The quality of being included in the official collection of sacred texts accepted as authoritative by a religious community. It refers to the process and criteria by which certain writings are recognized as genuine scripture while others are excluded.
From Greek 'kanon' meaning 'measuring rod' or 'rule,' the term evolved to describe the standard by which authentic scriptures are measured. The concept developed as early Christian communities needed to distinguish genuine apostolic writings from later compositions and establish a definitive collection of sacred texts.
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