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In Christianity, the term biblical authority refers to two complementary ideas:
- the extent to which one can regard the commandments and doctrines within the Old and New Testament scriptures as authoritative over humans' belief and conduct;
- the extent to which biblical propositions are accurate in matters of history and science.
The case for biblical authority stems from the claim that God has revealed himself in written form through human authors and that the information contained in canonical books is not of human origin.[1] It entails, but is not exhausted by, questions raised by biblical inerrancy, biblical infallibility, biblical interpretation, biblical criticism, and biblical law in Christianity.
While there are many factions within Christianity as a religion, they commonly define the Bible as the word of authority as a direct communication of the word of God. Different Christian denominations have differing interpretations of the meaning of the words within the Bible and therefore diverge in religious practice.[2]
In modern Christian research, academics have challenged certain beliefs about biblical authority and the Bible as an exact replica of the word of God. Significant perspectives suggest that the standards of accuracy most likely differ between ancient times and now, which must be considered when interpreting the Bible.[3]
- ^ For example, in the self-referential verse: "All scripture is given by inspiration of God [...]" (2 Timothy 3:16).
- ^ Oliver, W. H.; Oliver, E. (2020-06-17). "Sola Scriptura: Authority versus interpretation?". Acta Theologica. 40 (1): 102–123. doi:10.18820/23099089/actat.v40i1.7. hdl:10500/27000. ISSN 2309-9089. S2CID 225679225.
- ^ Witt, Andrew C. (2014). "The Lost World of Scripture: Ancient Literary Culture and Biblical Authority by John H. Walton and D. Brent Sandy, IVP Academic, 2013 (ISBN 978-0-8308-4032-8), 320 pp., pb $24". Reviews in Religion & Theology. 21 (3): 417–419. doi:10.1111/rirt.12393. ISSN 1467-9418.