Mission
June 2nd, 2009 by Andrew Bernhard under Miscellaneous. No Comments.
Since I am well aware of the controversial nature of early Christian gospels that were not ultimately included in the New Testament, I want to be clear from the outset what the purpose of this online resource is (and what it is not).
The mission of gospels.net is to provide easy access to and reliable information about early Christian gospels that were not ultimately included in the New Testament, especially the Gospel of Thomas.
Some of these gospels were the subject of heated theological quarrels in antiquity, and their rediscovery in modern times has produced some astonishingly hostile disputes in recent years . . . twentieth and twenty-first century arguments that have at times included the kind of vitriolic polemics, sensational conspiracy theories, and senseless personal attacks that would, in my opinion, have been better left behind in the distant past. I want no part of this.
I hope to use this online resource to counterbalance the many sensationalized reports about early Christian gospels that were not ultimately included in the New Testament. My goal is to facilitate sensible discussion and enable interested individuals to formulate their own educated opinions about gospels that were important to some of Jesus’ ancient followers. To this end, I will be providing information about high-quality resources that offer different perspectives on the various early Christian gospels. I intend to describe the perspectives of these various resources, but I will not be stating my personal opinions about them here (at least, I will withhold my personal opinions as much as possible).
Gospels.net should be regarded as a news source. It will not be a place for my personal opinions or editorializing. I would prefer to present my own reflections and personal commentaries on early Christian gospels in other forums. My function here online is merely as a reporter.
