Inbox: Questions Concerning the Apocrypha (II)

As mentioned previously contemporary Evangelicals and Confessional Protestants are quick to adopt the canons and concepts of Higher Criticism when it comes to these books and lump them in with the many (and often dubious) Second Temple narratives of the academy implying these works are pseudepigrapha and syncretistic.

Inbox: Questions Concerning the Apocrypha (I)

http://proto-protestantism.blogspot.com/2022/12/gems-from-shepherd-of-hermas.html

In light of recent statements regarding the Early Church Fathers I was asked to elaborate and perhaps defend some issues regarding the Old Testament Apocrypha. This issue has gnawed at me for years and as I have worked through the narratives and claims of the Magisterial Reformation I finally came to a conclusion that its positions and arguments concerning these books are highly problematic. As I have repeatedly stated, this does not grant anything to Rome. That's not really the issue here.

Gems from The Shepherd of Hermas

It's been quite a few years since I read The Shepherd of Hermas. Reading it anew I was reminded of how alien it is to Evangelical sensibilities. For my part, I found the second century work refreshing if a bit of a slog. But some of that perception is merely cultural. We are certainly impatient in our day and so many of the older works can seem tedious.

Once again my thoughts drifted back to Catholic claims regarding the Fathers – ones echoed by nineteenth century figures like Cardinal JH Newman and John Nevin. While I will once again grant that the Magisterial Reformation and its Evangelical progeny may find the waters of Hermas strange, I still contend they are something other than Roman Catholic.

The New Testament and the Septuagint

The Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the Old Testament produced in Intertestamental Egypt by Jewish scribes is frequently cited by New Testament authors and their use of it has generated a great deal of controversy and even confusion... even today.

It is not exclusively used when citing the Old Testament, but its use at times seems to dominate. The problem is the Septuagint doesn't always match the actual Hebrew Old Testament. Sometimes the Jewish translators seem to employ a fairly loose or dynamic principle of translation... something most conservatives of our day would be rather uncomfortable with.