The Gospel of Thomas - The Gnostic Wisdom of Jesus

Zusatztext "If you're looking for a coherent translation and commentary of The Gospel of Thomas I think this is it." Informationen zum Autor Jean-Yves Leloup is a theologian and founder of the Institute of Other Civilization Studies and the International College of Therapists. His books include Jesus and Judas, The Sacred Embrace of Jesus and Mary, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, The Gospel of Philip, and The Gospel of Thomas. He lives in France. Klappentext CHRISTIAN STUDIES / GNOSTICISM "Among all the astonishing documents unearthed in 1945 near the desert village of Nag Hammadi, the Gospel of Thomas has made the greatest impact on our understanding of Christianity. . . . The words in this text have the power to touch an unknown part of ourselves that brings with it an undeniable recognition of truth and hope." --Jacob Needleman, author of Lost Christianity and The American Soul "In this remarkable book, scholar-mystic Jean-Yves Leloup invites us to meditate on the 'eternal jewel, ' the revelation of Jesus, and on the reign of God spread all around us, within and without. May these logia of Jesus translated from the Gospel of Thomas fall on good soil and yield a bountiful harvest of peace, justice, and enlightenment." --Margaret Starbird, author of The Woman with the Alabaster Jar: Mary Magdalen and the Holy Grail One of the cache of codices and manuscripts discovered in Nag Hammadi, the Gospel of Thomas, unlike the canonical gospels, does not contain a narrative recording Christ's life and prophecies. Instead, it is a collection of his teachings in 114 logia, or sayings, that were gathered by Judas Didymus Thomas, whom some claim was Jesus' closest disciple. No sooner was this gospel uncovered from the sands of Upper Egypt than scholars and theologians began to bury it anew in a host of conflicting interpretations and polemics. While some say it is a hodgepodge from the canonical gospels, for others it is the source text from which all the gospel writers drew their material and inspiration. In this new translation of the Gospel of Thomas, Jean-Yves Leloup shows that the Jesus recorded by the "infinitely skeptical and infinitely believing" Thomas has much in common with gnostics of nondualistic schools. Like them, Jesus preaches the coming of a new man, the genesis of the man of knowledge. In this gospel, Jesus describes a journey from limited to unlimited consciousness. The Jesus of Thomas invites us to drink deeply from the well of knowledge that lies within, not so that we may become good Christians, but so that we may attain the self-knowledge that will make each of us, too, a Christ. JEAN-YVES LELOUP is the founder of the Institute of Other Civilization Studies and the International College of Therapists. His other books include the bestselling The Gospel of Mary Magdalene and The Gospel of Philip. He lives in France. Commentary Logion 2 Yeshua said: Whoever searches must continue to search until they find. When they find, they will be disturbed; and being disturbed, they will marvel and will reign over All. (Cf. Matt 7:7–8; Luke 11:9–10.) This logion describes the major stages in gnosis, which constitute a true initiatory process. The first stage is the quest; the second is the discovery; the third is the shock and disturbance of this discovery; the fourth is wonder and amazement; and the fifth is the presence and reign over All. The last of these stages is spoken of in the Oxyrhynchus manuscript (654, no. 1), where this reign over the All is further described as the great Repose. This is also echoed in the Gospel of Philip and in Clement of Alexandria ( Stromata , Book II). Some further elaboration on each of these stages may be useful. 1. Seeking The seeker must always be on the quest. The truth is hidden so as to be found. As the prophet said, it is a “hidden God” who invites...

Product details

• Authors: Jean-Yves Leloup
• Assisted by: Jacob Needleman (Foreword), Jean-Yves Leloup (Translation)
• Publisher: External catalogues US
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 15.05.2005
• EAN: 9781594770463
• ISBN: 978-1-59477-046-3
• Dimensions: 155 mm x 230 mm x 15 mm
• Subject: Humanities, art, music > Religion/theology