National Geographic Channel Reveals the Only Known Surviving Copy of the Lost Gospel of Judas

National Geographic Channel Reveals the Only Known Surviving Copy of the Lost Gospel of Judas

One of the Most Important Finds in Biblical Archaeology Gives Viewers a New Version of Jesus' Betrayal

WASHINGTON, April 6 /PRNewswire/ -- What if an ancient gospel were rediscovered that offered a radically different perspective on a man that history has painted as the ultimate villain? What if this account turned Jesus' betrayal on its head, and in it the villain became a hero? On Sunday, April 9, 2006, at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT (with an encore at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. PT), the National Geographic Channel (NGC) presents the world premiere of "The Gospel of Judas," an exclusive, two-hour global event that traces the incredible story of what has happened to the Gospel of Judas since it was found, the recent authentication process and analysis, and key insight gleaned from its laborious translation and interpretation. The ancient document, the only known surviving copy of the Gospel of Judas, was introduced to the public today at a press conference at the National Geographic Society in Washington.

The New Testament tells us that Judas Iscariot is the disciple who betrayed Jesus. For centuries his name has been synonymous with treachery and deceit. This gospel tells a different story. Discovered by chance in the 1970s, sold twice and stolen once, the gospel's condition had deteriorated severely. The race is now on to preserve its pages before they turn to dust. But when was this gospel written, and by whom? The research and documentary reveal fascinating details contained within the document as well as key sections translated from its ancient Coptic script. A dream team of biblical scholars and scientists verifies its authenticity. The authentication process, involving radiocarbon dating, ink analysis, multispectral imaging, contextual evidence and more, is covered in depth. The special also examines the modern history of the document since it was found, including the exhaustive conservation process.

"The Gospel of Judas" presents a lost version of the last days of Jesus, using dramatic recreations to portray and clarify the complex story of intrigue and politics of the earliest days of Christianity and the contents of the gospel itself. The gospel reframes Judas as the disciple closest to Jesus, who committed his act of betrayal at Jesus' behest. "The Gospel of Judas turns Judas' act of betrayal into an act of obedience," says Craig Evans, Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Acadia Divinity College in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. "The sacrifice of Jesus' body of flesh in fact becomes saving. And so for that reason, Judas emerges as the champion and he ends up being envied and even cursed and resented by the other disciples."

This surviving Gospel of Judas manuscript was likely written down sometime around A.D. 300, but the first known reference to a Gospel of Judas was around A.D. 180, when the influential early Christian bishop Irenaeus denounced it as heretical. By then there were many accounts of Jesus' life and times in more than 30 gospels, written by various early Christians in the 150 years after his death. Irenaeus helped clarify the Christian message by arguing that there should be just four approved Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. All others, including the Gospel of Judas, were branded as off-limits by early Church fathers.

"Whether or not one agrees with it, or finds it interesting or reprehensible, it's an enormously interesting perspective on it that some follower of Jesus in the early Christian movement obviously thought was significant," says Elaine Pagels, Harrington Spear Paine Foundation Professor of Religion at Princeton University, of the manuscript.

Pages from the document will be exhibited at the National Geographic Museum at Explorers Hall in Washington. Once the conservation process is complete, the document will be delivered to its country of origin, Egypt.

The Society is sharing information about the Gospel of Judas in a feature article in the May 2006 issue of National Geographic magazine, a comprehensive Web site at nationalgeographic.com/lostgospel, a lecture at the Society on April 10, and two books that will be published on April 6. National Geographic Books also will publish an illustrated, critical edition of the codex in the coming year.

"The Gospel of Judas" was produced for the National Geographic Channel (NGC) by National Geographic Television & Film (NGT&F). Senior executive producer is Michael Rosenfeld and executive producer is John Bredar. James Barrat is the producer and director. The script was written by Bredar and Barrat. Emmanuel Mairesse and Salvatore Vecchio are the editors, and Cheryl Zook is the coordinating producer. For the National Geographic Channel, executive vice president of programming is John Ford.

Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channel (NGC) is a joint venture between National Geographic Television & Film (NGT&F) and Fox Cable Networks. Since launching in January 2001, NGC initially earned some of the fastest distribution growth in the history of cable and more recently the fastest ratings growth in television. The network celebrated its fifth anniversary January 2006 with the launch of NGC HD which provides the spectacular imagery that National Geographic is known for in stunning high definition. NGC has carriage with all of the nation's major cable and satellite television providers, making it currently available to more than 57 million homes. For more information, please visit http://www.nationalgeographic.com/channel.

Outside the U.S., National Geographic Channel is available in over 230 million homes (including day-part households) in 162 countries and 27 languages.

Source: National Geographic Channel

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