4.11

4

Aug 09, 2008

The debate over which books should be included in the Bible raged on for over fifteen hundred years, with various religious traditions including different texts. In The Lost Books of the Bible, many of the disputed texts which were not included in any version of the Bible are presented.

The texts are organized as are books of the Bible: by book, chapter and verse. This makes them easier to read, since they are placed in a familiar context.

Many of the stories are alternative versions of ones in The debate over which books should be included in the Bible raged on for over fifteen hundred years, with various religious traditions including different texts. In The Lost Books of the Bible, many of the disputed texts which were not included in any version of the Bible are presented.

The texts are organized as are books of the Bible: by book, chapter and verse. This makes them easier to read, since they are placed in a familiar context.

Many of the stories are alternative versions of ones in the Bible. For instance, in book entitled "Infancy", Mary gives the wise men one of Jesus' swaddling clothes, which they present to the emperor. When the cloth is laid in a fire, it does not burn. The magi take the cloth and lay it among their treasures. In the gospel of Nicodemus, Pontius Pilate is portrayed as not wanting to order Jesus' execution he becomes afraid, though, when the Roman standards bow to Jesus when he enters the room.

I recommend this as a companion text to Elaine Pagel's book, The Gnostic Gospels for the solid historical background she provides in alternate early Christian scripture.
...more

0

Mar 02, 2011

A fascinating book showing all of the ancient texts that were censored by the Emperor Constantine and his fanatical and Militaristic version of the Catholic Church which is still corrupted by his teachings today.

This book shows many of the ancient beliefs, concepts, and knowledge Constantine tried to destroy

4

Sep 19, 2007

Very interesting. Tom Hanks in "The Davinci Code" says that they weren't inculuded because they paint Jesus and Mary in a bad light. Dr. Moore says they weren't included because they are preposterous. I like this version because it paints Jesus in a more humanistic light.

4

Mar 08, 2010

This work gets all its stars simply for providing me with insight on what was purportedly excised from the Bible during the assembly process over the course of several ecumenical councils in the early centuries CE. Whether these books were not included because they are fallacious or because they didn't fit the narrative the early church sought likely depends on the depth of your belief.

Most interesting and horrifying of the stories in this compilation was the depiction of Child Jesus as a This work gets all its stars simply for providing me with insight on what was purportedly excised from the Bible during the assembly process over the course of several ecumenical councils in the early centuries CE. Whether these books were not included because they are fallacious or because they didn't fit the narrative the early church sought likely depends on the depth of your belief.

Most interesting and horrifying of the stories in this compilation was the depiction of Child Jesus as a violent toddler vested with the powers of life and death that he wielded as recklessly and carelessly as one might expect from a child of that age who has been told he is the son of God: arrogant, pitiless, selfish, and shockingly devoid of any value for life considering his destiny. Everyone is rightly terrified of him, and it's no surprise early church leaders decided to remove this episode of his existence. Who would believe God was just and loving to send down his only son to Earth and have that child turn out to be a nightmarish and unstoppable warlock?


If you never read another thing about Jesus, this is what you would expect him to become by age 30.

Much of the other material was less noteworthy and probably removed because it didn't fit well with the narrative or because it was so steeped in symbolism as to be impenetrably ponderous--made moreso because the narrator not only pointed out the symbols, but went on to explain them, which is rather indicative of a poor symbol. The best example of this would be the vast allegory in which a castle is constructed during an apostolic vision supplanted by Revelations in the New Testament, and absolutely everything has some meaning, from the different materials bricks are made of to the color of the workers' clothing. In a word: exhausting.


"Every element in this image means something. We'll start at the top left and work our way to the bottom right."
--The Apocryphal Bible

This is by no means an omnibus of all the works the various councils decided not to include, but it is a good collection, and it includes excerpts that denote exactly why these stories were not included as well as approximate dates of authorship and guesses at authors as well. ...more

5

Jul 10, 2010

Even religious history was written by the winners. It's good to get the rest of the story.

5

Jan 07, 2011

I thought there was a lot of information in here that I'd need to know. Turns out not all of it was biblical...so my quest continues :)

4

May 21, 2013

Very interesting how the church council decided what books to accept or not accept as authentic.

4

Jul 24, 2011

This is an excellent companion to the 'approved & edited' Bible. One needs to be open to the perspectives provided by the 'other' books that were xcluded from the Bible.

3

Oct 22, 2013

I read this book many years ago around 1995. I was doing a lot of bible study back then. I am no longer interested in doing that so I'm passing it on to someone else through paperbackswap.com.

From the dustjacket: "The documents in the book were written soon after Christ's Crucifixion, during the early spread of Christianity. But when the bible was compiled in the end of the fourth century, these texts were not among those chosen. They were suppressed by the church, and for over 1500 years were I read this book many years ago around 1995. I was doing a lot of bible study back then. I am no longer interested in doing that so I'm passing it on to someone else through paperbackswap.com.

From the dustjacket: "The documents in the book were written soon after Christ's Crucifixion, during the early spread of Christianity. But when the bible was compiled in the end of the fourth century, these texts were not among those chosen. They were suppressed by the church, and for over 1500 years were shrouded in secrecy. These writings are by and about many of the important figures in the New Testament. They express much the same zeal and earnestness about their subject as do the pieces in the New Testament. And yet, until they were first translated in this century, they were the peculiar esoteric property of the clergy and other learned people, available only in the original tongues. We can now judge these texts for ourselves. We see much more here of Jesus as a child than we do in the New Testament. Peter and Nicodemus, who were so close to Jesus, give us their versions of His life. There is an account of Mary's life before Christ's birth, and there are several letters that supplement our knowledge about the early Christians and the spread of Christianity. There is no doubt that, whatever else we may find in these texts, we cannot help enjoying them for their beauty and directness. They also significantly increase our understanding of the first century A.D. in Judea, the world where Jesus lived. For those who want to know more about this crucial period in our history, this book is a major event."

This is the reprint of the 1926 edition which was first published as William Hone's Collection in 1820 under the title "The Apocryphal New Testament," incorporating the translations of Jeremiah Jones for the Apocryphal books and of Archbishop Wake for the Apostolic Fathers. It contains 32 illustrations from ancient paintings and missals. The book is said to be a compilation of books which were excluded from the bible. Each section starts out with an explanation of where the books came from, who translated them and when, and if there is speculation that they are frauds or not.

The 1979 edition contains a three page forward to the 1979 edition by Solomon J. Schepps, a two page preface from 1926 by R.H.P., Jr. and a four page introduction by Dr Frank Crane. The included works are: Mary, The Protevangelion, I. Infancy, II. Infancy, Christ and Abgarus, Nicodemus, The Apostles' Creed, Laodiceans, Paul and Seneca, Paul and Thecla, I. Clement, II. Clement, Barnabas, Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallians, Romans, Philadelphians, Smyrnaeans, Polycarp, Philippians, I. Hermas-Visions, II. Hermas-Commands, III. Hermas-Similitudes, Letters of Herod and Pilate, The lost Gospel According to Peter. The book also contains two tables. Table I is "A list of all the Apocryphal Pieces not now extant, mentioned by writers in the first four Centuries of Christ, with the several works wherein they are cited or noticed." Table II is "A list of the Christian Authors of the first four centuries, whose writings contain catalogues of the books of the New Testament." ...more

5

Nov 06, 2010

I am loving this book so far. Infancy Gospels of Jesus are super cool to read. I will definitely be blogging about these ancient books.

3

Sep 21, 2015

Well, this book of gospels that were used during the middle ages and before allow a person to see how the bigotries towards Jews began and other historical attitudes. Some people find scripture boring and it was a bit perplexing, like I find the Bible itself to be, but I'm glad I read it.

3

Jan 10, 2008

I have an older version of this. It was a good collection of extrabiblical Christian writings of the early centuries after Christ, which helped me to appreciate the uniqueness and quality of the actual canon all the more.

1

Oct 09, 2007

If you want to know what books are NOT inspired, then read this one! I like the one when Jesus was a kid and got mad at a boy for scaring him, so he shrunk the boys arms and legs in anger. The town was upset and complained to Mary and Joseph, so Jesus restored one arm and one leg only in order to teach him never to do that again! Again, obviously not an inspired gospel!

4

Jan 14, 2009

It should be noted that 4 stars does not mean that I like it like it. I just say that it is a good read for a solid Christian. One ought not read this book as a reference as one does the Bible or a commentary or such as this. One ought only read this book if they are a solid Christian who might be able to make out the reasons these books were not included in the canon of Scripture by reading it. It will strengthen the strong Christian but confuse the weak.

jbna

4

Jan 05, 2011

Very interesting....There are some things in this book that explains with elaboration some things in the Bible. For example this book adds depth to Mary and tells of the childhood of Jesus. Interesting. It also has letters from Pontius Pilate that give a pretty good argument for his innocent plea. Christians, there is no need to fear this book IF you have studied the Bible well enough, in fact I'd recommend it for a brain exercise.

4

Jun 05, 2012

I found this book to be an interesting glimpse into the early days of Christianity.It covers the apocrypha and various books that some followers of Christ considered to be scripture in the past, but which were not included in the canonical Bible used by many Christians today.
Not the most user/reader friendly print, so while it takes some extra focus to actually read the pages, it is well worth the effort.

4

Feb 07, 2018

I try to read scripture daily, but only a chapter or page a day. This book took a while to read with those parameters. The books of this scripture were written soon after Christ’s crucifixion. But when the Bible was compiled these were not included.

I found this book to be extremely interesting. You will find out more about Mary and Joseph, the thoughts and fate of Pilate and many other eye-opening scriptures. Study to show yourself approved.

5

Sep 11, 2018

So many stories that whether they should be a part of canon or not, is very compelling and insightful.

5

Mar 31, 2017

For years I searched university libraries for the iconographically-illuminating (Old Master subjects explained) GOSPEL OF THE BIRTH OF MARY also called the Book of Mary, explaining Our Lady's Presentation and youth to the Nativity, including the parents of Mary, Joachim and Anna and the betrothal and flowered staff of Joseph. Along with this book is the PROTEVANGELION which tells of Zecharius and St Elizabeth, parents of St John the Baptist; the two Gospels of the INFANCY OF CHRIST, which may For years I searched university libraries for the iconographically-illuminating (Old Master subjects explained) GOSPEL OF THE BIRTH OF MARY also called the Book of Mary, explaining Our Lady's Presentation and youth to the Nativity, including the parents of Mary, Joachim and Anna and the betrothal and flowered staff of Joseph. Along with this book is the PROTEVANGELION which tells of Zecharius and St Elizabeth, parents of St John the Baptist; the two Gospels of the INFANCY OF CHRIST, which may disprove the current theories of Our Lord's travels to India; the 26 books include other Gospels left out of the Canonical scripture by St Jerome, but preserved through the English church and the other theologians, scholars and Bishops of the Roman church. The Epistles included here are amazing, including the letters of Herod and Pilate (here upbraided for the trial and condemnation of Christ) and even the letter to the most potent, august, dreadful, and divine Augustus (Tiberius) by Pilate himself, with letters and a GOSPEL OF PETER. These GOSPELS are recently supplemented by those discovered in 1945 in Egypt, of THOMAS, PHILIP and MARY MAGDALEN (published by Ulysses Press [Thomas] and Inner Traditions), once called Coptic Gospels and soon to be further studied; I myself have written scriptural quoted comparative marginalia in my paperback copy of St Thomas' gospel, one of these three theological and not chronological Gospels. The ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY, by Eusebius, (two volumes, I--V and VI--X) published in Greek and English by Harvard, is comparable, and tells of the Church from Jesus' Apostles to the Toleration and Recognition (330 AD) with the extreme joy of this event in Rome and should be continued as history of Byzantines and Christians to the death of my mother Elisabeth of Silesia by the inter-regnum and chaotic histories following and martyrs even of medicine to and since 1919. Glory to God in the Highest. Spiritual reading with line illustrations and notes, tables and forward, preface and introduction, hardcover "Apocrypha of the New Testament" of William Hone's 1820 collection, reprinted. ...more

4

Oct 23, 2015

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. It is a great read for anyone interested in taking a deeper look into gnostic gospels, even if it is comprised of apocryphal scriptures of pseudo-graphical origin. Whether you study religion of various cultures and races, or you want to discover more about the lost scriptures that did not make it into the canonical gospels, then this is the book for you. Even though it is a short book, it can be a difficult read to someone who is not familiar with the prose used in the translation of sacred It is a great read for anyone interested in taking a deeper look into gnostic gospels, even if it is comprised of apocryphal scriptures of pseudo-graphical origin. Whether you study religion of various cultures and races, or you want to discover more about the lost scriptures that did not make it into the canonical gospels, then this is the book for you. Even though it is a short book, it can be a difficult read to someone who is not familiar with the prose used in the translation of sacred text, and it's varying interpretations of Latin, Aramaic, and Hebrew writings.
I found the book to be quite interesting and enlightening, as it shed some light on some of the more overlooked topics in the bible. An example of this would be the Infancy books describing Jesus as a child, as well as the books that delve into Mary's origins. It reads just as the bible does, with books, scriptures, and verse numbering system, all of which make it easy to continue where you leave off.
I gave the book four stars, because the wealth of knowledge it sheds on many different stories of the bible, as well as different topics on faith, are very informative and have given me great insight into the bible stories as a whole. My only complaint would be that, in some parts the words do not fully imprint on the pages, therefore making some passages hard to understand or illegible. And some letters are not fully formed. Other than these imperfections, the book is still an excellent read, and a must have for anyone interested in this field of study. ...more

4

Jul 28, 2011

I wish someone would come out with a definitive book on the lost books, but I suppose it won't happen, as everyone discounts some. This is one of several books like it that I own. For anyone interested in the Bible or its history, this is interesting reading. Here you have a lot of books that the Council of Nicea chose not to include (and some of them ARE completely bogus). Doesn't include the newest finds, either, like the Gospels of Judas & Mary Magdalene, which are also worth reading. I wish someone would come out with a definitive book on the lost books, but I suppose it won't happen, as everyone discounts some. This is one of several books like it that I own. For anyone interested in the Bible or its history, this is interesting reading. Here you have a lot of books that the Council of Nicea chose not to include (and some of them ARE completely bogus). Doesn't include the newest finds, either, like the Gospels of Judas & Mary Magdalene, which are also worth reading. This is a good, general book on the subject. Those with deeper interest will find themselves reading other books, especially to read different commentaries & analyses. ...more

4

Sep 24, 2008

I actually have a First Edition of William Hone's Apocryphal New Testament printed in 1820. This is a fascinating read for anyone interested in Biblical history. I admit it is clear to see why some of these books were not included in current versions of the Bible and seem quite far-fetched for those looking for truths. But there are some parts that are quite profound and have a spiritual aspect to them. It is at the very least, an entertaining and enlightening read.

3

Aug 03, 2012

I've been slowly making my way through this for a few years.
Some of the passages seem as much like the Bible as a fairy tale. In these cases it is easy to see why they were not canonized.
Other passages contribute to a better understanding of Scripture or of the culture at the time of Scripture and the earliest Christians.

4

Dec 28, 2012

I am always eager to know more about the writings of early christianity.There are some texts about Jesus as a child and several letters about the early Christians.

4

Jan 12, 2015

These works do add a warmth and enhance the scriptures that were allowed to be canonized.