The Apocrypha

       There are a number of sacred books not accepted by Protestants as authorized parts of the Bible, and to these the name Apocrypha has been applied. They are, however, accepted by the Roman Catholic Church. These books were written during the two centuries preceding the birth of Christ: The first and the second books of Esdras, Tobit, Judith, the rest of the book of Esther, the Wisdom of Solomon, the Wisdom of Jesus the son of Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus, Baruch the Prophet, the Song of the Three Children, Susanna and the Elders, Bel and the Dragon, the Prayer of Manasses and the first  and second books of Maccabees.

39 Books of The Old Testament

       The first five of the Old Testament books are grouped together as books of the law (Pentateuch); those from Joshua to Esther, inclusive, are historical books; Job, Psalms, Proverbs,
       Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon and Lamentations are poetry; the sixteen remaining are prophecies, and are subdivided into greater and minor. The authorship and date of all of these books cannot be stated positively. It was long believed that Moses wrote the books of the law and that David was the sole author of Psalms, but some modern scholarship rejects both of these suppositions. While there is considerable evidence for assigning definite authors to some of the Old Testament writings, the authorship of many of the books is unknown. 

       Books of the Old Testament. The books of the Old Testament, thirty-nine in number, are as follows:

1. Genesis
2. Exodus
3. Leviticus
4. Numbers
5. Deuteronomy
6. Joshua
7. Judges
8. Ruth 
9. I Samuel
10. II Samuel
11. I Kings 
12. II Kings
13. I Chronicles 
14. II Chronicles
15. Ezra
16. Nehemiah
17. Esther
18. Job
19. Psalms
20. Proverbs
21. Ecclesiastes
22. Song of Solomon
23. Isaiah
24. Jeremiah
25. Lamentations
26. Ezekiel
27. Daniel
28. Hosea
29. Joel
30. Amos
31. Obadiah
32. Jonah
33. Micah
34. Nahum
35. Habakkuk
36. Zephaniah
37. Haggai
38. Zechariah
39. Malachi

27 Books of The New Testament

       Books of the New Testament. It is not a difficult matter to divide the twenty-seven books of the New Testament into three logical groups. The first five books: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Acts of the Apostles, are historical, relating to the life of Christ and the labors of His followers who planted the new Church in Jerusalem and abroad.. Then come the epistles, many of which are the work of Paul, and finally the prophetic vision of John, called the Book of Revelation. The complete list is as follows:

1. Matthew
2. Mark
3. Luke
4. John
5. The Acts
6. Romans
7. I. Corinthians
8. II. Corinthians
9. Galatians
10. Ephesians
11. Philippians
12. Colossians
13. I. Thessalonians
14. II. Thessalonians 
15. I. Timothy
16. II. Timothy
17. Titus
18. Philemon
19. Hebrews
20. James
21. I. Peter
22. II. Peter
23. I. John
24. II. John
25. III. John
26. Jude
27. Revelation

A Funny Valentine

A Funny Valentine

by Frank H. Sweet

Did you ever find a valentine

Beside you in your bed

When you heard your papa saying:

"Wake up, my sleepy head!

Wake up, wake up! Your eyes will

shine

To see your funny valentine?"

Did you ever have a valentine, 

All soft and warm and sweet,

With a little rolly poly head

And mites of hand and feet,

Wrapped up in a flannel, oh, so tight,

And 'fraid of one wee bit of light?

Did you ever have a valentine

(My sakes, I want to laugh!)

So heavy that they said it weighed

Just nine pounds and a half,

Without a tooth to bite its bread

Nor any hair upon its head?

I had one just this morning,

And 'twas such a sweet surprise

To hear my papa saying,

"Wake up, dear sleepy eyes!"

That funny little valentine

Is mamma's baby- yours and mine!

Irish Lullaby

Irish Lullaby

I'd rock my own sweet childie to rest in a cradle of 

gold on a bough of the willow,

To the shoheen ho of the wind of the west and the

lulla lo of the soft sea billow.

Sleep, baby dear,

Sleep without fear,

Mother is here beside your pillow.

I'd put my own sweet childie to sleep in a silver boat

on the beautiful river,

Where a shoheen whisper the white cascades, and a

lulla lo the green flags shiver.

Sleep, baby dear,

Sleep without fear,

Mother is here with you for ever.

Lulla lo! to the rise and fall of mother's bosom 'tis

sleep has bound you,

And O, my child, what cosier nest for rosier rest could

love have found you?

Sleep, baby dear,

Sleep without fear,

Mother's two arms are clasped around you.

Another Irish lullaby "Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ral"

Gracie Og Machree

Gracie Og Machree

(Song of the "Wild Geese.")

I placed the silver in her palm,

By Inny's smiling tide,

And vowed, ere summer time came on,

To claim her as a bride.

But when the summer time came on

I dwelt beyond the sea;

Yet still my heart is ever true

To Gracie Og Machree.

O bonnie are the woods of Targ,

And green thy hills, Rathmore,

And soft the sunlight ever falls

On Darre's sloping shore;

And there the eyes I love- in tears

Shine ever mournfully,

While I am far, and far away

From Gracie Og Machree.

When battle-steeds were neighing loud,

With bright blades in the air,

Next to my inmost heart I wore

A bright tress of her hair.

When stirrup-cups were lifted up

To lips, with soldier glee,

One toast I always fondly pledged,

'Twas Gracie Og Machree.

The Earth and Man

The Earth and Man

A little sun, a little rain,

A soft wind blowing from the west-

And woods and fields are sweet again,

And warmth within the mountain's breast.

So simple is the earth we tread,

So quick with love and life her frame,

Ten thousand years have dawned and fled,

And still her magic is the same.

A little love, a little trust,

A soft impulse, a sudden dream-

And life as dry as desert dust

Is fresher than a mountain stream.

So simple is the heart of man

So ready for new hope and joy;

Ten thousand years since it began

Have left it younger than a boy.