1500 Year-Old Bible Found In Turkey Is Stirring Up Controversy About Christianity

May 6, 2014

Via NationalTurk.com

The relic was rediscovered in the Ankaran Justice Palace and believed to be written in Syriac, a dialect of the native language of Jesus.

turkish bible
National Turk

The Bible was already in custody of Turkish authorities after having been seized in 2000 in an operation in the Mediterranean area in Turkey. The gang of smugglers had been charged with smuggling antiquities, illegal excavations, and the possession of explosives. Turkish police testified in a court hearing that they believe the manuscript is about 1500 to 2000 years old.

The manuscript carries excerpts of the Bible written in gold lettering on leather with lines of Syriac script with Aramaic dialect.

After waiting eight years in Ankara, the ancient Bible is being transferred to the Ankaran Ethnography Museum with a police escort. Turkish authorities express the Bible is a cultural asset and should be protected.

The Vatican reportedly placed an official request to examine the scripture.

This copy of the ancient Bible is valued as high as 40 million Turkish Liras (28 million dollars).

The Controversy

According to this website:

"Much to the dismay of the Vatican, an approx. 1500-2000 year old bible was found in Turkey, in the Ethnography Museum of Ankara. Discovered and kept secret in the year 2000, the book contains the Gospel of Barnabas – a disciple of Christ – which shows that Jesus was not crucified, nor was he the son of God, but a Prophet.  The book also calls Apostle Paul "The Impostor". The book also claims that Jesus ascended to heaven alive, and that Judas Iscariot was crucified in his place.

It is believed that, during the Council of Nicea, the Catholic Church hand-picked the gospels that form the Bible as we know it today; omitting the Gospel of Barnabas (among many others) in favor of the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Many biblical texts have begun to surface over time, including those of the Dead Sea and Gnostic Gospels; but this book especially, seems to worry the Vatican.

There has been no other confirmation that the information about Jesus in this version of the Bible is true. This story is beginning to get national attention, so stay tuned.

Sources: NationalTurk.com , SonsOnThePyre.com