1. The Roman Catholic Church did not officially canonize the Apocrypha until the Council of Trent (1546 AD). This was in part because the Apocrypha contained material which supported certain Catholic doctrines, such as purgatory, praying for the dead, and the treasury of merit. 2. Not one of them is in the Hebrew language, which was alone used by the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament. 3. Not one of the writers lays any claim to inspiration. 4. These books were never acknowledged as sacred Scriptures by the Jewish Church, and therefore were never sanctioned by our Lord. 5. They were not allowed a place among the sacred books, during the first four centuries of the Christian Church. 6. They contain fabulous statements, and statements which contradict not only the canonical Scriptures, but themselves; as when, in the two Books of Maccabees, Antiochus Epiphanes is made to die three different deaths in as many different places. 7. The Apocrypha inculcates doctrines at variance with the Bible, such as prayers for the dead and sinless perfection...
Etc...
There was no reason to canonize the OT up to that point. It was simply understood and all Bibles contained the Deuterocanonicals.
Our OT was the Septuagint, written by the Alexandrian Jews which contained all the Scripture. The Septuagint was accepted by the Jews for 400 years. Including the Deuterocanonicals.
The Council of Jamnia in 90AD decided that they had had enough of the Christians and threw out the Septuagint. The Protestant “Reformers” decided against the canon held dear by the Apostles in favor of a canon determined by Pharisees some decades after Jesus rose from the dead — the same Pharisees who denied the Truths of the entire New Testament, even accusing the “Nazarenes” of stealing Jesus’ body from the tomb and lying to the world! (Interestingly, it was Zakkai’s successor, Gamaliel, who forced the “Nazarenes” out of the synagogues. Gamaliel also made it obligatory for Jews to pray the “Prayer of Eighteen Petitions,” the 12th petition, which is still prayed today, known as the birkat, being “For apostates may there be no hope, and may the Nazarenes and heretics suddenly perish.”)
And do you know why the Book of Maccabees was thrown out by the Jewish Council? Because the Council was conducted under the auspices of the Flavian Roman Emperors and they decided that that particuar book, which tells of the Maccabean Revolt, might be inflammatory and incite rebellion by the Jews. So, all those Protestant Bibles are lacking the Book of Maccabees, which speaks clearly of praying for the dead, because a pagan emperor pressured the Pharisees to exclude it. And lest anyone is still tempted to think that it was the “Roman Church” that came up with these books and that they were not written by pre-Christ Jews, Jews in other parts of the world who didn’t get news of the Council of Jamnia’s decisions still use those “extra” 7 books to this very day (research the canon used by Ethiopian Jewry).
The Septuagint was used by the Apostles (and therefore Jesus). The lesson, though, is this: relying on the “Bible alone” is a bad idea; we are not to rely solely on Sacred Scripture to understand Christ’s message. While Scripture is “given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16-17), it is not sufficient for reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness. It is the Church that is the “pillar and ground of Truth” (1 Timothy 3:15)! Jesus did not come to write a book; He came to redeem us, and He founded a Sacramental Church through His apostles to show us the way. It is to them, to the Church Fathers, to the Sacred Deposit of Faith, to the living Church that is guided by the Holy Spirit, and to Scripture that we must prayerfully look.
You wrote:
“1. The Roman Catholic Church did not officially canonize the Apocrypha until the Council of Trent (1546 AD).”
Irrelevant. When the Church - because of the attacks of Protestants - decided to close the issue is in no effects the inspiration of the books.
“2. Not one of them is in the Hebrew language, which was alone used by the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament.”
Irrelevant. 1) God can inspire people through any language. 2) Hebrew was no longer used as commonly as it once was. 3) The New Testament is inspired and yet few Protestants woulc claim it was written in Hebrew!!!
“3. Not one of the writers lays any claim to inspiration.”
Irrelevant. Neither do most of the authors of the New Testament or the Old Testament.
“4. These books were never acknowledged as sacred Scriptures by the Jewish Church, and therefore were never sanctioned by our Lord.”
Irrelevant. 1) Jesus Himself mentions that the Jews corrupted good scriptural teaching with their traditions. 2) There was no method for Jews to “acknowledge” any book except by acclamation and/or commonality. These books were common enough.
“5. They were not allowed a place among the sacred books, during the first four centuries of the Christian Church.”
Untrue. There was a dispute about their inspiration. To say that means they were “not allowed a place among the sacred books” is not only incorrect, but hints at a Church structure and discipline which Protestants otherwise repeatedly deny existed.
“6. They contain fabulous statements, and statements which contradict not only the canonical Scriptures, but themselves; as when, in the two Books of Maccabees, Antiochus Epiphanes is made to die three different deaths in as many different places.”
Did Judas hang himself (Mt 27:5) or did his bowels burst open (Acts 1:18)? Which is it? How many beings were in the tomb of Jesus when Peter and John arrived there on Resurrection Sunday? Was it one man or one angel? Two angels or two men? Was Jonah really in the belly of a fish (note: not a whale) for three days? Do serpents talk? Do dragons exist? Are those fabulous statements or are they the word of God or can they be both?
“7. The Apocrypha inculcates doctrines at variance with the Bible, such as prayers for the dead and sinless perfection...”
Uh, actually orthodox Christians have no problems with all of the Bible and all that it teaches. Only those who pick and choose (i.e. Protestants) struggle with Biblical teaching or claim the Bible contradicts itself.
Is this the best Protestants can do?
Excellent.
Of course, we realize that NOTHING—certainly not facts—trump the political RELIGIOUS power mongering committees of the RC edifice.
. . . unless, perhaps . . . it’s an apparition of a white hanky.