A single manuscript of the
Gospel of Philip, in
Coptic (
CG II), was found in the
Nag Hammadi library, a cache of documents that was hidden in a jar and buried in the Egyptian desert at the end of the 4th century. The text was bound in the same
codex that contained the better-known
Gospel of Thomas. From the mix of aphorisms,
parables, brief
polemics, narrative dialogue, biblical exegesis (especially of
Genesis), and dogmatic propositions, Wesley W. Isenberg, the editor and translator of the text, has attributed seventeen sayings (
logia) to Jesus, nine of which characterizes as citations and interpretations of those found in the canonical gospels The new sayings, "identified by the formula introducing them ('he said', 'the Lord said', or 'the Saviour said') are brief and enigmatic and are best interpreted from a Gnostic perspective. Much of the Gospel of Philip is concerned with Gnostic views of the origin and nature of mankind and the
sacraments it refers to as
baptism,
unction and
marriage. It is not always clear whether these are the same literal rituals known in other parts of the early Christian movement and since, or ideal and heavenly realities. The Gospel emphasizes the sacramental nature of the embrace between man and woman (or ideas represented by these as types) in the "nuptial chamber," which is an
archetype of spiritual unity. Many of the sayings are identifiably related to other texts referred to by scholars as
Gnostic, and often appear quite mysterious and enigmatic (these are from the translation by ): One saying in particular appears to identify the levels of initiation in Gnosticism, although what exactly the
bridal chamber represented in gnostic thought is a matter of debate: One possibility is that the bridal chamber refers symbolically to the relationship of trust and singular devotion that should exist between God (bridegroom) and humankind or believer (bride) – just as the marriage relationship (bedchamber) implies a devotion of husband and wife to each other that is expected to exclude all other parties. This symbolic meaning is found for example in the
Parable of the Ten Virgins – , "Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom". Another interpretation of the Gospel of Philip supported by scholar
Marvin W. Meyer, emphasizes Jesus as central focus of the text. Some quotations from the gospel could be inferred as placing Jesus in a central position: According to Meyer, without Jesus, the rituals and mysteries mentioned in this gospel would have no context. Furthermore, this text seems to be related to others connected with the
Valentinian Christian sect, who worshipped a Christ interpreted through "Gnostic" ideas, and is often linked to what is sometimes thought to be Valentinius' own composition, the
Gospel of Truth. If it was indeed composed in or near
Antioch -- as is sometimes suggested by scholars -- it may be that this text was associated with
Axionicus of Antioch and his community. The Gospel of Philip ends with its promise:
Mary Magdalene Much of the Gospel of Philip is dedicated to a discussion of marriage as a
sacred mystery, and two passages directly refer to Mary Magdalene and her close relationship with Jesus: In different places in the Gospel of Philip, Mary Magdalene is called Jesus's companion, partner or consort, using Coptic variants of the word
koinōnos (κοινωνός), of Greek origin, or the word
hōtre, of Egyptian origin. In this passage
koinōnos is used.
Koinōnos has a range of possible meanings: at root, it denotes a "person engaged in fellowship or sharing with someone or in something", but what exactly a
koinōnos "can share with his or her partner can take many forms, ranging from a common enterprise or experience to a shared business". In the Bible,
koinōnos is sometimes used to refer to a spouse (; cf. ), but is also used to refer to a "companion" in faith (), a co-worker in proclaiming the Gospel (), or a business associate (). The Gospel of Philip uses cognates of
koinōnos and Coptic equivalents to refer to the literal pairing of men and women in marriage and sexual intercourse, but also metaphorically, referring to a spiritual partnership, and the reunification of the Gnostic Christian with the divine realm. And importantly, there are occasions in the Gospel of Philip when the regular Coptic word for
wife is used directly in reference to people who are clearly spouses, suggesting that the term
koinōnos is "reserved for a more specific usage" in the Gospel of Philip. That passage is also interesting for its mention of Jesus's sister (Jesus's unnamed sisters are mentioned in the
New Testament at ), although the text is confusing on that point: she appears to be described first as the sister of Jesus's mother Mary (also mentioned in the
Gospel of John, possibly the same person as
Mary of Clopas), then as the sister of Jesus, although this may be a translation problem. The other passage, purportedly referring to Jesus kissing Mary Magdalene, is incomplete because of damage to the original manuscript. Several words are missing. Guesses as to what they were are shown below in brackets. Most notably there is a hole in the manuscript after the phrase "and used to kiss her [often] on her...." But the passage appears to describe Jesus kissing Magdalene, apparently described as "barren" and "the mother of the angels" at the beginning of the relevant paragraph and using a parable to explain to the disciples why he loved her more than he loved them: Some scholars speculate that "hand" is the word after "kiss her... on her". But it may have been cheek, forehead or feet to simply show respect. translates it as "on her mouth". == Problems concerning the text ==