The Gospel of Thomas is an extra-canonical sayings gospel. It was discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in December 1945 among a group of books known as the Nag Hammadi library. Scholars speculate that the works were buried in response to a letter from Bishop Athanasius declaring a strict canon of Christian scripture. Scholars have proposed dates of composition as early as 60 AD and as late as 250 AD. Since its discovery, many scholars have seen it as evidence in support of the existence of a "Q source" which might have been very similar in its form as a collection of sayings of Jesus without any accounts of his deeds or his life and death, referred to as a sayings gospel.
P. Oxy. 1
Nag Hammadi Codex II, folio 32, the beginning of the Gospel of Thomas
P. Oxy. 655
Jesus, also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity, the world's largest religion. Most Christians believe Jesus to be the incarnation of God the Son and the awaited messiah, the Christ that is prophesied in the Old Testament.
The Christ Pantocrator of Saint Catherine's Monastery at Mount Sinai, 6th century AD
A 3rd-century Greek papyrus of the Gospel of Luke
Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van Honthorst, 1622
The Circumcision by Giovanni Bellini, c. 1500. The work depicts the circumcision of Jesus.