The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice [Paperback]

Ron Miller (Author), Stevan L. Davies (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2004

The Gospel of Thomas—a book of sayings and wisdom of Jesus compiled as early or earlier than the New Testament gospels—can transform your spiritual life.

There are many academic commentaries on the Gospel of Thomas, but this book has a different aim. It is meant to be a guidebook, that is, a translation of the sayings into daily practice. The goal of such practice is to become Jesus’s twin. This does not, of course, mean becoming an olive-skinned, bearded Mediterranean peasant wearing sandals. It is more about manifesting in our lives the same Christ consciousness revealed in the person we know as Jesus of Nazareth.
—from the Introduction

In the decades since its discovery, the Gospel of Thomas has intrigued people of all faiths around the world. Shedding new light on the origins of Christianity, the Gospel of Thomas raises questions about whether the New Testament’s version of Jesus’s teachings is entirely accurate and complete. In the Gospel of Thomas we see Jesus as a wisdom-loving sage, sharing aphorisms about the value of the present and each person’s role in the creation of the Kingdom of God here on earth. But these inspiring sayings can leave you wondering, "What next?"

Now you can learn how to start applying Jesus’s wisdom to your own life—and, in turn, to the world around you. This unique guidebook leads you through Thomas, offering practices that help you translate Jesus’s wisdom into a more fulfilling, enriching daily life, including:

* Becoming a Spiritual Adult
* Sorting Out the Old and the New
* Being a Healing Presence
* Daring to Be a City on a Hill
* God’s Reign Calls for Ready Hands
* Spirituality Is Not Skygazing
* And much more...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

To the many subcategories of Christianity, we can now add the "Thomas Believer." That's what Miller, chair of the Lake Forest College religion department, calls himself and devotees of the Gospel of Thomas, a collection of Jesus' sayings that had been circulating since the 19th century in fragmentary form but were found as a complete Coptic text at Nag Hammadi in Egypt in 1945. This guidebook, using Stevan Davies's translation, introduces the gospel and encourages readers to "become Jesus' twin," an image based on the name Thomas, which means "twin." Each chapter includes commentary on five to six sayings, along with a section on practice and questions for reflection. The concept of practice is essential for Miller, who rather controversially writes that Jesus "did not want our praise but our practice." Some of the practices are concrete spiritual exercises described in a "how to" fashion, while others feel more like additional commentary. The reflection questions at the end of each chapter would be more useful if they were more open-ended and less rhetorical ("Does it make sense to chain smoke while discussing consciousness expansion?"). The heart of this guidebook is the commentary; Miller is a captivating storyteller as well as a scholar. Anyone drawn to a universalistic spirituality will find much to savor and pass along here.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From the Inside Flap

From The Faith of a Thomas Believer

I believe that I am called to be Jesus’s twin,
allowing myself to be a vehicle of God’s love,
a source of God’s wisdom and truth,
and an instrument of God’s peace in the world.

I believe that God’s reign is here and now,
stretched out all around us for those
with eyes to see it, hearts to receive it,
and hands to make it happen.

I believe in the community of God seekers
in all the religions, as well as outside of them,
the great prophets, mystics, and saints,
and those just beginning their spiritual journey.

I believe in a future on this earth when all
will be God-centered and God-conscious,
when we will learn to live in love and peace,
in the fellowship of brothers and sisters.

I believe that in death, life is changed,
not taken away, and that we will go
from step to step in God’s life, God’s love,
and God’s glory for all eternity. Amen.

Jesus’s wisdom in the Gospel of Thomas reminds us that the Divine can be found right here on earth, in every living person. This innovative guidebook helps you connect with yourself and your own divine potential through thought-provoking reflections and spiritual practices inspired by these recently discovered sayings of Jesus.

No matter your religious background, you will find this unique approach to spiritual practice refreshing and enlightening. Ron Miller draws upon a host of religious teachers—from Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam—as guides in the process of finding spiritual fulfillment and manifesting God’s love in the world.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Skylight Paths Publishing (June 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1594730474
• ISBN-13: 978-1594730474
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #753,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Ron H. Miller was a highly regarded religion professor at Lake Forest College for almost 40 years, co-founder of Common Ground, Board member at Hands of Peace, author and frequent lecturer on various theological topics including interreligious dialogue, early Christianity and spirituality.

For lots more information, please visit his website www.ronmillersworld.org.

Ron received his PhD in Comparative Religions from Northwestern University. He held five earned degrees and studied in Germany and Israel, as well as in the United States. He lectured at hundreds of churches, synagogues and mosques throughout the United States. Miller is the author of many books and articles, including Healing the Jewish-Christian Rift (Skylight Paths), The Hidden Gospel of Matthew (Skylight Paths), The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice (Skylight Paths), The Sacred Writings of Paul (Skylight Paths), Dialogue and Disagreements: Franz Rosenzweig s Contribution to Jewish-Christian Dialogue (University Press of America), Unpacking the Parables: The Wisdom Teachings of Jesus (Evan Blake Publishers), William James' Revolution: A New Perspective on The Varieties of Religious Experience (Evan Blake Publishers), and Wisdom of the Carpenter: 365 Prayers and Meditations of Jesus.

www.ronmillersworld.org

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing., December 13, 2004

By 

goethean (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice (Paperback)

If a Gospel of Jesus Christ had been discovered 50 years ago, and its content and tone were deeply at odds with the entire thrust of the churches' traditional interpretations of Jesus' message, and it had been established by biblical scholars to be both earlier and more accurate than the four canonical gospels...wouldn't you expect these facts to be common knowledge, and important news to most Christians?

Well, those facts are all true, but normative Christianity seems to have responded to the Gospel of Thomas with a collective yawn. The cognitive dissonance inherent in the fact that those who call themselves Christians are not interested in reading a newly-discovered and unique gospel is enough to make one agree with Ron Miller that organized religion is more interested in controlling thoughts and political influence than in spirituality.

Every Christian should be interested in the Gospel of Thomas. In this book, Ron Miller uses current scholarship, engaging prose, and an inimitably direct and open style of thinking to explain Jesus' message in the light of these newly discovered teachings. It turns out that Miller is an important contemporary thinker. What he finds will surprise you.

There is one drawback to this book -- it does not contain all of the sayings in the Gospel of Thomas. For that, you must refer to The Gospel of Thomas Annotated & Explained, translated by Stevan L. Davies.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brings new light to Jesus Christ's teachings, January 11, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice (Paperback)

The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice is an academic and spiritual commentary upon the Gospel of Thomas, a text discovered in Egypt in 1945 that brings new light to Jesus Christ's teachings, offering insights in following in His footsteps and in effect, becoming His "twin". Sections titled "Practice" drive one to reflect upon how to apply the wisdom and selflessness of Christ's teachings to daily life, while questions entitled "Reflections" urge the reader to consider such tasks as "How can I be a more prayerful person while still being true to my understanding of the spiritual universe?" A vessel for personal and spiritual self-growth as surely as it is an analytical dissection of religious text, The Gospel of Thomas is an excellent guide for anyone seeking to explore what this holy text has to say about belief, life, God's Kingdom and the way of Jesus Christ.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE ONE TRUE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST, December 27, 2004

By 

Gail K Kroll "ECLECTIC READER AND LISTENER" (Northbrook, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Gospel of Thomas: A Guidebook for Spiritual Practice (Paperback)

If you want to really know Christ as God has intended him to be known and as Jesus himself wanted his followers to know him then read this book. The BIBLE seems insignificant to those who have read this Gospel and come to understand the reality in which Christ lived himself and wished other followers to apply his words - those of the Gospel of Thomas - to their lives. This is a must read for ANYONE who calls themselves to be "Christian."