The first edition of the King James Bible did have the "Apocrypha" in it (better termed "Deuterocanonicals," as the two sets are not identical, and do not have a one-to-one correspondence) . It wasn’t until the 1660s that it was removed in some editions, and not uniformly until the 1769 edition.
The question remains: when there is a genuine difference of opinion or interpretation, who decides what books are to be included in or removed from the Bible?
Who decided in England in the 17th and 18th centuries?
Is the god of Catholicism able to inspire without turning to a respecter of persons? Is the work of the Holy Spirit not what comes from reading the Word of God? Catholic dogma is delegated from that religion. The Word of God is not limited to a denomination or sect, since The Holy Spirit speaks to the spirit and soul, not to the legalism found in denominations and sects. When the Holy Spirit is speaking through The Word of God, discernment is ALWAYS generated. I can site folks who went to the Bible (KJV IIRC) and began seeking Him diligently, and soon found they discerned the falseness of the Book of Mormon.
 'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, ' it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.'
'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.' 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master - that's all.' |