I wrote previously regarding one of the sayings in 2 Clement and it’s correlation to the Gospel of Thomas, but have decided to do a deep dive into all the sayings. There are quite a few quotes from Jesus in this writing that is attributed to Clement of Rome, but that attribution is questionable and …
Author Archives: bP
John the Baptist’s family and his death
Here is an interesting tidbit regarding John the Baptist speaking of wanting a wife (and obtaining one, then having children) and on his own death; from the Mandaean tradition. This comes from the G.R.S. Meade book “Gnostic John the Baptizer”, which takes from the Mandaean Book of John, and I have included it in full …
The flying head of John the Baptist
On February 24 and 25 in the Orthodox tradition there are two feast days about discovering the head of John the Baptist (commemorating two different dates, and there is a third feast day for another finding later in the year; the head kept getting lost!). The head of John the Baptist is quite the fascinating …
Salome built a tower
I have featured Salome on my blog in the past, but wanted to share this Manichaean psalm. There are numerous psalms from the Manichaean faith, but in a particular group titled “Psalms of Thom(as)”, number 16 is titled “Salome built a tower.” I did not see this posted online elsewhere, so I want to share …
John the Messiah, Jesus the Deceiver
Today is the feast day of Theophany, which commemorates the baptism of Jesus by John. I present you with a different take on this event. This post, as well as more coming up, will feature Mandaean writings relating to John the Baptist. Mandaeism is the only “gnostic” religion to survive since antiquity without any downtime …
Josephus writing about John the Baptist
Those who study Christian history have heard of the Jewish historian, Flavius Jospheus and his mentions of John the Baptist, Jesus and James (brother of Jesus). I have read the Jesus and James mentions before, but I must admit, I never really read the John quotation. While reading through G. R. S. Mead’s Gnostic John …
An alternate version of the Gospel of John
This is going to be my last “John” entry for awhile but this is a really interesting story. Some years back, an English translation of the “Evangelikon”, which accompanied a text titled the “Levitikon”, was published. What is this you ask? It is an alternate version of the Gospel of John. The manuscript was reportedly …
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Martha in the Pistis Sophia
Martha, sister of Mary (of Bethany) and Lazarus, is a well known secondary character in the Gospels of Luke and John. But has she appeared elsewhere in non-canonical sources? There are some Latin medieval tales (particular of the “Golden Legend” lore) but there are much earlier stories, those being from the Gnostic tradition! I have …
The Mysteries of Saint John the Apostle and Holy Virgin
This particular Coptic tale is quite interesting. It is an ascension text, but then dives into a question and answer narrative. John the Theologian/Evangelist is taken up into the heavens by Jesus. There, John is handed over to a Cherubim, whom he questions rigorously. There are some interesting dialogue that is presented here. I find …
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The Repose of Saint John the Evangelist and Apostle
I guess I have Saint John on my mind as I have yet another post on him (and a few more in queue!). My last post was an Ethiopic version of the death of John, this time I have a Coptic tale of this event to share. The manuscript of this story dates to about …
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Culmination of Wisdom 