Adult Formation
Adult Formation Classes
Wednesdays from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church
Fireside Room
October 29th - Class to Study the Apocrypha Begins!
📖 What is The Apocrypha?
- The Apocrypha refers to a collection of ancient Jewish writings that are not part of the Hebrew Bible but appear in some versions of the Old Testament.
- The word comes from the Greek apokryphos (ἀπόκρυφος), meaning hidden or concealed. Originally, it suggested writings reserved for private reading, but over time it came to mean “books outside the canon.”
- Most of these texts were composed between 400 BCE and 100 CE, in the period between the Old and New Testaments (sometimes called the “intertestamental” or “Second Temple” period).
- They reflect Jewish life under Greek and Roman influence, wrestling with themes of identity, wisdom, suffering, and hope.
- The exact list varies, but common Apocryphal books include:
- Tobit
- Judith
- Wisdom of Solomon
- Sirach (Ecclesiasticus)
- Baruch
- 1 & 2 Maccabees
- Additions to Daniel (like the Prayer of Azariah, Susanna, Bel and the Dragon)
- Additions to Esther
- Catholic & Orthodox Churches: Accept many of these as Deuterocanonical (a “second canon”), meaning they are considered Scripture and used in worship.
- Protestant Churches: Generally do not consider them canonical, though some Bibles (like the King James Version) included them in a separate section for historical and devotional reading.
- Jewish Tradition: Does not include them in the Hebrew Bible.
- They provide historical context for the world of Jesus and the early church.
- They preserve Jewish wisdom, prayers, and stories of resistance (like the Maccabean revolt).
- They influenced early Christian thought—while the New Testament doesn’t quote them directly, echoes of their imagery and theology appear in the Gospels and Epistles.