Notice on the Bruce Gnostic Papyrus

THE GNOSTIC BRUCE PAPYRUS.

to his apostles: "Happy is he who crucifies the world and who has not let the world crucify him!" The apostles answered with one voice, saying: "Lord, teach us the manner of crucifying the world, so that it does not crucify us, so that we are not lost and do not let our life go astray." Jesus the living one answered them, saying: "He who crucifies the world is he who observes my words, who fulfills the will of him who sent me." The apostles answered him, saying: "Speak to us, Lord, so that we may hear you; we are those who have followed you with our whole heart; we have left father, we have left mother, we have left our gardens (3) and our fields, we have abandoned wealth, we have abandoned royal greatness, we have followed you so that you might teach us the life of the Father"

person of the feminine. Cf. Peyron, Lexicon, p. 21, 2nd col. The book truly begins with the following sentence, in a manner identical to the Pistis Sophia, but without the exposition preamble. This entire first part is reproduced twice in Woide's copy.

(1) This sense is certainly the general sense, as this whole passage of the first copy is very crude.

(2) Let us not lose our life.

(3) The word "gardens" with this spelling is new to me. One finds in Peyron's lexicon only the word "reed" with the meaning of rush, reed. This meaning cannot be suitable here, and the context according to historical tradition would certainly lean toward the meaning of boat or perhaps net; but the other text gives "garden," which means garden.