(See Assumption; Mary. But a clue to it may be recognized in the so-called Fourth Book of Esdras, which relates that Esdras (Ezra) by divine inspiration composed ninety-four books. The body of the work is undoubtedly Judaic, but there are many interpolations of an unmistakabl… With respect to sacred Scripture, the Apocrypha are those religious books written in the Old and New Testaments eras that claimed a sacred origin but were ultimately judged by the Catholic Church as not inspired by the Holy Spirit. This consists of eight pretended letters from the Stoic philosopher Seneca, and six replies from St. Paul. In 447 Pope Leo the Great wrote pointedly against the pseudoapostolic writings, “which contained the germ of so many errors… they should not only be forbidden but completely suppressed and burned” (Epist. Apocalypse of the Testamentum D. N. Jesu Christi. The apocryphon in all its present forms extravagantly magnifies the Divine aspect of the boy Jesus. Therefore, it had the force of secret, mysterious occult. Despite Tertullian‘s remark regarding this pseudograph, it enjoyed an immense and persistent popularity through the patristic period and the Middle Ages. Hence most of the Gnostic Acts have come down to us with more or less of a Catholic purification, which, however, was in many cases so superficial as to leave unmistakable traces of their heterodox origin. It purports to reveal the secrets seen by the Apostle in his transport to the third heaven, alluded to in II Cor., xii, 2, and was composed in Greek. The apocalyptic opening has been found in a Latin MS. of the eighth century, and published by M. R. James, “Apocrypha Anecdota” (Cambridge, 1893). A. Baumstark in the Revue Biblique (April, 1906, 253 sqq. The motive which first prompted the fabrication of spurious Acts of the Apostles was, in general, to give Apostolic support to heretical systems, especially those of the many sects which are comprised under the term Gnosticism. When certain passages are freed from evident Christian interpolations, its Messianism in general is earthly, but in the latter part of the book the Messias‘s realm tends unmistakably towards a more spiritual conception. and A.D. 60. Zahn’s view, that this document is the work of an ill-informed Catholic monk of the fourth century, is a satisfactory hypothesis. The former had no other motive than that of a pious fraud, being sometimes moved by a real though misguided zeal, as witness the author of the Pseudo-Matthew: Amcor Christi est cui satisfecimus. ; the Book of Celestial Physics, lxxii-lxxviii, lxxxii, lxxix, date undetermined. Some recent students of the “Apocalypse of Baruch” have seen in it a composite work, but the majority of critics hold with better reason to its unity. They are all of orthodox origin. The apocryphon exists in Greek, Ethiopic, and Slavonic MSS. Notwithstanding this widespread reverence for it in early times, it is a remarkable fact that the book never got a foothold in the canon or liturgy of the Church. The fragments which remain betray no signs of heterodox origin. In response to the Council of Trent, definitive views on the matter were inscribed in Protestant confessions of faith. They were added by the Catholic Church at the Council of Trent after Luther rejected it. 28). It is evident that neither of Herod‘s sons, Philip and Antipas, had yet reigned thirty-four years, since the writer, hazarding a prediction that proved false, says that the sons should enjoy shorter reigns than their father. Here and there throughout the Book of Parables the author gives piecemeal his theory of the origin of sin. It was obviously suggested by the lost genuine Pauline letter referred to in I Cor. This is an extensive pseudograph, consisting of (1) narrations in which each of the twelve sons of Jacob relates his life, embellished by Midrashic expansions of the Biblical data; (2) exhortations by each patriarch to the practice of virtues, or the shunning of vices illustrated in his life; (3) apocalyptic portions concerning the future of the twelve tribes, and the Messianic times. Dan., xii, 4, 9, where the prophet is bidden to shut up and seal an inspired book until an appointed time). It proved to closely parallel the Abgar material derived by Eusebius from the Edessa archives, and indeed purports to have been entrusted to those archives by its author, who gives his name as Labubna, the son of Senaak. The narrative is based upon the mutual relations and activities of Barnabas, Mark, and Paul, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles.—Gesta Matthioe. An apocalyptic element existing in the prophets, in Zacharias (i—vi), in Tobias (Tobias, xiii), can be traced back to the visions of Ezechiel which form the prototype of apocalyptic; all this had its influence upon the new literature. Since the narrative of a Gaulish pilgrim who visited Edessa about 390 contains no allusion to such a picture, we may reasonably conclude that the Teaching of Addai is of later origin. The authenticity of the alleged letter of Christ has always been strongly suspected when not absolutely denied. It was known that a Syriac work of this name existed, and an extract was published in 1856. It presupposes the latter work, and could not have been composed before the middle of the fifth century. There was a Gospel of St. Andrew, probably identical with the Gnostic “Acts of Andrew” (q.v., inf. The second part of the book exhibits the sufferings of Eleazar and the seven Machabean brothers as examples of the dominion of pious reason. Some of its stories are derived from the Thomas Gospel, and others from a recension of the apocryphal Matthew. The writer places on Our Lord’s lips descriptions of liturgical observances prevalent in his own and earlier periods. The Pseudo-Clementine homilies contain as a preface two letters, the first of which purports to be from Peter to James the Less, beseeching him to keep his (Peter’s) preaching secret. But after my taking up I shall send thee one of My disciples, who will heal thy pains, and keep life for thee and thine.” Accordingly, after the Ascension, “Judas Thomas”, an Apostle, despatches to Edessa Thaddeus, one of the seventy Disciples, who cures the King of his disease, and preaches Christ to the assembled people. It exhorts to faith and courage. Jerome translated it from the Aramaic into Greek. As for the lowest date, the book is employed by the Jewish portion of the “Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs”. The point is that the Old Testament canon had to be established by the church after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. A narrative of the flight into Egypt is adorned with poetic wonders. ror Acta Pilati or “Gospel of Nicodemus“, see the separate article. Justin, Tertullian, and Origen seem to have been acquainted with the Martyrdom; Sts. The motive of these nonheretical apocrypha was primarily to gratify the pious curiosity of the faithful regarding the Apostolic founders of the Church; sometimes local interests instigated their composition. ), II. This composition is clearly apocryphal though unexpectedly brief and restrained. Simon essays a flight to heaven but falls in the Via Sacra and is dashed to pieces. Scholars agree that the Book of Henoch was originally composed either in Hebrew or Aramaic, and that the Ethiopic version was derived from a Greek one. But the inevitable consequence of the apocalyptic distrust of everything present was its assumption of the guise of the remote and classic past; in other words, its pseudonymous character. A Syriac translation is also found. Lipsius opines that the work as we have it is a Catholic retouching of a Gnostic compilation. Doubtless the author intermingled valuable Ephesian traditions with his fables. The Synod of Braga, in Spain, held in the year 563, anathematizes any one “who reads, approves, or defends the injurious fictions set in circulation by heretics”. It is true, all the extant specimens of the apocryphal Gospels take the inspired evangelical documents as their starting point. It speaks in the person of Baruch, the secretary of Jeremias. At the Council of Rome in 382, the Church decided upon a … Certainly it was composed some time before A.D. 218, since it is expressly quoted by Clement of Alexandria. It has been recognized that the historical setting of these Acts agrees remarkably with what is known of the conditions in the Parthian empire in the first century after Christ.—The Acts of St. Barnabas appear to have been composed toward the end of the fifth century by a Cypriot. "Apocrypha" is a Protestant term for the deuterocanonical books. Likewise the eschatology labors with two conflicting elements: the redemption of all Israel and the small number of the elect. The nativity is embellished in an unrestrained manner. They are found in Greek, Syriac, and Ethiopic recensions. A considerable Latin fragment has also been recovered. It deals in part with the same problems, viz., the sufferings of the theocratic people, and their ultimate triumph over their oppressors. These Acts as we have them are of high antiquity, though it is impossible to always discern whether patristic writers are quoting from them or an earlier tradition. And if there are any references, do they imply … Learned opinion differs as to whether the prayer which has come down to us was written in Hebrew or Greek. It is problematic, however, whether this is to be identified with our recast Transitus or not. of the Septuagint contain at the end of the canonical Psalter a short psalm (cli), which, however, is “outside the number”, i.e. i Preface to PDF Version Preface to PDF Version of the King James Holy Bible Original Publish Date: March, 2001, Revised: January 2004 The text of the King James Version (KJV) of the Holy Bible (also called the Authorized Version (AV) by some) is in the This means Protestants do not accept the Apocrypha. Nevertheless, all through the Middle Ages it maintained an intermediate position between canonical and merely human compositions, and even after the Council of Trent, together with Third Esdras, was placed in the appendix to the official edition of the Vulgate. While the apocryphon has many points of contact with the genuine Gospels, it diverges curiously from them in details, and bears evidence of having treated them with much freedom. Book V, lxxii-lxxviii, lxxxix, lxxix (transposed) may be called the Book of Celestial Physics, or Astronomy. When we would attempt to seize the literary sense attaching to the word, the task is not so easy. The latter is beheaded on the Ostian Way, and Peter is crucified at his request head downward. It has been printed in the Tischendorf collection (Codex Apocryphus Novi Testamenti).—Apocalypses of St. Peter. On the ground that there is no indication of an acquaintance with the book outside the Orient, and that Arabic and Coptic recensions of it are known, Dr. A. Baumstark regards the work as a compilation originating in Monophysite circles, and current in the national Churches of that sect in Syria and Egypt. It may be read in English in Walker’s and the Ante-Nicene Fathers’ collection of the apocrypha. Their Gnostic traits pierce through the Catholic retouching; in fact, the contents show a conscious purpose to exalt the dualistic doctrine of abstention from conjugal intercourse. The Hasmonean dynasty and the Sadducees are denounced. APOCRYPHA OF JEWISH ORIGIN WITH CHRISTIAN ACCRETIONS, (2) Pilate Literature and Other Apocrypha Concerning Christ. The work is in two books. This part is distinguished by insistence upon a sharp conflict between the righteous of the nation and their wicked opponents both within and without Israel. The Jews have been aroused by the news of Paul’s intended visit, and induce Nero to forbid it. (See Saint Peter, Apostle; Saint Paul, Apostle; Simon Magus), . The names were known to Pliny, and figure in the Talmudic traditions. The Acts of St. Thomas are mentioned by Epiphanius and Augustine as in use in different heretical circles. Question: Catholic apologists claims Jesus and His apostles quoted from the deuterocanonicals (the apocrypha), contrary to what you and others claim. ), who will allow at most a probability that certain brief sections appertain to a Gospel of the Twelve Apostles, written originally in Greek and current among Gnostic Ebionites as early as the second century. The first argument which is found in Roman Catholic discussions about the Old Testament Apocrypha has to do with the lack of a fixed or established canon in Jesus’ day. The Book of Henoch and the Assumption of Moses had been cited by the canonical Epistle of Jude. What the Protestant churches call apocrypha, the Catholic Church calls the deuterocanonicals (or "second canon"), but it considers three books held as canon by the Eastern Orthodox churches as apocrypha. In setting up reason as the master of human passion, the author was distinctly influenced by Stoic philosophy. v, 9; vii, 1. Gutschmid has discovered that a certain Queen Tryphena was an historical personage (Rheinisches Museum fur Philologie, X, 1864). Lipsius regards the journey section as a ninth-century addition; Bardenhewer will have it to belong to the original document. The prototype was evidently expurgated by a Catholic hand, who, however, did not succeed in eradicating all traces of its original taint. Pseudographic Acts of St. Andrew are noted by several early ecclesiastical writers, as in circulation among Gnostic and Manichaean sects. However, after they passed from the scene, muddled hierarchs started adding books to the Bible either out of ignorance or because such books helped back up variou… Regarding the so-called Apocalypse of St. Bartholomew see Gospel of St. Bartholomew. Yet, withal, no apocryphal work found official recognition in the Western Church. Some Orthodox prefer the Eastern term anagignoskomena("things that ar… The third parable (lviii-lxx) describes again the happiness reserved for the just, the great Judgment and the secrets of nature. In 1899 Monsignor Rahmani, Patriarch of the United Syrians, published from a late MS. the Syriac text, a Latin introduction and translation. Broadly speaking, the apocrypha of Jewish origin are coextensive with what are styled of the Old Testament, and those of Christian origin with the apocrypha of the New Testament. Are the Apocrypha Quoted in the New Testament? The work is sharply marked off from the older book by the absence of a Messias and the want of reference to a resurrection of the dead. It mingles many bizarre details concerning the celestial realm, the angels, and stars, with advanced ideas on man’s destiny, moral excellence, and the punishment of sin. The probabilities favor the hypothesis that the Baruch apocryphon is an imitation of that of Esdras and therefore later. It professes to give a prophetic vision of the events of the world-weeks, centring about Israel. In bold contrast to the Infancy narrative of St. Luke, where the Divinity is almost effaced, the author makes the Child a miracle-worker and intellectual prodigy, and in harmony with Docetism, leaves scarcely more than the appearance of humanity in Him. After an allusion by an author of the beginning of the ninth century, they disappear from view. inf.). There are evident points of contact between the Testament and the ancient ecclesiastico-liturgical Canones Hippolyti, Apostolic Constitutions, and Apostolic Canons. The Apocrypha / Deuterocanonical books teach many things that are not true and are not historically accurate. The canonical Epistle of St. Jude, in verses 14, 15, explicitly quotes from the Book of Henoch; the citation is found in the Ethiopic version in verses 9 and 4 of the first chapter. Apocrypha is a plural word (singular: apocryphon) that originally denoted hidden or secret writings, to be read only by initiates into a given Christian group. It lacks the universal outlook of some of the prophets, especially the Deutero-Isaias, and is far from having a uniform and consistent physiognomy. Pseudo-Epistles of the Blessed Virgin. (3) The Epistle to the Florentines was expounded in a sermon of Savonarola, October 25, 1495. These are all composed in Latin and at late dates. On the other hand, Eusebius classes it as apocryphal. The Apostles bear the body to Gethsemani and deposit it in a tomb, whence it is taken up alive to Heaven. Baumstark assigns it to the fifth century. The signs point strongly to the third century as the era. Greater importance is attached to the law than in the related composition, and the points of contact with the New Testament are more striking. ; xxxvii—lxx, lxxxiii-xc, written between 166-161 B.C. Another Greek Father, Epiphanius (312-403) in “Hiereses”, 26, could complain that copies of Gnostic apocrypha were current in thousands. The birth, education, and marriage of the Blessed Virgin are described in the first eleven chapters and these are the source of various traditions current among the faithful. There exists a late and entirely orthodox Syriac “Gospel of the Twelve Apostles“, published by J. Rendel Harris (Cambridge, 1900). A patriarchal origin is ascribed to the great Jewish feasts. The most important and valuable of the extant Jewish apocrypha are those which have a large apocalyptic element; that is, which profess to contain visions and revelations of the unseen world and the Messianic future. 1 It is not uncommon to read an apologetic against the Deuterocanon that … St. Peter is buried at “The place called the Vatican“, and Paul on the Ostian Way. Peter receives Paul at Rome with joy. The relation is appended to some Latin texts of the Acta Pilati, under the title “Historia Josephi”. The motive of the book is the problem lying heavily upon Jewish patriots after the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus. The gates of paradise are to be opened and the Israelites and converted Gentiles will dwell there and eat of the tree of life. The newly-discovered document contains material hitherto unknown as well as the above-noted sections, long extant. “Apocrypha” means “hidden things,” and that’s a misnomer, because these books aren’t and never have been hidden. The Apocrypha in the Septuagint In the third century B.C., Jewish scholars translated the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) into Greek, resulting in the Septuagint. Critics assign the latter to the end of the fourth or the beginning of the fifth century. However, the kernel of the narrative is drawn from older sources. 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