Religious text

They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and laws, ethical conduct, spiritual aspirations, and admonitions for fostering a religious community.

[1][2][3] According to Peter Beal, the term scripture – derived from scriptura (Latin) – meant "writings [manuscripts] in general" prior to the medieval era, and was then "reserved to denote the texts of the Old and New Testaments of the Bible".

[4] Beyond Christianity, according to the Oxford World Encyclopedia, the term scripture has referred to a text accepted to contain the "sacred writings of a religion",[5] while The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions states it refers to a text "having [religious] authority and often collected into an accepted canon".

The early references, such as the Synod of Laodicea, mention both the terms "canonical" and "non-canonical" in the context of religious texts.

[10] One of the oldest known religious texts is the Kesh Temple Hymn of ancient Sumer,[11][12] a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 BCE.

[13] The Epic of Gilgamesh from Sumer, although only considered by some scholars as a religious text, has origins as early as 2150 BCE,[14] and stands as one of the earliest literary works that includes various mythological figures and themes of interaction with the divine.