Blogger’s Note on Skinner Interview
September 15th, 2009 by Andrew Bernhard under Gospel of Thomas. 2 Comments.
As the readers of gospels.net are aware, one of my primary goals with this blog is to promote informed discussion about gospels not ultimately included in the New Testament. One of the methods I have chosen to employ in pursuing this goal is conducting interviews with scholars about their recent publications. Nobody has the time to read every book (or article) they would like about any particular subject, and I believe strongly that by providing authors with an opportunity to describe/summarize their work in an easily accessible public forum like a blog I am providing a valuable service.
With that said, I need to add that I think I – and I alone – made a mistake yesterday in the way I presented the interview Mike Grondin and I conducted with Christopher Skinner about his recent book, John and Thomas – Gospels in Conflict? The role I have assigned myself here on this blog is that of a “neutral” reporter, and I fear that I may have inadvertently implied that I was endorsing the contents of Dr. Skinner’s book. So I want to make it absolutely clear that I will neither endorse nor condemn the contents of this (or any) book on this blog.
I fully intend to continue reporting on significant publications that further scholarly discourse. I just plan to make it more clear that I am merely reporting on them. The responses given by authors in interviews are their own, and I do not necessary agree or disagree with them. I do believe firmly that Dr. Skinner’s book is a significant contribution to Gospel of Thomas scholarship (which is why Mike and I decided to report on it in the first place). However, I failed to indicate adequately that it is part of an ongoing discussion about the relationship between the Gospels of John and Thomas. Other scholars have studied the relationship between these two gospels and come to radically different conclusions than Dr. Skinner, and I should have made that more explicitly clear.
My failure to do so is especially regrettable for two reasons: 1. Mike Grondin, the list owner of the Gospel of Thomas e-list, is currently involved in discussions on the list about the merits of the book; and 2. Christoper Skinner himself had already prepared a bibliography of other important works discussing the relationship between the Gospels of John and Thomas that I was supposed to post with the interview. Thus, Mike obviously did not intend to give the book his unequivocal endorsement, and Dr. Skinner intended to provide readers with information about supplementary resources they should consult before formulating their own conclusions.
What can I say? Mea culpa. The blame is all mine here.
I will not make the same mistakes in presenting future interviews.
Mark Goodacre on September 16th, 2009
I really enjoyed the interview, Andrew, and did not think that there was any implied endorsement or otherwise — just a very helpful interview that flagged up the contents of the book in an interesting way.