Joel Kontinen
In the first century A.D., the apostles had to fight against false doctrines and false gospels that sought to undermine Christianity.
Gnostic gospels portrayed a Jesus that was different from what the four genuine Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) tell us.
In 2012, Harvard professor Karen King went public with a fourth-century document that said Jesus was married. Written in Coptic, it is a fragment that includes Jesus’ dialogue with His disciples.
The New Testament gospels were all written in the first century, so the Coptic text is a lot younger.
It is not the only attempt to provide a wife for Jesus, who, given His extraordinary mission was not married – at least there’s nothing in the New Testament that suggests He was.
The Gospel of Jesus' Wife has made headlines in recent days. An article in Life Science explains why:
“A papyrus holding text that suggests Jesus Christ was married and whose authenticity has been a matter of intense debate since it was unveiled in 2012 is almost certainly a fake.
Karen King, the Harvard professor who discovered the Gospel of Jesus's Wife and has defended its authenticity, has now conceded that the papyrus is likely a forgery and that its owner lied to her about the provenance and his own background.”
The article goes on to say:
“The concession comes after Walter Fritz, a resident of North Port, Florida, revealed that he is the owner of the papyrus that claims Jesus had a wife. Fritz said this to Ariel Sabar, a journalist for The Atlantic who wrote an exposé published June 15.
Less than a day after that article was published, more documents came out revealing a fake Greek manuscript the owner had posted on his website and a blog in which the owner’s wife talks of restoring a second century Christian gospel, a project that apparently left part of the manuscript in fragments.
Then on the evening of June 16, King conceded that the papyrus is likely a forgery. The new evidence ‘tips the balance toward forgery,’ King told Sabar."
False gospels differ diametrically from authentic Scripture. Details suggest that the NT gospels are eyewitness documents. Archaeology confirms that the Bible is about real history and real people.
And the real Jesus rose from the dead in a real resurrection.
Sceptics have launched many more or less bizarre attempts to discredit the Bible but they have all failed.
In contrast, the Bible is the Word of God and it cannot fail.
Source:
Jarus, Owen. 2016. Gospel of Jesus's Wife Likely a Fake, Bizarre Backstory Suggests. Live Science (17 June).
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