100 must-read books for college students

Chapter 16 The Most Widely Spread Religious Books in the World
Chapter 15 The most widely circulated religious book in the world: the Bible

There are about 25 billion religious believers in the world, of which 15 billion are Christians. Therefore, the "Bible" has become the most influential in society.

The most widely spread religious classics.From Albert Lord, a professor of comparative literature at Harvard University in the United States, talking about the importance of the Bible to him
Influence, we may understand the important position of the "Bible" in Western culture, he said: "I was the most influential from childhood to adulthood."
The big book is the Bible.I was brought up by it; as a child and youth I learned to draw
Use it for many paragraphs. "

The book "Bible" has about 1500 versions in different languages ​​in the world, and this book exists in all countries in the world.
It is believed to be the most influential book in the world.

"Old and New Testaments" Christian Classics

The "Bible" is divided into two parts, the "Old Testament" and the "New Testament", collectively known as the "New and Old Testament". The Old Testament is about 4 BC
The Hebrew priests in the [-]th century compiled various religious documents and legends handed down by the Jewish nation since ancient times.
Compiled, including historical legends, religious canons, teachings of the prophets, epic poems, king's laws, the scope is very wide

. The Old Testament was first written in ancient Hebrew.The ancient Greek translation appeared in Alexandria in 270 BC.At this

Afterwards, the "Old Testament" was continuously revised and added to become the "Old Testament" in 39 volumes.

The "Old Testament" concentrates the essence and achievements of Hebrew literature.It occupies an important position in the history of world literature,

The sound is extremely profound.

Hebrew literature based on the "Old Testament", its production is inseparable from the history of ancient Palestine and the founding of Judaism
It's open.

After the establishment of Judaism, in order to promote its teachings, religious priests handed down from the 13th century BC to the 2nd century BC.
He processed, sorted out, and compiled his own scriptures, which were later accepted by Christianity and are called

"Old Testament".

The writing time of the original materials in the "Old Testament" is from the 12th century BC to the 2nd century BC, which lasted for thousands of years.

The times when each volume was compiled into the Bible are different. The earliest is the Pentateuch, about the 5th century BC, and the latest is the "Song of Solomon", about

The history of the ancient Hebrew nation ended in the 1st century AD and lasted more than 500 years. The Old Testament with the Diaspora of the Jews and Christ

The emergence and dissemination of the religion has spread all over the world, and there are many versions. It has been translated into 1685 languages ​​so far.

"Old Testament" a total of 39 volumes.In the past, the Jews traditionally divided it into three parts: the law book, the history book and the Holy Book.now near
It is more scientifically divided into four parts: scriptures, history books, prophetic books, and collections of poetry and essays:

The scriptures - the famous "Five Books of Moses": Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.These 5 volumes are
The basic part of the "Old Testament", which includes the origin of the world and mankind, myths and legends of Paradise and the Flood, as well as Jewish
Canon and state law.These records may have been formed as early as between the 7th and 5th centuries BC.

History books - including "Joshua", "Judges", "Samuel", "Ezra" and other 10 volumes, describing Israel
Columns and the Rise and Fall of the Jewish State

.The content of the history books is that after the Israelites conquered Palestine, after the "judgement period" of the tribal leaders, Israel was established—Judas
The beginning and end of the Tai Kingdom, and the history of the country's demise and diaspora.Although it is described from a religious point of view and in the form of literature, its
Many of the contents are true, and it is still the main basis for the study of Jewish history.

"Joshua" and "Judges" describe the Jewish conquest of the Canaanites during the period of military democracy and the drawing of lots by tribe after the conquest

The situation of allotment of land, and the historical materials of the transition of the Jewish people from the tribal federation to the state. Narration of the Book of Samuel
It describes the establishment process of the Israel-Jewish Kingdom, mainly describing the deeds of Saul and David. Narration of the Book of Kings
The situation of the kings after the death of David, especially the achievements of Solomon in his prime. Pre-Historical Facts Described in the Books of Samuel and Kings

Later, the first drafts of these two volumes were written in the 6th century BC.Around the 2nd century BC, there appeared the first and second volumes of Chronicles,

Including the history from the beginning of Adam, until the subjugation of the country and the reconstruction of Jerusalem, it can be described as a brief history of the Hebrew nation.
History of Ming Dynasty.The book emphasizes blood ties and nationalist ideas centered on Jerusalem. Ezra and Nehemiah
"Records" records that after the Jews were released from captivity in Babylon, they rebuilt the temple, established monotheistic Judaism beliefs, rectified the law,

Compiling the historical facts of the Pentateuch, it is one of the important references for studying Jewish history and Judaism.

Prophets—including 18 volumes including Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel.

Comments on the phenomenon and
appraise.The "prophet" here refers to a group of prophets who rose up before Israel, Judea, and the country were about to perish.

From the 8th to the 3rd century before.They are believed to be prophets, "to speak in the name of the Lord is divine revelation", and they are the spokespersons of God.Reality
In fact, they are social reformers and thinkers who came from the lower classes of society. They condemn social inequality, speak out, and call for

Wake up the masses.

Neither the Book of Jeremiah nor the Book of Isaiah was written by the same person, and the dates are also inconsistent. Isaiah chapter 40 onwards

It clearly belongs to the aftermath of the Babylonian captivity.These two prophetic books both regarded Jehovah as the only true God in the universe, and both foreshadowed the
The Lord will come to lead the Jewish nation back. "Ezekiel" designed the blueprint of the ideal city of Jerusalem after the restoration of the country in the future.

Anthology of Poems - including Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Lamentations

" and other 6 volumes, probably written in AD

From the 5th century to the 2nd century BC.Among them, the "Psalms" is divided into 5 volumes, with a total of 150 chapters, which are composed of folk songbooks and prayers collected by the author.

Message
In order to express the emotions of the Hebrew nation, there are poems praising God, as well as prayers against national enemies and personal inner feelings.
Feelings have a certain status in the history of Western literature. "Proverbs" uses the style of aphorisms to describe the ancient Hebrew sages and sages.
Books of worldly wisdom, such as in family, business, manners, self-cultivation, etc., and extol humility, patience, loyalty to friends, etc.

virtue.There are a large number of maxims praising wisdom in the book, and these maxims have become works that have been widely recited in Western countries for 2000 years.

The "New Testament" is the classic of Christianity itself, which was produced in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD.The book has 27 volumes, the original language is Greek, the content

There are 4 volumes of the Gospel, 21 volumes of Epistles, 1 volume of Acts, and 1 volume of Revelation.

The earliest manuscript in the New Testament is "Revelation", which was written in the second half of the first century AD. "Revelation" is in the "New Testament"
It is unique and is a representative work of Jewish apocalyptic literature.It is said that the apostle John was exiled to the island of Patmos and saw a vision.
under the record.

The Epistle and the Acts of the Apostles were written around the first half of the 2nd century AD;
The Gospels were written during the 2nd century AD.

Jesus' thoughts are reflected in chapters 5-7 of "Matthew", namely the "Sermon on the Mount", in which the law, adultery, divorce, etc.

, oaths, revenge, alms, prayers, etc. express opinions and raise the highest standards of thought and conduct.

Encyclopedia of human society, treasure house of western culture

Regardless of religious beliefs, the "Bible", as an encyclopedia-like anthology reflecting the development of human society, has a profound impact on Western culture.

Had a huge impact.For example, in terms of language, after the Reformation, the "Bible" was translated into English, German, Spanish, French,

Russian, Bulgarian, Czech and other languages ​​have promoted the formation and standardization of these national and national languages.At the same time, the Bible

It is an inexhaustible treasure house for local literature and art. Many famous works of literature, art and music are drawn from the Bible.

According to statistics, the "Bible" is the most widely circulated, most translated and most valued book in the world.

In medieval Europe, Christian theology was absolutely dominant.Because the church believes that the Bible is inspired by God,
The general outline of belief, the norms of life, and the eternal truth, so this book has the supreme authority.in medieval europe
, the word of the Bible

The Bible has legal authority in courts at all levels, so the reactionary rulers of all dynasties have used the "Bible" as their ruling tool.thing
In fact, if viewed from a literary point of view, the "Old Testament" is the history of the Hebrew nation from the tribal age to 586 BC when the Jewish state was conquered by Pakistan.
A collection of literary heritage after Babylon's demise and "Babylonian captivity".The most literary value is "Song of Songs", many of its

Multiple themes have exerted a huge influence on European literature, thus affecting the social consciousness and aesthetic concepts of people in various European countries.
Even lifestyles have had a subtle and ubiquitous impact.Many literary masters took their subject matter from the Bible,

Draw inspiration and create many handed down works.

Dante's "Divine Comedy" mixes the images and myths in the "Bible" with ancient historical figures and contemporary political figures,

Thus created three divine comedies, "Hell", "Purgatory" and "Heaven".

The famous tragedy "Satan" written by the Dutch poet Vandel is based on the theme of the "Bible".

The 17th century British poet Milton based on the story in Genesis that Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden by stealing the forbidden fruit.

Two great poems, Paradise Lost (1667) and Paradise Restored (1671).The Devil in Goethe's Faust

Also from the Bible.The works of the French writer Voltaire have many contents from the Bible.

The close relationship between Tolstoy's works and the Bible is well known.He wrote in the book "Anna Karenina"
The title of the book: "Vengeance is mine, and I will repay." It is quoted from "New Testament: Romans".

During the European Renaissance until the following centuries, in the plastic arts, works with the "Bible" as the theme

It is even more popular.Such as Michelangelo's "Mourning for Christ", "David", "Moses" and other stone carvings, the arch of the Sistine Chapel

The 600-square-meter "Genesis" mural on the top and the 200-square-meter "Last Judgment" mural on the front wall of the same church

Da Vinci's "Holy Pregnancy", "Madonna of the Rocks", "Last Supper"; Raphael's "Sistine Madonna"; Giotto's

"The Kiss of Judas"; Titian's "Ascension of the Virgin Mary" and so on.

In short, the influence of the "Bible" on Western culture is very far-reaching and comprehensive, not only in terms of religious belief, but also in literature

, Painting, plastic arts, music, architecture, and even food, furniture and other aspects are all felt its influence.

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