Background: The Gospel of Thomas, a pre-third century book, was discovered buried up the Nile River in Egypt in 1945. The first two sentences state that Jesus was the author and Thomas was his scribe. Up until this publication, no one was able to determine its chapter, paragraph, and stanza breaks. Further, no one found a way to discern the author’s meaning for his key metaphors.

The Main Discovery: When Dr. North applied the Semitic Secret to Thomas, he discovered:
That it was an intricately arranged book of wisdom poems,
That when you read correctly, the author’s meaning for his metaphors and poems became clear,
That the author was teaching an alternative to the indoctrination of religious, educational, and political institutions,
That the author called indoctrinators dark,
dogs,
dividers, and false gods,
That the author intended to empower people to discover their own answers with the help of Spirit, and That the author was teaching the ONLY Way to resolve religious and most other conflicts.

Implications:

The author almost certainly was murdered (as he might be today for such a message).. The author needed to compose a book that would explain his revolutionary message after he died. The author would have given a copy of his book to trusted associates in case he died. The author would protect those with the book by not associating it with his name and by telling them to take it to a safe haven, such as Egypt after he was murdered.Conclusion: Jesus composed The Gospel of Thomas, which is the only accurate record of his Messianic, unification message.

Overview: This Professional Edition of the Gospel of Thomas includes:

The history of the book’s discovery.An explanation of each of the 125 wisdom poems.A synopsis of Jesus’ core message.A way for the reader to measure his current level of living Jesus’ message.150-page appendix explaining Semitic Parallelism, the method used to determine the organization and meaning of the Gospel of Thomas.Fourteen reasons to believe that Jesus composed the Gospel of Thomas.The intricate arrangement of each poem.Review:

Robert North’s book is in the tradition of those who argue against a literal reading of scripture, in fact inviting us to read The Gospel of Thomas as wisdom poems full of ancient metaphors.

His major claim is that he has discovered a new, semitic pattern to The Gospel of Thomas. Like many a Buddhist teacher, he challenges us to try his approach and see if it doesn’t work for us.

I appreciated the way he arranged the verses of Thomas like poetry, forcing me to slow down and look with new eyes at a familiar text.

Norman J Betz, Ph.D, Prof. Emeritus, English; University of Central Missouri