Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels
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Book Reviews of Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas
Book Review: Helped me to personally reconcile with Christ
Summary: 5 Stars
Pagels writes in the summary of the opening chapter, "What is it about Christian tradition that we love - and what is it that we _cannot_ love?" This book has helped me to more clearly define my beliefs, and to have the courage to take a stand on the latter.
I'm currently re-reading Pagels' book for the third time, inspired by the recent public announcement of the discovery of the Gospel of Judas. (Pagels was one of the interviewed subject matter experts for the National Geographic special.) In fact, she refers to the existence of this writing on p.172.
In light of this discovery, along with the current hubbub over "The DaVinci Code", Pagels' book has reached new heights of relevancy in popular culture today.
If you are seeking a better understanding of the historical context of the early Christian community, how the books of the New Testament were canonized, and perhaps how you personally feel about the tendency of orthodox Christianity to demand allegiance to a single, authorized set of beliefs, then I highly recommend this book.
Book Review: Excellent work
Summary: 5 Stars
As with all of Ms. Pagels' books, this is an excellent work. This book reviews the significance of one of the books of early Christianity that was excluded from the Bible, because it did not follow the general theme and orthodoxy that was deemed to be acceptable by the council at Nicene. This is a review of the Gospel of St. Thomas. The Gospel of St. Thomas is an early Christian Gnostic work. According to the work, St. Thomas was a favored disciple of Jesus. After Jesus' death, Thomas went on a mission to India and found a deeper spirituality through meditation and introspection. This book deals with the differences between the Gnostic viewpoints put forward in The Gospel of St. Thomas and the accepted books of the Bible, in particular the Gospel of St. John.Book Review: Beyond Belief
Summary: 5 Stars
As usual, Elaine Pagels delivers*!* I've also read THE GNOSTIC GOSPELS by Pagels and would also rate; but with 10-Stars. I think the possible reader of this book needs to understand that many Bible Literalists are posting 1-star because they do not agree with the content of this book. Forget the 1-star ratings; this is intelligent writting, great abstract thought, and superlative research. I only wish it could have been longer but I think Pagels said everything she wanted to say in 257-pages. A 'must-read' for anyone studying the gnostic gospels.Book Review: amazing book
Summary: 5 Stars
I have to say that I found this to be an amazing book, though not quite what it is advertised to be. Pagels does discuss the gospel of Thomas somewhat here and there and she includes Thomas's book at the end of her book, but this book is more about the Gospel of John and early Christian history and the formation of the church and biblical canon. I didn't quite get what I was expecting, but I still got a great book that taught me a lot. This is a great book for anyone who has questions about Christianity. It might answer some questions.Book Review: A wonderful book!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a highly interesting book. I also recommend it to anyone looking for speculative "answers" about Christianity.
You may not agree with everything -- and that's certainly OK.
But take whatever you get from this book and then go research the possibilities!
Also recommended: "What Did Jesus Really Say, How Christianity Went Astray: [What To Say To A Born Again Christian Fundamentalist, But Never Had The Information]" by Peter Cayce