Editing Community of Christ (section)

===Scripture===
The Community of Christ points to Jesus Christ as the living Word of God<ref>Community of Christ Theology Task Force, "Scripture in the Community of Christ," ''[[Saints Herald]]'', August 2006, p. 15.</ref> and it affirms the [[Bible]] (including but not limited to [[Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible|the Inspired Version of the Holy Scriptures]]) along with the [[Book of Mormon]] and the [[Doctrine and Covenants]], as scripture for the church. The Community of Christ view of scripture is that it should be "reasonably interpreted and faithfully applied". Scripture references provided for congregational worship generally follow the [[Revised Common Lectionary]]. The church views the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants as "additional witnesses of Christ's ministry and God's love." The Community of Christ understands scripture as an inspired record of God's activity with humanity. While it recognizes scripture as the [[revelation]] of God, its members would not typically suggest that scriptures constitute the literal "words of God".<ref>Marge Nelson, "Faith and Beliefs:Scripture", ''The Herald'', July 2003, pp. 22–23.</ref> 

====Bible====
In unity with Christianity, the Community of Christ upholds the Bible as scripture. Adherents read and reference both the Hebrew [[Old Testament]] and the Christian [[New Testament]] in public worship as well as in private study. The church encourages prayerful meditation upon the meaning and the importance of Bible passages. "If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. But ask in faith, never doubting" (James 1:5–6) is an oft quoted passage from the New Testament, as well as being the scripture reference that [[Joseph Smith]] read when he was trying, as a boy, to determine what church to join. His experience following his reading of this scripture resulted in the eventual organization of the [[Church of Christ (Latter Day Saints)|Church of Christ]].

The Community of Christ does not prescribe a single translation of the Bible. Although Smith began a project to revise the [[King James Version]] by inspiration during his lifetime, the liturgy of the church today is usually based on more recent translations of the Bible. Upon Smith's death, the working manuscript of his translation was retained by his family and came into the possession of the Community of Christ. The work was edited and is published by the church as the [[Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible|Inspired Version]] of the Bible. Since it largely relies on the language of the King James Version, most official publications of the Community of Christ quote scripture from newer versions such as the [[New Revised Standard Version]] (NRSV). The Community of Christ does not view scripture, including the Bible, as inerrant. Members are encouraged to understand the historical and literary context of Bible passages and are not required to interpret all of the language literally.<ref>Community of Christ Temple School, "An Introduction to Scripture",  SS201, 2001.</ref>

====Book of Mormon====
{{Further|Origin of the Book of Mormon}}
[[File:Book of Mormon 1830 edition reprint.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|Book of Mormon 1830 reprint ([[facsimile]] of first copy of the Book of Mormon) by [[Herald Heritage]]. Reprinted in 1970, [[Independence, Missouri]].]]

The Community of Christ views the [[Book of Mormon]] as an additional witness of Jesus Christ and publishes two versions of the book through its official publishing arm, [[Herald House]]. The Authorized Edition is based on the original printer's manuscript and the 1837 Second Edition (or Kirtland Edition) of the Book of Mormon. Its content is similar to the Book of Mormon published by [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church), but the versification is different. The Community of Christ also publishes a 1966 "Revised Authorized Edition" which attempts to modernize some of the language.

In 2001, church president [[W. Grant McMurray]] reflected on increasing questions about the Book of Mormon: "The proper use of the Book of Mormon as sacred scripture has been under wide discussion in the 1970s and beyond, in part because of long-standing questions about its historicity and in part because of perceived theological inadequacies, including matters of race and ethnicity."<ref>McMurray, W. Grant, "They "Shall Blossom as the Rose": Native Americans and the Dream of Zion", an address delivered on February 17, 2001, accessed on Community of Christ website, September 1, 2006 at https://web.archive.org/web/20070817021355/http://cofchrist.org/docs/NativeAmericanConference/keynote.asp</ref> 

At the 2007 Community of Christ World Conference, church president Stephen M. Veazey ruled as out of order a resolution to "reaffirm the Book of Mormon as a divinely inspired record". In so doing he stated that "while the Church affirms the Book of Mormon as scripture, and makes it available for study and use in various languages, we do not attempt to mandate the degree of belief or use. This position is in keeping with our longstanding tradition that belief in the Book of Mormon is not to be used as a test of fellowship or membership in the church."<ref>Andrew M. Shields, "Official Minutes of Business Session, Wednesday March 28, 2007", in 2007 World Conference Thursday Bulletin, March 29, 2007. Community of Christ, 2007</ref>

The Community of Christ's official stance has stated about the Book of Mormon (under Affirmation Nine):
"With other Christians, we affirm the Bible as the foundational scripture for the church. In addition, the Community of Christ uses the Book of Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants as scripture. We do not use these sacred writings to replace the witness of the Bible or improve upon it, but because they confirm its message that Jesus Christ is the Living Word of God (Preface of the Book of Mormon; Doctrine and Covenants 76:3g)."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cofchrist.org/ourfaith/scripture.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070203203429/http://www.cofchrist.org/ourfaith/scripture.asp|url-status=dead|archive-date=2007-02-03|title=Scripture in the Community of Christ<!-- Bot generated title -->}}</ref>

====Book of Doctrine and Covenants====
The Community of Christ edition of the [[Doctrine and Covenants]] is a growing work of scripture containing inspired documents given through the [[prophet-presidents]] recognized by the Community of Christ.