How did the Book of Revelation join the canon?

[tonychanyt]

Was the book of Revelation written by Apostle John?

Two early objections:

first evidence of any real objection to the book of Revelation comes from the person of Gaius in the early third century who rejects the book on the grounds that it was a forgery of the heretic Cerinthus. ...
Dionysius of Alexandria, in the late third century, makes the argument that Revelation was written by another John besides the apostle. Eusebius appears to agree with him. But, it is worth noting that Dionysius does not reject the book on these grounds (despite the impression many give that he did), but still regards it as holy and inspired. ...
It was not the historical merits of the book, but rather Gaius’ objection to chiliasm (the belief in a literal millennial reign of Christ).

Apostle John didn't write it and there is no Millenial Reign.

How did it survive inclusion into the normal bible?

Some canonical history:

Eusebius, in his Church History (c. AD 330) mentioned that the Apocalypse of John was accepted as a Canonical book and rejected at the same time.

Cyril of Jerusalem (AD 348) does not name it among the canonical books

The Council of Laodicea (AD 363) omits it as a canonical book.

Then things got better for the book of Revelation:

The Synod of Hippo (in AD 393),[36] followed by the Council of Carthage (397), the Council of Carthage (419), the Council of Florence (1442)[37] and the Council of Trent (1546)[38] classified it as a canonical book.

But then:

Doubts resurfaced during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther called Revelation "neither apostolic nor prophetic" in the 1522 preface to his translation of the New Testament (he revised his position with a much more favorable assessment in 1530),[41] Huldrych Zwingli labelled it "not a book of the Bible",[42] and it was the only New Testament book on which John Calvin did not write a commentary.[43] As of 2015 Revelation remains the only New Testament book not read in the Divine Liturgy of the Eastern Orthodox Church,[44] though Catholic and Protestant liturgies include it.

So, even today, Revelation is not universally accepted in Christendom.

I think it is inspired scripture.

 

[Valletta]

Was the book of Revelation written by Apostle John?

Two early objections:

Apostle John didn't write it and there is no Millenial Reign.

How did it survive inclusion into the normal bible?

Some canonical history:



Then things got better for the book of Revelation:

But then:

So, even today, Revelation is not universally accepted in Christendom.

I think it is inspired scripture.

The Catholic Church process of choosing the 73 books of the Bible spanned centuries. Saint Athanasius is credited with the first Biblical canon (NT) containing the same books in the same order we use today. The list is contained in his Thirty-Ninth Festal Letter of 367 A.D. This list was approved by Pope Damasus, and formally approved of by Councils at Hippo and Carthage in the late 300s. Pope Innocent I wrote a letter to the Bishop of Toulouse in 405 A.D. containing the list. The list was re-affirmed at Carthage in 419 A.D.