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Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas
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Average Rating:  out of 173 Reviews
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Price: $13.00
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Sale: $4.95
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Manufacturer: Vintage
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EAN (European Article Number): 9780375703164
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Number of Items: 1
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Binding: Paperback
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Author: Elaine Pagels
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Publisher: Vintage
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Dewey Decimal Number: 229.8
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Publication Date: 2004-05-04
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Reading Level: 272
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Description: Shortly after Elaine Pagels’ two-and-half-year-old son was diagnosed with a rare lung disease, the religion professor found herself drawn to a Christian church again for the first time in many years. In Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas Pagels, best know for her National Book Award-winning The Gnostic Gospels, wrestles with her own faith as she struggles to understand when--and why--Christianity became associated almost exclusively with the ideas codified in the fourth-century Nicene Creed and in the canonical texts of the New Testament. In her exploration, she uncovers the richness and diversity of Christian philosophy that has only become available since the discovery of the Nag Hammadi texts. At the center of Beyond Belief is what Pagels identifies as a textual battle between The Gospel of Thomas (rediscovered in Egypt in 1945) and The Gospel of John. While these gospels have many superficial similarities, Pagels demonstrates that John, unlike Thomas, declares that Jesus is equivalent to "God the Father" as identified in the Old Testament. Thomas, in contrast, shares with other supposed secret teachings a belief that Jesus is not God but, rather, is a teacher who seeks to uncover the divine light in all human beings. Pagels then shows how the Gospel of John was used by Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon and others to define orthodoxy during the second and third centuries. The secret teachings were literally driven underground, disappearing until the Twentieth Century. As Pagels argues this process "not only impoverished the churches that remained but also impoverished those [Irenaeus] expelled." Beyond Belief offers a profound framework with which to examine Christian history and contemporary Christian faith, and Pagels renders her scholarship in a highly readable narrative. The one deficiency in Pagels’ examination of Thomas, if there is one, is that she never fully returns in the end to her own struggles with religion that so poignantly open the book. How has the mysticism of the Gnostic Gospels affected her? While she hints that she and others have found new pathways to faith through Thomas, the impact of Pagels’ work on contemporary Christianity may not be understood for years to come. --Patrick O’Kelley
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Customer Reviews
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Review Summary: Bait and switch is what this book is about... |
Date: 2008-11-07 |
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Details: This book is about the early formation of Christianity, and focuses heavily on the Gospel of John. Only a few quips about the Gospel of Thomas. Very disappointed since I was looking to study the Gospel of Thomas, but the book does layout a cursory overview of the formation of Christianity, so I will give it credit for that. |
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Review Summary: Anti-Christian |
Date: 2008-11-05 |
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Details: If you are looking to buy this book for an in depth view of The Gospel of Thomas keep searching. This book is no more than someones personal views toward Christianity. I read the complete book and learned nothing but a woman who is angry with God for personal tragedies in her life. She filled the book with referrances to scholars that back her bitterness to Christianity. I can only say that I hope the Lord brings peace and true understanding to her but I will not waste my time and money on anymore books by Elaine pagels. |
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Review Summary: Ramble and No Structure at ALL |
Date: 2008-09-24 |
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Details: This is the first time I write a review on Amazon, unfortunately not a good one. Someone recommended this book to me because it's more "unbiased and convincing". As a person who is growing in faith, I decided to check this little book out. After 50 pages, I had to put it down because there is no way I can follow the author's arguement. In fact, I only saw a compile of passages in the 4 orthodox gospels and the gospel of Thomas, under a bunch of loosely constructed themes. It's not "convincing" in anyway, because I can't see her points! Might as well read all these gospels and reach your own conclusion.
If you want to read this book, I suggest you sit down for a whole day and finish it in one shot, because that is the only way to understand what the author is trying to get at. I only have a couple of hours for reading every day at the most, so I gave up.
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Review Summary: Good, but misleading subtitle |
Date: 2008-09-24 |
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Details: As many other reviewers have noted, the subtitle of this book is extremely misleading and I cannot see why it was chosen. The Gospel of Thomas, while mentioned (and the text of which is actually included in the back), is far from the focus of the book and it is not, at least, what I expected: a thorough examination focused on the Gospel of Thomas. Rather the book is a sort of introduction to the gnostic gospels using the Gospel of Thomas as a reference and starting point, while at the same time being a personal reflection on the part of Pagels. This makes for good reading and leads to interesting conclusions, though one who was expecting in depth treatment is bound to be slightly disappointed. Rather than the way it is marketed, this work can best be seen as an introduction to the gnostic texts (as well as Pagels' other works) which includes a thoughtful meditation on what their implications are on the understanding of Christianity as well as their impact on the individual. |
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Review Summary: A jewel of intellectual and spiritual enlightenment |
Date: 2008-07-22 |
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Details: I try very hard to read 12 books each year, and there are so many to choose from that narrowing down my annual list is difficult. Elaine Pagels Book "Beyond Belief" was released in 2003, but did not get onto my own book reading to-do list for 3 years, by which time it was surprisingly gone from bookstore shelves. Fortunately, I was able to pick up a used copy here at Amazon. Absolutely sensational, is how I would describe this book, exceeding Elaine's well deserved reputation as researcher, historian and author of the early epoch of Christianity. John Traveler puts it best in his own review of this book on Helium.com "I can promise you this: that whether your appetite is theological, philosophical, spiritual or intellectual, Elaine Pagels and Beyond Belief will not let you down but may leave you hungry for more." |
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