Apocrypha excluded unjustly?

Apocrypha comes from the Greek work Apokcrufa meaning unknown or hidden. The Roman Catholic Church refers to the books that failed to meet the Protestants standard for canonical literature is referred to as deuteron-canonical, by the Protestants it is known as the Apocrypha. In order for a piece of literature to be accepted as canonical scripture it mast pass certain ideologies, such as: is it authoritative, did it come from the will of God; is it prophetic, did it come from a man of God; is it authentic, the early fathers of Christianity and Judaism had the policy of “If in doubt, throw it out,” though this decreased the validity of those books which had already met the standards of the church councils; is it dynamic, did it come with the lime transforming power of God; was it received, collected, read, and used by the people of God. In the history of the Apocrypha there was one

main event that defined what books were not to be accepted by the Protestants, the Council of Jamnia. The Council of Jamnia simply reiterated what had been stated so many times before, that if the books did not meet the standards for canonical books then they were to be rejected though they might have spiritual insights and valuable to learn from but not to build a religious foundation upon. Any books that were already accepted as canonical books but did not meet the requirements were to be expelled as to not lead God’s people astray. Until 1584, the Catholic Church did not openly accept what we now know as the Apocrypha as canonical books. There are seven books in the current Apocrypha or deuteron-canonical, Judith, First and Second Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach, Baruch and Tobit. The book of Judith recounts an attach on the Jews by an army led by Holofernes, Nebuchadnezzar’s general. Bethulia, a besieged Jewish city, is about to surrender when Judith, a Jewish widow of great beauty and piety, takes it upon herself to enter the enemy camp. She gains the favor of Holofernes, who seeks an opportunity to seduce her. Judith beheads him while he is drunk. Judith returns to the city with his head, and the Jews rout the enemy. First and Second Maccabees begins with the rebellion of Mattathias and ends with the murder of Simon. The book relates the struggles of the Maccabees, led by Judas Maccabeus, against Antioch IV of Syria. The restoration of the Temple under Judas’ leadership is described as the high point of his career. The careers of his brothers Jonathon and Simon, both high priests, are also narrated. The Wisdom of Solomon opens with an exhortation to seek wisdom, followed by a statement on worldly attitudes. Chapter three is an eloquent passage on the immortality of the just and the rewards of the wicked, amplified in the next chapters. It then follows another exhortation and a transition to a section praising wisdom, ending with a prayer for it. The remainder of the book is a history of God’s care of the Jews from the beginning, with a long parenthesis on the natural origins of idolatry and its folly. The book of Sirach has two main themes, the excellence of wisdom and the teaching of wisdom. Some important passages include the praise of wisdom, leading into a protest against determinism; the identification of personified wisdom with the law commanded by Moses; the praise of God for the works of nature; and the praise of the famous men of Israel. Baruch begins with a message from the exiled Jews to the Jews still at home, including a prayer for Palestinian Jews to use, confessing sin and asking for divine mercy; a hymn in praise of worship, including a reference to the incarnation of wisdom in the for of the Torah; a consolation of Jerusalem containing a lament and closes with a letter of Jeremiah warning the exiles against idolatry. Tobit is the account of his life, a devout Jew in exile, and of his son Tobias. Despite his many good works, Tobit is mysteriously blinded and despairingly begs God to take his life. At the same time in Ecbanta, Sarah, who is afflicted by a demon that has killed her seven husbands on their wedding night, also asks God for death. God hears both prayers and sends the archangel Raphael to help. Sent by his father on business to a distant city, the young Tobias and his dog are guided by Raphael (in the form of a young man) to the house of Sarah. There Tobias marries Sarah and following Raphael’s instructions, exorcises the demon. They return to his home, where Tobias cures his father’s blindness. The book ends with Tobit’s prophecy of the restoration of Jerusalem and the return of the exiles. The story inculcates ideals of benevolence, marriage, and prayer, with assurances that God is a God of mercy toward the long-suffering righteous and punished the wicked.

The purpose of this paper was not to discredit either side of the quarrel but to inspir

Some topics in this essay:
St Paul, Testament Apocrypha, Catholic Church, Protestants Jews, Wisdom Solomon, Luther's Prefaces, Evangelical Christians, Martin Luther, Judith Jewish, Protestant Bibles, deuteron-canonical books, books apocrypha, catholic church, roman catholic church, 2 maccabees, roman catholic, canonical books, seven books, holy scripture, apocrypha books, divinely inspired, maccabees wisdom solomon, apocrypha holy scripture, sirach baruch tobit, deuteron-canonical books scripture,