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Apocrypha (view source)

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added source highlighting fact New Testament did not quote from Old Testament books regarded as canonical by Protestants

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:—[http://www.bible-researcher.com/trent1.html Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent. The Fourth Session. Celebrated on the eighth day of the month of April, in the year 1546. English translation by James Waterworth (London, 1848)]

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Protestant doctrine constantly affirms that the apocryphal books were ''added'' to the Bible in the 4th century by the Catholic Church because they contain texts which support traditional Catholic and Orthodox teaching and practice, such as the intercession of saints and prayers for the dead, and the performance of good works and almsgiving as a means of deliverance from death and purging of every sin (''see ~~External links below~~'' [[Apocrypha#External links|'''The Great Heresies''']]). Since the Apocrypha were already in the Septuagint Old Testament from before the time of the apostles, and have been an integral part of the Greek Bible as read in the ancient Church and preserved by Eastern Orthodoxy from the 1st century to this day, it is difficult to see how they had been "added". Eastern Church leaders rejected the proposed Protestant canon of 66 books in the Bible.

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Protestant doctrine constantly affirms that the apocryphal books were ''added'' to the Bible in the 4th century by the Catholic Church because they contain texts which support traditional Catholic and Orthodox teaching and practice, such as the intercession of saints and prayers for the dead, and the performance of good works and almsgiving as a means of deliverance from death and purging of every sin (''see'' [[Apocrypha#External links|'''The Great Heresies''']], External links ''below''). Since the Apocrypha were already in the Septuagint Old Testament from before the time of the apostles, and have been an integral part of the Greek Bible as read in the ancient Church and preserved by Eastern Orthodoxy from the 1st century to this day, it is difficult to see how they had been "added". Eastern Church leaders rejected the proposed Protestant canon of 66 books in the Bible.<ref>[http://orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/tca_luther.aspx Luther Had His Chance] (orthodoxinfo.com)</ref>

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Protestant doctrine also points out that none of the Apocrypha are quoted in the New Testament, presenting this fact as an additional indication that the New Testament writers did not regard them as inspired scripture. The New Testament quotes from all Old Testament Books ''except Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ecclesiastes,'' and the ''Song of Solomon''. This does not mean they are not inspired, and they are accepted by Protestants as canonical scriptures of the Holy Bible.

For some time the [[King James Bible]] contained those books which [[Protestant Reformation|Protestant Reformers]] deemed apocryphal in a separate section, "Apocrypha", between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The [[Episcopal Church]] includes the books of the Apocrypha in the cycle of scripture readings in its services, but holds that the apocryphal books are useful for study and [[edification]], but not for doctrine. Most Protestant churches do not use the Apocrypha as scripture at all, and they are not included in standard published editions of Protestant Bibles.

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Most Protestant Christians are unaware that numerous quotations ~~from~~ the ~~Apocrypha~~ are in the ~~New~~ Testament.<ref>See the following four sources:

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Most Protestant Christians are unaware that numerous quotations in the New Testament are from the Septuagint Old Testament containing the Apocrypha.<ref>See the following four sources:

*[http://www.scripturecatholic.com/septuagint.html Septuagint Quotes in the New Testament]

*[http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/septuagint.html The Septuagint (LXX): History of the Septuagint]

*[http://www.cresourcei.org/canonot.html Canons of the Hebrew Bible]

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*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]</ref> Biblical researchers in the 20th and 21st centuries have also discovered that most of the Apocrypha, except the Book of Wisdom (originally written in Greek?), were originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic (Syriac) prior to the Christian era.<ref>[http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/ Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Apocrypha] <br/>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha] (jewishvirtuallibrary.org)</ref>

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*[http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Apocrypha-Books/ Official King James Bible online: Apocrypha Books]</ref> Protestant doctrine has traditionally affirmed that the books of the Apocrypha were not originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic, presenting this fact as an additional indication that they cannot be regarded as sacred inspired scripture. Biblical researchers in the 20th and 21st centuries have also discovered that most of the Apocrypha, except the Book of Wisdom (originally written in Greek?), were in fact originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic (Syriac) prior to the Christian era.<ref>[http://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/apocrypha/ Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Apocrypha] <br/>[http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/apocrypha.html The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha] (jewishvirtuallibrary.org)</ref> The New Testament quotes from all of the Old Testament Books except Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Solomon, and the New Testament books themselves were originally written in Greek.<ref>''The Gospel According to Matthew'' alone among the scriptures of the New Testament was probably originally written by Matthew in Hebrew or Aramaic, according to the earlier tradition cited by Eusebius Pamphilus in his ''Ecclesistical History'' (Book III, Chapter XXIV). —''The Ecclesiastical History Of Eusebius Pamphilus: Bishop Of Caesarea, In Palestine'', C. F. Cruse, 1874, London: George Bell and Sons, York Steet, Covent Garden. pages 97—98. </ref> This does not mean they are not inspired.

Books apocryphal to the Protestant canon include (''titles as listed in Bibles printed in 1881''):

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* the [[archangel]] [[Raphael]] is known from the book of Tobit.

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There are also a number of books which are not included in the Catholic Bible, the ''[[Anagignoskomena]],'', which are part of the [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox canon]]: 1 Esdras, 2 Esdras, Prayer of Manasseh, Psalm 151, 3 Maccabees, and the appended 4 Maccabees. The Protestant canon of Apocrypha omits in silence Psalm 151 and 3rd and 4th Maccabees, perhaps because these were not part of the [[Vulgate]]. They were never part of the Apocrypha of the King James Bible. Other apocryphal works are called "[[pseudepigrapha]]". These include, for example, the [[1 Enoch|Book of Enoch]] and the [[Book of Jubilees]] and the [[Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs]] from the Old Testament period. The "Apostolic Fathers" include the [[Didache]] and the [[Epistles of Ignatius]] and the [[Shepherd of Hermas]] from the early 2nd century. In the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Ethiopian Orthodox Church]], all of these are included along with other works in the canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible, a total canon of 81 books. The later [[Gnostic]] writings and gospels such as the [[Gospel of Thomas]], found hidden in the abandoned monastery library at [[Nag Hammadi]] in Egypt, were written after the New Testament period. These books were of disputed status in the early Church as to whether they were scriptural or not, and were not included by the regional Third Council of Carthage and by the later General Council of Trent in the list of canonical scriptures. The Early Church fathers were concerned only with books relevant to the Christian faith, books which concerned salvation and growing in the Lord, following the oral tradition of the apostles ([http://biblehub.com/multi/2_thessalonians/2-15.htm 2 Thessalonians 2:15]).

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;The Anagignoskomena, Apostolic Fathers, Pseudepigrapha, Gnostic writings and gospels

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There are also a number of books which are not included in the Catholic Bible, the ''[[Anagignoskomena]],'', which are part of the [[Orthodox Church|Orthodox canon]]: 1 Esdras, 2 Esdras, Prayer of Manasseh, Psalm 151, 3 Maccabees, and the appended 4 Maccabees. The Protestant canon of Apocrypha omits in silence Psalm 151 and 3rd and 4th Maccabees, perhaps because these were not part of the [[Vulgate]]. They were never part of the Apocrypha of the King James Bible.

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Other apocryphal works are called "[[pseudepigrapha]]". These include, for example, the [[1 Enoch|Book of Enoch]] and the [[Book of Jubilees]] and the [[Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs]] from the Old Testament period.

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The "Apostolic Fathers" include the [[Didache]] and the [[Epistles of Ignatius]] and the [[Shepherd of Hermas]] from the early 2nd century.

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In the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Ethiopian Orthodox Church]], all of these are included along with other works in the canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible, a total Biblical canon of 81 books.

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The later [[Gnostic]] writings and gospels such as the [[Gospel of Thomas]], found hidden in the abandoned monastery library at [[Nag Hammadi]] in Egypt, were written after the New Testament period. These books were of disputed status in the early Church as to whether they were scriptural or not, and were not included by the regional Third Council of Carthage and by the later General Council of Trent in the list of canonical scriptures. The Early Church fathers were concerned only with books relevant to the Christian faith, books which concerned salvation and growing in the Lord, following the oral tradition of the apostles ([http://biblehub.com/multi/2_thessalonians/2-15.htm 2 Thessalonians 2:15]).

== References ==

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*[http://oxfordpatristics.blogspot.com/2011/06/edmon-gallagher-jeromes-prologus.html Edmon Gallagher on Jerome's ''Prologus'' and the Council of Hippo regarding the Canon] (oxfordpatristics.blogspot.com).<br/>See also [http://www.academia.edu/4307125/_Jeromes_Prologus_Galeatus_and_the_OT_Canon_of_North_Africa_Studia_Patristica_69_2013_ Jerome's Prologus Galeatus and the Old Testament Canon of North Africa, ''Studia Patristica'' 69: 2013]

*[http://www.christiantruth.com/articles/Apocrypha3.html The Old Testament Canon and the Apocrypha. Part 3: From Jerome to the Reformation. William Webster] (christiantruth.com)

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*[http://www.bible.ca/b-canon-old-testament-quoted-by-jesus-and-apostles.htm A list of Old Testament books quoted by Jesus and other New Testament writers.]

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*[http://orthodoxinfo.com/inquirers/tca_luther.aspx Luther Had His Chance] (orthodoxinfo.com)

*[http://www.bible.ca/catholic-apocrypha.htm Roman Catholic and Orthodox Faith Examined, and The Apocrypha: "Reasons why the Apocrypha does NOT belong in the Bible!"] (bible.ca)

*[http://carm.org/why-apocrypha-not-in-bible CARM Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry: Reasons why the Apocrypha does not belong in the Bible, by Ryan Turner] (carm.org)

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