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Loading... Beyond belief : the secret Gospel of Thomas (edition 2003)by Elaine H. Pagels
Work detailsBeyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels
None. 2   DubiousDisciple | Sep 24, 2011 |  To be blunt, this was far and away the worst book I've yet read (and I've read quite a few) on early Christianity. Pagels does everything in her power to portray St. Irenaeus of Lyons, St. Athanasius of Alexandria, and the other great Church Fathers in as bad a light as possible, even lying, twisting the truth, and covering up facts. At the same time she slanders the Fathers of the Church, she equally attempts to redeem the Gnostics, portraying them as "spiritual seekers" and innocent victims of the institutional Church. Along the way in the book, Pagels tells us a bit of her own story, her own rejection of the institutional Church for what she views as a more "spiritual" form of Christianity. The rest of the book seems little more than a pale attempt to justify her own choice. I recommend keeping as far away from this book as possible if one wants to study early Christian history. (  ) davidpwithun | Sep 16, 2011 | The subtitle of this book is quite misleading. The book only very briefly touches on The Gospel of Thomas. Instead, Pagels spends a great deal of time discussing the differences between the Gospel of John and the synoptic Gospels - as well as providing evidence that John was, in fact, written in large part as a refutation of the Gospel of Thomas and other "gnostic" Christian interpretations that abounded in the early history of the church. She also spends a large amount of time on Irenaeus and his impact on the formation of the "Canon of Truth" (what later became the New Testament). This, to me, was the most fascinating aspect of the book. You can tell that Pagels is not impartial and occasionally will dip into a slightly disapproving tone when she talks about Irenaeus' actions, but she promptly rescues herself and will provide a plausible defense for his actions. The fact that she feels the need to defend his actions, though, should be indicative of her stance.Pagels does a nice job blending primary sources with her easy to follow narrative and the text is full of end notes - in fact, the last 50 pages or so are given to these notes. This would be a great book to start with for those interested in learning more about the early history of the Christian movement. I will definitely be reading more Pagels and using her end notes to find more material. (  )2 ncnsstnt | Apr 10, 2011 | This book looks into the political and intellectual battles that decided what the New Testament canon would turn out to be, and in particular, focuses on the might-have-beens had the more egalitarian and individualistic views expressed in the apocryphal Gospel of Thomas been used as the foundation of Christian thought instead of the more authoritarian and mystical approach of John. ( ) jddunn | Nov 14, 2010 | While this book assumes a basic familiarity with the Gospel of John from the King James Bible, it is a valuable read for anyone interested in the origins of Christianity as a religious movement. It includes an analysis of the political climate that led to the adoption of certain gospels and rejection of others, as well as an analysis of John and Thomas to illustrate how they serve as opposite ends of a spectrum and thus were pitted against each other in the battle for supremacy in the church. The full text of the Gospel of Thomas is included. A very enlightening read that may challenge religious beliefs, but in ways that will serve to make them better informed. sholt2001 | Jun 23, 2010 | no reviews | add a review
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Wikipedia in English (3)
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Don't buy this expecting a dull, scholarly exposition on the Gospel of Thomas. It's hardly that. It's sort of an unobtrusive evangelism for unorthodox Christianity, a plea for the kind of "religious truth" that can never hide behind a stale set of doctrine.
Pagels bares her soul in this book, and her passion for spirituality, religion and Christianity shines. The result is inspirational. This is the book that turned me on to Pagels' scholarship, and I've felt a distant kinship ever since. It's really less about the Gospel of Thomas and more about diversity and meaning within the early Christian movement. John's Gospel actually gets as much attention as the Gospel of Thomas. While John hints of gnostic influence, it also finds itself in direct opposition to Thomas on many topics, such as the divinity of Christ. Pagels embraces this diversity of ideas, and spends a great deal of time discussing how the canon of acceptable scripture grew.
I love engaging, thought-provoking books, and Pagels never disappoints. (