The Gospel of Judas paints Jesus & His life in a different light. If truth is based on many perspectives, how do we know which one is true?
Answer:
Rather than truth being based on many perspectives, it is more accurate to say that multiple perspectives are needed to understand that one truth. God is an infinite being (He is eternal) therefore no amount of perspectives can describe Him fully, and hence we can admittedly speak of adequate and not exhaustive understanding. And, this adequate understanding is possible because God has revealed who He is to us in His Word, the Bible and through His Son Jesus.
The birth of Jesus of Nazareth, his death, burial, resurrection and the explosive growth of His church while proclaiming his death and resurrection is an undeniable historical fact, as witnessed even by extra-biblical sources (See http://www.rationalchristianity.net/jesus_extrabib.html). The Four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) provide four different perspectives on understanding the nature and person of Jesus Christ. Most scholars, both conservative and liberal, dates the authorship of the Four Gospels within the first century, making them credible and authentic witnesses to Jesus. For a discussion on the authenticity of the Four Gospels, see
http://www.bethinking.org/bible-jesus/advanced/the-dating-of-the-new-testament.htm and http://www.bethinking.org/bible-jesus/intermediate/recent-perspectives-on-the-reliability-of-the.htm
The question is not whether the Gospel of Judas provides a perspective on Jesus, but rather whether the Gospel of Judas is an authentic and accurate description of the real Jesus of Nazareth. It is important to note that when the National Geographics claims that the Gospel of Judas is “authentic”, all they meant was that the document was a legitimate piece of ancient work, dated around the third and fourth century, and not that it is an authentic description of Jesus of Nazareth. In fact, Dr Craig Evans, one of the biblical scholars on the National Geographics “Gospel of Judas” project, asserted that the gospel “does not contain any authentic Jesus tradition.” For more information, see
http://www.bethinking.org/bible-jesus/intermediate/the-gospel-of-judas.htm
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