We don't know when this guy was born and we don't know when he died.

Apparently before Hallmark existed people didn't pay as much attention to birthdays,

but we do know when he lived or when he flourished.

You'll see the abbreviation F.L. around dates sometimes.

That stands for flourished, as in the time when the figure in question flourished.

So our guy flourished around 200. His name is

Tertullian and we have a lot to be thankful for regarding Tertullian's

flourishing. First Tertullian's flourishing.

First, Tertullian was the first one to coin the term old and new testaments

in reference to the 39 books comprising the Old Testament

and the 27 books comprising the Old Testament and the the New.

In the Gospels we see a reference to the law, prophets, and writings,

what we shorthand refer to as the Tanakh,

or the Hebrew Bible.

Paul and the other New Testament epistle writers

often speak of the old and new covenant,

which refers to the mosaic covenant and old testament times,

and the new covenant from Jeremiah in referring to the new epoch brought about by the life

death in resurrection and ascension of Christ.

But it was Tertullian who gave us the designations of old and new testaments.

We simply take them for granted, but we should be thankful to Tertullian for his work.

There is another term we also take for granted. In fact, I don't know how

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