Judas’ Gospel; will new document have any impact on the world’s mainstream religions?

For centuries, followers of Christianity have known Judas as the apostle who betrayed Jesus by trading Christ’s life for money.

But an ancient Coptic document, translated into English and made public last week by the National Geographic Society, tells a different story of Judas – not one of a traitor, but a loyal follower.

“You will be cursed by the other generations – and you will come to rule over them,” Jesus tells Judas in the document, which was discovered in the Egyptian desert in the late 1960s, but was made public last week.

The “Gospel of Judas” comes from the Gnostic belief that God created mankind out of spite and that shedding the body through death is the only way to free the spirit, said Richley Crapo, a Utah State University anthropology and religion professor.

“The underlying message [of the document] is Jesus was prepared more than anyone else to reunite with God,” Crapo said. “But to do that, he had to get rid of the flesh. Judas was requested by Jesus to betray him.

“It says he’s a hero rather than a villain.”

The document, dated to about the year 300 A.D., has been authenticated through radio carbon dating and various other analyses, according to an Associated Press report.

While the “Gospel of Judas” will certainly spark debate, Crapo said he doesn’t think it will have a huge impact on mainstream religion. The document’s biggest impact will be on scholars of early Christianity, he said.

“It’s not going to change Roman Catholic theology,” Crapo said. “Most protestant denominations will fall under the same vein, although some more liberal denominations might differ.”

The “Gospel of Judas” was first mentioned when Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon denounced it as heresy around A.D. 180, Crapo said. More than 50 different gospels were written during the second and third centuries, he said, of which only four were kept.

With no central location or power to unify theology, Crapo said early Christianity was scattered and localized, with each synagogue owning a collection of different sacred writings.

As Christian theology has evolved, Crapo said the differences between what is now considered orthodox and the new document are “probably not reconcilable.”

Perhaps, more than anything, Crapo said the “Gospel of Judas” might be the first positive public relations for the vilified apostle in more than 2,000 years.

While Judas is largely viewed as one of the worst villains in the Bible, Crapo said that is a belief born more out of tradition than doctrine.

“He’s had bad press in recent ages that could be moderated,” Crapo said. “Peter denied Jesus three times and there isn’t a problem forgiving him. He became the first bishop of Rome.”

-acf@cc.usu.edu