Did the Church REMOVE the Gnostic Gospels?!

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This bonus episode of the Live Free podcast, hosted by Carlos and Paul, features a reaction to a viral clip from The Joe Rogan Experience involving screenwriter Joe Eszterhas. The discussion centers on the historical validity of the Gnostic Gospels versus the canonical New Testament Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John).

Key Discussion Points:

  • Defining the Gnostic Gospels: The hosts explain that Gnosticism (derived from the Greek gnosis or "knowledge") was a philosophical movement from the 2nd–4th centuries, not an organized religion. These texts were generally rejected by the early church because they promoted "secret knowledge" and viewed the physical world as evil (20:23-24:19).
  • Debunking the Timeline: The hosts address Eszterhas's incorrect claim that Gnostic texts were written before the New Testament. They clarify that Mark, the earliest canonical gospel, dates to the 60s AD, while Gnostic texts like the Gospel of Thomas date to roughly 130–150 AD (28:39-30:00).
  • Criteria for Reliability: The hosts detail three criteria used to establish the credibility of the New Testament accounts: multiple attestations (different sources confirming the story), early testimony (eyewitness accounts), and the criterion of embarrassment (the inclusion of details that reflect poorly on the disciples, which they argue suggests historical truth) (55:05-57:00).
  • The Jesus Seminar: The hosts explain that the "quest for the historical Jesus" in the 1980s and 90s, specifically the Jesus Seminar, has been largely debunked by scholars due to its biased, gimmicky, and skeptical methodology (53:56-1:01:29).
  • Cultural Framework: Throughout the episode, the hosts use Aaron Ren's framework of Positive, Neutral, and Negative worlds to discuss shifting public perceptions of Christianity over the last several decades (0:06:38-0:11:28).
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