Apócrifos

Apócrifos is a term used in religious studies to refer to texts that are not accepted as part of the canon of scripture by a particular religious tradition. The word itself comes from the Greek word apokryphos, meaning "hidden." This designation often implies that the texts were either deliberately kept secret, or that their authorship and authenticity were questionable.

In Christianity, the term apocryphal is most commonly applied to certain books found in the Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, but not included in the Hebrew canon. These books, often referred to as the Deuterocanonical books by Catholic and Orthodox traditions, include works like Tobit, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, Sirach, Baruch, and 1 and 2 Maccabees. Protestant reformers generally excluded these books from their Bibles, labeling them apocryphal.

Similarly, in Judaism, there are texts that were not included in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) canon. In early Christianity, various writings circulated that were attributed to biblical figures but were not accepted by the developing church as inspired scripture. These are often referred to as New Testament apocrypha.

The status of a text as apocryphal is not necessarily a judgment on its historical accuracy or theological value, but rather a declaration of its exclusion from a recognized authoritative collection of sacred writings. The reasons for exclusion vary and can include doubts about authorship, theological inconsistencies, or a lack of widespread acceptance in the early religious community.