Gnostic Scriptures (Nag Hammadi, Gospel of Judas, etc.)

[derby378]

I've got The Nag Hammadi Library (edited by James M. Robinson) sitting on my desk as I type this. Admittedly, I have not made it all the way through this as of yet, but how many of you have at least glanced at Gnostic texts? If so, what are your impressions?

I know there's supposedly a big scholarly to-do over The Gospel of Judas, which is supposed to be a Cainite Gnostic treatise that some say is being published in tandem with the media buzz over The DaVinci Code in order to draw more attention to itself. Judas was apparently not part of the Nag Hammadi collection, and it too has apparently deteriorated somewhat, possibly from mishandling by smugglers and traders. Some say that Judas won't really contribute anything new to our historical understanding of Gnosticism and its relationship to "orthodox" Christianity, although the discovery in itself is fairly important. But if you have any experience at all with Judas, what's your take?

[ewagner]

1. I've been interested

in Gnosticism for some time....I'm anxious to read these texts...

thanks

[HereSince1628]

2. I think I got more out of Elaine Pagel's commentary as I did

by reading the Nag Hammadi texts myself.

[struggle4progress]

3. I read and reread Nag Hammadi about twenty years ago because ..

.. I was interested in the gnostics. Back then, I got a big kick out the Hypostasis of the Archons. But in retrospect, the Gospel of Thomas made the most lasting impression on me ...