3. Gospel of Thomas Standard-The Original 21 Chapter Poetic Arrangement Standard Edition

Background: The Gospel of Thomas a pre-third century book was discovered buried up the Nile River in Egypt in 1945. The first two sentences state that Jesus was the author and Thomas was his scribe. Up until this publication no one was able to determine its chapter paragraph and stanza breaks. Further no one found a way to discern the authors meaning for his key metaphors.The Main Discovery: When Dr. North applied the Semitic Secret to Thomas he discovered: That it was an intricately arranged book of wisdom poems That when its read correctly the authors meaning for his metaphors and poems became clear That the author was teaching an alternative to indoctrination into religious educational and political institutions That the author called indoctrinators dark dogs dividers and false godsThat the author intended to empower people to discover their own answers with the help of Spirit andThat the author was teaching the ONLY Way to resolve religious and most other conflicts.Implications: The author almost certainly was murdered (as he might be today for such a message).The author needed to compose a book that would explain his revolutionary message after he died.The author would have given a copy of his book to trusted associates in case he died.The author would protect those with the book by not associating it with his name and by telling them to take it to a safe haven such as Egypt after he was murdered.Conclusion: Jesus composed The Gospel of Thomas which is the only accurate record of his Messianic unification message.Overview: This Professional Edition of the Gospel of Thomas includes: The history of the books discovery.An explanation of each of the 125 wisdom poems.A synopsis of Jesus core message.A way for the reader to measure his current level of living Jesus message.150-page appendix explaining Semitic Parallelism the method used to determine the organization and meaning of the Gospel of Thomas.Fourteen reasons to believe that Jesus composed the Gospel of Thomas.The intricate arrangement of each poem.Review: Robert Norths book is in the tradition of those who argue against a literal reading of scripture in fact inviting us to read The Gospel of Thomas as wisdom poems full of ancient metaphors.His major claim is that he has discovered a new semitic pattern to The Gospel of Thomas. Like many a Buddhist teacher he challenges us to try his approach and see if it doesnt work for us.I appreciated the way he arranged the verses of Thomas like poetry forcing me to slow down and look with new eyes at a familiar text.Norman J Betz Ph.D Prof. Emeritus English; University of Central Missouri