| Show AN imP important ORrANT DISCOVERY there is ia a special providence in the arcase logical di coteries co veries of the present aize age corroborative of the christian chriatian religion Il j it is 18 true that nevar dever before bag bae there been the children of such a widespread rebel Mou tiou men against the be lord and hla his at ai one mani festl 09 itself in efforts to turn tarn we the weapons of history and every other science coce the citadel that b baal stood for agell age it to is t qually true that never belore were the ane evidence other side aide multiplying multiply log 0 o 0 tile the f for 0 r rapidly As aa in our own age only aboe voluntarily choose abot nut to see 0 0 wap w bp boop be ballod to the fact that the abe bastions 7 and ramparts are being strengthened to in proportion to the severity of the attacks attack directed against them the later lafeat it discoveries in ID the diorec indicated have just juat been made io in aito cairo they mrs are important as beating bearing upon the history of the he christian church in the abe first two among them in a manuscript from the filth fifth century which Is a coptic translation of three original gnostic writings of century ita DO value bay aada a london dispatch 0 of i august 1 con fists not dot only in the tact that it hands handa down old gnostic writings that hitherto hove have been unknown except by name but bat above all in the circumstance that one of them was wa known to irence ui as and epitomized by him without any statement of the source from which he be had derived it the discovery of this manuscript enables the be student for the farat time to test teat the accounts of the gnostic system as ae given by the church fathers to in the light of the original manuscript it cont contains ainiS three independent treat leeb entitled gospel goepel according to mary or of john second wisdom of jesus christ third practice of peter the gospel of mary is the document used by irenaeus and con lots elsts mainly of the revelation of john the wisdom of omelets of questions addressed to him by the disciples dieci plea and hla his answers aoa were the pra practice 0 of peter is the narrative of one of patera pe Pt tera miracles of healing beating some borne of the be epistles of paul are clearly directed against the gnostic tendencies that commenced to make themselves felt among the apostolic apoe tolio churches at the very earliest date it to ia therefore to be presumed prea umed that many of his hie polemic expressions hitherto but imperfectly understood if at all al many receive new light lidit irom from a statement of the gnostic by their own exponents ponente ex the study of the new testament will derive now new interest and additional his hia confirmation when it la Is considered how in all ages agea the progress pro greeB of human research rege arob and thought has baa led to depths of skepticism and infidelity but at the same time ample material for the bridging over of all apparently imps sable chasm it la 18 no DO wonder that the tb Krea teat est thin thinkers kerp the most moat successful the best beet of mankind have been believers and not agnostics |
