#114 (But I say to you): “Every woman who makes herself male will enter the kingdom of heaven. Interpretation please. How difficult is this parable?
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2It may be worth pointing out that, even if this logion is intended to mean exactly what it appears to mean, we have no documentation - ancient or modern - suggesting that this idea was taught by Jesus or any of His immediate disciples. Gospels like the Gospel of Thomas were condemned by the early Bishops because they were a) heretical & b) could not be traced to the apostles. See Irenaeus "Against Heresies" Book 3 Chapter 1.– Hold To The RodFeb 17, 2021 at 17:23
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1Where is the proper quotation with link?– Michael16Oct 7, 2022 at 6:39
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Here is a source for the Gospel of Thomas: marquette.edu/maqom/Gospel%20of%20Thomas%20Lambdin.pdf– EpimanesOct 7 at 23:27
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4 Answers
Women are not allowed to become a "סופר Sofer" (Scribe) in Pharisaic Judaism. - This tradition is based on Gittin 45b from the Talmud & later maintained by Paul in 1 Timothy 2:11-13.
[Talmud Gittin 45b] : "Sifrei Torah, tefillin and mezuzot written by a heretic, a star-worshipper, a slave, a woman, a minor, a Cuthean, or an apostate Jew, are unfit for ritual use."
[1 Timothy 2:11-13] : " A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve."
A Male Scribe or סופר Sofer represents God's Hand when His Word is to be documented & interpreted. The symbolic Hand י was assigned to אִ֖ישׁ "man" in Genesis 2:23 showing first the likeness of Elohim is "fire אש" + "hand י", before the second likeness of Elohim was assigned to "woman" אִשָּׁ֔ה = "fire אש" + "praise ה".
Genesis / Bereishit 2:23 [MT] : "This one shall be called ishah because this one was taken from eish." ( לְזֹאת֙ יִקָּרֵ֣א אִשָּׁ֔ה כִּ֥י מֵאִ֖ישׁ לֻֽקֳחָה־זֹּֽאת )
By becoming a סופר Sofer, a Woman's status would be the same as an adult Jewish male who develops the Hand for documenting, interpreting & teaching God's Word, instead of only receiving & praising it. - As stated in the Gospel of Thomas [114].
(114) Simon Peter said to them, "Mary should leave us, for females are not worthy of life." Jesus said, "See, I am going to attract her to make her male so that she too might become a living spirit that resembles you males. For every female (element) that makes itself male will enter the kingdom of heaven." [ http://earlychristianwritings.com/thomas/gospelthomas114.html ]
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While interesting, there is no concrete proof that this brand of Gnosticism had anything to do with being a "Sofer." I'm downvoting this one until you can add some documentation.– EpimanesOct 7 at 23:30
Seems to me with all the context of the rest of the book, he was mocking Simon Peter. A soul dependent on the flesh indeed. These are sayings requiring interpretation beyond what anyone intrinsically believes from what they are taught. In those times and these times now, the view of women as unworthy or secondary prevails. I think Jesus is talking the whole time in this book about not only the two becoming one in a sense of male and female energy uniting, but that the power and energy of women must be seen in equal value and within each individual to become solitary. The acceptance of woman and the feminine as the key to the kingdom is the answer to this whole thing. In fact I almost believe he further hides his truth in riddles by using the phrase "father's kingdom" instead of mother/father or even mother. I might even believe the father's kingdom is woman. We're all over the earth, and yet unseen for who we are.
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Genesis 1:27
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
We are all spiritually male and female. We are male in that we have the ability to sow spiritual seed by spiritual energy. We are female in that we serve as a protective habitat for this seed and energy.
It is the female that forms the flesh body... "made of a woman, made under the law. All flesh is female. There is our physical flesh, which we can see. And there is our spiritual flesh, which we cannot see. To become male, all flesh must be removed. Our physical flesh is removed through our physical death. Our spiritual flesh is removed through a spiritual circumcision (Jeremiah 4:4), which equates to a spiritual death... the death of our false beliefs, which formed this invisible flesh.
The male is our inner being of spirit and word. But we have replaced God's holy spirit with an unholy spirit and God's righteous word with an unrighteous word. We become male when God's spirit and word are restored.
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Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please edit to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center.– Community BotOct 7 at 18:48
Nobody really knows what logion 114 means. Elaine Pagels might promote the idea that Christianity was a 'broad tent', including a far wider grouping than we might imagine today. But Michael Krueger does an ample job of showing the inconsistency of that sort of conclusion when you actually look at what the Gnostics wrote. As to what the Gospel of Thomas actually contains, I suggest Jeff Kloha's introductory video. This will answer some questions about the document—at least the questions we can answer.
