The Muratorian Fragment and the Development of the Canon (Oxford Theological Monographs) [Hardcover]

Geoffrey Mark Hahneman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0198263414 | ISBN-13: 978-0198263418 | Publication Date: December 24, 1992

The Muratorian Fragment, traditionally dated at the end of the second century, is by far the earliest known list of books of the New Testament. It is therefore an important milestone in understanding the formation of the Christian canon of scriptures. The traditional date of the fragment, however, was questioned in 1973 by Albert C. Sundberg, Jr, in an article of the Harvard Theological Review that has since been generally ignored or dismissed. In this book, Hahneman re-examines the traditional dating of the fragment in a complete and extensive study that concurs with Sundberg's findings. Arguing for a later placing of the fragment, Hahneman shows that the entire history of the Christian Bible must be recast as a much longer and more gradual process. As a result, the decisive period of canonical history moves from the end of the second century into the midst of the fourth. As a decisive contribution to our understanding of the development of the New Testament canon, this book will be of considerable importance and interest to New Testament scholars and historians of the early Church.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A thorough discussion of the Muratorian fragment; it is also a discussion of the formation of both testaments of the biblical cannon."--Theology Digest

"A superlative example of scholarly research and writing. Well organized, clearly written and thorough, it deals patiently with all the relevant evidence and converses with a wide range of scholarship. This thoroughness makes the book both persuasive to other scholars and a bit tedious to non-specialists."--Bible Books

"This is an important book."--Journal for the Study of the New Testament

"[An] interesting discussion...it is good to have the question of the canon opened up afresh."--The Expository Times

"Here is a book that does just what its title promises."--Church History

About the Author

Geoffrey Mark Hahneman, Canon, the Cathedral Church of St Mark, Minneapolis.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (December 24, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198263414
• ISBN-13: 978-0198263418
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,337,003 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Monument to Self not Scholarship, November 7, 2007

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Son of Clovis (Clovis, New Mexico United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Muratorian Fragment and the Development of the Canon (Oxford Theological Monographs) (Hardcover)

Hahneman is a first rate modernist scholar who proposes history is what he makes it and truth is that forged on his anvil. The volume is a treasure of widespread research. However the author is weak on truth and demonstrates that in trying to recusitate a still-born idea from the 1970's and mold it into acceptance in today's world of lessoning standards of scholarship.

Many will stand up and cheer if they hold his weak ideas of truth or when gagging on his multitudinous research and pedantic language they mindlessly adopt his conclusions.

A careful modernist scholar will note his fallacious assumptions and oversight of certain facts (as noted by Dr. E. Ferguson) and reject the volumes' implicit claim to be a monument of scholarship. Quality scholars may sympathize but must reject the conclusion for its failures to prove its case.