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The Gospel of Thomas: Wisdom of the Twin

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The Gospel of Thomas By Lynn Bauman is a scholarly translation of the gospel that is now known to be the oldest of the written gospels discovered to date. It is not a narrative, as the four canonized Biblical gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but contains only the words which, according to "theTwin" who wrote it, are the direct teachings of Jesus, the Rabbi, to his Disciples. This is the Wisdom He imparted only to his close inner circle. Similar to a koan, these cryptic teachings require great thought and are somewhat paradoxical and perplexing. Dr. Bauman, whose academic credentials are numerous, has translated directly from the original Coptic Greek of the manuscripts which were only discovered in recent years. Dr. Bauman offers this translation as a thought provoking study guide with inciteful questions to ponder in order to come to your own conclusion as to the meanings of these amazing Wisdom Teachings of Jesus.

I give Bauman and the publisher credit for making the most of what seems to me unpromising material. This book is nicely designed, reasonably introduced, and attractive. On one page a saying in paraphrase from the "Gospel" of Thomas is given, then on the facing page a series of questions, an "academic translation," and some notes. She doesn't give answers to the questions (though you might guess what she thinks); you're on your own. What you find will I think depend mostly on what you expect to find! If you don't mind a lot of white space, and want to get a discussion going that takes Thomas seriously as a source for spiritual wisdom, this is your book.

If you're open to critical comment on Thomas, please consider the relevant chapter in my book, Why the Jesus Seminar can't find Jesus, and Grandma Marshall Could. I argue that (1) Scholars who think Thomas is late and a worse source for the life of Jesus than MML & J have had much the better of the argument so far; (2) Thomas is more UNLIKE the canonical Gospels than the Iliad, the Epic of Gilgamesh, Agricola, Journey to the West, or (especially) the Analects of Confucius. (3) In particular, Thomas has left all the great moral teachings of Jesus on the cutting board, and that's a shame. My own feeling is that, if you like this sort of mysticism, the Upanishads and Buddhist sutras are better. But I admit to a prejudice against even ancient writers who say, "Jesus said," when they really mean, "I rather think."

Finally, one criticism of Bauman. It seems to me that the words of the canonical Gospels have become stale to her. I find this extraordinary; can Handel's Messiah be rendered elevator music? For any reader suffering the same affliction, I suggest looking at the Gospels from the point of view of some sensitive non-Westerner, like Lin Yutang, Vishal Mangalwadi, Yuan Zhimin, Sundar Singh, or Giming Shien in Hieromonk Damascene. G. K. Chesterton also brings a rather Zen-like approach to the texts that reawakens the heart to many of their amazing qualities. The analysis of the Gospels in the central third of my Jesus Seminar book may also help.