Presenting Biblical answers to tough questions

Q: Why does the Catholic Bible have more books than the NIV Bible? Why aren’t they the same? Which set of books is actually the complete word of God?

A:  The process of identifying which writings make up God’s Word was far more organic than many people realize. The Church over the first and second centuries published several lists of books they considered authentic. While the church consistently condemned several non-authentic documents, there was some variation on exactly which books were approved. Many books (Romans and Ephesians are...