Editing Openai/69509256-a990-8004-9e91-1e2cfc7e0dc4 (section)

=== Assistant: It depends on what you mean by “the Canon,” because the biblical canon was not created in a single moment; it crystalli… ===
It depends on what you mean by “the Canon,” because the biblical canon was not created in a single moment; it crystallized over centuries.

Pentecost (Acts 2) occurs in the same timeframe as Jesus’ death/resurrection—commonly placed around AD 30 or AD 33. Wikipedia<ref>{{cite web|title=Wikipedia|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronology_of_Jesus|publisher=en.wikipedia.org|access-date=2025-12-28}}</ref>

===== - Earliest surviving “canon-like” list: the Muratorian Fragment, often dated to the late 2nd century (c. AD 170–200). That is roughly ~140–170 years after Pentecost (depending on whether you anchor Pentecost to AD 30 or AD 33). Wikipedia<ref>{{cite web|title=Wikipedia|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muratorian_fragment|publisher=en.wikipedia.org|access-date=2025-12-28}}</ref> =====
* First known list matching today’s 27-book New Testament: Athanasius’ 39th Festal Letter (AD 367). That is roughly ~334–337 years after Pentecost. Christian History Institute<ref>{{cite web|title=Christian History Institute|url=https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/athanasius-defines-new-testament|publisher=Christian History Institute|access-date=2025-12-28}}</ref>
* Regional council ratifications often cited in the West: Hippo (AD 393) and Carthage (AD 397)—roughly ~360–367 years after Pentecost. Wikipedia<ref>{{cite web|title=Wikipedia|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Councils_of_Carthage|publisher=en.wikipedia.org|access-date=2025-12-28}}</ref>

===== That process is a different timeline (and differs by Jewish vs. various Christian traditions), so “how long after Pentecost” is not a single clean number in the same way. =====

If you tell me whether you mean the 27-book New Testament specifically, or the full Bible (including which tradition: Protestant/Catholic/Orthodox), I can give the tightest date range and the key milestones for that canon.