canon was settled by the end of the second century, different localities continued to maintain their different traditions, and some (e.g. Alexandria in Origen’s time1) appear to have been less partial to fixity than others. Three features of this process should be noted. First, the criterion which ultimately came to prevail was apostolicity. Unless a book could be shown to come from the pen of an apostle, or at least to have the authority of an apostle behind it, it was peremptorily rejected, however