Editing Apocrypha (section)

==Judaism==
{{Main|Jewish apocrypha|Development of the Hebrew Bible canon}}
The Jewish apocrypha, known in [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] as הספרים החיצונים (''Sefarim Hachizonim:'' "the external books"), are books written in large part by [[Jews]], especially during the [[Second Temple period]], not accepted as sacred manuscripts when the [[Hebrew Bible]] was [[Development of the Hebrew Bible canon|canonized]]. Some of these books are considered sacred by some [[Christians]], and are included in their versions of the [[Old Testament]]. The Jewish apocrypha is distinctive from the [[New Testament apocrypha]] and [[biblical apocrypha]] as it is the only one of these collections that works within a Jewish theological framework.<ref>{{cite web|title=APOCRYPHA - JewishEncyclopedia.com |url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/1644-apocrypha |access-date=12 June 2020 |website=www.jewishencyclopedia.com}}</ref>

Although [[Orthodox Jews]] believe in the exclusive [[canonization]] of the current 24 books in the [[Hebrew Bible]], they also consider the [[Oral Torah]], which they believe was [[Law given to Moses at Sinai|handed down from Moses]], to be authoritative. Some argue that the [[Sadducees]], unlike the [[Pharisees]] but like the [[Samaritans]], seem to have maintained an earlier and smaller number of texts as canonical, preferring to hold to only what was written in the [[Law of Moses]] (the [[Torah]]),<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=40&letter=S&search=Sadducees |title=SADDUCEES |encyclopedia=jewishencyclopedia.com}}</ref> making most of the presently accepted canon, both Jewish and Christian, apocryphal in their eyes.{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} Others believe that it is often mistakenly asserted that the [[Sadducees]] only accepted the [[Pentateuch]] (Torah).<ref name="Holman study bible">{{cite book|title=Holman study bible. |date=2013 |publisher=Holman Bible Pub |others=Howard, Jeremy Royal., Blum, Edwin., Stabnow, David K., Holman Bible Staff. |isbn=978-1-4336-0509-3 |edition=NKJV |location=Nashville, TN |oclc=828886896}}</ref> The [[Essene]]s in Judea and the [[Therapeutae]] in [[Egypt]] were said to have a secret literature (see [[Dead Sea scrolls]]).{{citation needed|date=April 2021}}

Other traditions maintained different customs regarding canonicity.<ref>[http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/sbrandt/canon.htm The Old Testament Canon] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071206105955/http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine/arch/sbrandt/canon.htm |date=December 6, 2007 }}</ref> The [[Beta Israel|Ethiopian Jews]], for instance, seem to have retained a spread of canonical texts similar to the [[Ethiopian Orthodoxy|Ethiopian Orthodox Christians]].<ref>[http://gbgm-umc.org/UMW/BIBLE/ethold.stm Ethiopian Orthodox Old Testament] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071231095249/http://gbgm-umc.org/UMW/BIBLE/ethold.stm |date=December 31, 2007 }}</ref><ref>''Encyclopaedia Judaica'', Vol 6, p 1147.</ref>