Apocryphote of the Day: 3-21-08

Jesus said, "You (Judas) will do worse than all of them (the disciples). For the man that clothes me, you will sacrifice him. Already your horn has been raised, and your wrath kindled, and your star ascended, and your heart [become strong]."

Gospel of Judas 56.17-24 (trans. by DeConick)

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-20-08

"Then their high priests murmured because he had gone into the guest room for his prayer. Some scribes were there watching carefully in order to arrest him during the prayer. For they were afraid of the people, since he was held by all as a prophet. And they approached Judas. They said to him, 'What are you doing here? Aren't you the disciple of Jesus?' He answered them as they wished. Then Judas received some money. He handed him over to them."

Gospel of Judas 58.9-26 (trans. by DeConick)

Codex Judas Congress Report 2

The CJC did result in at least one consensus. It was agreed that the Gospel of Judas was written as a critique of mainstream or Apostolic Christianity. The twelve disciples were understood to be negative figures, giving homage to Ialdabaoth-Nebro-Saklas. What was the critique about? All agreed that the eucharist was being critiqued in the text. Some thought also baptism.

Highlights
Jim Robinson raised a series of questions in his paper about the state of affairs with the Tchacos Codex. Gregor Wurst provided some of the answers. He said that he continues to work on placing the fragments which are found in the back of The Critical Edition. He encouraged everyone to work on trying to place them. He said that he doesn't know when the Codex will be returned to Egypt. He has heard 2010. At the moment, it is in the possession of the Maecenas Foundation and Mario Roberty. It is housed at the Bodmer Library and access is regulated by a written protocol which scholars must follow.

Gregor Wurst told us that he first saw the papyri in August 2004. He said that his initial interpretation of the Gospel of Judas was influenced by Irenaeus' testimony. When the team wrote their book, The Gospel of Judas, they didn't have any idea what pp. 55-56 said because the big island fragment had not been placed yet. Gregor placed it in Fall 2005-Spring 2006 when the book was already in print. He was able to stop the press and insert the translation, but could not use the information to rewrite the interpretation. This is the page that links Judas' sacrifice with the sacrifices mentioned earlier, and that Judas wouldn't ascend beyond the thirteenth realm. My own memory of my initial reaction to the Gospel of Judas when I read it for the first time was a feeling of dread when I came across this very passage. This is the passage that signaled for me that Judas was serving the demiurge, and that the NGS interpretation was off.

More later...

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-18-08

"Then a great disturbance occurred. The archons raised their wrath against him. They wanted to hand him over to the ruler of Hades. Then, one of his followers, they recognized. A fire took hold of his (Judas') soul. He handed him over, since no one recognized him. They acted and arrested him. They brought upon themselves judgment. And they handed him over to the ruler of Hades."

The Concept of Our Great Power (41.14-29) trans. by DeConick

Two more pages of the Gospel of Judas?

Upon closer read of the Ferrini auction article mentioned in my previous post, there appears to be two more pages of the Gospel of Judas in his possession. According to the article:

Bowers declined to put a value on the Gospel of Judas fragments, and said doing so would be irrelevant, as his client has promised to donate the artifact to Egypt, where it can be properly archived, displayed and studied.

Ferrini is expected to give a deposition Monday in a Summit County courtroom regarding the ownership. Bowers said Ferrini has produced two more pages of the Judas text and has indicated he will give up claims of ownership. Ferrini's attorney, Tim McKinzie,did not respond to a request for comment.

Now we can't be sure that these pages are from the Gospel of Judas, but are likely part of the Tchacos Codex. Which pages? This is most tense and infuriating. Who is he going to give up ownership to?

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-17-08

"I am seeking the Kingdom of the Three-Powered One, which has no beginning."

Marsanes 6.18-20 (a late third century Sethian Platonized treatise from Nag Hammadi)

Bruce Ferrini's Auction

Jim West has pointed out the Bruce Ferrini auction. The news report says that it does not include the rest of the fragments of the Gospel of Judas (actually they are the fragments of the rest of the Tchacos Codex!), or fragments from the book of Exodus and Colossians.

Wow, is this the book of Exodus and the letters of Paul that were also found with the Tchacos Codex? Remember, there were three other books in that limestone box found in a tomb near Al Minya. A greek version of Exodus and the Coptic letters of Paul and a mathematical book. Fragments of Exodus and the mathematical book have shown up in various collections around the world, but the letters of Paul seem to have vanished. Is this part of that book? It very well might be given that Ferrini possessed the Tchacos Codex, and now appears to have parts of the Exodus book and a letter of Paul.

Please please if you possess any of these fragments, or know of people who bought from Bruce Ferrini, contact me or Gregor Wurst. These materials need to be preserved and conserved properly for future generations, not to speak of the importance they hold in reconstructing our own past religious histories. They are not just artifacts. They are part of our common story.

Codex Judas Congress Report 1

Sorry that I haven't been on the blog for several days, but the CJC was very intense and I didn't even have time to check e-mail let alone blog.

I am happy to report that the CJC was immensely successful. Thirty scholars attended and about ten graduate students, as well as many public auditors. The two public lectures filled our auditorium. The atmosphere was one of cooperation and work. There was no chair-throwing which many attendees expected. Instead it turned out to be a model conference for scholarly exchange and understanding. I wish in fact that we could have started out our study of the Gospel of Judas with just such a conference, and then moved to the work on the critical edition and public translation together. There are many things that we learned from each other. Very good questions were raised. And scholars were very open and generous with their knowledge.

What did we accomplish? As for the figure Judas, there were four positions that were maintained by various scholars. The hero Judas is being seriously challenged now by a large number of scholars, in fact most who attended. The room was mainly split between those who think that he is ambiguous in the text and those who think that he is a negative character, a demon. There were a few who were advocates for the agnostic stance - "I don't know."

Gregor Wurst showed us a new fragment that he has put together. It says "servant of Saklas" but he doesn't know where in the text it should be placed yet. Should it be placed on p. 56? We don't know. But this fragment in such a context would support the idea that the apostles (or Judas) are making sacrifices to Saklas as his servants!

The room was evenly split on who enters the cloud, and seriously good arguments were made for both Jesus and Judas. We all agreed that this missing page is the page that we really want to find. If any of you have purchased a fragment of this text on e-bay or anywhere else (or know someone who has) PLEASE I beg you to contact me or Gregor Wurst. We need every fragment of this text that we can find to make the proper reconstructions.

More later...

Codex Judas Congress is almost here!

Just a reminder that this very special event is on the horizon. In two days, we will be convening the Codex Judas Congress. This is the first international conference to study the Tchacos Codex, the fourth century book that contains the Gospel of Judas and other important Gnostic documents.

Thirty scholars will be participating in round table presentations and discussions. Each scholar is contributing a paper. The forum is a working conference, with the intention to think tank together about this new material. What does it tell us about early Christianity that we didn't know before? That we knew before? What can we learn about Gnostic-Christian-Jewish relations?

HERE is the link to information about the CJC, including the daily schedule and scholars' abstracts.

There will be two public lectures in the evenings. If you are in the Houston area, you may wish to join us for these.

Professor Marvin Meyer and Professor Gregor Wurst
Reconstructing an Ancient Papyri Book:
How the Gospel of Judas was Restored and the Questions It Raises
Thursday, March 13, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Rice University, Duncan Hall, 1055, the McMurtry Auditorium

Professor Elaine Pagels and Professor Karen King
What Else Didn’t We Know about the Early Christians?
Friday, March 14, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Rice University, Duncan Hall, 1055, the McMurtry Auditorium

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-11-08

"Be earnest about the word! For as to the word, its first part is faith, the second is love, the third is works. From these comes life...You can receive the kingdom of heaven. But unless you receive it through knowledge, you will not be able to find it."

Apocryphon of James 8.10-15, 25-27 (ca. mid-second century; probably Valentinian text)

Thirteenth Apostle Discussion Questions

Many have written me and e-mailed me with questions and advice about my book, The Thirteenth Apostle. A woman who wrote one of the letters was concerned that she only learned about my book by accident when she came across the article that was written on it in National Review. She said she thought that information about it should be made more readily available to churches and adult education classes. So I took her good advice, and I created and posted a series of discussion questions for The Thirteenth Apostle. And my publisher put together an ad to circulate for this purpose. Check it out HERE.

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-10-08

Jesus said, "I have cast fire upon the world. And look! I am guarding it until it blazes."

Gospel of Thomas 10 (trans. DeConick)

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-7-08

Jesus said, "The Kingdom of the Father is like a woman carrying a jar filled with meal. While she was walking on the road still a long way out, the handle of her jar broke. Behind her, the meal leaked out onto the road. She did not realize it. She had not noticed a problem. When she arrived at her house, she put the jar down and found it empty."

Gospel of Thomas 97 (trans. by DeConick).

Book Note: Mystery of the Book of Revelation (Cameron Afzal)

A nice surprise showed up in my mailbox. Ron Afzal has published his book on Revelation with Mellon Press. It is a new study of Revelation from the perspective of social and communal memory studies. The book is called The Mystery of the Book of Revelation: Reenvisioning the End of Time. Because it is published by a small press, it is not cheap. So look for it in libraries or ask your library to order it.

If you think that the message of the book of Revelation has been resolved - you are certain that it is an early Christian apocalypse about the future yet-to-come, a reality-not-yet-lived - then this book is for you. Afzal reassesses Revelation from the viewpoint of a biblical historian ensconced within literary and social memory theories. Thus he shows a concept of parallel times - how the prophecies of John of Patmos recast the past in terms of John's perceptions of the present experiences of the early Christian communities in Asia Minor. The eschatology in Revelation is not about an unfulfilled and virtual future, but is about the intended audience's present experiences.

Reading John's eschatology in this way raises many important issues for me, not the least of which is the significance of the often-overlooked mystical dimension of apocalyptic literature. Apocalyptic literature is not just about the cataclysmic future. It is about the seer's involvement with heavenly mysteries and worship in the present, and his relaying of that to the faithful in the present, as a reminder that although in this world they are suffering, they are not of this world. Along with the seer, they have been transported into the heavenly world, and worship before God's throne. The seer's visions are reminders, reassurances that all is well. God is in control, and their life with him forever is blessed and secure.

This is a condensation of a short preface I wrote for Ron's book (pp. i-iii).

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-6-08

"Until baptism Fate is real, but after it the astrologers are no longer right. It is not only the washing that is liberating, but the knowledge of who we were, and what we have become, where we were or where we were placed, to where we hasten, from what we are redeemed, what birth is and what rebirth."

Theodotus as recorded by Clement of Alexandria (Excerpts of Theodotus 78.1-2). Theodotus was a Valentinian teacher in the east in the mid- to late second century.

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-5-08

Jesus said, "The Kingdom of the Father is like a woman. She took a little yeast. She buried it in dough. She made the dough into large bread loaves. Whoever has ears should listen!"

Gospel of Thomas 96, trans. by DeConick

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-4-08

Jesus said, "Adam was given the power that he might choose what he wanted from the two. And he chose the light and stretched out his hand and took it. He left the darkness and withdrew from it. Likewise every man is given the ability to believe in the light. This is the life of the Father who sent me. And whoever has believed in me will live, if he has done the work of light."

Epistula Apostolorum 39 (Ethiopic version) ca. late second century

Commentary: This is considered an early "catholic" or "orthodox" text. Yet look at the reference to Adam. His action (taking the apple in his hand) is the right decision. This is usually considered a gnostic reading of the Genesis story. So much for such categories in the second century!

Paterson Brown's Hypertext of Gospel of Thomas

Paterson Brown of the Ecumenical Coptic Project has just finished his hypertext interlinear of the Gospel of Thomas. Check it out HERE.

Apocryphote of the Day: 3-3-08

"And after that I heard voices in the height of heaven saying, 'Present that wretched soul to God, so that it may know that it is God whom it despised.' When it had entered heaven all the angels saw it. A thousand thousand exclaimed with one voice, all saying, 'Woe to you wretched soul, for the sake of your works which you did on earth. What answer are you about to give God when you have approached to adore him?' The angel who was with it answered and said, 'Weep with me, my beloved, for I have not found rest in this soul.'...And there came the voice of God to it and said, 'Where is your fruit which you have made worthy of the goods which you have received? Have I put a distance of one day between you and the just person? Did I not make the sun to rise upon you as upon the just?'"

The Apocalypse of Paul 16 (Greek version; NOT NHC) ca. second century.

Commentary: Origen in hom. V in Psalmos 36 describes the fate of souls after death. His description seems to be drawn from chapters 13ff. of this Apocalypse of Paul.

Chaldean Catholic Archbishop kidnapped in Baghdad

This just in my e-mail from the Mandaean list-serve. More bad news from Baghdad. When is this going to end?

From the Associated Press:

Gunmen abducted a Chaldean Catholic archbishop soon after he left Mass in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, the latest in what church members called a series of attacks against Iraq's small Christian community.

The gunmen killed three people who were with Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho, said Iraqi Brig. Gen. Khalid Abdul Sattar, a spokesman for the Ninevah province police.

It was not known who was behind the kidnapping, said an aide to Iraq's Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, leader of the church.

"This act of abduction against a Christian clergy member will increase our fears and worries about the situation of Christians in Iraq," said Archbishop Andreos Abouna.

The Chaldean church is an Eastern-rite denomination that recognizes the authority of the pope and is aligned with the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican said in a statement the fact that the gunmen knew Rahho had been celebrating a religious rite indicated the kidnapping was premeditated.

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