In this thread on the discovery of ancient Christian texts, I have mentioned the serendipitous discovery of both the Nag Hammadi Library in Egypt and the Dead Sea Scrolls in what is now Israel.   It might be useful for me to say something about both of these discoveries.  In this post and the next I will talk about the Nag Hammadi Library.  I have taken this discussion from my New Testament textbook.

But let me reproduce the discussion with a warning.  Caveat lector!   My friend Mark Goodacre, NT scholar at Duke and inveterate destroyer of New Testament scholarly myths, has called this account (which is the standard account found among NT scholars) into question.  Mark is on the blog.  Maybe he will be inspired to respond!

In any event, here is the tale of the discovery from my undergraduate textbook:

************************************************

It is an intriguing story, this chance discovery of a cache of ancient Christian documents in 1945, in a remote part of Upper Egypt, a story of serendipity, ineptitude, secrecy, ignorance, scholarly brilliance, murder, and blood revenge.  Even now, after scholars have spent years trying to piece it all together, details of the find remain sketchy.

We do know that it occurred in December1945 — about a year and half before…

THE REST OF THIS POST IS FOR MEMBERS ONLY.  If you don’t belong yet, JOIN BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!!!