Table of Contents
The Christian Canon gathers the texts recognized as Scripture across the various Christian traditions, structured into the Old and New Testaments. While sharing a common framework, it presents variations among major confessions, reflecting different historical and theological criteria of formation.
| Element | Description | Term | Books | Characteristic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Bible | Canonical collection of Christian Scriptures | Biblia | 66–81 | Divided into Old and New Testament |
| Old Testament | Texts prior to Jesus, largely derived from the Tanakh | Vetus Testamentum | 39–49 | Structured into Pentateuch, historical, wisdom, and prophetic books |
| New Testament | Texts concerning the life and teachings of Jesus | Novum Testamentum | 27 | Shared across all Christian traditions |
| Gospels | Narratives of the life and mission of Jesus | Evangelia | 4 | Matthew, Mark, Luke, John |
| Acts of the Apostles | History of the early Christian community | Actus Apostolorum | 1 | Transition from Jesus to the Church |
| Apostolic Letters | Doctrinal and pastoral writings | Epistolae | 21 | Pauline and general epistles |
| Revelation | Apocalyptic and prophetic text | Apocalypsis | 1 | Symbolic vision of the end |
| Catholic Canon | Extended version of the Old Testament | – | 73 | Includes deuterocanonical books |
| Protestant Canon | Version based on the Hebrew canon | – | 66 | Excludes deuterocanonical books |
| Orthodox Canon | Version based on the Septuagint | Septuaginta | up to 81 | Includes additional books beyond the Catholic canon |
| Deuterocanonical Books | Books included in the Catholic canon but not in the Hebrew canon | – | 7+ | Not recognized in Protestant tradition |
| Language | Original languages of the texts | – | – | Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek |
| Structure | Internal organization of the texts | – | – | Theological and thematic order |