Once again, I invoke the writings of Epiphanius (the Panarion) of the Borborites. The lost text I am writing about today is the “Greater Questions of Mary”. A few lines are quoted by Epiphanius but most of it is his commentary. I will warn you, the content can get pretty explicit. Epiphanius gives a few …
Author Archives: bP
The Gospel of Eve
Once again I dip back into the Panarion by Epiphanius, this time referencing the lost text, “The Gospel of Eve.” This Gnostic (Borborite) text survives in two quotations. Keep this in mind when reading the following because there is no context behind what is being said, either from within the gospel itself or the purpose …
The Birth of Yaldabaoth
When I started this blog a few years ago, I had no idea how long I would keep it up. I figured I would eventually run out of things to talk about. Boy was I wrong. This blog entry is #100! I figure with this post I will comment on the demiurge, Yaldabaoth. I don’t …
The Donkey deity
I am currently reading “The Apocryphal Gospels” translated by Simon Gathercole. It features numerous non-canonical texts, some gnostic, some that are not, as well as fragments. As I have mentioned elsewhere, it is always a pleasure to read new translations of various texts which gives me a new perspective (and in the case of Gospel …
Gospel of the Hebrews
I want to bring attention to another unknown gospel, that being the so-called “Gospel of the Hebrews”. This gospel only survives in fragments and that is in thanks to the church fathers quoting the text. Otherwise, it is a lost text (until a copy emerges, fingers crossed!). I will be posting all the known fragments …
Gospel of the Savior (2 of 2)
To continue on with the Gospel of the Savior, we start at page 108, which continues the narrative from the previous page. This page is fragmented thus disrupts the flow of text. Here are some highlights. Jesus speaks of the plan against him and that he is a stranger to him. The person he is …
Gospel of the Savior (1 of 2)
I love finding new “lost manuscripts” that don’t get the publicity they should. Some discoveries make headlines for decades and others barely a mention. This particular text is one that has been over looked. The so called “Gospel of the Savior” is from a collection of fragments at the Berlin Egyptian Museum and was purchased …
Mary Magdalene and the resurrected Christ
With this post, I wanted to compare all the instances where Mary Magdalene meets the resurrected Christ. There have been countless articles / books on the importance of how this plays out, but for me, it shows the importance of Mary. She is the first to see the resurrected Christ, which in turn, will be …
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The Flight into Egypt
Recently I read the “Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew”, which is a text that combines the “Protoevangelium of James” and “Infancy Gospel of Thomas” but bridges the two with a flight into Egypt narrative. With this post I would like to highlight that middle storyline. The other two stories will be covered on this blog at some …
Lefāfa Ṣedeḳ: Book of Life (3 of 3)
If you haven’t read the previous two posts regarding the Lefāfa Ṣedeḳ, check them out. Now to the final post! The fifth section starts with a prayer for the journey of the soul from the earth to heaven. Here’s part of the prayer: Protect thou me, O Christ, so that the angels of darkness may …
Culmination of Wisdom 