(Version 08/13/08 by Sean A. Lawrence)
THE MANUSCRIPT: #3) Jesus said, “If your leaders say to you, ‘Look the (Father’s) kingdom is in the sky,’ then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, ‘ It is in the sea,’ then the fish will precede you. Rather, the [Father’s] kingdom is within you and it is outside you …” (5;pg 9) And, #77) Jesus said,“I am the light that is over all things. I am all: from me all come forth, and to me all attained. Split a piece of wood: I am there. Lift up a stone and you will find me there.” (5;pg 1)
Or as related in #79) of the Gospel of Q, a redaction of common source information from Matthew and Luke … Jesus was asked, “When will the Kingdom of God arrive?” He replied, “You won’t be able to see the Kingdom of God, when it comes. People won’t be able to say ‘it’s here’ or ‘it’s over there.’ ‘The Kingdom of God is among you.’”
(14B;pg 114)
Einstein once remarked that after the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, everything had changed but our way of thinking. It is more than a coincidence that in that same year a book buried for centuries was found in Egypt, a book we know as the Gospel of Thomas. (56B; from Introduction, The Gospel of Thomas A Guidebook for Spiritual Guidance by Ron Miller and Stevan Davies.)
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A word about Jesus Christ from Flavius Josephus, a historian who tells us briefly, but succinctly about who He was believed to have been, and He is mentioned by name, and in more detail than any of the other tens of thousands of persons known to have been crucified by Rome. What is it that makes Jesus Christ so compelling to friend and foe alike?
From “The Complete Works.” translated by William Whiston, A.M., chapter and verse 18.3.3, Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was doer of wonderful works – a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew many over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day. (32B;pg 576) This would have been written later in the first century after the fall of the Temple in A.D. 70, as a history, not as a first-hand account..
From author Bart D. Ehrman: As with political and broad cultural conflicts, the winners in battles for religious supremacy rarely publicize their opponent’s views. What if they were found to be persuasive? (53B;pg 47)
Discovery of the GOT at Nag Hammadi, Egypt (the Dead Sea Scrolls were found at 11 different sites between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea near Qumran about 13 miles east of Jerusalem).
An Egyptian peasant, a farmer, Muhammad ‘Ali al-Samman, made a find of at least 13 manuscripts consisting of 52 texts in December 1945. They were written on papyrus, bound in leather, and buried in an earthen vessel. The location was near the town of Nag Hammadi at the Jabal al-Tarif, a mountain honeycombed with over 150 caves located on the Nile northwest of Aswan near Luxor. Unfortunately the farmer’s mother admits burning most of the manuscripts along with straw as kindling, unaware of their priceless nature. We may never know what has been lost. (Among other sources, the most critical in relating the discovery and subsequent handling of the Nag Hammadi Library is the Introduction in Elaine Pagels’ The Gnostic Gospels 15B;pg 8-14)
After an altercation in the local area to avenge the death of al-Samman’s father, a portion of the texts was turned over to a local priest for safekeeping in the event they might be confiscated during the investigation. Eventually, when one of the manuscripts found its way to the black market for antiquities, and when an effort was made to determine valuation and authenticity, the Egyptian government became aware of the find and appropriated the remaining manuscripts (10-1/2 codices) placing them in a Coptic museum in Cairo.
However, a piece of the collection (most of the thirteenth codex containing 5 texts) was later smuggled to America for sale, and caught the attention of Professor Gilles Quispel, a distinguished historian & linguist at Utrecht in the Netherlands. Wanting to know more of certain missing pages he flew to Cairo in 1955 where he began translating [in the context of] the set. The first words he made out were nothing short of revolutionary: “These are the secret words which the living Jesus spoke, and which the twin, Judas Thomas, wrote down.” (1;pg 1)
This gospel was one of 55 texts discovered at Nag Hammadi. Preserved in Coptic, the final stage of the classical Egyptian language, having evolved after the invasion of Alexander the Great (332 BC) and later supplanted by Arabic following the Muslim conquest (640AD), it adopted the Greek alphabet as well as additional “loan” words. Coptic has always been the liturgical language of the Egyptian church, in much the same way Latin had been to the Roman church until the mid-twentieth century. It has been determined that the manuscripts were 1500 year-old translations of older writings… presumably, the Gospel was originally composed in Greek, as some fragments were interred with the Coptic translations, though some scholars believe Syrian or Aramaic to be the original language. This is where it becomes very interesting because it implies that something came before … as original documentation, though more than likely an oral tradition, which may support the notion that Thomas [may have written] this gospel prior to his death … possibly mid-first century, and/or transmitted it to students or disciples. This might also explain some of the more Gnostic flavor (if that is how it is to be described) ascribed o the Thomas codex, if it were to have been committed to “paper” in a time of Gnostic influence ... prior to a more orthodox institution in the mid-fourth century. Even John has a somewhat Gnostic flavor to his writing which would be no surprise. The Gnostic movement began at least 10 years prior to his death and remained strong up into the beginning of the 3rd century.
Gnosticism may, in fact, only be a smokescreen for the orthodox authorities to do what authorities have done throughout the ages.
In other words, maybe gnosticism is no more than a convenient term, covering diverse religious movements, a label used by “orthodox” Christians to classify any group regarded as heretical. (56B; from Introduction, The Gospel of Thomas A Guidebook for Spiritual Guidance by Ron Miller and Stevan Davies.)
From a timing perspective, the writings that were hidden at Nag Hammadi and Qumran were decidedly handled in this manner because of the treatment of heresy, in light of the consensus of authorities and the formulation of the canon; by Bishops of what would become the [Roman] Catholic Church. This would have occurred mid to late fourth century. Unfortunately a significant amount of early Christian doctrine was set aside and/or destroyed. It would be a blessing if more of the above discoveries were to come to pass. We need more information on practices and belief systems from the time of Christ’s ministry through the 3rd & 4th centuries. This would help many of us in further defining and establishing authentic sources more accurately, earlier.
Scholars tend to agree that it is more likely, than not, that there was some level of disagreement regarding the aspects of Christ’s life, teachings, and the implications of His death & resurrection, especially in the years immediately following His brief ministry. Until the 3rd century there would have been more blending of tradition and interpretation, than afterword. While Gnostic by association and definition, the Gospel of Thomas is less “gnostic” in content, and more in line with the Canonical and Synoptic Gospels. As well, there are strong ties to Old Testament traditional writings (prophetic and legal) most of which are reflected in the sayings of Jesus inside and outside the Canon. This “red thread” of inspiration will be better mapped out in the study of the individual sayings, all 114 of them.
And it was only later, as noted in the previous paragraph, that the Gospels as we know them, were distilled … and this is what we have come to accept and defend as a western Christian culture. Is there more that is yet to be revealed? It appears that John thought so for he said this in conclusion (John 21:25), And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books which were written. (13B;pg 1433)
Are there portions willingly excluded by the corporate/orthodox (“catholic”) church for obvious reasons of self-preservation; to preserve authority? Were there ulterior motives? I am certain of it. The edifice we call the church cannot truly stand in as the body of Christ when conflict arises and the essence of who He is, and who we serve, is called into question against it. We presume to know the mind and the will of God, as though we might put Him in a box of our own liking. The development of the Canon and the distinguishing of what is heresy is a perfect example. We are men, and as such have misrepresented God at every turn, even in our moments of best intention. Why? Because we cannot put into words the Great Mystery, let alone decide who is more right or righteous than another. Thankfully, God does preserve the essentials, but man has always been in conflict over serving self or serving the best interest of The Kingdom. Many good men have been confused in this pursuit. It is my firm belief that God, as a perfect God, will continue to reveal what we need to know, and will provide us the necessary discernment through the Holy Spirit as we absorbed in the process of sorting the Word from the world. For all we don’t know, there is one thing we can be absolutely certain of … Christ is King!
Some have said that this approach (being one with the whole creation, etc.) is a sort of pagan approach verging on pantheism. The dictionary says this about Gnosticism …a system of mystical religious and philosophical doctrines, combining Christianity with Greek and Oriental philosophies, propagated by early Christian sects that were denounced as heretical. (Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary; copyright 1983; Edited under Jean L. McKechnie; Dorset & Babler)
The Gnostics basically believed that wisdom and understanding (knowing) was the true way to experience Christ, and therefore the Father. This was in opposition to more orthodox methods of faith, and more predominately, works. And that Christ was divine, not of the flesh, but appeared so in His need to reveal Himself. It is true that Gnostics did blend and appear at times to misinterpret the true faith, but so have various splinter groups to this day. In fact, very large congregations generally have very closed minds on some things and very open minds on others. It is personal revelation, not doctrine, that is at the heart of Christianity. Many are mislead by well-meaning clergy who want to appeal to the masses. Gnostics were no different. While some were docetic in their presentation of Jesus, and others did promote forged authorship, this is an oversimplification of right and wrong; it does drill down to the essence of why conflict arose in the centuries following the Resurrection. I believe it requires a combination of these often conflicted methods of experience and interpretation, i.e. tradition and Spirit that must be married. There is a need to reflect on early church practices, especially the more charismatic and ecstatic experiences. It’s the excitement we need, and while a need to discern, to withhold the rod of judgement. God will perform that task at His pleasure, in His time. We can only be prepared, study and practice that which is right in that it glorifies and praises Christ as Lord.
Keep in mind that Gnostic Christians varied widely in their approach to the understanding of who God was, and who Christ was and their relationship to Him as worshipers. Often they divided the physical and spiritual realms, believing that Christ in the flesh was but a phantom. We know that the spirit does rise above the flesh which is a temporary residence. As with modern divisions within the faith, such as occur with varying & conflicting denominations or sects, many have followed leaders who are notably charismatic and or profound thinkers. It is said that the church today is more harmonious in practice, despite denominational rivalry, than in any other time in history. While that may be true, I am not convinced that the reasons for conformity are necessarily good ones. Something of the beauty is squeezed out in the name of conform-ation. No doubt, some have created self-serving cults of personality. Thomas was one of the more moderate in that he represented Christ in more intimate terms especially in light of what we now know through the Gospel of Q, John, etc., … that is to say he remained highly consistent with other known inspired works, especially Matthew, Mark, Luke, as well as the discarded Nicodemus and the Lost Gospel of Peter. There were many mysteries and serious questions unanswered in the hearts of those left in the wake of the most important event in human history, no … in the history of the cosmos.