[Alex Murphy]

This Indian church, the Thomas Christians, had been founded in the second century (conceivably before), and throughout the Middle Ages its connections had been with the Church of the East, based in Iraq, so it had never had been subject to Catholic or Orthodox authority. In light of this, it is fascinating to see what the Bible of this truly ancient church looked like in 1599, and how it diverged from the versions known to modern Catholics (or Protestants)....

“As regards Biblical MSS. the Synod noticed the omission of Esther, Tobit, Wisdom, 2 Peter, 2, 3 John, Jude, and the Apocalypse; also of John viii. 1 — 11. In Matt. vi. 13 6 it noticed the addition of the Doxology, in Luke x. the reading ‘ seventy’ instead of ‘ seventy-two,’ and the omission of the negative in Lk. vi. 35. It referred, moreover, to the reading ‘God’ for ‘ Christ ‘ in Acts xx. 28, and the reverse in 1 John iii. 16, to the Nestorian omissions in 1 John iv. 3 and v. 7, and to the reading praeter Deum in Heb. ii. 9.”

[Claud]

Ironically, a modern Bible scholar has much more sympathy for the heretical Indians than for the learned and orthodox Romans.

If Mr. modern Bible Scholar wants to see something really fascinating, he should watch their liturgy, the Holy Qurbana.

I doubt his sympathy for the Indian Churches will last very long after that. :)

[arthurus]

The Thomas Christians go aback to the Apostle Thomas who was not a 2nd century kind of guy.

[Campion]

So much for the theory that everyone outside Rome’s baleful influence hewed strictly to the 66 book Protestant canon. Dispensationalism would pretty much collapse without Revelation in the Bible, though.