The Nag Hammadi Library




	This document is presented as a dialogue between Jesus and the Apostle Thomas, and contains 114 logia - the Greek term for sayings - which are invariably far-removed from the New Testament.

	Today, the manuscript can be dated back to approximately 350 AC, along with the rest of the corpus. However, it has been established that this particular manuscript refers to a Greek translation, three fragments of which were found and dated back to around 200 AC. The Greek version of the Gospel is therefore earlier than this date.

	The world's leading specialists still differ in their interpretations, with some thinking that it can be traced back to the origins of Jesus, and others considering the Gospel as the source Q of the New Testament (a sort of documentary basis that would have enabled the Gospels to be written according to the theory put forward by a German scientist in the 19th century).

	Whereas it provides answers to certain questions and helps to shed some light on the doctrinal diversity of primitive Christianity, the 5th Gospel already shows the extent to which the Christian tradition is not unchanging. There has often been mention of unpublished material on Jesus being kept a secret for almost 2,000 years. Even so, the mystery surrounding this document can partly be explained today.

	It is known that the Nag Hammadi library was concealed in the 4th century AC, which coincides with the Council of Nicaea's proclamation of the unity of the faith and officialisation of the doctrine. Any deviation was then deemed to be heretical. In reaction to the standardisation of the religion, the texts were obviously hidden and protected until such time as they could be safely brought back to the surface. No-one could have imagined that they would remain buried for 1,600 years!



	St Thomas is one of the 12 Apostles of Christ and one of the most popular, due to his nickname of 'Didymos', which means twin. According to ancient tradition, Thomas could have been the spiritual twin of Jesus and would therefore have had access to secret teachings. He was the Evangelist for the Indies. He refused to believe in the resurrection of Jesus before laying his hands on Christ's wounds.



	All the texts have been available to the general public since 1975. The Gospel of St Thomas has been translated, published and annotated in several languages. The original version is the property of Egypt's Department of Antiquities, and not the Vatican or another religious congregation, as was the case with the Dead Sea Scrolls. The first photographic edition was published in 1956, and its first critical analysis appeared in 1959.

	However, some countries, such as France, had to wait 15 years before a provisional edition was published and a further 15 years for the full version. There was even talk of legal proceedings taken by the Church against the authors of the criticism. The work was initially censored, but authorisation was granted two years later.

	The controversy ought to be played down. The historical and theological value of the Nag Hammadi library and its invaluable Gospel of St Thomas cannot even begin to be evaluated. It should be realised that the contents of the texts are likely to challenge the very basis of Christianity.

	It is consequently not difficult to imagine the Vatican burying any evidence opposing its doctrine or bringing it into question. Nevertheless, Jean Daniel Kaestli, Professor of Theology at Lausanne University and a specialist in St Thomas, believes that the Church is aware of the historical importance of so-called deviant texts and the need for their analysis.

	Above all, is there a reason for it to fear anything, although its dogma and institutional organisation were officially established in the 2nd century? This was the era when any deviant literature was hidden. The fact that we knew nothing about these texts until 1945 has nothing to do with the religious community keeping tight-lipped, but because the books were hidden by their followers and then lost. Furthermore, their existence was not a secret, since they are mentioned by Origen. It is just that we did not have an exact idea of the contents.












	A distinction needs to be made between the purely historical aspect of such a document and its theological importance.

	The doctrine is based on an account. At a time when Christianity decided to establish an official doctrine and organisation, the Council of Nicaea had already taken the decision to exclude it from its teaching. With hardly any known copies and with just one surviving example, we know that it had not been widely open to the public and appeared to be rather confidential and esoteric.

	Today, the scientific community is still divided over the question, whereas the Church steadfastly refuses to take it into consideration.