Fides Catholica, or, The doctrine of the Catholick Church in eighteen grand ordinances referring to the Word, sacraments and prayer, in purity, number and nature, catholically maintained, and publickly taught against hereticks of all sorts : with the solutions of many proper and profitable questions sutable to to [sic] the nature of each ordinance treated of / by Wil. Annand ...

Quest. 8. Whether the Books called Apocrypha, be not Scripture?

These Books commonly called Apocrypha, are so called from 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 abseondo, a thing hid, because the authority of them is not known to the Church: and in testimony of Faith, those Books must not at all be produced. The Church of Rome owns them as part of the Canon, but the Catholick Church did ever exclude their Authority: For,

• 1. They were never used by the Jews, neither in their Temples, nor in their Synagogues; the Jews were always Gods Library Keepers. To them were committed the Oracles of God, Rom. 3.2. Now these being never used nor committed to them, cannot be Gods Oracles: and by consequence, their authority is not binding.
• 2. They never received any countenance from the gospel, they are never mentioned as a Rule, or as Books wherein the will and minde of God was made known to men, which Christ would never have neglected to do had they been so: yea, as he chid the Pharisees for putting false glosses upon the Law; surely he would have upbraided them sharply, for taking away so great a part of the body of the Law. Our Lord Jesus mentions no other parts of the Scriptures then Moses, Psalms, and the Prophets, Luke 24 44, 4••. of which the Apocrypha is no part.
• 3. There are many things in those Books false, both in Histo∣ry and in Doctrine; much non-sense, and against both sense, rea∣son and Canonical Scripture are there many passages.
• 4. The Author of the second Book of Mac. Mac. 2.2.23. In∣genuously confesses, that that Book was only an abridgment, or compend of those five Books of the Wars of the Jews, writ by one Iason a Cyrenean; and great sweat, pains, and labour it cost hi•• so to do. This was no fit work for the Spirit of God to abridge the long books writ by Iason, that men might have more pleasure

• in the reading of them. The same Author concludes this History with a Complement, and also desires to have his errours pardoned, professing his best in composing that book, which also shews it came not professedly from the Spirit of God.

The same ••each the Reformed Churches of France, Art. 4. of Belgiae, Art. 6. of Ireland, Art. 3. of England, Art. 6.

Yet the Ch••rch does, and hath used these books, and reads them in their Congregations, though not to confirm doctrine, but to ex∣hort to manners: For these Reasons.

• 1. From that Relation and aspect that it bears toward the Scri∣pture, concerning the Jews returning from the Captivity; the Passeover kept by King Iosiah; the Wisdom (so called) of Solo∣mon, though probably made by Philo the Jew, who flourished, An. C. 90. the sentences, and sayings of the son of Sirach, are so much reflecting upon Sacred Writ, that they are not to be de∣spised.

  Iohn 10.22. We have some account of a Discourse that was held between Christ and the Jews in the Temple; and withall tels us what time this discourse was, viz. At the Feast of the Dedication. Now of this Feast the Scripture nowhere gives us an account; we read of no Laws of it, no Sacrifices for it; no time set apart for it, yet Iesus owns it: To know the original and cause of this Feast, we must go to Apocrypha, 1 Mac. 4. ver. 52. to the end. In which place we read that when the Iews had defeated the forces of Gor∣gias, and had regained the Temple and rebuilded the Altar, they offered Sacrifice thereon, and dedicated it for future service, and kept the days of Dedication with gladness, for joy that God had gi∣ven them again Liberty to worship in their Temple; and ver. 59. it is appointed that that feast be kept every year for eight days, which in our Saviours time is kept, and he graceth it with his pre∣sence: too blame then are they that are offended at Ministers go∣ing down to the Apocrypha, citing it for matter of fact: for in this and in some other places, no Minister under heaven can give his hearers any rational account of this Text, without making use of the Apocrypha.

• 2. For those excellent, plain, Moral Instructions that lie in many places of it; so full of variety, so plenteous in brevity;

• particularly those books of Ecclisiasticus, and Wisdom, wherein are excellent documents suited to, nay most of them taken from the word of God.
• 3. For those godly and profitable uses, beleivers may make in reading and hearing those great deliverances that God was pleased to give his own people Israel in so wonderfull a manner; cloathing their enemies with shame, when they were at strongest, and crowning them with glory and honour, when they were at weak∣est. In a word, to see how God preserved them in the midst of their enemies, keeping to himself still a people; when the Heathen about them had said, Let them be no more a Nation; as is manifest in the history of the Maccabees.

Yet alwayes care was taken that none of these bookes, nor no∣thing in one of those bookes was ever made use of in matters of Faith or Doctrine, but in matters of fact onely, as men will make use of Poets, Chronicles, or moral Authors.

To this agree the reformed Churches, and the Church of Eng∣land. Art. 6. the Article it self is this.

Art 6 of the Church of England,

* 1.1Holy Scripture containeth &c. And the other books (Hierom saith) the Church doth read for example of life, and instruction of manners, but yet doth not apply it to establish any Doctrine, &c.

Notes

• * 1.1

  He flou∣rished Ann. Chr. 385.