Was Judas a villan as depicted in the gospels or is there underlying truth to it which the world has missed?
339495
Well he was not a villain... he was carrying out his part in Jesus' Crucifixion, he had to turn Jesus in in order to fulfill the prophecy set forth by Jesus... besides nothing is intrinsically good or evil, it is the manor of usage that makes it that way...
468223
Some historians and scriptural experts suggest that Judas knew Jesus had to be betrayed and then put his own neck in the noose for the rest of the world.   He is such a hated person, and yet it is because of him that one of the largest religions in the world has taken power.  In my opinion, Christians should revere his name, not scorn it.  If you want more info, go to a library and check out a copy of the Gnostic Gospels (also called the Nag Hammadi), or more specifically the Gospel of Judas.
1080776
#1.  It was written too late to have been written by an apostle or a companion of an apostle.\n\n#2. The content contradicts the rest of the New Testament.\n\n#3.  It was never accepted by the early church.\n\nThe New Testament was in its complete form before the end of the first century, long before Constantine or the Roman Catholic Church.  There never was any reason to accept "The Gospel of Judas."
734592
"For the Son of Man is to go just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born." \n\nMark 14:21 \n\nDoes that really sound like someone you want for a role model?  The gospel of Judas was excluded from the Bible for good reason; it was not the inspired Word of God, and is therefore heresy.  The Bible clearly warns against this.\n\n"I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book;"\n\nRevelation 22:18
437615
Definitely fiction. Sorry for the lengthy explanation. It's cut and pasted from a ChristianityToday article. See link below.\n1. Was Jesus married to Mary Magdalene?\nNo. Mary Magdalene was certainly close to Jesus. She wept at Jesus' tomb (John 20). Jesus even entrusted her to return and tell the disciples about his resurrection. But we have no reason to believe they were married. Brown says that Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper reveals the secret. He writes that the figure to Jesus' right, traditionally known as the apostle John, is actually Mary. Not true. Artists often gave characters feminine features to portray youth. John was the youngest of the disciples.\n\nBrown correctly observes that few Jewish men of Jesus' day did not marry. But why, then, did the apostle Paul, himself celibate, not mention Jesus and Mary when he argued that apostles could marry (1 Cor. 9:5)?\n\n2. What about these alternative gospels that aren't in the New Testament?\nIt's true that the Bible did not arrive as a "fax from heaven," as Brown writes. The New Testament canon in its current form was first formally attested in 367. Nevertheless, church leaders applied important standards when compiling the Bible. Authors of accepted writings needed to have walked and talked with Jesus, or at least with his leading disciples. Their teaching could not contradict what other apostles had written, and their documents must have been accepted by the entire church, from Jerusalem to Rome. Church leaders considered earlier letters and reports more credible than later documents. Finally, they prayed and trusted the Holy Spirit to guide their decisions. \n\nThe so-called Gnostic gospels, many discovered just last century, did not meet these criteria. Many appeared much later than the Bible and were dubiously attributed to major Christian leaders. Their teachings contrasted with what apostles like Paul had written. For example, many Gnostic writings argued that Jesus did not appear in the flesh, because flesh is evil, or they rejected the Old Testament. \n\n3. Were there really competing Christianities during the early church?\nYes—in the sense there were many disputes about the nature of Jesus. And the church has done its best to vanquish challengers to orthodoxy. Once the church decided against the Gnostic writings, they gathered and burned all the Gnostic manuscripts they could find. \n\nLater church councils convened to discuss other threats to Christian orthodoxy. Constantine, the first Roman emperor to make Christianity legal, called the most important of these meetings in 325. Leaders from around the Christian world gathered in Nicea, where they debated Arianism, which taught that God created Jesus. Brown writes that Constantine called this council so he could introduce a new divine Jesus on par with the Father. On the contrary, documents from before Nicea show that most followers of Jesus already called him LORD, the Yahweh of the Old Testament. The church leaders at Nicea rejected Arianism and affirmed that God and Jesus existed together from the beginning in the Trinity. This council produced the first drafts of what became the Nicene Creed, a landmark explanation of Christian belief. \n\n4. What is Opus Dei?\nA conservative religious group within the Roman Catholic Church. Opus Dei urges priests and laypeople to strenuously pursue sanctification through everyday discipline. The group has taken criticism for its conservative views, zeal, and secretive practices. There is no evidence that Opus Dei has resorted to murder; nor has the Vatican entrusted Opus Dei to violently guard the church's deepest secrets, as Dan Brown claims in The Da Vinci Code. \n\n5. Does the Priory of Sion really exist?\nYes, but not as described by Brown. Researchers suspect that members of the real-life Priory of Sion, founded in 1956, forged documents that placed major historical figures—such as Isaac Newton and Leonard da Vinci—in
318897
The gospel of Judas is not credible. Scientists believe it to be the work of gnostics, a mystical early Christian denomination. People in those times did not have the access to the scriptures as we do today. They rarely had more than one or two books of the Bible at one time, so they often did not know what the other parts said. Gnostics often wrote stories of the way they thought things might be. The gospel of Judas is a philosophical conjecture, not scripture. It was also written at least 100 years after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John - the 4 gospels present in the Bible that tell of Judas's betrayal.\nAlso, because "gospel" means "good news", and the good news is that Jesus died for our sins, the text would have to include the crucifixion and resurrection to be classified as a gospel. The gospel of Judas tells of neither. \n\nThe gospel of Judas has indeed been authenticated - that means that it is indeed as old as it seems. It does not mean that it is a work of scripture. If you want to back up what I have said, go to the link for the National Geographic Channel and either watch for the next show date of their special, or order the video. You can also read the text at this site.
591181
I Belive that he is for i belive that we are. and i belice it was the apostle judas?? im not positive though
988142
No. There has been too much lost in the numerous translations. And I would question your statement about the book being in existence for 'thousands' of years. The new testament and the gospels were not instantly assembled upon the death of Jesus of Nazareth. The old testament was passed on by word of mouth long before the books were written.  Compound these necessary flaws with the council of cardinals who decided which books were going to be part of the bible and which books were not, and the church's practice of censoring anything that did not agree with doctrine, and you have a less than perfect product.
468665
honestly, i need to know more about the facts surrounding the gospel of judas before i make any analysis.  that being said, i think this is a gimmick to promote the da vinci code movie.
455033
I don't believe this so called "Gospel of Judas". I don't doubt that it exists, or that it was written when it was supposedly written, but I do believe the writer skewed the text to reflect his/her thoughts and that it is not an accurate account of the facts. Yes, Judas betrayed Jesus and yes it was a part of the grand design that God had planned for the salvation of man. I don't think Judas necessarily betrayed Jesus because Jesus told him to though, I think Judas didn't realize at the time of the betrayal that it would end in the crucifixion of his Lord. That's why Judas tried to get the Pharisees to take back the 30 pieces of silver and why he ultimately committed suicide. This is simply another example of how satan tries to confuse the truth and turn people away from God.
350946
No. But then i dont believe in anything Christian either. \n\nThe Gospel of Judas shows that the gospels were written not about historical facts, but from the theology of the authors. If a gospel author believed something, he wrote a story to 'prove' what he believed. The author of the gospel of Judas believed Judas was doing the will of Jesus, so he wrote a story to 'prove' it. The same is true with the other gospels in the Christians' New Testament.
444468
Yeah it sucks to be Judas.  To me it is an interesting question.  If he hadn't betrayed Jesus His salvation plan might not have taken place (at least the way it had been prophesied), but I think Judas' role is given too much credit.  Jesus had spoke before thousands of people and was well-known to most of Roman Palestine.  He had a large following and his entrance to the city a week earlier was celebrated.  But all Judas really did was tell the Jewish leaders where Jesus would be, then identify Him with a kiss.  I am sure that they could have found Jesus on their own had Judas decided not to betray Jesus.  His kiss may have been because it was dark in the garden.  \n\nAlso, Judas did not make Jesus die on the cross.  I doubt if Judas originally realized what would happen when he gave up Jesus.  When He did He killed himself.  It was prophecied that Jesus would be betrayed, so that asks the question... did God make Judas betray Jesus in order to fulfill prophesy or did God simply know Judas would make that decision himself.  If Judas is burning in Hell because God made him betray Jesus that would seem horribly unfair to me.  \n\nBut hours before the betrayal, Jesus called Judas out and told him that he would betray Him that night.  Judas went and did it anyway which makes me think he did it of his own free-will.  He betrayed his friend (and leader) for 30 pieces of silver (which was not a fortune).  Christians blame Judas because of his character.  The crucifixion coud have occurred without his betrayal, but the way he betrayed Jesus makes him a despised figure.
448181
and my christian friends should thank Judas also ....because if he hadnt betrayed Jesus ....there wouldnt have been any salvation possible .... why is he always titled as  a satan...By the way lets see if Gospel of Judas bring some truth .......\nI am a Muslim and Quran tells us that Jesus never died neither did he wished so .....some person (may be Judas) betrayed him ...and he was crucified inplace of jesus because God made him look like jesus...Jesus has been raised up alive in the heavens and he will return ..
439957
Um, do you mean Jesus and Judas? You can read it for yourself at www.nationalgeographic.com. It is believed to be the work of gnostics, and not of Judas. A fairy tale.
200770
This isn't going to be universally accepted, but I believe Judas Iscariot did enter Heaven.  I'm not basing this opinion on the last biblical references to Judas, but on a deeper understanding of his role in the Big Picture.\n\nIn order for the scriptures to be fulfilled, the Messiah HAD to be betrayed.  Without the trial and execution, Jesus would not have become the sacrificial Lamb or the intermediary between mankind and God.  It fell upon Judas, who was the disciple most affiliated with militant Jews, to accept the prophesied thirty pieces of silver.  \n\nWhen Jesus spoke to Judas in the Garden of Gethsemane, He ordered Judas to do whatever he needed to do 'quickly'.  Jesus couldn't afford for his appointed betrayer to change his mind at the last minute.  Judas had to play out his role, despite the personal costs.  \n\nJudas may not have realized his higher calling in this matter, so he succumbed to his human feelings of abandonment, betrayal and loss.  His suicide was the last act of a man convinced he had sent his best friend to die a horrible death.\n\nIn my opinion, Judas Iscariot would have been allowed into Heaven because he fulfilled a part of God's plan.  We human Christians may want to see Judas as the ultimate betrayer, but the way I see it he had little choice in the matter.  Someone had to betray Jesus in order for Him to fulfill his earthly mission and return to the Kingdom.  I would even go as far as suggesting the Jews understood that only the true Messiah would be rejected by His own people.  Had they voted to release Jesus instead of Barrabas, they would have denied their own prophecies concerning the last days of the true Messiah.
405645
I have to say absolutely yes, he did forgive him because he knew what was going to happen.  He knew why he was here.  He knew from the first what his destiny was.  When he spoke to Judas at the last supper and told him to do what he had to do, he knew.  When he was praying in the garden, he knew.  When the soldiers came to take him, he knew.\n\nWhether you buy the theory now being talked about from the manuscript being called The Gospel of Judas, that he was Jesus' favorite, and the only one he could trust to do the deed, or whether you think he was a weasel and a betrayer, it changes not one bit that Jesus knew his reason for being here and the "betrayal" was part of the plan.  Judas being a willing friend, or a "traitor" doesn't change the outcome or the certainty it was going to happen.  Anyways, Jesus was here for forgivness of ALL mankinds sins and that includes Judas.
356808
The Gospel of Judas totally refutes the idea that Judas 'sold out' Jesus and suggests that he was instructed to do what he did by Jesus. This was unacceptable to the early Catholic Church and so was expunged from the gospels completely.\n\nIt goes without saying that Judas' actions are believed to be responsible for the way Judaism is reviled and the Jews have been persecuted throughout history. If it ever came out that Judas was just acting under orders there would be a lot of shamed people in the world.