Editing Book of Judith (section)

===Canonicity===
{{see also|Development of the Christian biblical canon|Jewish canon|}}

====In Judaism====
While the author was likely Jewish, there is no evidence aside from its inclusion in the [[Septuagint]] that the Book of Judith was ever considered authoritative or a candidate for canonicity by any Jewish group.<ref>Senior, Donald & Collins, John J., ''The Catholic Study Bible: The New American Bible'', Oxford University Press, 2011, p. 222, [https://books.google.com/books?id=sBl0U5RgAFQC]</ref><ref name="Gera 2010" /> The [[Masoretic Text]] of the [[Hebrew Bible]] does not contain it; it is not found among the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] or any early Rabbinic literature.<ref name="Gera 2010">{{cite book|title=The Sword of Judith: Judith Studies Across the Disciplines|url=https://archive.org/details/swordjudithjudit00brin|url-access=limited|year=2010|publisher=Open Book Publishers|isbn=978-1906924157|pages=[https://archive.org/details/swordjudithjudit00brin/page/n47 29]–36|author=Deborah Levine Gera|author-link=The Jewish Textual Traditions|editor=Kevin R. Brine|display-editors=etal}}</ref><ref name="Flint">Flint, Peter & VanderKam, James, ''The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their Significance For Understanding the Bible, Judaism, Jesus, and Christianity'', Continuum International, 2010, p. 160 (Protestant Canon) and p. 209 (Judith not among Dead Sea Scrolls), [https://books.google.com/books?id=SBMXnB4CRpUC]</ref> Speculated reasons for its exclusion include the possible lateness of its composition, possible Greek origin, apparent support of the [[Hasmonean dynasty]] (to which the early rabbinate was opposed), and perhaps the brash and seductive character of Judith herself.<ref>Sidnie White Crawford, ''The Book of Esther in Modern Research'', pp. 73–74 (T&T Clark Int'l 2003); {{ISBN|082646663X}}.</ref>

After disappearing from circulation among Jews for over a millennium, however, references to the Book of Judith and the figure of Judith herself resurfaced in the religious literature of [[Crypto-Judaism|crypto-Jews]] who escaped Christian persecution after the capitulation of the [[Caliphate of Córdoba]].<ref name="Gera 2010" /> The renewed interest took the form of "tales of the heroine, liturgical poems, commentaries on the Talmud, and passages in Jewish legal codes."<ref name="Gera 2010" /> Although the text does not mention [[Hanukkah]], it became customary for a Hebrew [[midrash]]ic variant of the Judith story to be read on the [[Shabbat]] of Hanukkah as the story of Hanukkah takes place during the time of the Hasmonean dynasty.<ref>Joel Lurie Grishaver (2001). ''Hanukkah: The Family Guide to Spiritual Celebration''. Jewish Lights Publishing. {{ISBN|1-58023-122-5}}.</ref>

That midrash, whose heroine is portrayed as gorging the antagonist on cheese and wine before cutting off his head, may have formed the basis of the minor Jewish tradition to eat dairy products during Hanukkah.<ref name="Gera 2010" /><ref>Noam Zion & Barbara Spectre (eds.). ''A Different Light: The Hanukkah Book of Celebration''. Devora Publishing. p. 241. {{ISBN|1-930143-31-1}}</ref> In that respect, [[History of the Jews in Europe|the Jewry of Europe]] during the [[Middle Ages]] appear to have viewed Judith as the [[Maccabees|Maccabean]]-[[Hasmonean]] counterpart to [[Esther|Queen Esther]], the heroine of the holiday of [[Purim]].<ref>Kevin R. Brine, et al., The Sword of Judith: Judith Studies Across the Disciplines, p. 30 (Open Book Publishers 2010).</ref><ref>Zion & Spectre, at p. 241.</ref> The textual reliability of the Book of Judith was also taken for granted, to the extent that biblical commentator [[Nachmanides|Nachmanides (Ramban)]] quoted several passages from a [[Peshitta]] (Syriac version) of Judith in support of his rendering of [[Deuteronomy]] 21:14.<ref name="Gera 2010" /><ref>R. Nosson Scherman, ''The Torah: With Ramban's Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated'', Vol. VII, p. 524 (Mesorah Pubs. 2008) {{ISBN?}}</ref>

====In Christianity====
Although [[early Christians]], such as [[Clement of Rome]], [[Tertullian]], and [[Clement of Alexandria]], read and used the Book of Judith,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1010.htm |title=Letter to the Corinthians, chapter 55: Examples of Such Love - Pope St. Clement of Rome}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0406.htm |title=On Monogamy - Tertullian}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/02102.htm |title=The Stromata Book II, chapter 7: The Utility of Fear. Objections Answered - Clement of Alexandria}}</ref> some of the oldest Christian canons, including the [[Development of the Old Testament canon#Bryennios List|Bryennios List]] (1st/2nd century), that of [[Melito's canon|Melito of Sardis]] (2nd century), and [[Origen]] (3rd century), do not include it.<ref>[[Edmon L. Gallagher|Gallagher, Edmon Louis]], ''Hebrew Scripture in Patristic Biblical Theory: Canon, Language, Text'', Brill, 2012, pp. 25–26, [https://books.google.com/books?id=1_kn-zz6LzAC]</ref> [[Jerome]], when he produced his Latin translation of the Hebrew Bible, the [[Vulgate]], counted it among the apocrypha,<ref>Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus (Jerome), ''[http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf206.vii.iii.iv.html Preface to the Books of Samuel and Kings]'', translated by Philip Schaff</ref> (though he translated it and later seemed to quote it as scripture), as did [[Athanasius]],<ref>Hartmann, Wilfried, ''The History of Byzantine and Eastern Canon Law to 1500'', Catholic University of America Press, 2012, p. 95 [https://books.google.com/books?id=BwnCVYHf5VAC]</ref> [[Cyril of Jerusalem]],<ref>Cyril of Jerusalem, ''[http://www.bible-researcher.com/cyril.html Catechetical Lectures, iv. 33–37]'', c. 350 AD, translated by Edward H. Gifford</ref> and [[Epiphanius of Salamis]].<ref>Epiphanius of Salamis, ''[http://www.bible-researcher.com/epiphanius.html Panarion viii. 6]'', c. 385 AD, Translated by Frank Williams</ref>

Many influential [[Church Fathers|fathers]] and [[Doctor of the Church|doctors]] of the Church, including [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]], [[Basil of Caesarea]], [[Tertullian]], [[John Chrysostom]], [[Ambrose]], [[Bede the Venerable]] and [[Hilary of Poitiers]], considered the book sacred scripture both before and after councils that formally declared it part of the biblical canon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://philologic.northwestern.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.9:1:18:0.bie |title=The Argvment of the Booke of Ivdith - 1610 Douay Rheims Bible}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf208.vii.ix.html?scrBook=Jdt&scrCh=9&scrV=5#vii.ix-p61.1 |title=The Book of Saint Basil on the Spirit - Chapter VIII.}}</ref> In a 405 letter, [[Pope Innocent I]] declared it part of the [[Biblical canon|Christian canon]].<ref>Pope Innocent I, ''[http://www.bible-researcher.com/innocent.html Letter to Exsuperius, bishop of Toulouse]'', 405 AD</ref> In Jerome's ''Prologue to Judith'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf206.vii.iii.xx.html|title=Philip Schaff: NPNF2-06. Jerome: The Principal Works of St. Jerome - Christian Classics Ethereal Library|website=www.ccel.org}}</ref><ref name="CathEncy">{{CathEncy|wstitle=Book of Judith}}: Canonicity: "..."the Synod of Nicaea is said to have accounted it as Sacred Scripture" (Praef. in Lib.). It is true that no documents about the canon survive in the Canons of Nicaea, and it is uncertain whether St. Jerome is referring to the use made of the book in the discussions of the council, or whether he was misled by some spurious canons attributed to that council"</ref> he claims that the Book of Judith was "found by the [[First Council of Nicaea#Biblical canon|Nicene Council]] to have been counted among the number of the Sacred Scriptures". No such declaration has been found in the Canons of Nicaea, and it is uncertain whether Jerome was referring to the book's use during the council's discussion or spurious canons attributed to that council.<ref name="CathEncy"/> 

Regardless of Judith's status at Nicaea, the book was also accepted as scripture by the councils of [[Council of Rome|Rome]] (382), [[Synod of Hippo|Hippo]] (393), [[Council of Carthage (397)|Carthage]] (397), and [[Council of Florence|Florence]] (1442) and eventually dogmatically defined as canonical by the Roman Catholic Church in 1546 in the [[Council of Trent]].<ref>Vanhoozer, Kevin J., ''Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible'', Baker Academic, 2005, p. 98 [https://books.google.com/books?id=I8UWJohMGUIC]</ref> However, Rome, Hippo, and Carthage were all local councils (unlike Nicaea, an ecumenical council). The Eastern Orthodox Church also accepts Judith as inspired scripture; this was confirmed in the [[Synod of Jerusalem (1672)|Synod of Jerusalem in 1672]].<ref>Nigosian, S.A., ''From Ancient Writings to Sacred Texts: The Old Testament and Apocrypha'', Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004, p. 29, [https://books.google.com/books?id=8jQfScEtRWIC]</ref> The canonicity of Judith is typically rejected by Protestants, who accept as the Old Testament only those books that are found in the Jewish canon.<ref name="Flint" /> [[Martin Luther]] viewed the book as an allegory, but listed it as the first of the eight writings in his Apocrypha, which is located between the Old Testament and New Testament of the [[Luther Bible]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Enslin|first=Morton Scott|title=The Book of Judith: Greek Text with an English Translation (Volume 7 of Jewish Apocryphal Literature)|year=1972|publisher=Brill Archive|isbn=978-9004035959|pages=49}}</ref><ref name="LutherFüssel">{{cite book |last1=Luther |first1=Martin |last2=Füssel |first2=Stephan |title=Bible de Luther de 1534, Réimpression Intégral |date=1534 |publisher=Taschen |isbn=978-3-8228-2470-2 |language=en|page=41}}</ref> Though Lutheranism views the Book of Judith as non-canonical, it is deemed edifying for matters of morality, as well as devotional use.<ref name="GeislerMacKenzie1995">{{cite book |last1=Geisler |first1=Norman L. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=Ralph E. |title=Roman Catholics and Evangelicals: Agreements and Differences |date=1995 |publisher=Baker Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8010-3875-4 |page=171 |language=English |quote=Lutherans and Anglicans used it only for ethical / devotional matters but did not consider it authoritative in matters of faith.}}</ref> In [[Anglicanism]], it has the intermediate authority of the Apocrypha of the Old Testament and is regarded as useful or edifying, but is not to be taken as a basis for establishing doctrine.<ref name="GeislerMacKenzie1995"/>

Judith is also referred to in chapter 28 of [[1 Meqabyan]], a book [[Orthodox Tewahedo biblical canon|considered canonical]] in the [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://torahofyeshuah.blogspot.com/2015/07/book-of-meqabyan-i-iii.html|title = Torah of Yeshuah: Book of Meqabyan I–III}}</ref>