Gospel of Philip

 

Analogue 55  The Trees of Paradise God created the garden of paradise and humankind dwelt there, but God’s desires were not in their hearts. Their longings were elsewhere. And in this garden it was said—even to me—“You may eat of this, but you cannot consume that, though you desire it.” That is the place, therefore, where I myself ate many different things, and also the place where the Tree of Knowledge killed Adam. Yet it is that same Tree of Knowledge which shall also enliven humanity. In the past, the commandments were the Tree for they gave us knowledge of what is good and evil, but they could not cure humanity of evil, nor preserve us in that which is good. Instead, they caused those who took them into their hearts to die. And so the commandment, “Eat this! Do not eat that!” became the origin of death. SYNOPSIS This is a very nuanced and even metaphysical view of the Garden of Paradise.  The statement that “he himself ate there” may indicate Philip’s (or even Yeshua’s...

 

Analogue 54   The Sign of Joseph’s Tree It is said by the Apostle Philip that Joseph the Carpenter planted a grove of trees in his garden because he needed the wood for his craft. And from the trees he had planted the cross was made, and on that cross his own seed hung. The seed was Yeshua, and what he planted became the cross. Yet the Tree of Life exists in the midst of the garden of paradise and it is also an olive tree from whose heart the oil of anointing flows unto the resurrection. This world devours its dead and those who are eaten die from within, at the level of the heart. Truth, however, is fed by life and so anyone who is nourished by it will never die. Yeshua has come to us from that Realm of Truth and has brought us true food, and to those desiring it he gave them back their lives again so that they may never die. SYNOPSIS This analogue is historically interesting because it gives us an aside that is only found within the teaching and tradition of this Gospel. ...