Apocryphon
Encyclopedia
"Apocryphon" plural apocrypha
, was a Greek term for a genre
of Jewish and Early Christian writings that were meant to impart "secret teachings" or gnosis
(knowledge) that could not be publicly taught. Such private instruction to the apostles figures in the canonical Gospel
s of the New Testament
and furnishes the material of the "sayings" Gospel of Thomas
and part of the material of the Gospel of Mary
. It is purportedly a secret teaching supposedly committed to a trusted disciple by Christ after his resurrection. The secret teaching in Gnostic literature refers to several things.
Examples that have their own entries include:
Apocrypha
The term apocrypha is used with various meanings, including "hidden", "esoteric", "spurious", "of questionable authenticity", ancient Chinese "revealed texts and objects" and "Christian texts that are not canonical"....
, was a Greek term for a genre
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
of Jewish and Early Christian writings that were meant to impart "secret teachings" or gnosis
Gnosis
Gnosis is the common Greek noun for knowledge . In the context of the English language gnosis generally refers to the word's meaning within the spheres of Christian mysticism, Mystery religions and Gnosticism where it signifies 'spiritual knowledge' in the sense of mystical enlightenment.-Related...
(knowledge) that could not be publicly taught. Such private instruction to the apostles figures in the canonical Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
s of the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and furnishes the material of the "sayings" Gospel of Thomas
Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel According to Thomas, commonly shortened to the Gospel of Thomas, is a well preserved early Christian, non-canonical sayings-gospel discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945, in one of a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library...
and part of the material of the Gospel of Mary
Gospel of Mary
The Gospel of Mary is an apocryphal book discovered in 1896 in a 5th-century papyrus codex. The codex Papyrus Berolinensis 8502 was purchased in Cairo by German scholar Karl Reinhardt....
. It is purportedly a secret teaching supposedly committed to a trusted disciple by Christ after his resurrection. The secret teaching in Gnostic literature refers to several things.
Examples that have their own entries include:
- Genesis Apocryphon from the QumranQumranQumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
caves - Secret Gospel of MarkSecret Gospel of MarkThe Secret Gospel of Mark is a putative non-canonical Christian gospel known exclusively from the Mar Saba letter, which describes Secret Mark as an expanded version of the canonical Gospel of Mark with some episodes elucidated, written for an initiated elite.In 1973 Morton Smith , professor of...
(Apocryphon of Mark) - Apocryphon of JamesApocryphon of JamesThe Apocryphon of James, also known by the translation of its title - the Secret Book of James, is a pseudonymous text amongst the New Testament apocrypha. It describes the secret teachings of Jesus to Peter and James, given after the Resurrection but before the Ascension.A major theme is that one...
, (Secret Book of James) in the Nag Hammadi libraryNag Hammadi libraryThe Nag Hammadi library is a collection of early Christian Gnostic texts discovered near the Upper Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi in 1945. That year, twelve leather-bound papyrus codices buried in a sealed jar were found by a local peasant named Mohammed Ali Samman...
. - Apocryphon of JohnApocryphon of JohnThe Secret Book of John is a 2nd-century AD Sethian Gnostic text of secret teachings. Since it was known to the church father Irenaeus, it must have been written before around AD 180. It describes Jesus Christ appearing and giving secret knowledge to the apostle John...
(Secret Book of John), in the Nag Hammadi library. - Apocryphon of EzekielApocryphon of EzekielApocryphon of Ezekiel is an apocryphal book, written in the style of the Old Testament, as revelations of Ezekiel. It survives only in fragments including quotations in writings by Epiphanius, Clement of Rome and Clement of Alexandria, and the Chester Beatty Papyri 185...
(Secret Book of Ezekiel) - Apocryphon of the Ten Tribes