Rating: 
Summary: COMPELLING..........
Review: .....particularly for those who are familiar with the New Testament. These Gospels both support and challenge the Jesus and teachings presented in the New Testament. We learn new parables, meet new characters, are presented with a multitude of quotes attributed to Jesus (Gospel of Thomas) and dialogue between Jesus and his apostles where Jesus presents His teachings, explains His kingdom, and explains the origins of life. Readers who believe that the New Testament is the true story of Jesus will feel compelled to believe the contents of the four Gnostic Gospels as they not only date back to the second century AD and earlier, but have been subjected to so few re-writings over the centuries (compared to the NT) and are thus less likely to have been altered through error or ulterior motive. For those who do not accept the New Testament, the read is also interesting when one realizes the manuscripts are far more likely to contain an accurate depiction of Jesus and His life and teachings for similar reasons: simply because the manuscripts are so old have been untouched over the centuries.
It is clear, in reading this book, why the Gnostics were deemed heretics by the early church and why these manuscripts may have been hidden and not merely lost.
Rating: 
Summary: Good translation, poor presentation
Review: According to Meyer's introduction (xxi), the principal goal ofthis book is to provide a new English translation of the four Coptictexts from the Nag Hammadi Library that is accessible to the general public. By this criteria, I believe that Meyer missed his mark. Most glaring is the use of the phrase "Child of Humanity," rather than "Son of Man" in an attempt to avoid sexism. His desire for universality is admirable, but the term "Son of Man" should have been explained as the angelic being who defends Humanity at the time of divine judgment in Daniel 7:9-14. In this and other instances, this book seems to be putting a new age pseudo-Buddhist gloss on what are undeniably, albeit heretical, Christian writings.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing translations!
Review: An amazing translation of the Secret Gospel of John, and three others. The Gospel of John tells the TRUE story of Adam and Eve's escape from the laboratory of the Chief Ruler ("God")!
Rating:
Summary: Four amazing early Christian Gnostic texts from Nag Hamadi
Review: Ancient Gnostic texts reveal a long-forgotten form of relationship with between humanity and the divine, and a surprisingly unique perception of the divinity among these circles.This book presents the latest translations of four texts from the Nag Hammadi library of Gnostic texts. The four texts chosen are classic Gnostic scriptures of particular importance to early Christianity. They are, "The Secret Book of James" (written by Jesus' brother), "The Gospel of Thomas" (the most prominent classic of Gnostic Christian spirituality, by Jesus' twin, Judas Thomas), "The Book of Thomas", and "The Secret Book of John" (by Jesus' disciple, John the fisherman). Amazingly, each of these four authentic texts are specifically identified by the mysterious ancient authors, in the first verses, as containing secret information from Jesus Christ himself! These texts in particular make an essential contribution to our understanding of Gnosticism and its role in early stages of the development of Christianity, seeming to shed welcome new light on some previously uncertain aspects of the Christian religion. We should be extremely grateful for the opportunity to read these fascinating documents, which were until recently all but lost forever. The Gnostic movement was systematically oppressed, and its legacy systematically destroyed, long ago by its powerful opponents. The Gnostics were triumphant in this epic story, because, in their wisdom, they deliberately sealed away their sacred knowledge to be re-discovered at a time in the distant future when they would be respected and appreciated. The Nag Hammadi library comprises 52 documents in 13 books, most of which were entirely unknown to until the Nag Hammadi artefacts were discovered. In this book an informative introduction, including the intriguing story behind the texts, prepares a clear passage for the reader's journey into this repository of ancient wisdom. The notes at the end of the book provide a concise commentary, with useful explanation and reference to other scriptures including the Bible, to complete the reader's learning experience. The relatively thin size of this volume makes it highly accessible - most people could easily read the whole book in a single weekend! If you have the slightest interest in history or religion - especially Gnosticism or Christianity, then you will certainly enjoy this book. The texts in this book really are an amazing and important part of human history, and everyone should at least have a look at them.
Rating:
Summary: Four amazing early Christian Gnostic texts from Nag Hamadi
Review: Ancient Gnostic texts reveal a long-forgotten relationship with between humanity and the divine, and a surprisingly unique perception of the divinity among these circles. This book presents the latest translations of four texts from the Nag Hammadi library of Gnostic texts. The four texts chosen are classic Gnostic scriptures of particular importance to early Christianity. They are, "The Secret Book of James" (written by Jesus' brother), "The Gospel of Thomas" (the most prominent classic of Gnostic Christian spirituality, by Jesus' twin, Judas Thomas), "The Book of Thomas", and "The Secret Book of John" (by Jesus' disciple, John the fisherman). Amazingly, each of these four authentic texts are specifically identified by the mysterious ancient authors, in the first verses, as containing secret information from Jesus Christ himself! These texts in particular make an essential contribution to our understanding of Gnosticism and its role in early stages of the development of Christianity, seeming to shed welcome new light on some previously uncertain aspects of the Christian religion. We should be extremely grateful for the opportunity to read these fascinating documents, which were until recently all but lost forever. The Gnostic movement was systematically oppressed, and its legacy systematically destroyed, long ago by its powerful opponents. The Gnostics were triumphant in this epic story, because, in their wisdom, they deliberately sealed away their sacred knowledge to be re-discovered at a time in the distant future when they would be respected and appreciated. The Nag Hammadi library comprises 52 documents in 13 books, most of which were entirely unknown to until the Nag Hammadi artefacts were discovered. In this book an informative introduction, including the intriguing story behind the texts, prepares a clear passage for the reader's journey into this repository of ancient wisdom. The notes at the end of the book provide a concise commentary, with useful explanation and reference to other scriptures including the Bible, to complete the reader's learning experience. The relatively thin size of this volume makes it highly accessible - most people could easily read the whole book in a single weekend! If you have the slightest interest in history or religion - especially Gnosticism or Christianity, then you will certainly enjoy this book. The texts in this book really are an amazing and important part of human history, and everyone should at least have a look at them.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting Reading But Ultimately Empty
Review: As far as these translations go, they make for fairly interesting reading. However, to suggest that they somehow are more authoritative than the authentic First Century writings about Jesus is absurd. For instance, the Gospel of Thomas is clearly a Second Century document, hopelessly tainted by gnosticism. Only the most liberal scholars -- or those who have a theological or philosophical axe to grind -- would suggest that Thomas carries equivalent weight to the Gospels of the First Century. The reason some left-wing scholars like Thomas is that it's merely a collection of sayings by Jesus, without the narrative that establishes his true authority for teaching, which is his divine nature. As a solid counterpoint, I'd suggest "The Case for Christ," also available from Amazon.Com, which contains an interview with Dr. Bruce Metzger, professor emeritus at Princeton Theological Seminary, who translated Thomas from the Coptic and articulates clear and compelling reasons why it lacks the historicity of the Four Gospels. So go ahead and read Thomas and these other gnostic Gospels for entertainment, but remember they flunk the test of history because they were written so long after the life of Jesus that they cannot be trusted to authentically convey his teachings. To suggest they somehow constitute "secret teachings" of Jesus is fanciful at best, deceptive at worst.
Rating:
Summary: REIGNS OVER ALL
Review: Four of the more intriguing Gnostic gospels are found here. Translated by a premeire theologian, Marvin W. Meyer lays out these gospels in a smooth and flowing style which is both enlightening and a pleasure to read. Included are some very in-depth notes and a most exhaustive bibliography. "Let one who seeks not stop seeking until one finds. When one finds, one will be disturbed. When one is disturbed, one will be amazed, and reign over all." -from The Gospel of Thomas
Rating:
Summary: Gimme that Old Time New Age religion
Review: Guess those fellahin in Nag Hammadi were successful in finding the fertilizer
Rating:
Summary: Valuable documents from times past,
Review: I became interested in the Gnostic texts after I saw the movie Stigmata which made misleading references to the Gospel of St. Thomas. This is what I found regarding this particular book "The Secret Teachings of Jesus : Four Gnostic Gospels". The book as written by Marvin Meyer lacks accuracy of translation which takes away the relationship of the Gnostic texts from their place in history and their relationship to the Bible in its accepted form. (see other critical comments that already cover these observations.) In general, the book does what is wants to...it makes the major Gnositic texts available to the general public, but there are better translations out there. With regards to the Gnostic text themselves, they offer an important insight into the history of Christianity, especially how fractioned it was in the early days. These texts however do not provide insights into the beliefs of Christianity. For example, one of the texts is a blatant Christianized rewrite of an earlier heretical Judaified text of pagen origins. The text even uses God's name Yahweh in a vuglar manner. Another example is the fact that the Gospel of St. Thomas isn't even a gospel at all. It is merely a listing of sayings that Jesus may have said. These sayings have lost (and therefore useless) meanings because they are taken out of context. For someone seeking enlightment, it will be frustrating to be so close to Jesus' own words, yet be so far from his actual message. Overall, I recommend reading the Gnostic texts to come to your own conclusions, but I do not necessarily recommend this particular translation unless you are only casually interested in the field.
Rating:
Summary: Valuable documents from times past,
Review: I became interested in the Gnostic texts after I saw the movie Stigmata which made misleading references to the Gospel of St. Thomas. This is what I found regarding this particular book "The Secret Teachings of Jesus : Four Gnostic Gospels". The book as written by Marvin Meyer lacks accuracy of translation which takes away the relationship of the Gnostic texts from their place in history and their relationship to the Bible in its accepted form. (see other critical comments that already cover these observations.) In general, the book does what is wants to...it makes the major Gnositic texts available to the general public, but there are better translations out there. With regards to the Gnostic text themselves, they offer an important insight into the history of Christianity, especially how fractioned it was in the early days. These texts however do not provide insights into the beliefs of Christianity. For example, one of the texts is a blatant Christianized rewrite of an earlier heretical Judaified text of pagen origins. The text even uses God's name Yahweh in a vuglar manner. Another example is the fact that the Gospel of St. Thomas isn't even a gospel at all. It is merely a listing of sayings that Jesus may have said. These sayings have lost (and therefore useless) meanings because they are taken out of context. For someone seeking enlightment, it will be frustrating to be so close to Jesus' own words, yet be so far from his actual message. Overall, I recommend reading the Gnostic texts to come to your own conclusions, but I do not necessarily recommend this particular translation unless you are only casually interested in the field.
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