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Sunday, January 13, 2013

Prayer of Manasseh

What is the Roman Catholic canon of Scripture?


And it has thought it meet that a list of the sacred books be inserted in this decree, lest a doubt may arise in any one's mind, which are the books that are received by this Synod. They are as set down here below: of the Old Testament: the five books of Moses, to wit, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; Josue, Judges, Ruth, four books of Kings, two of Paralipomenon, the first book of Esdras, and the second which is entitled Nehemias; Tobias, Judith, Esther, Job, the Davidical Psalter, consisting of a hundred and fifty psalms; the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Canticle of Canticles, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Isaias, Jeremias, with Baruch; Ezechiel, Daniel; the twelve minor prophets, to wit, Osee, Joel, Amos, Abdias, Jonas, Micheas, Nahum, Habacuc, Sophonias, Aggaeus, Zacharias, Malachias; two books of the Machabees, the first and the second.

Moreover, the same sacred and holy Synod,--considering that no small utility may accrue to the Church of God, if it be made known which out of all the Latin editions, now in circulation, of the sacred books, is to be held as authentic,--ordains and declares, that the said old and vulgate edition, which, by the lengthened usage of so many years, has been approved of in the Church, be, in public lectures, disputations, sermons and expositions, held as authentic; and that no one is to dare, or presume to reject it under any pretext whatever.


The problem with this list is how the second paragraph conflicts with the first. The list omits the Prayer of Manasseh. Yet the Prayer of Manasseh was included in traditional editions of the Vulgate, which the second paragraph deems authentic, complete with the warning that “no one is to dare, or presume to reject it under any pretext whatever.”

By the standard of the second paragraph, the list in the first paragraph is defective. Yet the stated intention of the first paragraph was to specify which books were canonical, “lest a doubt may arise in any one's mind, which are the books that are received by this Synod.”

1 comment:

  1. Same would be true of 1 & 2 Esdras, I think.

    God be with you,
    Dan

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