The Thirteenth Apostle: Revised Edition: What the Gospel of Judas Really Says

Description

The first book to challenge The National Geographic version of the Gospel of Judas, The Thirteenth Apostle is sure to inspire to fresh debate around this most infamous of biblical figures. In 2006 The National G eographic Society released the first English translation of the Gospel of Judas, a second-century text discovered in Egypt in the 1970s. The translation caused a sensation because it seemed to overturn the popular image of Judas the betrayer and instead presented a benevolent Judas who was a friend of Jesus. In The Thirteenth Apostle, April DeConick offers a new translation of the Gospel of Judas that seriously challenges The National Geographic interpretation. Inspired by The National Geographic Society's efforts to piece together this ancient manuscript, DeConick sought out the original Coptic text and began her own translation: "I didn't find the sublime Judas, at least not in Coptic. What I found were a series of English translation choices made by the National Geographic team, choices that permitted a different Judas to emerge in the English translation than in the Coptic original. Judas was not only not sublime, he was far more demonic than any Judas I know in any other piece of early Christian literature, Gnostic or otherwise." -April D. DeConick

April D. DeConick is the Isla Carroll and Percy E. Turner Professor of Biblical Studies in the Department of Religious Studies at Rice University (Houston, Texas). She specializes in early Christian history and theology, noncanonical Gospels, and gnostic and mystical traditions. Her books include Seek to See Him: Ascent and Vision Mysticism in the Gospel of Thomas (1996); Voices of the Mystics: Early Christian Discourse in the Gospels of John and Thomas and Other Ancient Christian Literature (Sheffield Academic, 2001); Recovering the Original Gospel of Thomas: A History of the Gospel and Its Growth (T. & T. Clark, 2005); and The Original Gospel of Thomas in Translation, with Commentary and New English Translation of the Complete Gospel (T. & T. Clark, 2006) and The Thirteenth Apostle: what the Gospel of Judas really says (Continuum, 2007). She has also edited the collection of papers, Paradise Now: Essays on Early Jewish and Christian Mysticism (SBL, 2006).

April DeConick makes a brilliant contribution to the conversation about this puzzling gospel, whose Sethian "bitter voice" she hears as a sophisticated, ironic parody of apostolic Christianity's atonement-by-sacrifice theology and cultic activity. Engagement with the gospel of Mark and with movie versions of Judas bring first and second century sectarian conflicts into contemporary focus. I highly recommend this work for all scholars and students of the apocryphal and canonical gospels. Jane D. Schaberg, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Detroit, Mercy, USA. -- Jane Schaberg '"Yet you will do worse than all of them. For the man that clothes me, you will sacrifice him." Thus speaks Jesus to Judas Iscariot, according to April DeConick's new translation of the Gospel of Judas. But far from being a demand addressed by Jesus to his favorite disciple, as the first editors of the Gospel of Judas claimed, this sentence is both a prediction of Judas' betrayal of Jesus, and a condemnation of it. In her discussions of this passage and many others, April DeConick's new book provides solutions to major issues raised by this fascinating but frequently misunderstood and misinterpreted text.' Louis Painchaud, Ph.D., Universite Laval, Canada -- Louis Painchaud, Ph.D., Universite Laval, Canada "Turning upside down the most accepted understanding of the Gospel of Judas (Codex Tchacos), April DeConick gives a radically new reading of this Coptic apocryphon, based on her fresh, personal translation. She unveils the techniques of an ancient author, a Sethian Gnostic of the 2nd century CE, who used mockery and sarcasm to define Judas' role in relation to Jesus on one side and the Apostles on the other. A deep original sight is offered on the intense and troubled story of early Christianity with its rival, opponent streams. Those who are interested in the Gnostic adventure cannot miss The Thirteenth Apostle." Professor Madeleine Scopello, Director of Research at the National Centre of Scientific Research Sorbonne, Paris -- Professor Madeleine Scopello Introductory article and Q&A session on www.thesheepdip.co.uk "April DeConick created quite a storm with the publication of The Thirteenth Apostle, for her book overturned the then prevailing interpretation of the Gospel of Judas, according to which Judas Iscariot is presented as a hero and intimate disciple. This new edition of her book has been up-dated and expanded to include two entirely new chapters. Anyone wishing to know "what the Gospel of Judas really says" must read this book. It is clearly the most important book yet published on this much-misunderstood gospel." - Birger A. Pearson Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA "This book is a very readable presentation of the Gospel of Judas and a good introduction to the competing early Christian traditions vying for dominance in the in the second and third centuries. DeConick provides her original English translation in full, as well as significant commentary on the text. Maps and diagrams enhance the readability and three appendices provide an annotated bibliography, a synopsis of Sethian Gnostic literature, and a collection of excerpts from the Church Fathers on the Gospel of Judas. Endnotes along with indices of authors, biblical references, and ancient texts, complete the volume." --Barbara E. Bowe RSCJ, Catholic Library World -- Barbara E. Bowe, RSCJ * Catholic Library World *