The Bible

First there was Jesus and the earliest community of believers. Next came the churches where worship and fellowship happened. Then came the writings called the New Testament. And then the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) were combined with The New Testament and became the Bible used by Christians today. 

Christians everywhere look to the New Testament of the Bible as a continual source of revelation, inspiration and renewal. Within its pages is the story of the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It also presents accounts of the activities of very first Christian congregations. 

The Old Testament of the Christian Bible is actually the Hebrew Scriptures. The stories, poetry, and ethical standards of the Jewish tradition forms the setting for the arrival of Jesus. Christians find that both Old and New Testament are necessary to understand and appreciate the Christian Way.

The Catholic and Orthodox Christian traditions include the Apocrypha as a part of the Bible. The Apocrypha is14 books of the Greek version of the Old Testament included in the Vulgate (Catholic version)  but omitted in Jewish and Protestant versions of the Bible. These writings present facets of the Christian way but are not as widely accepted as the 67 books of the Old and New Testaments.
     
Christians view the Bible from many perspectives. Some find the Bible to be a book of Wisdom. Some believe that every word is literal truth and that Biblical laws govern the life of the believer today. Some find the Bible to be a collection of teachings that have eternal value not only for Christians but for the entire human family. Some see the Bible as an account of the human struggle to find meaning through the dramas of God/human relationships. Some see the Bible as great poetry, drama and literature with a moral foundation going back far into history.  Some understand  the Bible to have a supernatural origin and others see the Bible as product of human creativity.