It isn't much of a secret that different groups of Christians hold different views. Typically, the differences are on how to interpret the Bible. A lesser known difference, however, is what books are included in the Bible. This isn't much of a heated debate. Most sects, surprisingly, have seemed to put this difference aside.
Nearly all Christian sects are officially in agreement about the 27 books of what is referred to as the New Testament. Many individual Christians might have problems with some of them, but all Bible publications that include the New Testament have those 27 books. Concerning what is frequently referred to as the Old Testament, the Protestants, Catholics, and Eastern Orthodox are all in agreement about 39 of those books. Those 39 books are also what make up the Jewish Tanakh. However, the Eastern Orthodox Christians have 11 extra books, while the Catholics have 6. These additional books that the Catholics and Orthodox include are what people typically refer to as the Apocrypha.
The Apocrypha predates Christianity and Jesus' birth. From about 280 BCE to 130 BCE, Jewish people in Alexandria translated their current Hebrew religious texts into Greek. This collection is what is now referred to as the Septuagint, used in the Orthodox Church, and primarily forgotten in Judaism. During the early years of the Christian church, around 382 CE, Pope Damascus I commissioned a scholar named Jerome to translate the texts into latin, using the original hebrew texts as his main source. He referred to writings from the Septuagint that weren't included in the hebrew texts as Apocrypha.
This separation of texts was furthered with Martin Luther in 1534. In both the Old Testament and the New Testament, Martin Luther moved books that he saw as less important to the end. He openly commented that there were some books that had less importance. However, he did not have anything removed. It was after his death when protestant reformers fully removed what was not included in what had by then become the Jewish Tanakh. They kept to the structuring that had developed in Christianity, so the Protestant Old Testament has the same writings of the Jewish Tanakh, but in a different order. This is now the most universally known Old Testament for Christians.
Although most editions of the Bible do not include what is known as the Apocrypha, there are Protestants who see those rejected writings as useful. Some have pointed out that many of the New Testament authors read and used the writings in the Apocrypha as a frame of reference. Some have commented on how the writings of the Apocrypha have many great stories and messages. These are useful books according to certain Protestants as well as Catholics and Orthodox Christians.
I asked a group of Progressive Christians what their opinions on the Apocrypha were. Although Progressive Christianity is said to have a lot of diversity in viewpoints, there wasn't much diversity here. Every response said that the Apocrypha is useful or important.
Star Wars fans have frequently talked about which order to watch the original six movies in. With the original release order (IV V VI I II III), you end on a cliffhanger, and if using the most readily available releases, the happy ending of Episode VI can be a bit confusing when a face from the prequels appears. In their numbered order (I II III IV V VI), the biggest surprise plot twist is no longer a surprise, and you start with films that were meant to be expand upon films that you watch later. There's an order known as Ernest Rister Order (IV V I II III VI), where the aforementioned problems are solved. Some fans have suggested to just go with the original trilogy, and skip the prequels altogether (IV V VI). However, there is another order that has become pretty popular with fans.
A blogger, Absolutely No Machete Juggling, suggested a slight twist on Ernest Rister order, removing Episode I (IV V II III VI). He titled it Machete Order, naming it after himself. In the blog he wrote, The Star Wars Saga: Introducing Machete Order, he gave a lot of his reasons as to why it works, and other fans have given additional reasons as to why it's the ideal order. The main reason to skipping Episode I in this order is that it isn't necessary for telling the story, and it also slows the story down. Many fans have tried it out on their kids and friends who are seeing Star Wars for the first time. It has become an extremely popular order to watch the films.
Some fans have been upset about the idea of skipping Episode I, saying that although it isn't the best of the bunch, one of the characters and a couple of scenes still make it worth it. Included in a later blog he wrote, he responded to that criticism:
Man, no. By far the most common complaint is that I am advocating never watching Episode I, and that's a shame because it has the best podrace/duel/song/whatever. So let me be perfectly clear, I am not advising anyone to pull their Episode I disc out of their box set and throw it in the garbage. By all means, watch Episode I. Hell, I think Episode I is probably a better movie than Episode II is.
Man, no. By far the most common complaint is that I am advocating never watching Episode I, and that's a shame because it has the best podrace/duel/song/whatever. So let me be perfectly clear, I am not advising anyone to pull their Episode I disc out of their box set and throw it in the garbage. By all means, watch Episode I. Hell, I think Episode I is probably a better movie than Episode II is.In that blog, he made a further comment:
In other words, when you're watching "The Main Saga", like maybe if you're doing a Marathon or you're introducing someone to Star Wars for the first time, watch in Machete Order: IV, V, II, III, VI. When you're done and that "book" is closed, you can pull in whatever "Anthology" stuff you enjoy, such as the Clone Wars TV shows or movies, the Han Solo spinoff, and Episode I.Personally, I feel that Star Wars Episode I has some nice things in it, and it gives some expansion to the rest of the story. Episode I shows a contrasting side to Anakin Skywalker that we don't see in any of the other films. It gives background information and expansion on the characters of Nute Gunray and Watto. It also has two of the best characters in the series, Darth Maul and Qui-Gon Jinn, neither of whom appear in any of the other films. More than that, it has one of the best fight sequences in the series, and the podrace sequence is fantastic. The film, however, really isn't something that I see as especially necessary as part of the main series. It works best as an appendix film, rather than as part of the main saga.
What does this Star Wars talk have to do with the Bible and the Apocrypha? Not much, but it gives me an analogy to express my opinion. I see the Apocrypha in a similar light to Star Wars Episode I. There are some great books in the Apocrypha. The Book of Tobit is a nice story. The Apocrypha includes wonderful expansions on the Book of Daniel. There's an alternate version of the Book of Esther that gives some nice expansions. I Maccabees tells the Jewish Chanukah story, and IV Maccabees has some nice passages about the use of reason. There are many beautiful passages in the Wisdom of Solomon. There definitely is some great stuff in the Apocrypha. However, I see it as additional material to what is in the Tanakh and New Testament.
I've heard it pointed out many times that the Old Testament is important for understanding the New Testament. I agree with that. There are a few passages that reference writings included as part of the Apocrypha. However, the Old Testament scriptures that are most heavily referenced in the New Testament are ones that are part of the Tanakh. Isaiah, Psalms, the Torah, the Prophets, Samuel, and Kings are much more heavily referenced than the writings of the Apocrypha.
If you consider the Apocrypha an important part of the Bible, on par with the Tanakh and the New Testament, that is perfectly fine. We don't need a full universal consensus of what to include in the Bible. The Jewish people don't include the New Testament, and the Mormons have added in an extra set of scriptures. As mentioned above, however, my personal take on the Apocrypha is like that of Star Wars Episode I. When getting a boxed set edition of the Star Wars Saga, Episode I should be included, unless you're getting ripped off. If you are only going to get one Bible, the Apocrypha should definitely be included. However, I see it as an important appendix to the Bible, rather than as a full-on part of the Bible.
Shalom!
No comments:
Post a Comment