Antilegomena

 ( 4th-century Introductions ) 

Antilegomena (from Ancient Greek ἀντιλεγόμενα) are written texts whose authenticity or value is disputed.. Eusebius in his Church History (c. 325) used the term for those Christian scriptures that were "disputed", literally "spoken against", in Early Christianity before the closure of the New Testament canon.

The antilegomena were widely read in the Early Church and included the Epistle of James, the Epistle of Jude, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, the Book of Revelation, the Gospel of the Hebrews, the Epistle to the Hebrews, the Apocalypse of Peter, the Acts of Paul, the Shepherd of Hermas, the Epistle of Barnabas and the Didache.. There was disagreement in the Early Church on whether or not the respective texts deserved canonical status.

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Eusebius The first major church historian, Eusebius, who wrote his Church History c. AD 325, applied the Greek term "antilegomena" to the disputed writings of the Early Church:

It is a matter of categorical discussion whether Eusebius divides his books into three groups— homologoumena (from Ancient Greek ὁμολεγούμενα, "accepted"), antilegomena, and 'heretical'—or into four by adding a notha ("spurious") group.

The Epistle to the Hebrews had earlier been listed:

Codex Sinaiticus, a 4th-century text and possibly one of the Fifty Bibles of Constantine, includes the Shepherd of Hermas and the Epistle of Barnabas. The original Peshitta (NT portion is c. 5th century) excluded 2 and 3 John, 2 Peter, Jude, and Revelation. Some modern editions, such as the Lee Peshitta of 1823, include them.

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Reformation During the Reformation, Martin Luther brought up the issue of the antilegomena. Though he included the Letter to the Hebrews, the letters of James and Jude, and Revelation in his Bible translation, he put them into a separate grouping and questioned their legitimacy. Hence, these books are sometimes termed "Luther's Antilegomena". – a terminology that remains in use today. Current Lutheran usage expands this questioning to also include 2 Peter, 2 John, and 3 John..

F. C. Baur used the term in his classification of the Pauline Epistles, classing Romans, 1–2 Corinthians and Galatians as homologoumena; Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1–2 Thessalonians and Philemon as antilegomena; and the Pastoral Epistles as "notha" (spurious writings).

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Hebrew Bible The term is sometimes applied also to certain books in the Hebrew Bible.

For instance, the Catholic Encyclopedia and discussions from institutions like Knox Theological Seminary have noted that certain Hebrew Bible books were subject to debate, thus fitting the broader definition of Antilegomena.

Books such as Ecclesiastes, Esther, Song of Songs, Ezekiel, and Proverbs were among those whose inclusion in the canon was questioned at various times. Reasons for these debates ranged from theological concerns to perceived inconsistencies. For example, Ecclesiastes was seen by some as too skeptical, while Esther was noted for not mentioning God explicitly.

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See also

• Development of the Hebrew Bible canon
• Development of the Old Testament canon
• Development of the New Testament canon
• Luther's canon
• Religious text

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Notes

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Bibliography

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External links

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