The Canonization of the the New Testament

 The Canonization refers to the period in the early Christianity that church decided which books should be included in New Testament Canon. It was the result of long process, nearly two centuries that certain writings regarded as authoritative. Prior to the formation of the Christian Scriptures  Jesus accepted  Jewish Scriptures as the word of God then apostles and the church from the first day of its existence regarded them as their sacred writings. Early Christians had another authority alongside Jewish Scripture and that was words of Jesus. At first it handed down orally and then was written down by disciples of Jesus. The rise of heresies especially Gnostics and their writings in the second century and burning Sacred Books in the fourth century urged the church to regard some Writings as Canonical. The Church employed apostolicity, orthodoxy, antiquity, use, adaptability, inspiration, as criteria to do it. In addition, different Canons of the New Testament presented by Christian writers. Athanasius the bishop of Alexandria, in Festal Letter written in A.D.367, for the first time set forth the Canon of 27 Books that we know today as the New Testament. After the public acceptance of the New Testament writings and Christian writers’ Canons were presented, the Canon of New Testament approved by the third synod of Carthage in A.D.397.