**The Bible is a collection of writings that are considered by Jews and Christians to be divinely inspired**.

Among the three major Christian traditions (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant), the list of writings recognized as the New Testament is virtually identical.

The main differences lie in the Old Testament. All three traditions recognize the same core set of books corresponding to the Hebrew Bible (often ordered as Genesis through Malachi in the Protestant tradition), which are also accepted within Jews tradition (though counted as 24 books due to different groupings).

The Roman Catholic tradition includes 7 additional books (commonly called the Deuterocanonical books), while the Eastern Orthodox tradition includes these and, in some cases, several additional writings beyond them.

Though not considered divinely inspired within most of the Protestant tradition, these Deuterocanonical and additional writings are often regarded as useful, containing historical and moral value.

For the sake of discussion and mutual understanding, it is proposed that this shared core (**the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament**) serve as the main focus, while allowing the Deuterocanonical books and other additional writings to be included insofar as they are brought into conversation with the core set.

What is the Bible?