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Gospel of Thomas

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The Gospel of Thomas (also known as the Coptic Gospel of Thomas<ref name="o742">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>) is a non-canonicalTemplate:Sfnp sayings gospel. It was discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945 among a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library. Scholars speculate the works were buried in response to a letter from Bishop Athanasius declaring a strict canon of Christian scripture. Most scholars place the composition during the second century,Template:Sfnp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> while some have proposed dates as late as 250 AD and others have traced its signs of origins back to 60 AD.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp Some scholars have seen it as evidence of the existence of a "Q source" that might have been similar in its form as a collection of sayings of Jesus, without any accounts of his deeds or his life and death, referred to as a sayings gospel, though most conclude that Thomas depends on or harmonizes the Synoptics.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The Coptic-language text, the second of seven contained in what scholars have designated as Nag Hammadi Codex II, comprises 114 sayings attributed to Jesus. Almost two-thirds of these sayings resemble those found in the canonical gospelsTemplate:Sfnp and its editio princeps counts more than 80% of parallels,Template:Sfnp while it is speculated that the other sayings were added from Gnostic tradition.Template:Sfnp Its place of origin may have been Syria, where Thomasine traditions were strong.Template:Sfnp Other scholars have suggested an Alexandrian origin.Template:Sfnp

The introduction states: "These are the hidden words that the living Jesus spoke and Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down."Template:Sfnp Didymus (Koine Greek) and Thomas (Aramaic) both mean "twin". Most scholars do not consider the Apostle Thomas the author of this document; the author remains unknown.Template:Sfnp Because of its discovery with the Nag Hammadi library, and the cryptic nature, it was widely thought the document originated within a school of early Christians, proto-Gnostics.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp By contrast, critics have questioned whether the description of Thomas as an entirely gnostic gospel is based solely on the fact it was found along with gnostic texts at Nag Hammadi.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp

The Gospel of Thomas is very different in tone and structure from other New Testament apocrypha and the four canonical Gospels. Unlike the canonical Gospels, it is not a narrative account of Jesus' life; instead, it consists of logia (sayings) attributed to Jesus, sometimes stand-alone, sometimes embedded in short dialogues or parables; 13 of its 16 parables are also found in the Synoptic Gospels. The text contains a possible allusion to the death of Jesus in logion 65Template:Sfnp (Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen), but does not mention his crucifixion, his resurrection, or the Last Judgment; nor does it mention a messianic understanding of Jesus.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp

Finds and publicationEdit

File:P. Oxy. 1.jpg
P. Oxy. 1
File:Nag Hammadi Codex II.jpg
Nag Hammadi Codex II, folio 32, the beginning of the Gospel of Thomas

The manuscript of the Coptic text (CG II), found in 1945 at Nag Hammadi in Egypt, is dated at around 340 AD. It was first published in a photographic edition in 1956.<ref group=note>For photocopies of the manuscript see: {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> This was followed three years later (1959) by the first English-language translation, with Coptic transcription.Template:Sfnp In 1977, James M. Robinson edited the first complete collection of English translations of the Nag Hammadi texts.Template:Sfnp The Gospel of Thomas has been translated and annotated worldwide in many languages.

The original Coptic manuscript is now the property of the Coptic Museum in Cairo, Egypt, Department of Manuscripts.Template:Sfnp

Oxyrhynchus papyrus fragmentsEdit

After the Coptic version of the complete text was discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, scholars soon realized that three different Greek text fragments previously found at Oxyrhynchus (the Oxyrhynchus Papyri), also in Egypt, were part of the Gospel of Thomas.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp These three papyrus fragments of Thomas date to between 130 and 250 AD.

Prior to the Nag Hammadi library discovery, the sayings of Jesus found in Oxyrhynchus were known simply as Logia Iesu. The corresponding Uncial script Greek fragments of the Gospel of Thomas, found in Oxyrhynchus are:

  • P. Oxy. 1: fragments of logia 26 through 33, with the last two sentences of logion 77 in the Coptic version included at the end of logion 30 herein.
  • P. Oxy. 654: fragments of the beginning through logion 7, logion 24 and logion 36 on the flip side of a papyrus containing surveying data.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

  • P. Oxy. 655: fragments of logia 36 through 39. 8 fragments designated a through h, whereof f and h have since been lost.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The wording of the Coptic sometimes differs markedly from the earlier Greek Oxyrhynchus texts, the extreme case being that the last portion of logion 30 in the Greek is found at the end of logion 77 in the Coptic. This fact, along with the quite different wording Hippolytus uses when apparently quoting it (see below), suggests that the Gospel of Thomas "may have circulated in more than one form and passed through several stages of redaction."Template:Sfnp

Although it is generally thought that the Gospel of Thomas was first composed in Greek, there is evidence that the Coptic Nag Hammadi text is a translation from Syriac (see Syriac origin).

AttestationEdit

The earliest surviving written references to the Gospel of Thomas are found in the writings of Hippolytus of Rome (Template:C.) and Origen of Alexandria (Template:C.).Template:Sfnp Hippolytus wrote in his Refutation of All Heresies 5.7.20:

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[The Naassenes] speakTemplate:Nbsp[...] of a nature which is both hidden and revealed at the same time and which they call the thought-for kingdom of heaven which is in a human being. They transmit a tradition concerning this in the Gospel entitled "According to Thomas," which states expressly, "The one who seeks me will find me in children of seven years and older, for there, hidden in the fourteenth aeon, I am revealed."{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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This appears to be a reference to saying 4 of Thomas, although the wording differs significantly. As translated by Thomas O. Lambdin, saying 4 reads: "Jesus said, 'the man old in days will not hesitate to ask a small child seven days old about the place of life, and he will live. For many who are first will become last, and they will become one and the same".Template:Sfnp In this context, the preceding reference to the "sought-after reign of the heavens within a person" appears to be a reference to sayings 2 and 3.Template:Sfnp Hippolytus also appears to quote saying 11 in Refutation 5.8.32, but without attribution.Template:Sfnp

Origen listed the "Gospel according to Thomas" as being among the heterodox apocryphal gospels known to him (Hom. in Luc. 1). He condemned a book called "Gospel of Thomas" as heretical; it is not clear that it is the same gospel of Thomas, however, as he possibly meant the Infancy Gospel of Thomas.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

In the 4th and 5th centuries, various Church Fathers wrote that the Gospel of Thomas was highly valued by Mani. In the 4th century, Cyril of Jerusalem mentioned a "Gospel of Thomas" twice in his Catechesis: "The Manichaeans also wrote a Gospel according to Thomas, which being tinctured with the fragrance of the evangelic title corrupts the souls of the simple sort."<ref>Cyril Catechesis 4.36</ref> and "Let none read the Gospel according to Thomas: for it is the work not of one of the twelve Apostles, but of one of the three wicked disciples of Manes."<ref>Cyril Catechesis 6.31</ref> The 5th-century Gelasian Decree includes "A Gospel attributed to Thomas which the Manichaean use" in its list of heretical books.Template:Sfnp

Date of compositionEdit

Richard Valantasis writes:

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Assigning a date to the Gospel of Thomas is very complex because it is difficult to know precisely to what a date is being assigned. Scholars have proposed a date as early as 60Template:NbspAD or as late as 140Template:NbspAD, depending upon whether the Gospel of Thomas is identified with the original core of sayings, or with the author's published text, or with the Greek or Coptic texts, or with parallels in other literature.Template:Sfnp {{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Valantasis and other scholars argue that it is difficult to date Thomas because, as a collection of logia without a narrative framework, individual sayings could have been added to it gradually over time.Template:Sfnp Valantasis dates Thomas to 100–110 AD, with some of the material certainly coming from the first stratum, which is dated to 30–60 AD.Template:Sfnp J. R. Porter dates the Gospel of Thomas to 250 AD.Template:Sfnp

Scholars generally fall into one of two main camps: an "early camp" favoring a date for the core "before the end of the first century,"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> prior to or approximately contemporary with the composition of the canonical gospels; and a more common "late camp" favoring a date in the 2nd century, after composition of the canonical gospels.<ref name="Bock2" group=quote/><ref group=quote>Template:Harvnb: "Most interpreters place its writing in the second century, understanding that many of its oral traditions are much older."</ref>

In August 2023, the Egypt Exploration Society published the second century Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 5575, which includes the earliest extant fragment from the Gospel of Thomas.<ref name=Moss>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=Holmes>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Argument for early compositionEdit

Form of the gospelEdit

Theissen and Merz argue the genre of a collection of sayings was one of the earliest forms in which material about Jesus was handed down.Template:Sfnp They assert that other collections of sayings, such as the Q source and the collection underlying Mark 4, were absorbed into larger narratives and no longer survive as independent documents, and that no later collections in this form survive.Template:Sfnp Marvin Meyer also asserted that the genre of a "sayings collection" is indicative of the 1st century,Template:Sfnp and that in particular the "use of parables without allegorical amplification" seems to antedate the canonical gospels.Template:Sfnp

Independence from synoptic gospelsEdit

Stevan L. Davies argues that the apparent independence of the ordering of sayings in Thomas from that of their parallels in the synoptics shows that Thomas was not evidently reliant upon the canonical gospels and probably predated them.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp Some authors argue that Thomas was a source for Mark, usually considered the earliest of the synoptic gospels.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Several authors argue that when the logia in Thomas do have parallels in the synoptics, the version in Thomas often seems closer to the source. Theissen and Merz give sayings 31 (Rejection at Nazareth) and 65 (Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen) as examples of this.Template:Sfnp Koester agrees, citing especially the parables contained in sayings 8, 9, 57, 63, 64 and 65.Template:Sfnp In the few instances where the version in Thomas seems to be dependent on the synoptics, Koester suggests, this may be due to the influence of the person who translated the text from Greek into Coptic.Template:Sfnp

Koester also argues that the absence of narrative materials, such as those found in the canonical gospels, in Thomas makes it unlikely that the gospel is "an eclectic excerpt from the gospels of the New Testament".Template:Sfnp He also cites the absence of the eschatological sayings considered characteristic of Q source to show the independence of Thomas from that source.Template:Sfnp

Intertextuality with the Gospel of JohnEdit

Template:Update Another argument for an early date is what some scholars have suggested is an interplay between the Gospel of John and the logia of Thomas. Parallels between the two have been taken to suggest that Thomas's logia preceded John's work, and that the latter was making a point-by-point riposte to Thomas, either in real or mock conflict. This seeming dialectic has been pointed out by several New Testament scholars, notably Gregory J. Riley,Template:Sfnp April DeConick,Template:Sfnp and Elaine Pagels.Template:Sfnp Though differing in approach, they argue that several verses in the Gospel of John are best understood as responses to a Thomasine community and its beliefs. Pagels, for example, says that the Gospel of John states that Jesus contains the divine light, while several of Thomas's sayings refer to the light born 'within'.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Logia 24, 50, 61, 83</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The Gospel of John is the only canonical one that gives Thomas the Apostle a dramatic role and spoken part, and Thomas is the only character therein described as being Template:Transliteration (Template:Gloss), despite the failings of virtually all the Johannine characters to live up to the author's standards of belief. With respect to the famous story of "Doubting Thomas",<ref>Jn. 20:26–29</ref> it is suggestedTemplate:Sfnp that the author of John may have been denigrating or ridiculing a rival school of thought. In another apparent contrast, John's text matter-of-factly presents a bodily resurrection as if this is a sine qua non of the faith; in contrast, Thomas's insights about the spirit-and-body are more nuanced.<ref>Logia 29, 80, 87</ref> For Thomas, resurrection seems more a cognitive event of spiritual attainment, one even involving a certain discipline or asceticism. Again, an apparently denigrating portrayal in the "Doubting Thomas" story may either be taken literally, or as a kind of mock "comeback" to Thomas's logia: not as an outright censuring of Thomas, but an improving gloss, as Thomas's thoughts about the spirit and body are not dissimilar from those presented elsewhere in John.<ref group=note>e.g. Jn. 3:6, 6:52–6 – but pointedly contrasting these with 6:63.</ref> John portrays Thomas as physically touching the risen Jesus, inserting fingers and hands into his body, and ending with a shout. Pagels interprets this as signifying one-upmanship by John, who is forcing Thomas to acknowledge Jesus's bodily nature. She writes that "he shows Thomas giving up his search for experiential truthTemplate:Sndhis 'unbelief'Template:Sndto confess what John sees as the truth".Template:Sfnp The point of these examples, as used by Riley and Pagels, is to support the argument that the text of Thomas must have existed and have gained a following at the time of the writing of the Gospel of John, and that the importance of the Thomasine logia was great enough that the author of John felt the necessity of weaving them into their own narrative.

As this scholarly debate continued, theologian Christopher W. Skinner disagreed with Riley, DeConick, and Pagels over any possible John–Thomas interplay, and concluded that in the book of John, Thomas the disciple "is merely one stitch in a wider literary pattern where uncomprehending characters serve as foils for Jesus's words and deeds."Template:Sfnp

Role of JamesEdit

Albert Hogeterp argues that the Gospel's saying 12, which attributes leadership of the community to James the Just rather than to Peter, agrees with the description of the early Jerusalem church by Paul in Galatians 2:1–14<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> and may reflect a tradition predating 70 AD.Template:Sfnp Meyer also lists "uncertainty about James the righteous, the brother of Jesus" as characteristic of a 1st-century origin.Template:Sfnp

In later traditions (most notably in the Acts of Thomas, Book of Thomas the Contender, etc.), Thomas is regarded as the twin brother of Jesus.Template:Sfnp

Depiction of Peter and MatthewEdit

In saying 13, Peter and Matthew are depicted as unable to understand the true significance or identity of Jesus. Patterson argues that this can be interpreted as a criticism against the school of Christianity associated with the Gospel of Matthew, and that "[t]his sort of rivalry seems more at home in the first century than later", when all the apostles had become revered figures.Template:Sfnp

Parallel with PaulEdit

According to Meyer, Thomas's saying 17Template:Snd"I shall give you what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard and no hand has touched, and what has not come into the human heart"Template:Snd is strikingly similar to what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:9,<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref>Template:Sfnp which was itself an allusion to Isaiah 64:4.<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref>

Argument for late compositionEdit

The late camp dates Thomas some time after 100 AD, generally in the early second century.<ref name="Bock2" group=quote>Template:Harvnb: "Most date the gospel to the second century and place its origin in SyriaTemplate:Nbsp[...] Most scholars regard the book as an early second-century work."(61); "However, for most scholars, the bulk of it is later reflecting a second-century work."(63)</ref><ref name="Bock1" group=quote>Template:Harvnb: "for most scholars the Gospel of Thomas is seen as an early-second century text."</ref> They generally believe that although the text was composed around the mid-second century, it contains earlier sayings such as those originally found in the New Testament gospels of which Thomas was in some sense dependent in addition to inauthentic and possibly authentic independent sayings not found in any other extant text. J. R. Porter dates Thomas much later, to the mid-third century.Template:Sfnp

Dependence on the New TestamentEdit

Several scholars have argued that the sayings in Thomas reflect conflations and harmonisations dependent on the canonical gospels. For example, saying 10 and 16 appear to contain a redacted harmonisation of Luke 12:49,<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> 12:51–52<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> and Matthew 10:34–35.<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> In this case it has been suggested that the dependence is best explained by the author of Thomas making use of an earlier harmonised oral tradition based on Matthew and Luke.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp Biblical scholar Craig A. Evans also subscribes to this view and notes that "Over half of the New Testament writings are quoted, paralleled, or alluded to in Thomas... I'm not aware of a Christian writing prior to 150 AD that references this much of the New Testament."Template:Sfnp Mark Goodacre also argues that Thomas is dependent on the Synoptics. <ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Another argument made for the late dating of Thomas is based upon the fact that saying 5 in the original Greek (Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 654) seems to follow the vocabulary used in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 8:17),<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> and not the vocabulary used in the Gospel of Mark (Mark 4:22).<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> According to this argumentTemplate:Sndwhich presupposes firstly the rectitude of the two-source hypothesis (widely held among current New Testament scholars),<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> in which the author of Luke is seen as having used the pre-existing gospel according to Mark plus a lost Q source to compose their gospelTemplate:Sndif the author of Thomas did, as saying 5 suggests, refer to a pre-existing Gospel of Luke, rather than Mark's vocabulary, then the Gospel of Thomas must have been composed after both Mark and Luke, the latter of which is dated to between 60 and 90 AD.

Another saying that employs similar vocabulary to that used in Luke rather than Mark is saying 31 in the original Greek (Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 1), where Luke 4:24's term Template:Transliteration (Template:Gloss)<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> is employed rather than Mark 6:4's Template:Transliteration (Template:Gloss).<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> The word Template:Transliteration (in all its cases and genders) is clearly typical of Luke, since it is only employed by the author in the canonical gospels Luke 4:19,<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> 4:24, and Acts 10:35.<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> Thus, the argument runs, the Greek Thomas has clearly been at least influenced by Luke's characteristic vocabulary.<ref group=note>For general discussion, see Template:Harvp. See also Template:Harvp.</ref>

J. R. Porter states that, because around half of the sayings in Thomas have parallels in the synoptic gospels, it is "possible that the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas were selected directly from the canonical gospels and were either reproduced more or less exactly or amended to fit the author's distinctive theological outlook."Template:Sfnp According to John P. Meier, scholars predominantly conclude that Thomas depends on or harmonizes the Synoptics.Template:Sfnp

Syriac originEdit

Several scholars argue that Thomas is dependent on Syriac writings, including unique versions of the canonical gospels. They contend that many sayings of the Gospel of Thomas are more similar to Syriac translations of the canonical gospels than their record in the original Greek. Craig A. Evans states that saying 54 in Thomas, which speaks of the poor and the kingdom of heaven, is more similar to the Syriac version of Matthew 5:3 than the Greek version of that passage or the parallel in Luke 6:20.Template:Sfnp

Klyne Snodgrass notes that saying 65–66 of Thomas containing the Parable of the Wicked Tenants appears to be dependent on the early harmonisation of Mark and Luke found in the old Syriac gospels. He concludes that, "Thomas, rather than representing the earliest form, has been shaped by this harmonizing tendency in Syria. If the Gospel of Thomas were the earliest, we would have to imagine that each of the evangelists or the traditions behind them expanded the parable in different directions and then that in the process of transmission the text was trimmed back to the form it has in the Syriac Gospels. It is much more likely that Thomas, which has a Syrian provenance, is dependent on the tradition of the canonical Gospels that has been abbreviated and harmonized by oral transmission."Template:Sfnp

Nicholas Perrin argues that Thomas is dependent on the Diatessaron, which was composed shortly after 172 by Tatian in Syria.Template:Sfnp Perrin explains the order of the sayings by attempting to demonstrate that almost all adjacent sayings are connected by Syriac catchwords, whereas in Coptic or Greek, catchwords have been found for only less than half of the pairs of adjacent sayings.Template:Sfnp Peter J. Williams analyzed Perrin's alleged Syriac catchwords and found them implausible.Template:Sfnp Robert F. Shedinger wrote that since Perrin attempts to reconstruct an Old Syriac version of Thomas without first establishing Thomas's reliance on the Diatessaron, Perrin's logic seems circular.Template:Sfnp

Lack of apocalyptic themesEdit

Bart D. Ehrman argues that the historical Jesus was an apocalyptic preacher, and that his apocalyptic beliefs are recorded in the earliest Christian documents: Mark and the authentic Pauline epistles. The earliest Christians believed Jesus would soon return, and their beliefs are echoed in the earliest Christian writings. The Gospel of Thomas proclaims that the Kingdom of God is already present for those who understand the secret message of Jesus (saying 113), and lacks apocalyptic themes. Because of this, Ehrman argues, the Gospel of Thomas was probably composed by a Gnostic some time in the early 2nd century.Template:Sfnp Ehrman also argued against the authenticity of the sayings the Gospel of Thomas attributes to Jesus.Template:Sfnp

Elaine Pagels points out the Gospel of Thomas promulgates the Kingdom of God not as a final destination but a state of self-discovery. Additionally, the Gospel of Thomas conveys that Jesus ridiculed those who thought of the Kingdom of God in literal terms, as if it were a specific place. Pagels goes on to argue that, through saying 22, readers are to believe the "Kingdom" symbolizes a state of transformed consciousness.Template:Sfnp

John P. Meier has repeatedly argued against the historicity of the Gospel of Thomas, stating that it cannot be a reliable source for the quest of the historical Jesus and also considers it a Gnostic text.Template:Sfnp He has also argued against the authenticity of the parables found exclusively in the Gospel of Thomas.Template:Sfnp Bentley Layton included the Gospel of Thomas into his list of Gnostic scriptures.Template:Sfnp

Craig A. Evans has argued that the Gospel of Thomas represents the theological motives of 2nd century Egyptian Christianity and is dependent on the Synoptic Gospels and the Diatesseron.Template:Sfnp

N.T. Wright, Anglican bishop and professor of New Testament history, also sees the dating of Thomas in the 2nd or 3rd century. Wright's reasoning for this dating is that the "narrative framework" of 1st-century Judaism and the New Testament is radically different from the worldview expressed in the sayings collected in the Gospel of Thomas. Thomas makes an anachronistic mistake by turning Jesus the Jewish prophet into a Hellenistic/Cynic philosopher. Wright concludes his section on the Gospel of Thomas in his book The New Testament and the People of God in this way:

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[Thomas's] implicit story has to do with a figure who imparts a secret, hidden wisdom to those close to him, so that they can perceive a new truth and be saved by it. "The Thomas Christians are told the truth about their divine origins, and given the secret passwords that will prove effective in the return journey to their heavenly home." This is, obviously, the non-historical story of GnosticismTemplate:Nbsp[...] It is simply the case that, on good historical grounds, it is far more likely that the book represents a radical translation, and indeed subversion, of first-century Christianity into a quite different sort of religion, than that it represents the original of which the longer gospels are distortionsTemplate:Nbsp[...] Thomas reflects a symbolic universe, and a worldview, which are radically different from those of the early Judaism and Christianity.Template:Sfnp {{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Relation to the New Testament canonEdit

File:Nag Hammadi coptic.gif
Last page of the Gospel of Thomas

Although arguments about some potential New Testament books, such as The Shepherd of Hermas and the Book of Revelation, continued well into the 4th century, four canonical gospels, attributed to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, were accepted among proto-orthodox Christians at least as early as the mid-2nd century. Tatian's widely used Diatessaron, compiled between 160 and 175 AD, utilized the four gospels without any consideration of others. Irenaeus of Lyons wrote in the late 2nd century that: "since there are four-quarters of the earthTemplate:Nbsp[...] it is fitting that the church should have four pillarsTemplate:Nbsp[...] the four Gospels."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and then shortly thereafter made the first known quotation from a fourth gospel – the now-canonical version of the Gospel of John. The late 2nd-century Muratorian fragment also recognizes only the three synoptic gospels and John.

Bible scholar Bruce Metzger wrote regarding the formation of the New Testament canon:

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Although the fringes of the emerging canon remained unsettled for generations, a high degree of unanimity concerning the greater part of the New Testament was attained among the very diverse and scattered congregations of believers not only throughout the Mediterranean world, but also over an area extending from Britain to Mesopotamia.Template:Sfnp{{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Relation to the Thomasine milieuEdit

The question also arises as to various sects' usage of other works attributed to Thomas and their relation to this work.

The Book of Thomas the Contender, also from Nag Hammadi, is foremost among these, but the extensive Acts of Thomas provides the mythological connections. The short and comparatively straightforward Apocalypse of Thomas has no immediate connection with the synoptic gospels, while the canonical Jude – if the name can be taken to refer to Judas Thomas Didymus – certainly attests to early intra-Christian conflict.

The Infancy Gospel of Thomas, shorn of its mythological connections, is difficult to connect specifically to the Gospel of Thomas, but the Acts of Thomas contains the Hymn of the Pearl whose content is reflected in the Psalms of Thomas found in Manichaean literature. These psalms, which otherwise reveal Mandaean connections, also contain material overlapping with the Gospel of Thomas.Template:Sfnp

Relation to other Christian textsEdit

Scholars such as Sellew (2018) have also noted striking parallels between the Gospel of Thomas and Apophthegmata Patrum.<ref>Sellew, Melissa Harl. "Reading Jesus in the Desert. The Gospel of Thomas meets the Apophthegmata Patrum", in The Nag Hammadi Library and Late Antique Egypt, ed. Hugo Lundhaug and Lance Jenott. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2018, 81-106.</ref>

Importance and authorEdit

File:P. Oxy. 655.jpg
P. Oxy. 655

Considered by some as one of the earliest accounts of the teachings of Jesus, the Gospel of Thomas is regarded by some scholars as one of the most important texts in understanding early Christianity outside the New Testament.Template:Sfnp In terms of faith, however, no major Christian group accepts this gospel as canonical or authoritative. It is an important work for scholars working on the Q document, which itself is thought to be a collection of sayings or teachings upon which the gospels of Matthew and Luke are partly based. Although no copy of Q has ever been discovered, the fact that Thomas is similarly a "sayings" gospel is viewed by some scholars as an indication that the early Christians did write collections of the sayings of Jesus, bolstering the Q hypothesis.Template:Sfnp

Modern scholars do not consider Thomas the Apostle the author of this document and the author remains unknown. J. Menard produced a summary of the academic consensus in the mid-1970s that stated that the gospel was probably a very late text written by a Gnostic author, thus having very little relevance to the study of the early development of Christianity. Scholarly views of Gnosticism and the Gospel of Thomas have since become more nuanced and diverse.Template:Sfnp Paterson Brown, for example, has argued forcefully that the three Coptic Gospels of Thomas, Philip and Truth are demonstrably not Gnostic writings, since all three explicitly affirm the basic reality and sanctity of incarnate life, which Gnosticism by definition considers illusory and evil.Template:Sfnp

In the 4th century Cyril of Jerusalem considered the author a disciple of Mani who was also called Thomas.Template:Sfnp Cyril stated:

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Mani had three disciples: Thomas, Baddas and Hermas. Let no one read the Gospel according to Thomas. For he is not one of the twelve apostles but one of the three wicked disciples of Mani.Template:Sfnp {{#if:|{{#if:|}}

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Many scholars consider the Gospel of Thomas to be a gnostic text, since it was found in a library among others, it contains Gnostic themes, and perhaps presupposes a Gnostic worldview.Template:Sfnp Others reject this interpretation, because Thomas lacks the full-blown mythology of Gnosticism as described by Irenaeus of Lyons (Template:C.), and because Gnostics frequently appropriated and used a large "range of scripture from Genesis to the Psalms to Homer, from the Synoptics to John to the letters of Paul."Template:Sfnp The mysticism of the Gospel of Thomas also lacks many themes found in second century Gnosticism,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> including any allusion to a fallen Sophia or an evil Demiurge.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> According to David W. Kim, the association of the Thomasines and Gnosticism is anachronistic and the book seems to predate the Gnostic movements.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The historical JesusEdit

Some scholars (most notably those belonging to the Jesus Seminar) believe that the Gospel of Thomas was written independently of the canonical gospels, and therefore is a useful guide to historical Jesus research.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp These scholars may utilize one of several critical tools in biblical scholarship, the criterion of multiple attestation, to help build cases for historical reliability of the sayings of Jesus. By finding those sayings in the Gospel of Thomas that overlap with the Gospel of the Hebrews, Q, Mark, Matthew, Luke, John, and Paul, scholars feel such sayings represent "multiple attestations" and therefore are more likely to come from a historical Jesus than sayings that are only singly attested.Template:Sfnp However, Bart Ehrman states that the Gospel of Thomas has very little value in historical Jesus research, because it places no importance on the physical experiences of Jesus (e.g. his crucifixion) or the physical existence of believers.<ref>Jesus: Apocalyptic Prophet of the New Millennium by Bart D. Ehrman 2001 Template:ISBN pp. 72–78</ref>

Representation of womenEdit

Interpretations of the Gospel of Thomas's view of women vary widely, with some arguing that it is chauvinistic, while others view it as comparatively positive.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Women disciplesEdit

The Gospel of Thomas names six people who are close to Jesus and, of these, two are the women disciples Mary Magdalene and Salome.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite book</ref> Professor Antti Marjanen suggests that their inclusion is significant and purposeful because of how few people are named.<ref name=":2" /> He argues that, in logio 61 and 21, their discussions with Jesus clarify the nature of discipleship. They are shown not as "ones who misunderstand, but as ones who do not quite understand enough."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This is shown to be the case for all of the disciples and Marjanen states that "Mary Magdalene's or Salome's lack of understanding should not be overemphasized."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Logion 114Edit

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Simon Peter said to them, "Mary should leave us, for females are not worthy of the life." Jesus said, "Look, I am going to guide her in order to make her male, so that she too may become a living spirit resembling you males. For every female who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven."{{#if:Logion 114|{{#if:|}}

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The final saying of the Gospel of Thomas is one of the most controversial and has been highly debated by academics.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref> It has been criticised for implying that women are spiritually inferior, but some scholars argue that it is symbolic, with "male" representing the prelapsarian state.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">Template:Cite journal</ref> Jorunn Jacobsen Buckley argued that Logion 114 represents a process with females becoming male before achieving the prelapsarian state, a reversal of the Genesis story in which women were made from men.<ref name=":1" /> Melissa Harl Sellew's trans-centred reading emphasizes the idea that the outer appearance must be transformed to reflect the inner reality.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Comparison of the major gospelsEdit

The material in the comparison chart is from Gospel Parallels by B. H. Throckmorton,Template:Sfnp The Five Gospels by R. W. Funk,Template:Sfnp The Gospel According to the Hebrews by E. B. NicholsonTemplate:Sfnp and The Hebrew Gospel and the Development of the Synoptic Tradition by J. R. Edwards.Template:Sfnp

Concept Matthew, Mark, Luke John Thomas Nicholson/Edwards Hebrew Gospel
New Covenant To love God with all one's being and love one's neighbor as oneself Love is the New Commandment given by Jesus<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> Secret knowledge, love one's friends<ref>Logion 25</ref> Love one another<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Forgiveness Very important – particularly in Matthew and Luke<ref>Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse</ref> Assumed to be important<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> Mention of being forgiven in relation to blasphemy against the Father and Son, but no forgiveness to those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit<ref>Logion 44</ref> Very important – forgiveness is a central theme and the Nicholson/Edwards Hebrew Gospel goes into the greatest detail<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Lord's Prayer Present in Matthew and Luke, but not Mark<ref name="Trite">Trite</ref> Not mentioned Not mentioned Important – Template:Transliteration or Template:Gloss<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref><ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Love and the poor Very importantTemplate:Sndthe rich young man is present in all three gospels<ref>Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse and Template:Bibleverse</ref> Assumed to be important<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> Important<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref> Very importantTemplate:Sndthe rich young man is present<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Jesus starts his ministry Jesus meets John the Baptist and is baptized in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar<ref>Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse</ref> Jesus meets John the Baptist, 46 years after Herod's Temple is built (John 2:20)<ref>Template:Bibleverse</ref> Only speaks of John the Baptist<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref> Jesus meets John the Baptist and is baptized. This gospel goes into the greatest detail.<ref name="Epiphanius, Panarion 30:13">Epiphanius, Panarion 30:13</ref>
Number of disciples Twelve<ref name="Matt 10:1, Mk 6:8, Lk 9:3">Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse</ref> Twelve<ref name="Jn 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20">Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse, Template:Bibleverse</ref> Not mentioned<ref name="Logion 13">Logion 13</ref> Twelve<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Inner circle of disciples Peter, Andrew, James and John<ref name="Matt 10:1, Mk 6:8, Lk 9:3"/> Peter, Andrew, James and the Beloved Disciple<ref name="Jn 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20"/> Thomas,<ref name="Logion 13"/> James the Just<ref>Logion 12</ref> Peter, Andrew, James, and John<ref name="Epiphanius, Panarion 30:13"/>
Other disciples Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James, Simon the Zealot, Judas Thaddaeus and Judas Iscariot<ref name="Jn 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20"/> Philip, Nathanael, Thomas, Judas (not Iscariot) and Judas Iscariot<ref name="Jn 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 21:20"/> Peter,<ref name="Logion 13"/><ref name="Logion 114">Logion 114</ref> Matthew,<ref name="Logion 13"/> Mariam,<ref name="Logion 114"/><ref>Logion 21</ref> and Salome<ref>Logion 61</ref> Matthew, James the Just (brother of Jesus), Simon the Zealot, Thaddaeus, Judas Iscariot<ref>Epiphanius, Panarion 30:13, Jerome, On Illustrious Men, 2</ref>
Possible authors Unknown;<ref group=note>Although several Fathers say Matthew wrote the Gospel of the Hebrews they are silent about Greek Matthew found in the Bible. Modern scholars are in agreement that Matthew did not write Greek Matthew, which is 300 lines longer than the Hebrew Gospel (See Template:Harvnb)</ref> Mark the Evangelist and Luke the Evangelist The Beloved Disciple<ref group=note>Suggested by Irenaeus first</ref> Unknown Matthew the Evangelist (or otherwise unknown)<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Virgin birth account Described in Matthew and Luke; Mark only makes reference to a "Mother"<ref>Matthew 1:16, 18–25, 2:11, 13:53–55, Mark 6:2–3, Luke 1:30–35, 2:4–21, 34</ref> Not mentioned, although the "Word becomes flesh" in John 1:14 N/A as this is a gospel of Jesus's sayings Not mentioned
Jesus's baptism Described<ref name="Trite"/> Seen in flashback (John 1:32–34)<ref name="Trite"/> N/A Described great detail<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref>
Preaching style Brief one-liners; parables<ref name="Trite"/> Essay format, midrash<ref name="Trite"/> Sayings, parables<ref group=quote>Template:Cite book</ref> Brief one-liners; parables<ref name="Trite"/>
Storytelling ParablesTemplate:Sfnp Figurative language and metaphorTemplate:Sfnp Hidden meanings in sayings, parables<ref>Logion 109</ref> ParablesTemplate:Sfnp
Jesus's theology 1st-century populist Judaism<ref name="Hillel" group=note>Similar to beliefs taught by Hillel the Elder. (e.g. "golden rule") Hillel</ref> Critical of Jewish authorities<ref>Template:Bibleverse and Template:Bibleverse</ref> Disputed, possibly proto-Gnostic 1st-century Judaism<ref name="Hillel" group=note/>
Miracles Many miracles Seven Signs N/A Fewer miracles<ref>Jerome, Commentary on Matthew 2</ref>
Duration of ministry Not mentioned, possibly 3 years according to the Parable of the barren fig tree (Luke 13) 3 years (four Passovers are mentioned)<ref>John 2:13, 4:35, 5:1, 6:4, 19:14</ref> N/A 1 year<ref name="Events leading up to Passover" group=note>Events leading up to Passover</ref>
Location of ministry Mainly Galilee Mainly Judea, near Jerusalem N/A Mainly Galilee
Passover meal Body and Blood = bread and wine Interrupts meal for foot washing N/A Hebrew Passover is celebrated but details are N/A<ref>Epiphanius, Panarion 30:22</ref>
Burial shroud A single piece of cloth Multiple pieces of cloth<ref group=note>As was the Jewish practice at the time. (John 20:5–7)</ref> N/A Given to the High Priest<ref>Jerome, On Illustrious Men, 2</ref>
Resurrection Mary and the women are the first to learn that Jesus has arisen<ref>Matthew 28:1, Mark 16:1, Luke 24:1</ref> John adds detailed account of Mary's experience of the Resurrection<ref>John 20:11</ref> N/A In the Gospel of the Hebrews is the unique account of Jesus appearing to his brother, James the Just.<ref>Jerome, On Illustrious Men, 2</ref>

See alsoEdit

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