Page:Apocryphal Gospels and Other Documents Relating to the History of Christ.djvu/81

Rh anything more than the first chapter. The Syrian Jacobites believed that Caiaphas became a Christian, and other traces of Syrian traditions may be pointed out in this book. But if we remember the close connection which subsisted between the Syrian Christians and Egypt, we shall see that an Egyptian writer would be very likely to know their traditions. It is even possible that the book was originally written in Arabic by a Syrian Christian, just as other books were, and this would account for the traces of Syriac words found in it.

Mohammed was acquainted with some of the incidents here put down, as that Jesus talked in his cradle (Koran, Suras 3, 5, 19). This fact, however, is no proof that our document was compiled at that early period. The position taken by Mary is tolerable evidence that the book is not of very high antiquity, and renders it very difficult for me to believe that the compiler was a Nestorian, as some have thought. Whoever he was, he softened down the malevolent aspect of the portions which he derived from the Pseudo-Thomas.

Repeated perusal of the book has convinced me that it is by no means so ancient as has been thought. The whole tone and texture of the