The gnostic gospels

WINNER OF THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 'Fascinating' THE TIMES 'An intellectually elegant, concise study . . . The economy with which [Pagels] evokes the world of early Christianity is a marvel' NEW YORKER Long buried and suppressed, the Gnostic Gospels contain the secret writings attributed to the followers of Jesus. In 1945 fifty-two papyrus texts, including gospels and other secret documents, were found concealed in an earthenware jar buried in the Egyptian desert. These so-called Gnostic writings were Coptic translations from the original Greek dating from the time of the New Testament. The material they embodied - poems, quasi-philosophical descriptions of the origins of the universe, myths, magic and instructions for mystic practice - were later declared heretical, as they offered a powerful alternative to the Orthodox Christian tradition. In a book that is as exciting as it is scholarly, Elaine Pagels examines these texts and the questions they pose and shows why Gnosticism was eventually stamped out by the increasingly organised and institutionalised Orthodox Church. Now widely recognised as one of the most brilliant and accessible histories of early Christian spirituality, and stunning in its implications, The Gnostic Gospels is a radical, eloquent reconsideration of the origins of the Christian faith. 'Pagels is always readable, always deeply informed, always richly suggestive' WASHINGTON POST 'A calm and balanced layman's introduction' SPECTATOR