The Acts of Thomas

by Harlod W. Attridge, Julian V. Hills (Editor)

When modern European missionaries arrived in India in the eighteenth century, they were astonished to discover Christian communities that traced their origins back to Thomas. How and when did Christianity spread eastwards? The earliest answer can be found in the pages of The Acts of Thomas. The Acts of Thomas is one of five surviving apocryphal acts along with Andrew, John, Peter, and Paul that recount the adventures of the apostles as they carried the Christian message to the far reaches of their world. The well-known Hymn of the Pearl, widely regarded as an allegory of the soul on its journey, from God and back to God, is found in its pages.

157 pages, Paperback

First published June 15, 2010

Reviews

[Matthew Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Setting the question of how much historicity can be found in this book, I actually found it to be a really entertaining read. The vast majority of the theology seemed to be consistent with orthodox Christianity, though the few sparse references to “secret teachings” did rub me the wrong way. Some of the moral teaching, such as the idea that all sex, even within the context of marriage, is wrong, did strike me as very odd and inconsistent at times. Ultimately though, I did find it to be a relatively enjoyable collection of Syriac legends and liturgy based on the life and martyrdom of the Apostle Thomas, who for his part has a very strong character, as “doubting Thomas” does shine through at several points. The references to Biblical narratives throughout were also interesting, though they do display the lack of historical foresight at times, such as when Thomas (who according to this text travelled to the far east shortly following Christ’s resurrection) quotes one of the letters of Paul. I’m not sure how he would’ve got that. Overall, a fun, slightly theologically dodgy, and unhistorical read from early Christian apocrypha which gives a huge amount of insight into the complex liturgy of the old Syriac Church.

[Kristi Duarte · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes a thorough look at one of the major apocryphal acts about Thomas Didymus, also called Judas Thomas, i.e., The Twin. It's not an easy book to read, but if you're interested in the lives of Jesus's disciples, and specifically in Thomas, who allegedly brought Christianity to India, this is a must-read. The author does a great job in cross-referencing the different translations of the acts, as well as providing an extensive index of parallels with the canonical (New Testament) and non-canonical sources, including the Nag Hammadi Library.

[Art Killings · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great translation of this extra-canonical Act. This edition of the Acts of Thomas is very readable and wonderful. Apparently, the apostle Judas Thomas is refered to as Christ's spiritual twin in here. This is also the earliest written account of Thomas having preached in India. Speaking of the tradition that he preached in India, two of the kings in this document have been shown to have actually been historical figures: Gondophares and his brother Gad(for that see James F. McGrath's article History and Fiction in the Acts of Thomas and also see the articles of Encyclopedia Iranica on Gondophares and the Indo-Parthian dynasty in northwestern India(i.e modern-day Pakistan) as well.)
https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/fac...

http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles...

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