How to Explain the Gnostic Texts

With the discovery of The Gospel of Judas, the Gnostic texts have once again become a source of great controversy. The Gospel of Judas casts him as the most trusted of the twelve rather than a betrayer. This challenge to a basic piece of accepted Christian dogma has led to aggressive denunciations of the Gnostic tradition. However, most people know nothing about the Gnostic Texts.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Read the transcript of the CNN documentary "After Jesus." It meticulously documents the history of the early Christian church.

2. Learn about the discovery of Gnostic texts at Nag Hammadi, Egypt 50 years ago. Realize that prior to that time, most knowledge about Gnosticism came from Christian attacks against it because the texts were destroyed between the first and second centuries.

3. Read a review of Elaine Pagel's book "The Gnostic Gospels." This review is an excellent summary of what the Gnostic texts represent and why there was opposition to them from the Orthodox Christian Church.

4. Read the e-mail discussion between Elaine Pagels and Ben Witherington III. Doctor Pagels is a professor of religion at Princeton University and one of the world's authorities on Gnosticism. Doctor Witherington is a professor of New Testament interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary.

5. Read a discourse on the Gnostic texts by Doctor Pagels from PBS where she succinctly defines the Gnostic texts in the context of the early church.

6. Realize that while the Gnostic texts were a product of the early Christian church, they were apart from the teachings of Paul and far more internally directed than church doctrine. Understand the role that Irenaeus had in condemning Gnosticism, and that this role may well have been necessary as a means of unifying the church.

7. Buy Doctor Pagels' book, "The Gnostic Gospels." It is perhaps the definitive book about this subject.