Dead Sea Scrolls

The main question for many who are critical, apparently, is why would Christians want to study Hebrew language biblical manuscripts in the first place? Quite honestly, the most obvious reason for Christian interest in Hebrew biblical texts is so painfully clear, that it is a bit bewildering why the answer has eluded anyone. Simply put, Christianity centers on Jesus Christ – a Jewish reader of Hebrew biblical texts who used these to identify Himself as the Jewish Christ/Messiah (See John 5; Luke 4). The Apostles and early Christian leaders such as Peter (Acts 2), Stephen (Acts 7), Paul, Apollos (Acts 18:28) and their successors followed suit.

In fact, the first to use a Hebrew scroll for Christian apologetic purposes was Jesus, who introduced Himself as the Christ/Messiah by reading from the Hebrew scroll of Isaiah and pronouncing that the prophecy in Chapter 61 had been fulfilled as He read it aloud that day in the synagogue (Luke 4:16-21).

Another obvious point, but one that bears repeating, is that most of the original Christians were in fact Jewish converts who believed themselves to be completed Jews, and who came to function as missionaries, some even focusing on Gentiles as in the case of the Jewish scholar, Saul of Tarsus (Acts 13:44-48; Rom 10; 11; Gal 2:7-9; 3:7-9). These individuals used Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Old Testament source texts for their mission. Naturally, today’s Christian scholars want to read these texts in the original form and language that were available to Jesus and the Apostles. It has been this way from the beginning.

There is a lot of overlap between the manuscript work of Christians and Jews, and the reason is quite sensible. The Hebrew Bible serving as the original form of 75% of the Christian Bible is the same that represents 100% of the Jewish Tanakh (including the Aramaic sections).

The first of the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered nearly 70 years ago by a young Bedouin shepherd throwing rocks into a cave. The sound of breaking pottery drew his attention. Since then, nearly 900 scroll fragments, in a series of 11 caves, have been discovered in the area west of the Dead Sea; both from archeologists and recovered from antiquities dealers.

It appears likely that more of these precious writings are waiting to be found, as biblical documents continue to surface. The latest discoveries of 25 new scroll fragments have been published in two new books. These discoveries shed more light on questions about the transmission of the biblical text and the people who lived more than 2,000 years ago. As noted on Live Science the new finds contain fragments from 18 books of the Hebrew bible; including portions of Nehemiah (if authenticated, it would be the first time Nehemiah has shown up in the Dead Sea Scrolls). The fragment records Nehemiah’s visit to a ruined Jerusalem, finding that its gates had been “consumed by fire.” According to the fragment text, he inspects the remains of the walls before starting work on rebuilding them.

Scholars have expressed concerns that some of the fragments are forgeries. It is important to note that the Christian Post reports that Michael Holmes, executive director of the Museum of the Bible Scholars Initiative, cautioned that scientists are still conducting tests on the fragments in question to make sure they are not forgeries.

Scholars believe the Essenes, a devout communal Jewish sect who lived in Judea and had separated from the central Temple authority, may have written the scrolls and hid them during the time it was part of the Roman empire; possibly during the Jewish revolt around AD 70.

According to the Israel Antiquities Authority, heritage and cultural assets have been plundered from the Judean Desert caves. A great effort has been initiated recently to find and excavate all the scrolls that remain before they are illegally taken. They wish to preserve the scrolls and other antiquities for the people of Israel and the world.

Included in these ancient texts, found at Nag Hammadi, is the Secret Book of James. Written for a fortunate few, the text called the Secret Book of James is a letter that James is said to have sent to an addressee whose name is unfortunately in a lacuna [Only the last few letters have survived] […]thos.

A lacuna is a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or a musical work. A manuscript, text, or section suffering from gaps is said to be "lacunose" or "lacunulose". Some books intentionally add lacunas to be filled in by the owner, often as a game or to encourage children to create their own stories.

I will interject a thought here that this …thos could be considered the Blegywryd, known to the ancient Welsh as one who holds the law in his head and only transmits it mnemonically, aka by word of mouth.

This letter has been sent by James, it is said, at the request of his addressee […thos] and it contains an account of a secret revelation the Savior gave to James and Peter. James recalls that he wrote the letter, which is esoteric in content, in Hebrew letters, and he asks his addressee not to share this writing to many; even the Savior did not want to deliver his message to the 12 Disciples, but only to 2 of them. Doubtless the addressee is worthy of receiving this secret teaching, as is shown by the title James gives him: “a minister of the salvation of the saints”.

In the Secret Book of James, the events happen 550 days after the Savior’s resurrection, at a time when the 12 Disciples, all sitting together, are writing down in books what they remember of the words of Christ, told to each of them during his earthly life. This constitutes an important piece of information about how the Disciples shaped Christ’s logia, a process also recorded elsewhere in early Christian literature [e.g. in 1 Clement 13: 1-2.

The term logia, plural of logion, is used variously in ancient writings and modern scholarship in reference to communications of divine origin. In pagan contexts, the principal meaning was "oracles", while Jewish and Christian writings used logia in reference especially to "the divinely inspired Scriptures".

This is crucial to understand. Firstly, we have a Secret Book of James, written in Old Hebrew, that is no longer extant, at least to us. It is/ was there but it has been hidden from view. Secondly, each of the 12 Disciples also wrote their personal accounts. Where are their accounts? They were written but they are no longer extant, at least to us. Let me just strongly suggest that they too were written in Old Hebrew. This is the language they spoke. and this is the language they read and wrote. They did NOTHING in Greek.

The intention of the Savior is to draw James and Peter apart from the other Disciples to “be filled”. James is receptive to the words of the Savior but Peter seems to show no understanding. These two figures have been interpreted as opposing symbols of the Gnostic community and the emerging Orthodox Church: members of the Gnostic community have no need of an intermediary to obtain salvation, while the members of the great church are ground in an ecclesial structure that they need if they are to be saved. Such ideas are advanced in the Secret Book of James. In this Book, the Savior utters teachings consisting of sayings, parables and prophecies organized into a dialogue in which James asks questions of the Savior. As for Peter, he plays a small role in this dialogue, and he limits himself due to his lack of comprehension. The polemical features of this text suggest that this Book speaks to a situation in which authoritative structures are being established and the text is reacting against them. Other Nag Hammadi texts [Second Discourse of Great Seth, Revelation of Peter and Testimony of Truth] show similar concerns.

This is chock full of information for our understanding of the split into 2 very different churches and their beginnings. This is important to interject the Book of Thomas, a true Disciple, which was not canonized. It was declared a “heresy” by ecclesial church fathers, due to these words, “It is within you.” Interestingly enough, also humorously enough, these same words are in the Gospel of John. It seems that Clement missed that little nugget. The Book of Thomas is crucial, in that it is much like the Secret Book of James, in that Thomas makes inquiries to the Savior and he provides the answers. It was in a setting known only to Christ and Thomas. I have read the book, several times. Another crucial passage in the Book of Thomas that speaks to a time with all the Disciples are with Christ. They express concern with what are they to do when Christ ascends again. Christ stated, “Look to my Brother James.” BOOM! Just like that.

This also speaks to something not well understood. Christ named Peter as the Rock upon which his Church was to be built. Peter was usurped aka hijacked in that endeavor by the ecclesiastical church. While it was labeled as in Peter’s name, the first real pope was Linus, having nothing to do with Peter. It was a railroad job and the reason the original books of the 12 were not canonized. After all, “It is within you” flies in the face of the need of an intermediary. Got it?

The first paragraph of the Secret Book of James states: “You have asked me to send you […thos] a secret book revealed to me and Peter by the master, and I could not turn you down, nor could I speak to you, so I have written it in Hebrew and have sent it to you and you alone. But since you are a minister of the salvation of the saints, do your best to be careful not to communicate to many people this book that the Savior did not want to communicate to all of us, his 12 Disciples. Nonetheless, blessed will they be who will be saved through the faith of this treatise.”

We now have two churches, one of which was sanctioned by the Savior and the other which was NOT! The ancient Welsh [Khumric] had their own church and their church followed what Thomas taught, “Look to my brother James.” The ecclesiastical clerics never got a foothold in S Wales.

One of my forbears was Ythael Ddu, known as the Gwaithfoed. I have written/ published a book about him. He is my 24^th GGrandfather. Here is a quote from that book:

“Gwaethvoed was contemporary with Edgar, king of Saxons, and was, in conformity with the vassalage of those periods, summoned, with other Welsh chieftains, by Edgar, to meet him at Chester, to row him, in his royal barge, on the river Dee, in proof of his fealty. Gwaethvoed, in answer to his summons, said he could not row, and that he would not, if he could, except it were to save a person's life, whether king or vassal. Edgar sent a second and very imperious message, which Gwaethvoed did not seem at all to notice, until the messenger begged to know what reply he should deliver to the king; when Gwaethevoed, in the Welsh language, answered thus: 'Say to him, fear him who fears not death." This stern reply, discovering at once to Edgar the fearless unbending character he had to deal with, he prudently changed his autocratic decree into a desire of mutual friendship, and going to Gwaethvoed, gave the chief his hand in pledge of his sincerity. Gwaethvoed married Morfydd, one of the daughters and co-heirs of Ivor [Ifor], king or lord of Gwent.” [Burke's Commoners III:387]

That quote, “fear him who fears not death” became our family motto.

Here is another quote from that book:

This quote [above] sounds strangely analogous to the quote of Dionoth, Abbott of Bangor Iscoed, or Bangor-on-Dee, when Augustine demanded that he acknowledge the authority of the Bishop of Rome, “We desire to love all men, but he whom you call Pope is not entitled to style himself the ‘father of fathers’ and the only submission we can render him is that which we owe to every Christian.”

That quote is eerily similar to a quote uttered by the Gwaithfoed 400 years earlier. It was in response to a visit paid upon him by another vassal of Rome when said vassal admonished he and his countrymen for their system of family life and rule, specifically incestuous relationships. He was speaking to their system of Gavelkind, much different than that of others on the Isle of Britain. Ythael essentially told him to piss off, as the Anglos would say. He had his reasons. It may be that is where I derive my cantankerousness on certain subjects, resorting to my own counsel to the exclusion of others.