Acts of Thomas
The early 3rd century text called Acts of Thomas is arguably the most Gnostic of the apocryphal writings, portraying Christ as the "Heavenly Redeemer", independent of and beyond creation, who can free souls from the darkness of the world. References to the work by Epiphanius show that it was in circulation in the 4th century. The complete versions that survive are Syriac and Greek. There are many surviving fragments of the text. Scholars detect from the Greek that its original was written in Syriac, which places the Acts of Thomas in Syria. The surviving Syriac manuscripts, however, have been edited to purge tham of the most unorthodox overtly gnostic passages, so that the Greek versions reflect the earlier tradition.
Fragments of four other cycles of romances round the figure of the apostle Thomas survive, but this is the only complete one. It should not be confused with the early "sayings" Gospel of Thomas. "Like other apocryphal acts combining popular legend and religious propaganda, the work attempts to entertain and instruct. In addition to narratives of Thomas' adventures, its poetic and liturgical elements provide important evidence for early Syrian Christian traditions," according to the Anchor Bible Dictionary.
Acts of Thomas is a series of episodic Acts (Latin passio) that occured during the evangelical mission of Judas Thomas ("Judas the Twin") to India. It ends with his "martyrdom" in which he dies pierced with spears in prison. He was imprisoned while converting Indian followers won through the performing miracles because he'd earned the ire of the monarch Misdaeus because of his conversion of Misdaeus' wives and a relative, Charisius.
Imbedded in the Acts of Thomas at different places according to differing manuscript traditions is a Syriac hymn, The Hymn of the Pearl, (or Hymn of the Soul), a poem that gained a great deal of popularity in mainstream Christian circles. The Hymn is older than the Acts in which it has been inserted, and is worth appreciating on its own. The text is interrupted with the poetry of another hymn, the one that begins "Come, thou holy name of the Christ that is above every name" (2.27), a theme that was taken up in Catholic Christianity in the 13th century as the Gregory of Tours made a version, mainstream Christian tradition rejects the Acts of Thomas as pseudepigraphical and apocryphal, and the Roman Catholic Church finally confirmed the Acts as heretical at the Council of Trent. See also Leucius Charinus
