Author’s Note
“Weep for the dead, for he lacks the light; and weep for the fool, for he lacks intelligence; weep less bitterly for the dead, for he has attained rest; but the life of the fool is worse than death.”
Apocrypha
Reflections
The term “apocrypha” comes from the Greek term meaning hidden or secret writings. The term “apocryphal” was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were felt to be too sacred to be in everyone’s hands. Later, this term was applied to writings that were hidden because of their questionable value to the church or of doubtful authenticity. In modern times, the term refers to any text or story considered to be of dubious authority, although it may contain some moral truth.
Old Testament Apocrypha refers to the fourteen biblical books received by the early Church as part of the Greek version of the Old Testament found in the Septuagint, being excluded by the non-Hellenistic Jews from their canon. These books were written for Jews, by Jews. Because these books were written after the Hebrew Bible was completed and before the New Testament was written, they can be thought of as intertestamental. Bart Ehrman describes many of these deuterocanonical writings as “some of the truly great and interesting writings of the time.” The Old Testament Apocrypha are important literary and historical works, providing an understanding of Judaism during the intertestamental period, before the birth of Christianity.
Early Christian writings also survive outside the canon of the New Testament. These writings are called the apocryphal New Testament. David Bakker states this about the writings contained in the apocryphal New Testament, “Apocryphal literature provides a fascinating window into the diversity of ancient Christianity and the endless inventiveness of the Christian imagination.”
Collections of Hebrew and Christian writings referred to as apocryphal are useful for those interested in the history of Judaism and Christianity. These writings fill in the gaps not covered in the Testaments and provide the reader with a unique look into the culture of the times. As David Bakker tells us, “The early Christian apocrypha consist of gospels and other narrative about Jesus and his family, the acts of various apostles, letters that purport to come from apostles or even Jesus himself, and revelations that apostles received.”
In the next few blogs, I will share some of these amazing stories, stories you will not hear in a Christian worship service! The “sound of silence” from the pulpit concerning these stories will be broken.
The title of the next blog, “The Amazing Story of Mary!”
Silent Prayer
Creator God, we weep for the pain and suffering present in the world each day! Help us not to be silent about these atrocities!
Music
The Sound of Silence – Pentatonix https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0r-lE6Rk4lQ
Barry
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