Why Does Genesis Contain Two Different Creation Stories?

Exile, two schools of thought, and the theology of Genesis 1 and 2 Scholars have long noted anachronisms and stylistic and theological differences within the Pentateuch[1]. In the late 19thcentury, an explanatory model commonly referred to as the Documentary Hypothesis gained prominence and dominated biblical exegesis for several decades. According to this model, the Pentateuch… Read More Why Does Genesis Contain Two Different Creation Stories?

What Do the Gospels of Mary, Philip, and Thomas and the Protevangelium of James, Actually Tell Us?

Four writings that still shape popular imagination, none of which replace the four Gospels There are several genres of apocryphal writings, just like the canonical books: epistles, such as the Epistle to the Laodiceans; acts of the apostles, such as the Acts of John and the Acts of Peter; apocalypses, such as the Apocalypse of Peter; and, of course, gospels.… Read More What Do the Gospels of Mary, Philip, and Thomas and the Protevangelium of James, Actually Tell Us?

Has the Church Hidden Other Gospels Besides the Four We Know?

Why the apocryphal writings were not included in the New Testament canon In the New Testament, twenty-seven writings eventually came to form the canon of Christian Scripture. However, there are other writings that did not make it into the canon. These are called apocryphal texts, a term that in common usage means unauthentic or suspect, but which comes from the… Read More Has the Church Hidden Other Gospels Besides the Four We Know?