Christianity: Details about 'New Testament Apocrypha'
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The category of New Testament apocrypha reminds the modern reader of the wide range of responses that were engendered in interpreting the message of Jesus of Nazareth during the first several centuries of the Common Era, as mainstream Christianity emerged. Obedient Christians were warned away from these works now termed apocryphal, many of which were vigorously suppressed and survive only as fragments. In the process of determining the Biblical canon, a large number of works were excluded from the New Testament. These New Testament Apocrypha are generally not accepted by Christians, though the Ethiopian Orthodox Church recognizes the Shepherd of Hermas, 1 Clement, Acts of Paul, and several Old Testament books. The ordinary stand of mainstream Christians in regard to the books deemed apocryphal was succinctly summed up by Robert M. Grant, claiming to speak not as a theologian but as a historian, in the introduction to A Historical Introduction to the New Testament (1963): Aside from the twenty-seven books in the canon, Grant asserted, "No other literature has anything of value to say about Christian origins and the earliest Christian movement." . Books which are objectively known not to have existed in antiquity, such as the mediaeval Gospel of Barnabas, and the Book of Mormon, are usually not considered part of the Apocrypha. Infancy GospelsThe paucity of information about the childhood of Jesus in the canonical Gospels led to a hunger of early Christians for more detail about the early life of Jesus. This was supplied by a number of 2nd century and later texts, known as infancy gospels, none of the which were accepted into the Biblical canon, but the very number of their surviving manuscripts attest to their continued popularity:
It should be noted that many of the infancy gospels are based on a combination of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas and of the Protevangelium of James. Judeo-Christian GospelsThe sects within the early church that retained a strong allegiance to Judaism, upholding Jewish law, used a Gospel specific to themselves:
Since these mostly survive as quotes scattered amongst critical commentaries by Catholic Christians, some modern theories suggest that these may be variations on one another, although the quotations from the Gospel of the Ebionites appear more distinct than the others. It has also been suggested that the Gospel of the Hebrews may have been an earlier version of the Greek Gospel of Matthew. Rival versions of canonical GospelsMany alternate edited versions of other gospels existed during the period of early Christianity. Sometimes, those attributed to the text state elsewhere that their text is the earlier version, or that their text excises all the additions and distortions made by their opponents to the more recognised version of the text. Although the church fathers insist that these people are incorrect (and indeed heretical) in their assertions, modern scholarship is not so convinced. It remains to be seen whether any are earlier and more accurate versions of the canonical texts. Details of their contents only survive in the attacks on them by their opponents, and so for the most part it is uncertain as to how extensively different they are, and whether any constitute entirely different works. These texts include:
Anti-Christian textsThere are a few works written in order to attack Pauline Christian interpretations of the gospels and convert the meaning into support for the religion of the author. Mainly these are Jewish and Muslim works:
Sayings GospelsOne or two texts take the form of sets of brief logia—sayings and very short parables—which are not embedded in a connected narrative:
Recent scholarship is increasingly regarding the Gospel of Thomas as part of the tradition from which the canonical gospels eventually emerged; in any case both of these documents are important as showing us what the theoretical Q document, see below, might have looked like. Morality GospelsSome texts take the form of discourses on morality, and in particular on sexual abstinence, usually taking the form of a discussion between Jesus and one or more disciples:
Passion GospelsA number of Gospels are concerned specifically with the Passion (i.e. Jesus' death, and Resurrection):
Although there are three texts which take Bartholomew's name, it may be the case that one of the Questions of Bartholomew or the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is in fact the unknown Gospel of Bartholomew Harmonic GospelsA number of texts aim to provide a single harmonization of the canonical gospels, that eliminates discordances among them by presenting a unified text derived from them to some degree. The most widely-read of these was the Diatessaron: of all the extant texts, the majority appear to be variations on the suppressed Diatessaron. Gnostic esotericaIn the modern era, many Gnostic texts have been uncovered, especially from the Nag Hammadi library. Some texts take the form of an expounding of the esoteric cosmology and ethics held by the gnostics. Often this was in the form of dialogue in which Jesus expounds esoteric knowledge while his disciples raise questions concerning it. There is also a text, known as the Epistula Apostolorum, which is a polemic against gnostic esoterica, but written in a similar style as the gnostic texts. General Gnostic Texts
Whilst the Epistle of Eusegius does not make mention of Jesus, it is thought to be the basis of Sophia Jesu Christi, and therefore counts amongst the apocrypha. Sethian Gnostic TextsThe Sethians were a gnostic group who originally worshipped the biblical Seth as a messianic figure, later treating Jesus as a re-incarnation of Seth. They produced numerous texts expounding their esoteric cosmology, usually in the form of visions:
Four of these texts, in the form of visions, are heavily platonistic:
Cainite Gnostic TextsThe small Cainite sect of gnostics viewed significant biblical figures more usually considered arch-villains as heroes. They are so-named since they considered Cain to have been the first victim of Yahweh's evil. They also considered Judas to have been a hero, doing what had to be done to bring about salvation, and expounding wisdom. Amongst their literature is:
Ritual DiagramsSome of the Gnostic texts appear to consist of diagrams and instructions for use in religious rituals:
Fate of MarySeveral texts (over 50) consist of descriptions of the events surrounding the varied fate of Mary (the mother of Jesus):
Acts of the ApostlesSeveral texts concern themselves with the subsequent lives of the apostles: Works said to be written by Leucius Charinus (known as the Leucian Acts), a companion of John the apostle.
Other accounts of apostolic lives
EpistlesThere are also non canonical epistles, some of which were regarded very highly by the early church:
VisionsSeveral works frame themselves as visions, often discussing the future, afterlife, or both:
MiscellanyOther texts exist which concern rather more miscellaneous topics:
FragmentsIn addition to the known Apocryphal works, there are also small fragments of texts, parts of unknown (or uncertain) works. Some of the more significant fragments are:
Lost worksThere also exist several texts which would be considered part of the apocrypha, which are mentioned in many ancient sources, but for which no known text has survived:
A note about orthodoxyWhile many of the books listed here were considered heretical (especially those belonging to the gnostic tradition--as this sect was considered heretical by most Christians of the early centuries), others were not considered particularly heretical in content, but in fact were well accepted as significant spiritual works. They are however not considered canonical, as they belong to the category of works of the church fathers or apostolic fathers.
See also
External linksSome of the most complete collections and resources on New Testament Apocrypha can be found at:
Apocriefen van het Nieuwe Testament
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