INTRODUCTION.
I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION.— CHARACTER AND
CLAIMS OF THE APOCRYPHAL GOSPELS.
Many books are included under the name of Christian Apocrypha, or New Testament Apocrypha, as some call them. Several of these books are still extant in one language or another, but of the larger part we only possess fragments, or the mere titles. I would thus describe in a few words the character of the books in question: They are all spurious; they all relate to Christ and those who were associated with him in his earthly career, or to the apostles and their associates; they all seek to supplement or develop the writings of the New Testament; and all that we have are of more recent date than any of the canonical books. The series commenced in the second century at latest, and continued for many centuries. The materials are drawn partly from the New Testament,
