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The Bible:
Apocrypha
Apocrypha in Greek means "hidden." There are the Old Testament Apocrypha books and the New Testament Apocrypha books. Usually Apocrypha refers to the 15 books that were not part of the Hebrew cannon of scripture. During the Reformation Christian Bibles collected these 15 books after the Old Testament under the title Apocrypha (Old Testament). For the Catholics these 15 books were added to the Old Testament canon at the Counsel of Rome, 382 AD. Catholics refer to the Pseudepigrapha as the Apocrypha.
Old Testament (15)
- 1 Esdras
- 2 Esdras (4 Ezra)
- Tobit - It is the story of events that happened to Tobit after he was taken away into Assyrian captivity. He is reduced to poverty and blindness because he buried Jews killed by the Assyrians. The Angel Raphael is sent to help defeat the demons and heal Tobit.
- Judith - It is the story of a beautiful and pious women who entices and then assassinates Holofernes, the Assyrian general who was besieging Bethulia, her hometown. There is a confusion of names and events. It probably reflects the defeat of Seleucid general Nicanor by Judah the Maccabee (161 BC).
- Additions to the book of Esther
- Wisdom of Solomon
- Ecclesiasticus (Wisdom of Ben Sirach)
- Baruch
- A Letter of Jeremiah
- (Additions to the book of Daniel, 10-12)
- Song of the Three Children (with the Prayer of Azariah)
- Susanna
- Bel and the Dragon
- Prayer of Manasseh
- 1 Maccabees
- 2. Maccabees
New Testament Apocrypha
A number of new apocrypha books have come to light since the discovery of 12 books at Nag Hammadi in 1945. They are called The Nag Hammadi Library. The most famous of these is Gospel of Thomas (see below). Sometimes these books along with some Pseudepigrapha books are called the "Lost Books of the Bible." Most of these were not lost, they were just never considered canonical. The New Testament Apocrypha books can be divided up according to genres as the New Testament is; gospels, Acts, letters or epistles, and prophesy or apocalypse.
Apocryphal Gospels
There were a number of gospels written in the second century AD. or later called the Apocryphal Gospels. There are 22, of which 10 are written in Greek and 12 in Latin. These can be divided into three categories: those relating to the history of Mary and Joseph, the infancy of Christ, and the history of Pilate. Most of these are based on the Protevangelium of James, the Gospel of Thomas, and the Acts of Pilate. Collection of Apocryphal Gospels.
- Gospel of Thomas - Some may refer to the Gospel of Thomas as the fifth gospel. This is a Gnostic writing, though some scholars may see some of the sayings of Jesus in this gospel as genuine. There are 114 sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas. For more information see Gospel of Thomas.
- The Infancy Gospel of Thomas
- The Protoevangelium of James
- The Gospel of Mary
- The Gospel of Peter
- The Gospel of Philip
- The Gospel of Nicodemus
- The Gospel of Hebrews
- The Gospel of the Egyptians
- The Gospel of the Ebionites
- The Gospel of the Nazoreans
Apocryphal Acts
Scholars usually divide the apocrypha Acts into two groups; the five books attributed to Leucius Charinus, and the others.
The Leucius Acts
- The Acts of John
- The Acts of Peter
- The Acts of Paul
- The Acts of Andrew
- The Acts of Thomas
The Other Acts
- The Acts of Andrew and Matthias
- The Acts of Philip
- The Acts of Thaddaeus
- The Acts of Peter and Paul
- The Acts of Peter and Andrew
- The Martyrdom of Matthew
- The Slavonic Act of Peter
- Acts of Peter and the Twelve Apostles
Apocryphal Epistles
- Third Corinthians
- The Epistle to the Laodiceans
- The Letters of Paul and Seneca
- The Letter of Jesus and Abgar
- The Letter of Lentulus
- The Epistle of Titus
Apocryphal Apocalypses
- The Apocalypse of Peter
- The Coptic Apocalypse of Peter
- The Apocalypse of Paul
- The First Apocalypse of James
- The Second Apocalypse of James
- The Apocryphon of John
- The Sophia (wisdom) of Jesus Christ
- The Letter of Peter to Philip
- The Apocalypse of Mary