Lord Have Mercy On Us!

False books, "apocrypha," were written by heretics who signed the names of apostles to give them credibility. But some apocrypha were not heretical. They contained stories about the youth of Jesus or the Virgin Mary. Is there anything wrong with reading those stories? 

Who created the apocrypha and why? Why did the Fathers oppose Christians reading them? In this lesson, we will look at the rise of apocryphal writings and discuss why they were created. We will read excerpts from them to illustrate why they were rejected by the Church.