The Bible (also called the Sacred Scriptures, or the Word of God), is the body of written words through which God speaks to us, his children. "In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them", says a fairly recent document of the Church, Dei verbum.

Many years ago, a group of Bishops met to decide, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, which books should be included in the Bible. They discerned that 46 books for the Old Testament (45 if we count Jeremiah and Lamentations as one) and 27 for the New, should be included as part of the 'Canon'.

The Old Testament

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel,  2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah, Malachi

The New Testament

Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, the Acts of the Apostles, Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, the Letter to the Hebrews, the Letter of St James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, Revelation (the Apocalypse)