This is a very interesting discovery to me. I wonder how long before they put a translation of the text out. Hopefully, it will get people to think about the NT canon and how it was formed. Whether they agree or disagree with it, I like seeing the discussion and the thoughts. I think that kind of stuff is always fun to learn more about.

 

Maybe the document will make it out to Chicago like the Dead Sea scrolls did a few years back. I thought those were pretty amazing too.

This is a very interesting discovery to me.  I wonder how long before they put a translation of the text out.  Hopefully, it will get people to think about the NT canon and how it was formed.  Whether they agree or disagree with it, I like seeing the discussion and the thoughts.  I think that kind of stuff is always fun to learn more about.

 

Maybe the document will make it out to Chicago like the Dead Sea scrolls did a few years back.  I thought those were pretty amazing too.

 

That was one exhibit I was truely sad I missed when it was here. I love biblical history, and for this reason and that, never made it up there to see them. Hopefully they come back someday.

Although I'm not familiar with them - I love the idea of the Gnostic Gospels. I love the fact that there are competing stories about Christ's life. And I love that some of them aren't afraid to portray Jesus in an unflattering light at times. Isn't there a story in the Infancy gospel about how Jesus make a dove out of clay and then kills it? And then he feels bad about it?

 

Right now I'm reading a book called "The End of Faith." I think it's meant to be a modern day update of Neitzche's whole "God is dead" thing. I don't know if he makes a good point or not to be honest because my thinking is so clouded by his obvious and unmasked contempt for religion.

Although I'm not familiar with them - I love the idea of the Gnostic Gospels. I love the fact that there are competing stories about Christ's life. And I love that some of them aren't afraid to portray Jesus in an unflattering light at times. Isn't there a story in the Infancy gospel about how Jesus make a dove out of clay and then kills it? And then he feels bad about it?

 

I don't know about the killing the doves part, I've not seen that. But, yes the doves from clay is from the NT apocrypha Gospel of Thomas. A passage in there talks about Jesus making 12 birds of clay and breathing life into them, upon which they all flew away singing. Most interesting to me has always been that this story, though not related in any of the canonical Gospels, was one of the "Prophet" Jesus stories actually recorded in the Koran (but it is only one bird there and not 12).

 

I agree with you about the coolness of the various biblical apocrypha, including James, Thomas, and the other Gnostic Gospels (now maybe Judas can be added to that). Theological epistemology, how spiritual knowledge is acquired, what is rote, what is scholarly, what is revelatory, etc., was one of the few things that kept me interested in theological studies up through high school.

Edited April 7, 200620 yr by FlaSoxxJim

Although I'm not familiar with them - I love the idea of the Gnostic Gospels. I love the fact that there are competing stories about Christ's life. And I love that some of them aren't afraid to portray Jesus in an unflattering light at times. Isn't there a story in the Infancy gospel about how Jesus make a dove out of clay and then kills it? And then he feels bad about it?

 

Right now I'm reading a book called "The End of Faith." I think it's meant to be a modern day update of Neitzche's whole "God is dead" thing. I don't know if he makes a good point or not to be honest because my thinking is so clouded by his obvious and unmasked contempt for religion.

 

I too like that the Gnostic Gospels are out there. IMO, it gives more validity to the texts that were written close to when Jesus lives because IIRC, the Gnostic Gospels were written a couple hundreds years after the original gospels. That is right around the time that you would expect to see documents like that come out.

 

By that time, any eye witnesses had died, and I would think that people would start asking "Is that how it really happened?", or they would say "I think that it is more likely that it happened this way because I just cannot believe that."

 

IIRC, the council that decided on the canon of the NT came about as a result of things like the Gnostic Gospels that started appearing, and they wanted to get things set before they were overrun with all kinds of documents proclaiming to the "the Word of God."

Some of the gospels though came out approximately the same time as the "Big 4" if you will.... and were just excluded because they didn't fit together quite as nicely IIRC.

BUMP

 

Did anyone watch the special last night on the national geographic channel last night about this? I don't have the channel, and I am curious whether it is worth checking out on DVD later.

I too like that the Gnostic Gospels are out there.  IMO, it gives more validity to the texts that were written close to when Jesus lives because IIRC, the Gnostic Gospels were written a couple hundreds years after the original gospels.  That is right around the time that you would expect to see documents like that come out. 

 

By that time, any eye witnesses had died, and I would think that people would start asking "Is that how it really happened?", or they would say "I think that it is more likely that it happened this way because I just cannot believe that."

 

IIRC, the council that decided on the canon of the NT came about as a result of things like the Gnostic Gospels that started appearing, and they wanted to get things set before they were overrun with all kinds of documents proclaiming to the "the Word of God."

Although, the earliest Gospel (Mark) didn't come out until around the fall of the second temple (around 66 or 70 AD) so it's doubtful many of the people that wrote that were eyewitnesses. I understand the time componant, but I guess I'm more willing to accept the traditions of the early church as an important aspect of Christianity.

 

In my opinion John has more in common with the gnostics than with the synoptics.

 

I wish I had seen the special, SS, but no cable. Sad. If anyone did tape it I would gladly pay copy costs and postage for a copy.

Turns out my in-laws saw this was on later, and taped it for me after hearing me talk about this show. I have watched almost the first of two hours, and so far it is mostly archiology and scientific proof of the vailidity of the gospel. Interesting, but not what I was hoping for... I am hoping the second hour provides a little more of what I was hoping for, but I will let you all know how it is.