1. The New Testament
Structure and Style

2. Books of the New Testament
There are 27 Books in the New Testament
Different types of writings
Gospels
Acts of the Apostles
Letters of St. Paul, St. John, St. Jude, St. Peter, St. James
Revelation

3. Style matters Not all Scripture is meant to be read in the same way
Think about a fantasy book vs. a realistic fiction book
How would you read them differently?
As we read Scripture we have to understand the meaning that the human author meant
We have to consider
the customs
the audience
the context
e.g. St. Paul and slavery

4. The Evolution of the Bible
The Bible stories were first passed down by story telling (oral tradition)
Then people began to write the stories down
What happens to a message if we don't write it down and it keeps getting passed along?
Then people would continue to copy the scrolls down to preserve them

5. The Evolution of the Bible
People were dedicated specifically for copying the manuscripts.
This was a monks job
Why??

6. The Evolution of the Bible
Then the Bible began to be translated into other languages
Hebrew and Greek, its original languages, were not very well known
People though couldn't read, so Bibles would mainly be in the Church
With the invention of the printing press in the 1500s people began to desire to read and more people became educated
The Bible was often the only or one of the few books that people owned

7. The authors of Scripture
2 Timothy 3:15-16
What does this say?
Who saves us?

8. Authors of Scripture
Human author
Holy Spirit

9. So what if you have read it once?
Is reading Scripture once enough?
Why not?
How must we make reading Scripture different from reading other books?