Abstract
Down through the centuries of the Christian era the use of the Bible has been determined by a concomitant confessional affirmation of its divine origin as the Word of God. How much of it actually was appropriated and applied depended on the degree of identification between the biblical text and the Word of God that was acknowledged. From Marcion down to Rosemary Ruether different theological and hermeneutical criteria have been employed in order to identify divine revelation and consequently determine what is normative for life and faith. Although few Christians have been as radical as Marcion in substituting a new canon in place of a traditional body of scripture, many have acknowledged a canon within the canon while others have preferred to maintain an open-ended canon that included other writings considered equally authoritative for Christian faith and life. Both of these latter perspectives
appear to be more widely represented among Christians today than ever before in the history of the Christian movement, and it is largely due to the growing awareness of the classism, sexism and racism which are encountered in the biblical texts.