Grounds for Misguidance
The Holy Books are believed to have been written under the supernatural guidance of a Holy Spirit by laymen; scholars; commoners; and nobility. They are as unique, as are profound, containing ancient scrolls that have shaped laws, influenced cultures, and inspired billions to faith over three millennials.
In the ‘Hebrew Bible’ for instance, the canon contains 24 Books, one for each of the scrolls on which these works were written in ancient times. But this number is somewhat arbitrary, as it regards 12 separate Books of ‘Minor Prophets’ as a single Book, thus, there are, in effect, 8 Books divided into:
The traditional rabbinic count of 24 Books appears in the ‘Talmud’ and numerous works of the ‘Midrash’, although the 22 Books enumeration is said to reflect the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet.
For Christians on the other hand, canon consists of 46 Books in the ‘Old Testament’, and 27 Books in the ‘New Testament’, for a total of 73 Books in the ‘Catholic Bible’, while the ‘Protestant Bible’ contains 66.
‘Protestants’ and ‘Catholics’ alike claim that the Bible is the canon or authority for faith and morals. Both also agree that the Bible functions as authority for doctrine, though admittedly in different ways.
That said, unlike the ‘King James Bible’, which contains 66 Books, the ‘Ethiopic Bible’ comprises 84 Books and includes some writings that were rejected or lost by other Churches.
To this end, the Ethiopian Bible is the oldest and most complete Bible. Written in Ge'ez an ancient dead language of Ethiopia it's nearly 800 years older than the King James Version and contains over 100 Books of which 81 to 88 are admitted compared to 66.
The Old Testament contains 39 (Protestant), 46 (Catholic), or more (Orthodox and other) Books, divided, very broadly into the 'Pentateuch' (Torah), the 'Historical Books'; the 'Wisdom Books'; and the 'Prophets Books'.
The Prophetic Books are a division of the Christian Bible, grouping 18 Books (Catholic and Orthodox canon) or 17 Books (Protestant canon, excluding Baruch) in the Old Testament.
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Muslims meanwhile, believe that Allah (God) revealed Holy Books or scriptures to a number of Allah's messengers. These include the Quran (relayed to Muhammad), the Torah (handed to Moses), the Gospel (given to Jesus), the Psalms (passed to David), and the Scrolls (revealed to Abraham). They trust that these Holy Books all conveyed the same message from Allah to humanity, giving guidance on how to live daily life.
Although, Muhammad is not known to have written any Books on the subject.
The 'Sunnah', (habitual practice) also spelled Sunna, is the body of traditional; social; and legal customs and practices of the Muslim community; along with the 'Quran' (the Holy Book of Islam), and 'Hadith' (prescribed traditions containing sayings of Prophet Muhammad), a major source of Sharia (Islamic canon law).
To complicate things, there are three types of Sunnah:
All Muslims are guided by the Sunnah's four schools of legal thought (Hanafi; Shafi'i; Maliki, and Hanbali), each of which, strives to develop practical applications of the Sunnah. While Sunnis stress its primacy, Shia are also guided by the wisdom of the Prophet's descendants through his son-in-law and cousin, Ali.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, 'Sahih Muslim', is a collection of Hadith compiled along with 'Sahih al-Bukhari' forming the "Sahihain" (Two Sahihs “assured reports”), containing roughly 7500 Hadith (with repetitions) in 57 Books.
For Sunni Muslims, an Imam (religious leader) is chosen at the community level, Shia believe that there were 12 Imams after the death of the Prophet. The twelfth of them, however, has been kept alive by Allah and is hidden somewhere on Earth. Shia believe this twelfth Imam will one day make himself known and bring equality to all…
Food for thought!