The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John begin the New Testament. But are these Gospels the only ones connected with Jesus' twelve apostles? Not at all! Manuscripts of about thirty Gospels have been recovered in either complete or fragmentary form, many of which are referred to by names of Jesus' apostles, including Judas. The Gospel of Judas, acquired by the Maecenas Foundation for Ancient Art in 2000, translated through the auspices of the National Geographic Society, and published in April 2006, dates between 220 to 340 CE but is a copy of the original Greek manuscript that was probably written between 130 and 180 CE. Written in Coptic, the language of Egyptian Christians, it was discovered in the Egyptian desert in the 1970s and has a gnostic perspective similar to what is found in the Gospel of Thomas.

Before examining its contents, this study considers how we should classify this book in relation to the rest of the New Testament, how the four New Testament Gospels portray Judas, and what the early church leaders mentioned either about this Gospel or about Judas. The study then reviews the content of the Gospel of Judas, over which there has been much excitement and controversy as of late.

Participants review what the New Testament Gospels say about Judas and then read portions of the Gospel of Judas to compare accounts. Information is provided that will help participants understand the gnostic nature of this text.