From the onset, let it be known that I am convinced that the spiritual teachings that we now have neatly placed into a handy carrying case (The Bible) are not now, nor have they ever been ALL that was written upon which we could gain insight into God's plan for man. What we have is surely ENOUGH, but I don't believe it's all. That's my personal conviction. You can have yours, too. What we now have as canonized Scripture is the "official" information but we all know that "officials" are often lying when their lips are moving. My personal vote for should-be-canonized Holy Writ would be the book of Enoch. Why omit the information from a man who walked with God for 300 years? But somebody smarter than me gave Enoch the axe.

Throughout the ages, the Powers-that-be have used the Bible as a means for pushing their own agenda, omitting that which did not suit their needs or adding that which supported their doctrine of choice. Rex Lex, it's called; the King is Law or, better put, the Law is King. Some verses have even been omitted from some Bible versions with an explanation. I have my own explanation: the Powers-that-be and their appointed editors didn't have the faith to believe what the verses were declaring.

Editors? Yes, every Biblical version has Editors, people with many impressive letters after their names who are chosen to determine what spiritual food is best for Christians to digest. In the case of the New International Version, for example, my own research has revealed that one of its editors was a lesbian. This might explain why the NIV is so "weak" in its stand against homosexuality. I've also learned that Rupert Murdock of Fortune Magazine fame - once known as Rupert the Red for his stance in favor of Communism - actually owns the copyright to the NIV. Gee, I wonder what agenda HE might be subtly pushing?

Do you catch my drift? We mustn't check our brains at the door where our spirituality is concerned. That rule of thumb must also apply in light of the recent revelation, something called the Gospel of Judas.

I, JUDAS.

Judas, whose name means "Jewish man," was NOT inserted into the Gospels as some sort of "EveryJew" in order to breed anti-Semitic hatred. Judas was apparently a quite common name just as "Jesus" was. The apostle Thaddeus is also known as "Judas, the brother of James," as well as "Judas, not Iscariot." The Book of Jude is attributed to a man named Judas, too. Judas Maccabeus, one of the great heroes of Judaism, is one possible reason why so many kids were once tagged with that name. I live in Texas and have met more than my share of kids named Dallas, Austin and Travis.

Here's what the Associated Press had to say about the Gospel of Judas:

AP - For 2,000 years Judas has been reviled for betraying Jesus. Now a newly david hoffmeister ancient document seeks to tell his side of the story.

The "Gospel of Judas" tells a far different tale from the four gospels in the New Testament. It portrays Judas as a favored disciple who was given special knowledge by Jesus - and who turned him in at Jesus' request.

"You will be cursed by the other generations - and you will come to rule over them," Jesus tells Judas in the document made public Thursday.

The text, one of several ancient documents found in the Egyptian desert in 1970, was preserved and translated by a team of scholars. It was made public in an English translation by the National Geographic Society.

Apparently, these papyrus manuscripts consist of

- a Gnostic codex in Sahidic dialect containing the lost 'Gospel of Judas' known from history only through Saint Irenaeus (c. 140-202 AD), Bishop of Lyon,

- the "First Apocalypse of James"

- the "Epistle of Peter to Philip"...

- the 'Book of Exodus' in Greek...

- 'Letters of Paul' in Sahidic dialect...

- and a 'Mathematical Treatise' in Greek"

...whatever that is.

All these manuscripts are priceless historical documents (I've read the figures of $3,000,000 to $10,000,00 being tossed around in association with these pieces), only comparable to major finds like the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran. Though some say they belong to mankind and must be publicly preserved and studied, others are being driven by greed and the whole story reads like some kind of dramatic suspense saga that reminds me of the Nicholas Cage thriller, National Treasure or the more recent Tom Hanks flick, The DaVinci Code. The Associated Press wrote that "the journey of the text to Switzerland was "replete with smugglers, black-market antiquities dealers, religious scholars, backstabbing partners and greedy entrepreneurs."