Canon Revisited (Michael J. Kruger)

In Canon Revisited, Michael Kruger's purpose is "to answer the question about whether the Christian belief in the canon [of the New Testament—its 27 books—] is intellectually acceptable." He argues "that Christians have more than adequate grounds for their belief in the truth of the canon." A summary of the book (and his argument) follows.

The Canonical Model

In the first part, Kruger looks at canonical models, which are different approaches people use to "answer the question of how we know which books belong in the New Testament canon." 

- Community-determined models look "to the decisions of the church itself (or individuals within it)"; in effect, canon is determined by the response of the community.

- Historically-determined models "appeal to the historical origins of the books themselves," where books are considered canonical if historical research (to determine authenticity and apostolicity) deems them so. 

There are variations to the above, but all "share one thing in common: they authenticate the canon on the basis of something external to it . . . [which will] inevitably produce a canon of our own making." To avoid an appeal to an external authority, "the canon must be self-authenticating . . . the canon [itself] guides, controls, and determines how it is authenticated." Looking to the Scriptures to guide us, he argues "that God has created the proper epistemic environment in which belief in the canon could be reliably formed." This self-authenticating model "involves the following components:" [the below list is a condensed quote]

• Providential exposure. We trust in the providence of God to expose the church to the books it is to receive as canonical. [this, therefore, does not address 'lost' apostolic books]
• Attributes of canonicity. The Scriptures indicate that there are three attributes that all canonical books have:
• divine qualities (canonical books bear the "marks' of divinity),
• corporate reception (canonical books are recognized by the church as a whole), and
• apostolic origins (canonical books are the result of the redemptive-historical activity of the apostles).
• Internal testimony of the Holy Spirit. Because of the noetic effects of sin, the natural man cannot reliably recognize these attributes of canonicity. Thus, we need the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit . . . [which] is not private revelation . . . but it is the Spirit opening our eyes to the truth of these attributes and producing belief that these books are from God.

These attributes of canonicity "are mutually reinforcing." "This three-dimensional model, then, is self-supporting and self-correcting." "On the basis of this model, we concluded that the Christian has intellectually sufficient ground for affirming that these twenty-seven books, and only these . . . belong in the New Testament."

Exploring and Defending the Canonical Model

In the second part, Kruger explores and defends the above argument in more depth. He looks at "the Christian claim that the New Testament books contain divine qualities." He argues that "all canonical books are apostolic, meaning that they bear authoritative apostolic tradition." He shows how "the methodologies of much of modern critical scholarship . . . are founded upon Enlightenment assumptions that are already hostile to historic Christianity." And he examines "the reception of the canon by the corporate church." 

Implications of the Canonical Model

The below list is a composite of quotes.

• There is more common ground between competing canonical models than is often realized. Canon has an ecclesiological dimention, a historical dimension, and an aesthetic/internal dimension. It is when a single aspect of canon is absolutized at the expense of the others that distortions inevitably arise. The community-determined models are correct that the church plays a key role (but not the decisive and only role). The historically determined models are right that canonical books are those that contain authentic apostolic content (but there is no such thing as a neutral historical methodology). The Reformers are correct that the canonical books contain the marks of divinity within them (but that doesn't mean that the role of the church and the origins of these books should be ignored). Each of [these models] brings something important to the table.
• The decisive issue in canonical studies is one's ontology of canon. What is the canon in and of itself? What sets the self-authenticating model apart is that it recognizes not only that the books of the canon have divine authority apart from their reception by the community of faith, but also that this authority can be known through the books themselves as the power of the Spirit works within them.
• Christians have intellectually sufficient grounds for claiming that they know which books belong in the New Testament. The culture of postmodernity in our Western world already gives us reason to doubt the basis for virtually every belief we hold—particularly religious ones. But if [this] model proves to be valid, then the power of this objection is dissolved.

"Throughout this study, we have seen that the canon is, at its core, a theological issue . . the manner in which one authenticates canon is integrally connected to one's view about the kind of books being authenticated." Indeed, "everyone brings a canonical theology to the table whether they recognize it or not." In the end, Jesus himself points the way: "my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27)

Review

This is a fantastic book. It has outstanding scholarship, clear presentation, and is fair to opposing viewpoints. Many of the arguments within are quite strong and persuasive. Others are hard to prove (or disprove), but reasonable based on the evidence as a whole. This is a must-read for those interested in the formation and defense of the New Testament.

Rating: A+