Lesson 40: Deuterocanonical Books

The Deuterocanonical books are a set of books and passages considered canonical by the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and some other Christian traditions, but are not included in the Hebrew Bible or considered canonical by most Protestant denominations. The term “Deuterocanonical” means “second canon” and indicates that these books were accepted later than the primary canon.

The Deuterocanonical books are:

• Judith
• Tobit
• 1 and 2 Maccabees
• Wisdom (also known as “Wisdom  of Solomon”)
• Ecclesiasticus (also known as “Sirach”)
• Baruch
• Additions to Esther (also called “Greek Esther”)
• Additions to Daniel:
  • The Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children
  • Susanna
  • Bel and the Dragon

Sometimes remembered by the acrostic “J.T. MacWeb ED” from the first letter of the books/additions

These books are found in the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, and were included in the Latin Vulgate Bible. However, during the Protestant Reformation, most Protestant denominations decided not to include them in their canon, referring to them as “Apocrypha.” The Catholic Church, in response to the Reformation, reaffirmed the canonicity of these books at the Council of Trent in the 16th century.

For those interested in more details about these books, consider reading this Introduction to the Deuterocanonical Books.

For those who would like to explore details of this book, please consider videos from Fr. Mike Schmitz’s “Bible in a Year” program. You can find the entire playlist here.