Why did the early Catholic Church reject the 'Gnostic gospels' (e.g., Gospel of Thomas)?
During the 2nd and 3rd centuries, heretical sects (such as the Gnostics) wrote pseudepigraphal texts falsely attributing them to apostles like Thomas, Judas, or Mary Magdalene. The Church evaluated writings based on four apostolic criteria: 1) Apostolic Origin (written by an apostle or close disciple); 2) Orthodoxy (conforming to the apostolic Rule of Faith, not denying Christ's true humanity or creation's goodness); 3) Catholicity (broadly recognized and used by Churches everywhere); and 4) Liturgical Use (publicly read at Mass). The Gnostic texts failed all four tests.
Sources
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 120
- 1 John 4:1-3
Awaiting review by the chaplaincy. Written in our own words; the Church's own texts are the authority.