History: Growth of Christianity

The growth of Christianity and writing begins with the advancement of  the art of writing.
With the rumored Egyptian ban on the sale of papyrus  in 190BC, Pergamum librarians turned to writing in a codex; wax tablets which were bound together at the spine. This proved to be easier to read than scrolls, and by the sixth century the parchment codex was dominant. By the ninth century, papyrus was only used for administrative purposes.
Within these codices writing began to advance as well. One of the greatest advancements was the Origen's  creation of the "Hexapla" which would have: writings from the old testament, written in two languages (Hebrew and Greek,) in six columns lined side by side. This creation would lead St. Jerome to consult Origen's manuscript, and create the official text of the Roman Catholic church. Origen's "Hexapla," also influenced Pamphilus, who created the largest Christian library for their time, up until their death on Febuary 16th, 310. "Hexapla" still had influence even after Pamphilus's death, by a person named Eusbius.
Eusbius would create the Chronicle, a writing which incorporated tables and rational. It gave readers and writers a new visualization. His imagination as to how the codex could be formatted would lead to the creation of the Canon. The Canon divided the Gospel into ten sections, with tables listing passages, and linked it all together as one. It is because of this creation, he received a commission by Emperor Constantinople to furnish all the churches with Bibles. These Bibles were written in Greek uncials in a parchment codex. (Clayton, 2014, pp. 40-55)


Clayton, E. (2014). Roman Foundations. The golden thread: The story of writing  Berkeley, CA: Counterpoint. (pp. 40-55)