! Apostolic Fathers — early but not Scripture · Not Scripture. These are early Christian writings (roughly AD 80–150), valued by the patristic Church but deliberately not received as canon. The Shepherd of Hermas and the Epistle of Barnabas appear as an appendix in Codex Sinaiticus — close to the canon but distinct from it. They reflect the doctrine and practice of the early Church, but their authority is sub-apostolic. Read for historical insight; weigh against the New Testament, not alongside it.