Abstract: Apocrypha are defined as religious fiction which, due to its intriguing nature, becomes widespread folk literature. Apocrypha are described as “secret, inaccessible, mysterious, hidden” texts. The authors of apocryphal writings are anonymous or falsely attributed. Pseudonymity aims to gain greater credibility among readers by falsely signing the names of apostles, prophets, or prominent church scholars. Through the apocrypha, we gain insight into the various levels of the church hierarchy, its teachings, and the diverse philosophical and ideological challenges of the era. The apocrypha contain elements of the contemporary culture of that time, as well as elements of Christian teachings influenced by foreign sources. The centuries-long use of church and religious literature spurred the need for creatively expanding biblical events. Apocrypha are secret books that were not accepted by the church, hence their reading and distribution among Christians were prohibited. Therefore, the church treats them as non-canonical books. The idea to distinguish canonical, official literature from “false” books initiated the creation of special written documents and lists. The first lists emerged in the 4th century, including only canonical books. In the latter half of the 4th century, Saint Athanasius of Alexandria classified them as: canonical, non-canonical but permissible for reading, and apocryphal writings authored by heretics. Later, more lists of prohibited books appeared. It is concluded that apocryphal texts were popular reading material in medieval literature. In this study, we conducted a comparative analysis of apocryphal texts from several collections, such as the Popdragolev Miscellany from the 13th century housed in the National Library of Belgrade, the Tikvesh Collection from the 15th century in the National Library “St. Cyril and Methodius” in Sofia, and other collections. We observed similarities and differences among them. Apocryphal writings played a significant role during their creation period and also in subsequent periods. They were sought-after reading material for medieval readers due to their intriguing content, freedom of creative expression, and popular themes and motifs explored within them.
Keywords: philosophy, apocrypha, collections
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Author Info:
Prof. Violeta Martinovska, PhD
Faculty of Pedagogy “St. Kliment Ohridski”
University “St. Cyril and Methodius”
Skopje, North Macedonia
English 
Български