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: Brilliant Details
Summary: 5 Stars
Elaine H. Pagels writes a brilliant detailed book regarding the belief of the Bible and it's teachings. The passages that she writes and the historical research that she has produced has made for an extrememly impressive piece of work that I can understand and believe. I am very impressed with this author's dedication. I recommend this highly.Book Review: Can you keep a secret?
Summary: 4 Stars
Elaine Pagels is perhaps best known for her text, `The Gnostic Gospels' first published in 1979, in which she explores the different alternative gospel and scriptural writings used by (or at least known to) the Gnostic sects of Christians and proto-Christians in the early years of the common era. In this book, `Beyond Belief', she returns to this subject by focusing more intensely upon the Secret Gospel of Thomas, one of the many gospel texts floating around the ancient Christian world, prior to the time the canon of scripture was more-or-less solidified.She begins with a remarkably personal tale, her idea of faith and the power of God in the face of her own son's problem - he had been diagnosed with a fatal disease, one that is required painful and risky procedures with little hope of success. Where does faith come from in a time like this? Where does faith go?
Her first chapter talks about the power of the community, and she traces a history of early initiation rites and community-forging events (including the martyrdom of many). Pagels then relates these back to her own experiences, tracing a connection between then and now. The controversies the early church faced - the participation in communal feasts that were misunderstood, the renunciation of the world in dramatic ways, coupled with a care for persons in unique and egalitarian ways - these are not always the issues faced today. However, Pagels shows how these issues served to form what we hold today as normative Christianity. She also sets the stage for a look at the diversity of practice and belief - prior to the formation of the canons and creeds, there were more points of difference in the Christian world - texts such as the Secret Gospel of Thomas is one such.
Pagels identifies a conflict between the gospels of John (one of the canonical four, itself a bit on the fringe, given its greater differences with the synoptics than they have with each other) and Thomas. Pagels asserts that both assumed their communities would be familiar with the basic outline of the gospel story a la Mark (most likely the earliest of the canonical gospels), and that both John and Thomas give similar accounts of the private teachings of Jesus. However, the use of these teachings and emphasis differs between Thomas and John - whereas they might have been complementary, they end up being at odds. For example, John argues strongly for the uniqueness of Jesus, as the light of God for all humanity; Thomas, on the other hand, looks at the light in Jesus as being something that all people have and have access to from within themselves. This gives Thomas a gnostic tint.
Pagels likens the message of Thomas to those developed later by mystics, including most recently the writers Tolstoy and another Thomas, Thomas Merton. The kingdom of God is within us, not something that is meant to have a physical definition, either in the past under a messianic warrior-king, nor in the future in some heavenly city descending like a spaceship, but rather, within us.
Pagels develops an interesting speculative biography of the author of the gospel of John, and looks at the images of Thomas presented in John, including the ideas that he was the `doubting' one, and that he missed the gathering of the disciples upon with Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit (the account of Matthew indicates that all the disciples were present; John has Thomas missing). These kinds of images, Pagels suggests, might indicate a sort of rivalry for position. John's gospel was itself questioned during the early church, and his community of Christians existed on the fringe of the wider community. However, John's gospel is a clear and powerful one, and Pagels demonstrates that at many crucial points in the Thomas narrative, pieces are cryptic at best, and not at all definable and discernable. This would not have appealed to certain communities in Christianity, searching for a certain faith.
Pagels traces the development of the acceptance of John over Thomas in the wider context of canonical development - she introduces other non-canonical writings of the time, such as the Secret Book of John, the Secret Book of James, the Prayer of the Apostle Paul, and others. She also traces the thought of major figures such as Polycarp, Tertullian, Justin Martyr, and Irenaeus. Much of what we have known historically about the different groups labeled heretical have come from the writings of the `orthodox' - Ireneaus, for example, is a primary source of certain heresies through his great, five-volume `Refutation and Overthrow of Falsely So-Called Knowledge'. However, this is a necessarily biased source of information.
One interesting piece is the exploration of the Gospel of Philip, another of the non-canonical gospels - Philip's gospel divides the church into those who have it right and those who don't, but along different lines than the typical orthodox view. For Philip, the virgin birth and the resurrection are not one-time-only events for Jesus, but rather apply to all of humanity in potential. Anyone `born again' experiences a virgin birth through the power of the spirit; all believers are transformed, and this constitutes a resurrection. Philip makes a distinction between those who pay lip service to being Christian and those who are truly spiritually transformed - this is an idea that will resurface again and again Christian history, too.
Given imperial backing, Pagels argues that it was largely the party with influence at the court and the centre of empire that won the day. Still, even as these documents were no longer copied and held as valid scripture, the ideas they contained would remain undercurrent in Christian thought. Pagels' skillful writing and interesting narrative choice of using her own life as a backdrop to the larger issues of church history make this an interesting and worthwhile text for all.
Book Review: Insightful!
Summary: 4 Stars
Having read Pagel's earlier work, 'The Gnostic Gospels,' I came away with a hunger to learn more about the hidden side-roads of early Christianity. In 'Beyond Belief,' Pagels again quenched as much thirst as she whet.
For starters, this isn't the polemic dynamite that some reviewers would have it be. Instead, Pagels walks her well-trodden ground of scholarly investigation into the origins of 'orthodox' Christiantity. While appearing deceptively 'accessible,' this work demands unflinching concentration and even then, it is difficult to read more than a few pages at a time. It demands that the reader digest and speculate on the mass of fact and conjecture presented here.
Pagels' thesis centers around the so-called, 'Secret Gospel of Thomas' (the disciple) found amongst the Nag Hammadi diggings of 1948. Much less a detailed exegesis of this rich gospel than an analysis of its implications, Pagels takes the reader on a mind-numbing journey through the power stuggles amongst the early Christian groups. Perhaps a better title for this book would have been, 'The Struggle for Orthodoxy.' Pagels uncovers an early Christianty far more diverse and divisive than previoulsy thought. Two main groups emerged on the footsteps of the apostles: the 'orthodox' under the willful leadership of Tertullian, Polycarp and Bishop Irenaeus of Lyons and the 'gnostic' branch under the teacher, Valentinus. The former preached and taught according to the dictates of Paul: Christ, the Only Son of God, sacrificed by the Father so that His lost children may be cleansed of their worldly iniquity and thus made acceptable for salvation. For the orthodox, Jesus was the human tapestry draped over a divine light. God, in all perfection, had COME DOWN to the realm of man in order to lift him upwards. The Son, like the Father, was unattainable by human merit. Such perfection could only be offered as a gift and then either accepted or rejected, never emulated. From this doctrine arose the fundamental pillar of orthodox Christianity---the Son and the Father are one.
The 'gnostic' branch of Valentinus relying on the so-called 'apocryphal' writings, 'The Book of Thomas, The Gospels of Thomas,'and numerous other 'secret books' attributed to the apostles (The Secret Book of James) as well as the four 'canonic' gospels, especially John, came to very different conclusions about the Son of Man, Son of God. They believed that unity with the Father was just as possible for us humans as it had been for Jesus. This unity came about from the gift of 'gnosis' or knowledge, when one realized, accepted and eventually embraced the 'God within.' The Gospel of Thomas appears to be the fruit of such a contact, of Jesus instructing his 'twin'(in spiritual pregnancy?),Thomas, in the meanings of such inutterable knowledge. Valentinian Christians viewed Jesus as the One who had made such knowledge His own. One who lived it and became it. One among us who CLIMBED UP to the Father rather than the One who came down to save us. The final goal of these Gnostic Christians was exemplified in John's elliptical prose, 'I am IN the Father and He is IN me.' Complete reconciliation between the flesh and the spirit.
The strength of Pagel's work is that she etches out in detail the battle between these two conflicting factions which eventually culminated in an orthodox victory (Constantine's conversion). The once spiritual and ethical elixir of the gospels had slowly become a very worldly, very political issue of power. The Council of Nicea cast into stone those doctrines of Christian faith which would become the bedrock of Christianity as we know it: that only through faith in the One and Only Son of God can we be guaranteed eternal salvation. Pagels argues that the making of this creed was done with less than evangelic motives. The need for concrete control over the masses, for doctrinal and organizational unifomity and last but not least, for temporal authority over all worldy matters necessitated the grounding of a Kingdom, that Jesus had taught 'was not of this world.'
Brilliantly researched and daring in its implications, 'Beyond Belief,' is nonetheless a trifle misleading. This isn't the place for gaining a deeper understanding of the gnostic 'Gospel of Thomas.' Nor does Pagels give an exhaustive exegesis of the Book of John, used and praised alike by both orthodox and heterodox . Instead, Elaine Pagels has found a spring which aims to enrichen the river of Christian faith rather then pollute it.
Book Review: Christianity in chaos?
Summary: 4 Stars
The crisis of a sick child led Elaine Pagels to re-examine her religious adherence. The fixed, repetitive dogmas she'd long lived with failed to meet her needs. In responding to that challenge, which she'd experienced before, led her to examine the roots of her faith. Her first expression of that quest was "The Gnostic Gospels" [1979]. Under the stress of her child's condition and with deeper examination of the texts she'd relied on, Pagels examines how Christianity separated into orthodoxy and "heresy". How was "orthodox" Christianity achieved? What constituted "heresy" and why were dissenting ideas suppressed?
In her analysis, Pagels focuses on two individuals and two "books". The "founder" of orthodox, "catholic" Christianity was Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons in Gaul. His target of condemnation was the Roman theologian Valentinus. Each followed a different role in defining the nature of the deity and the mission of Jesus. The references used in the debate hinged on two purported authors and the validity of their account of Jesus' teachings. The Gospel of John, now known to be the last of the "synoptic gospels", provided a divine role for Jesus. The Gospel of Thomas, on the other hand, portrayed a different individual as a teacher of men - and women. To the Gnostics, revelation couldn't come from biblical texts, but from an individual's capacity to discover it. Over a century before Nicaea, Irenaeus placed John as "first" among the four synoptic gospels, rejecting other writings such as that of "Thomas" and "The Gospel of Mary Magdalene" as false and misleading.
The Gospel of Thomas wasn't the only version of the teachings challenging the four synoptics. Irenaeus himself repeated many of the writings of the authors who became known as the Gnostics in his effort to discredit them. "Watch out for these false truths" he commanded his flock. Although Pagels provides a vivid description of Irenaeus' life and work, she is unable to provide a rationale for his rigid stance. Part of the reason may be that Irenaeus' group was assaulted by the local population for their "atheism" and he may have thought keeping on common ground might provide protection. In any event, as Pagels recounts, the foundation laid down by this transplanted Anatolian became the foundation of the "Constantine Revolution" legalising the church throughout the Roman Empire. Pagels contends this turned about half of the existing Christian population of the Empire into heretics. Many fled, founding various forms of the faith around the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.
Pagel's scholarly approach relieves this book of being little more than a personal epiphany. Her tragedy brought challenge and she met it by examining her own beliefs. The investigation led her to a fresh, informed self-assessment, bolstered by the Gnostic texts. As a result, her book is less an examination of the Gospel of Thomas than an historical assessment of the nature of how people considered the founder of Christianity. She condemns neither the orthodox nor the politics involved in its fabrication. Pagels exonerates Constantine from self-seeking or superficial politics, extolling his expenditures in supporting the newly established faith. That examination, however, remains superficial itself, as we are given no background into why Constantine supported but one faction, although paying lip service to the idea of unpassionate debate. She omits the social chaos endemic in Constantine's time, while opening the door to a new chaos inherent in a faith where all may choose their individual path to enlightenment. She thinks that the Gospel of Thomas and other views contending orthodoxy will establish a new version of Christianity, but doesn't speculate on what form that might take. Will it be a chaotic "priesthood of all believers" envisioned by one biblical text finally brought to realisation? [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
Book Review: Orthodoxy vs. Gnosticism
Summary: 4 Stars
My primary interest in reading this book was to better understand and appreciate the evolution of Christian thought and belief in the early church. On this score, Elaine Pagels definitely does not disappoint.
I found her choice of beginning this work with an intensely personal description of the spiritual journey she faced during her young son's fatal illness to be surprising at first, but through her book I came to understand why she introduced this work in such a way: all spiritual journeys are intensely personal. The authors of the "Secret Gospel of Thomas", the Gospel of John, and the later Church Fathers who built upon these writings, all faced challenging times. In seeking answers to the challenges they faced, they engaged in their own personal spiritual journeys, which resulted in their recording what they learned and believed in the texts that have been passed down to us.
Elaine Pagels engages us in the challenges and spiritual journeys of these early Christian writers, both known (mostly proponents of what became the roots of Christianity as we know it today); and unknown (mostly the authors of the Gnostic books found in the Nag Hammadi library, such as the Gospel of Thomas; and other works).
The Gnostic authors and their adherents found themselves marginalized if not actively persecuted as the well-organized and controlled universal Church took hold in the ancient world. Gnosticism is an intensely personal form of faith, where one seeks to find Spiritual truth for oneself instead of unquestioningly adopting an external authority's view.
Dr. Pagels referees for us the centuries-long debate between early Christian Fathers and their Gnostic counterparts - helping us see how the debate between control of doctrine vs. freedom of exploration changed and grew over time. She seeks to help us understand the complexities of the central question for us: What is truth, and what is lies? In making our spiritual journeys, how can we tell them apart? How do we find that truth for ourselves without falling into error?
The roots of that debate reach far back into Jewish history: centuries before Jesus started teaching. Therefore, Dr. Pagels knows she cannot answer the question. Instead, she seeks to help us understand the issues and the context within which we, as Christians, make our own journeys in search of spiritual truth.
The great authors of Orthodoxy - Tertullian, Athanaeus and Irenaeus, among others, all saw that allowing too much freedom of exploration often led to spiritual error and excess. On the other hand, they appreciated the importance of needing to explore one's own faith for oneself, and did not want to create a rigid and inflexible Christian faith that could not tolerate such journeys of faith. They understood that a balance between the two extremes must be found.
Ultimately, and as Dr. Pagels says in her book, it is not right, or wise, to accept spiritual authority without question, or to seek to eliminate the rich spiritual diversity found throughout the Christian world. Diversity brings strength and vitality, but too much diversity brings conflict and destruction. There is no simple answer to the question: we must each find an answer for ourselves.
Dr. Pagels' work is easy to read, well researched, well footnoted, and thought provoking. While I highly recommend this book, I would have to agree with what others here have said: that the title is misleading. This book focuses more on the evolution of orthodox Christianity than it does on the Gnostic tradition, or on the Gospel of Thomas itself. I give it a four star recommendation.