Summary of Elaine Pagels's The Gnostic Gospels

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 The Christian church began with the proclamation that Jesus Christ rose from the grave. This was a radical change from other religions, which celebrate cycles of birth and death. Christianity insisted that in one unique historical moment, the cycle reversed, and a dead man came back to life. #2 Some Christians, called heretics, deny the resurrection. They believe that the person who experiences the resurrection does not meet Jesus raised physically back to life, but rather encounters Christ on a spiritual level. #3 The doctrine of bodily resurrection served an important political function in legitimizing the authority of certain men who claimed to be the successors of the apostle Peter. #4 The disciples, led by Peter, claimed that Jesus had come back to life. The group was then given authority to lead the Christian community.