Freethought & Rationalism Archive

show_no_mercy · 10-31-2004, 12:02 AM

What's the history of this gospel? Was it a post-canonization forgery? Was it a gnostic christian gospel only?

premjan · 10-31-2004, 12:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by show_no_mercy

What's the history of this gospel? Was it a post-canonization forgery? Was it a gnostic christian gospel only?

some people think it was the original source material for all the other gospels.

Toto · 10-31-2004, 12:38 AM

Gospel of Thomas FAQ

Quote:

When was the Gospel of Thomas written?

This is a question hotly debated by scholars. Many scholars say that it was written at about the same time, even perhaps somewhat before, the gospels in the bible. Their argument is that most of the sayings in Thomas show no signs of having any dependence on, or knowledge of, the Biblical gospels and so Thomas' sayings derive from oral tradition and not from written Biblical texts. This doesn't seem to have been possible after the end of the first century when the Biblical texts began to be authoritative in Christianity. Other scholars find bits of evidence that indicate that Thomas was indeed dependent, in part, on Biblical texts, and surmise that the author of Thomas must have edited out almost all indications of the particular styles and ideas of the Biblical authors. Those scholars date Thomas in the mid second century A.D.

Peter Kirby's page..

Vorkosigan · 10-31-2004, 01:19 AM

doubled Toto's I see.

andrewcriddle · 10-31-2004, 09:14 AM

Some scholars such as Baarda Drijvers and Perrin link Thomas to the early Syriac harmony of the Gospels known as the Diatessaron and generally believed to have been composed by Tatian.

Such scholars often date Thomas in the late 2nd century CE.

Andrew Criddle

Chris Weimer · 10-31-2004, 01:50 PM

hmm... middle to late 2nd century, but certainly after Q.

Vinnie · 10-31-2004, 02:44 PM

Most of GThomas dates to the first century...

Vinnie

Chris Weimer · 10-31-2004, 03:18 PM

definitly, but there are a couple of quotes that aren't found with that time period. Maybe those were Nag Hammdi mutations...

Chris Weimer · 10-31-2004, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by show_no_mercy

What's the history of this gospel? Was it a post-canonization forgery? Was it a gnostic christian gospel only?

It was definitly pre-canon. I don't even really attribute gnosticism to it, but maybe the other way around!

CX · 11-02-2004, 11:30 AM

This gospel is known from a Coptic (ancient egyptian) translation found in 1945. It's part of the so-called Nag Hammadi Library. The library itself has lots of heretical documents but in addition to that many of the sayings in Thomas belie a gnostic perspective. I don't think there is a good consensus on when it was written. Pretty middle of the road is Bart Ehrman's view that whil some of the sayings are probably quite old the work as a whole dates to the early 2nd century. His view is also that it could have developed independently of the canonical gospels.

10-31-2004, 12:02 AM	#1
show_no_mercy Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Dancing Posts: 9,940	The Gospel of Thomas? What's the history of this gospel? Was it a post-canonization forgery? Was it a gnostic christian gospel only?

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

10-31-2004, 01:19 AM	#4
Vorkosigan Contributor Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Barrayar Posts: 11,866	doubled Toto's I see.

10-31-2004, 09:14 AM	#5
andrewcriddle Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Birmingham UK Posts: 4,876	Some scholars such as Baarda Drijvers and Perrin link Thomas to the early Syriac harmony of the Gospels known as the Diatessaron and generally believed to have been composed by Tatian. Such scholars often date Thomas in the late 2nd century CE. Andrew Criddle

10-31-2004, 01:50 PM	#6
Chris Weimer Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: none Posts: 9,879	hmm... middle to late 2nd century, but certainly after Q.

10-31-2004, 02:44 PM	#7
Vinnie Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Waterbury, Ct, Usa Posts: 6,523	Most of GThomas dates to the first century... Vinnie

10-31-2004, 03:18 PM	#8
Chris Weimer Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: none Posts: 9,879	definitly, but there are a couple of quotes that aren't found with that time period. Maybe those were Nag Hammdi mutations...

11-02-2004, 11:30 AM	#10
CX Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Portlandish Posts: 2,829	This gospel is known from a Coptic (ancient egyptian) translation found in 1945. It's part of the so-called Nag Hammadi Library. The library itself has lots of heretical documents but in addition to that many of the sayings in Thomas belie a gnostic perspective. I don't think there is a good consensus on when it was written. Pretty middle of the road is Bart Ehrman's view that whil some of the sayings are probably quite old the work as a whole dates to the early 2nd century. His view is also that it could have developed independently of the canonical gospels.

Freethought & Rationalism Archive

The archives are read only.