The books may be interesting from a historical perspective. But it escapes me why anyone would consider them a threat to the Biblical accounts. If readers of the The Da Vinci Code would actually take a few minutes and read the Gnostic books, the far fetched claims about them would certainly have a lot harder time gaining traction.
Here's a particularly goofy quote from the Gospel of Thomas:
Simon Peter said to him, "Let Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of life."
Jesus said, "I myself shall lead her in order to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every woman who will make herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven."
Some of the more talked about Gnostic gospels:
The Gospel of Judas
The Gospel According to Mary Magdalene
The Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel of Philip
The books the early Christians considered scripture (and are actually in the Bible):
The Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel of Mark
The Gospel of Luke
The Gospel of John
2 comments:
Hey Mike - that's my take exactly on the 'other' gospels. I have to admit I got a little wrapped up in the "Excitement" of Judas...until I read it. I realized that National Geographic was simply trying to market a return on their investment.
I am a little disappointed in the early church for destroying these works - but like you - I see no threat whatsoever for my Faith.
I'd say a FAR better and more fruitful read would be the writings of Josephus. Certainly not a Christian - yet one of the best 'historical' sources of the time.
I agree. Josephus was quite a historian.
Not only are these "lost gospels" not a threat to my faith, they also help put better focus on the heresies being argued and warned against in some of the Epistles.
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