the authority required to legitimately adjure''.</ref> When the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, did this, the evil spirit said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know: ''but who are you?''", and he leaped on them and beat them so badly they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

==Bible Translations==
The Bible has been translated many times and in many ways so anyone, from the youngest child to the most learned scholar, can read the entire scripture in their own language and at their own reading level. Early versions in the languages of their people include the [[Septuagint]], Syriac [http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/sacredtexts/syriacbib.html Peshitta] and [[Vulgate]], also the [http://archive.org/details/rosettaproject_arb_gen-1 Arabic], the [http://lexicity.com/coptic-biblical-texts.html Coptic], and Persic [http://www.wordproject.org/bibles/parallel/g/farsi.htm Farsi]. Here are some common English versions:

*[[American Standard Version]]
*[[Amplified Bible]]
*[[Douay-Rheims]]
*[[English Standard Version]]
*[[Good News Version]]
*[[King James Version]]
*[[Living Bible]]
*[[New American Standard Version]]
*[[New English Bible]]
*[[New International Version]]
*[[New King James Version]]
*[[Revised Standard Version]]
*[[Revised Version]]
*[[Septuagint]]
*[[Wycliffe Bible]]
*[[Conservative Bible]] - still a work-in-progress here at Conservapedia

==Bible versions==
Apart from Bibles that include the [[Apocrypha]], ''The [[New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures]]'' is a distinct version that was produced to justify many of the unique doctrines of [[Jehovah's Witnesses]].

[[Joseph Smith]], founder of [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints]] also produced his own version of the Bible which was published after his death: see [http://www.help4rlds.com/pwtu/PWTUChap9.pdf Joseph Smith’s ''Inspired Version'' of the Bible pdf]

Online multiple versions are also available for comparison by entering '''Bibles online''' in the search-engine window of the computer.
:Simultaneous multiple versions of any one Bible verse are available at biblehub.com.
:A drop-down menu of a multiple selection of Bible translations and versions is available on the biblegateway.com site.

:For example: See a sample of the biblehub.com site with multilingual versions and translations of [http://biblehub.com/multi/john/3-16.htm '''John 3:16'''].

:For example: See a sample of the biblegateway.com site with drop-down menu feature: [http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%203:16&version=NABRE '''John 3:16 NABRE''']

Below at External links is featured online access to several versions of the Bible in English: '''[[Bible#English]]'''

===Greek Bible online===

'''''Greek/English Bible''''' [http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/septuagint/ Greek original according to the text used by the Church of Greece. English translation by L.C.L. Brenton, published side by side] Greek Septuagint and Greek New Testament

===Clementine Vulgate online===

'''''The Clementine Vulgate''''' [http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/The%20Clementine%20Vulgate%20-%20%28vulsearch.sourceforge.net%29.pdf BIBLIA SACRA JUXTA VULGATAM CLEMENTINAM EDITIO ELECTRONICA PLURIMIS CONSULTIS EDITIONIBUS DILIGENTER PRÆPARATA A MICHAELE TVVEEDALE .pdf]

===1611 Authorized Version online===

'''''Authorized Version''''' [http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/1611-Bible/ Official King James Bible Online. original 1611 King James Bible, Old Testament, New Testament, Apocrypha]

== See also ==
*[[Bible exegesis]]
*[[Biblical Canon]]
*[[Christian apologetics|Evidence supporting the Bible]]
*[[Bible apologetics website resources]]
*[[Bible prophecy]]
*[[Biblical accuracy]]
*[[Famous Bible paintings]]
*[[Midrash]]
*[[Targum]]
*[[Pseudepigrapha]]
*[[Aramaic Church]]
*[[Judaism]]
*[[Essay: The Way of Salvation]]
*[[Essay: How to choose a Bible]]
*[[Conservative Bible Project]]
*[[Inspiration of Holy Scripture: An Eastern Christian and Jewish Perspective]]
*[[New Testament understanding through the Jewish perspective]]
*[[Messianic Prophecies]]
*[[Gospel reading in the Church: the Turgama]]
*[[Wicked Bible]]
*[[Badger skins (Bible)]]
*[[Biblical timeline]]
*[[Literalist Bible chronology]]

==External links==
===Bible societies ===
*[http://www.americanbible.org/ American Bible Society]
*[http://www.biblesociety.org/ United Bible Society]
*[http://www.ibs.org/ The International Bible Society (New York/Colorado Springs)]
*[http://www.wbtc.com/site/PageServer World Bible Translation Center]
*[http://www.wycliffe.org/home.htm Wycliffe Bible Translators]
*[http://www.labibliaweb.com/ La Biblia] In Spanish.

===Online, internet, and downloadable Bibles===
====Hebrew====
* [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0.htm Hebrew-English Bible] ([[Jewish Publication Society of America|JPS]] 1917 translation; includes Hebrew audio)
* [http://tanakhml2.alacartejava.net/cocoon/tanakhml/d13.php2xml?sfr=1&prq=1&pnt=tru&acc=tru&dia=tru&enc=heb XML Hebrew-English (KJV) Bible]
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/Hebrew_OT/ Old Testament in Hebrew]

====Greek====
* [http://www.ccel.org/w/westcott/gnt/toc.htm Koine Greek New Testament]
* [http://www.htmlbible.com/sacrednamebiblecom/moderngreek/ Modern Greek Bible]

====Latin====
* [http://www.LatinVulgate.com/ Latin Vulgate] — Latin Vulgate with parallel Douay-Rheims and King James English translations
* [http://www.sacredbible.org/ SacredBible.org] — Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/Vulgate/ Jerome's Latin Vulgate (405 A.D.)]

====English====
* [http://www.audio-bible.com/bible/bible.html AudioBible] — Audio version of the King James Version.
* [http://www.blueletterbible.org/ Blue Letter Bible] — On-line interactive reference library continuously updated from the teachings and commentaries of selected pastors and teachers who hold to the conservative, historical Christian faith.
* [http://www.e-sword.net E-sword] — Downloadable Bible for Windows.
* [http://www.onlinebible.net/ The Online Bible North America] — Downloadable Bible for Windows.
* [http://www.theophilos.sk/ Theophilos Bible program]
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/ASB/ American Standard Version].
* [http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/ English Standard Version] from Good News/Crossway (the publisher).
* [http://www.verselink.org/ King James Version with dictionary].
* [http://www.spcm.org/english/KJV/ King James Version].
* [http://www.newlivingtranslation.com New Living Translation]
* [http://bible.oremus.org/ New Revised Standard Version].
* [http://www.europepourchrist.org/biblesite/WEB/ World English Bible].
* [http://www.dynamicbible.com/ King James Version built using AJAX technologies], with Strongs and Greek Morphological Codes by Robinson.
* [http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/index.htm#index The Hypertext Bible] with side-by-side translations in English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew at the [[Internet Sacred Text Archive]]
* [http://www.biblegateway.com/ Bible Gateway at GospelCom.net] text search in any one of many translations in numerous languages.
* [http://www.biblereadthrough.com/ Bible Read-Through] — read through the Bible in a year aid.
* [http://www.TheFreeBible.com/ TheFreeBible.com] Bible software downloads
* [http://www.scripture4all.org/ Interlinear (word-by-word) translation of the Christian Bible] Hebrew and Koine Greek
* [http://www.aramaicpeshitta.com/aramaic_nt_resources.htm Aramaic New Testament resources]
* [http://www.spcm.org/en/versions.php Over 40 versions of the Bible]
* [http://www.armenianchurchlibrary.com/Bibletranslationsandstudies.html Eastern and Western Armenian Bible]
* [http://www.bible9.com/ Online Bible (King James Version & Old Testament)]
* [http://www.spcm.org/LSG_FR/ Bible — Louis Segond de 1910]
* [http://www.latinvulgate.com/christverse.aspx Complete Sayings of Christ]
* [http://bible.crosswalk.com/ParallelBible/ Crosswalk.com Parallel Bible]
* [http://www.blueletterbible.org/search.html#verse Blue Letter Bible]
* [http://recoveryversion.org/ Recovery Version Bible]

====Spanish====

* [http://www.wbtc.com/site/PageServer?pagename=downloads_spanish Spanish Bible] PDT version
* [http://www.labibliaweb.com/cid/1 Versiones de la Biblia] In Spanish.

====Turkish====
* [http://www.incil.info Turkish Bible] (Turkish Old and New Testament)

====Finnish====
* [http://www.raamattu-kirja.com Finnish Bible] (Finnish Old and New Testament)
* [http://vastaus.net Raamattu] (Study Finnish Bible)

====Japanese====
*[http://www.ibsstl.org/bibles/japanese/index.php On-line version hosted by the International Bible Society]
*[http://www.bible.or.jp/e/index.html Japan Bible Society]

====Others====
* [http://agards-bible-timeline.com/q2_bible_english.html Bible Timeline]
* [http://www.myjewishlearning.com/texts/bible/TO_Torah_880.htm?OVRAW=Torah&OVKEY=torah&OVMTC=standard My Jewish Learning.com]
* [http://search.americanbible.org/ American Bible Society] to search NASB, KJV, CEV, ASV and others.
* [http://etext.virginia.edu/kjv.browse.html University of Virginia Library] KJV word proximity search.
* [http://www.1enormousidea.com/Default.aspx?tabid=42 Many translations in English, verse by verse]
* [http://www.bible-marathi.com Nava Karar] NT Translation from Greek to Marathi
* [http://www.bible-researcher.com/links12.html Gender-neutral Bible translations].
* [http://www.evangelicalbible.com/why.htm Word-for-Word vs.Thought-for-Thought translation] Outlines the difference between formal and dynamic equivalent translation philosopy.
* [http://www.kli.org/wiki/index.php?Klingon%20Bible%20Translation%20Project Klingon Bible].

===Commentaries and analysis===

* [http://bibleseo.com/ Bible study topics] - Bible studies and exposition online
* [http://www.ldolphin.org/icc-am.html Biblical chronology] by Alan Montgomery, B.Sc.(Hon)
* [http://www.dinur.org/resources/resourceCategoryDisplay.aspx?categoryID=411&rsid=478 Biblical History], The Jewish History Resource Center — Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
* [http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?aid=63255 Judaica Press Translation] — online Jewish translation of the Tanakh.
* [http://www.angdatingdaan.org/biblicaltopics/bib_bible_1.htm Reading and Understanding the Bible].
* [http://en.bibleinfo.com/ Source for Bible Answers].
* [http://www.amazingfacts.org/school/af_logon.asp Amazing Facts Bible Studies].
* [http://www.iishj.org/images/Bible.pdf Learning Bible Today] — a historical approach the Bible.
* [http://eword.gospelcom.net/comments/gill/ John Gill's Exposition of the Bible] — verse by verse commentary.
* [http://www.ccel.org/ccel/henry/mhc.i.html/ Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible] — unabridged.
*[http://www.verselink.org/ Topical References]
*[http://www.verselink.org/ Bible Dictionaries and Encyclopedia]

==Bibliography==
* Achtemeier, Paul J., ed. ''Harper's Bible Dictionary'' (1985), 1190pp; mainstream scholarship
* Ackroyd, P.R., ed. ''The Cambridge History of the Bible: From the Beginnings to Jerome; the West from the Fathers to the Reformation; the West from the Reformation to the Present Day'' (3 vol 1978), standard summary of scholarship; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Beginnings-Jerome/dp/0521099730/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search vol 1]; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Fathers-Reformation/dp/0521290171/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search vol 2]; [http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-History-Bible-Reformation-Present/dp/0521290163/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243248143&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search vol 3]
* Coggins, R.J. ''Introducing the Old Testament'' (Oxford University Press: 1990), 172pp. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=22765464 online edition]
* Morgan, Robert, and John Barton. ''Biblical Interpretation'' (Oxford University Press: 1988), 342 pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=74356941 online edition]
* Sakenfeld, Katharine Doob, ed. ''The New Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible'' ('''NIDB''') (5 vol 2009), the latest mainstream scholarship
*Unger, Merril F. ''Unger's Bible Dictionary'', Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1966; new edition 2006); Evangelical
**Unger, Merril F. ''The New Unger's Bible Dictionary'', (2006); 1416pp; Evangelical
*Unger, Merril F. ''Unger's Bible Handbook'', Moody Press, Chicago, IL (1967); Evangelical.
*Halley, Henry H. ''Halley's Bible Handbook'', Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI (1965); Evangelical
* Sandys-Wunsch, John. ''What Have They Done to the Bible: A History of Modern Biblical Interpretation'' 2005) Scholarly history of transations and interpretations to 1900; [http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0814650287 excerpt and text search]
* Williamspn, Peter. ''Catholic principles for interpreting scripture: a study of the Pontifical Biblical Commission's The interpretation of the Bible in the Church'' (2001); Catholic; [http://books.google.com/books?id=kooFtFGQsfsC&dq=intitle:bible+intitle:interpretation&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=2000&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpts and text search]
*Wilson, Robert D. ''A Scientific Investigation of the Old Testament'', Sunday School Times, Inc, Philadelphia, PA (1926).

===Language===
*Blass, Frederich, and others. ''A Greek Grammar of the New Testament and other early Christian literature,'' translated by Robert W. Funk; University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL (1961); German edition ''Grammatik des Neutestamentlichen Griechisch'' Friedrich Rehkopf, editor, 14th edition. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1976.
*Moulton, James H., and others. ''A Grammar of New Testament Greek'' (two volumes), edited by Wilbert Francis Howard, T&T Clark Publishers, Harrisburg, PA (1985); originally published 1920, Edinburgh, Scotland.
*Bauer, Walter. ''Griechisch-Deutsches Wörterbuch zu den Scriften des Neuen Testaments und der frühchristlichen Litteratur''. Kurt Aland and Barbara Aland, editors; 6th edition. Walter de Gruyter, Berlin, Germany (1988). Heading βιβλίον, columns 281-82.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Bible| ]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Book of Worship]]
[[Category:Featured articles]]