The Gospel of Thomas comes to us from an authentic very early form of Christianity. It is a miracle we have it at all as it was declared heretical by clerics of what became the Christian mainstream, was suppressed, and lost for 1600 years. As for Thomas himself, after Jesus' crucifixion he apparently realized his understanding of Jesus' ministry was not shared by Peter and several other disciples. Avoiding conflict with them, Thomas traveled east, making converts. Various modern churches based in India and Syria have their roots in Thomas's evangelism.
This gospel was probably pieced together by Thomas' followers who remained behind in Mediterranean lands. It is a collection of 114 of Jesus' sayings; 49 of them are recognizably similar to versions found in the Canonicals, but are shorter, simpler, and devoid of storyline context, or interpretation.
Sayings essential to Jesus' perspective are found in both camps; for example "Seek and you will find" Matthew 7:7 as well as Thomas 92; "The kingdom of God is within you" Luke 17: 21 and Thomas 3 & 113; "Little children belong to the kingdom" Mark 10:13 plus 3 other canonicals and metaphorically in Thomas 4.
Mary Magdalene is a disciple in this gospel, and Jesus defends her from attempts to dismiss her by a few stubbornly patriarchic tradition-bound disciples; most notably Peter. Mary's role is minimized in the Canonicals, yet she is the first to have a post-crucifixion visitation from Jesus John 20:17. During a visitation reported in her own gospel Mary asks Jesus how he "who sees the vision sees it, through the soul or through the spirit? The Savior answered and said, He does not see through the soul nor through the spirit, but the mind that is between the two" Mary 5:10. This response suggests that if we experience "the kingdom" during spacetime life, it is with our minds.
The relationships among spirit, mind and soul are main themes of the Gospel of Thomas. Because we are children of the spirit we are born with spiritual perspectives. If lovingly nurtured during early childhood we experience the world as "this Heaven," mythically known as Eden. By the time children are fluent in language, free-will leads them develop self-protective, self-centered perspectives. But, as Jesus tells us in Thomas 11, doing that creates a dilemma: when you were one, you became two. But when you become two, what will you do?" Regrettably, an ego-centric worldly perspective is a dead-end, and when we realize it our spiritual journeys begin.
If you "seek and find," you will rediscover the spirit that animates you; and together with it you will unify as a soul. Then your mind opens to its birthright spiritual perspective and will be able experience Earth's biosphere as "this Heaven" Thomas #11 and will understand God's intended destiny for us. In the universal hierarchy of quantum creation, our souls unify as a "single one" Thomas 4 & 23. This Heavenly destination is not a place; it is a higher level spiritual being that macroscopically unifies us just as we macroscopically unify the cells of our bodies.
Turner, Daniel: - Turner attended a public lecture on the Gospels of Thomas in 2007, and realized it spoke to his condition. Many years prior to that lecture he had a transformative religious experience, followed by occasional religious dreams and visions and had assumed his experience was unusual. But as he did the readings and research now reflected in this commentary, he realized these experiences happen to people whose dreams and expectations are shattered by uncontrollable circumstances, as had been the case with him.
