A long-forgotten book, left out of the Bible and written nearly 1,900 years ago, reveals secret stories of Jesus’ childhood that the early church kept under wraps for centuries.
Known as the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, the text tells of Jesus performing miraculous feats, bringing clay birds to life, drawing water from a broken pitcher and healing a boy whose leg was injured by an axe.
But it also portrays a darker side, depicting Jesus as vengeful, even cursing a child to death for striking him on the shoulder.
After Jesus kills the child for accidentally bumping into him, the villagers become upset and complain to Joseph and Mary. In response to their accusations, Jesus strikes the accusers with blindness.
The omitted book begins when Jesus is just five years old, while the traditional Bible’s first mention is of him at 12 years old.
In another episode, Joseph takes Jesus to a teacher to learn the alphabet, and the teacher becomes irritated when Jesus laughs at his instructions.
The Infancy Gospel of Thomas was rejected by the early Church because it portrayed Jesus as a violent, petulant child and conflicted with orthodox Christian teachings.
Its late composition date and association with Gnostic literature further led leaders to deem it inauthentic and heretical.
The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John have long been accepted by the Church as accurate accounts of Jesus’ life and teachings, written either by apostles or those closely connected to them.
Matthew and John were original disciples, Mark drew from Peter’s preaching, and Luke partnered with Paul while also interviewing eyewitnesses.
By contrast, the Infancy Gospel of Thomas claims authorship by ‘Thomas the Israelite,’ though the writer is otherwise unknown and not identified as the apostle Thomas.
This text is a collection of stories about Jesus’ childhood and should not be confused with the modern Gospel of Thomas, which early references to the Gospel of Thomas almost certainly point to the Infancy Gospel.
The passages tell stories about Jesus’ first miracles, from bringing dried fish back to life, resurrecting a child who died of illness and raising a man back to from the dead after an accident.
However, it seems that early church leaders were more concerned about the text describing Jesus as a violent child.
In one incident, after Jesus blinds the parents of a boy he struck dead, Joseph, his earthly and adoptive father, reprimands Him: ‘When Joseph saw that Jesus had done such a thing, he got angry and grabbed his ear and pulled very hard.
‘The boy became infuriated with him and replied, ‘It’s one thing for you to seek and not find; it’s quite another for you to act this unwisely. Don’t you know that I don’t really belong to you? Don’t make me upset.’
The text describes how Joseph took Jesus to his teacher, asking the child to be taught ‘his letters.’
The teacher says, ‘Hand him over to me, brother, and I shall teach him the Scripture; and I shall persuade him to bless all, and not to curse.
‘And Jesus, hearing, laughed, and said to them: You say what you know; but I know more than you, for I am before the ages. And I know when your fathers’ fathers were born; and I know how many years of your life.’
Jesus then astonished the teacher with his knowledge of the Hebrew alphabet. Amazed and unnerved, the teacher tells Joseph that the child clearly does not belong to this world and asks him to take Jesus away.
In Chapter 3, when the son of Annas, the high priest, destroys the water Jesus had gathered on the Sabbath, Jesus curses him, declaring that his fruit will wither like a scorched branch.
Immediately, the boy withers, showing the child Jesus’ power to punish those who oppose him.
The Infancy Gospel of Thomas also depicts the young Jesus performing numerous miracles to help others.
He heals a woodcutter who accidentally chops the sole of his foot, instantly restoring him and instructing him to continue his work.
When a water jug breaks while he is fetching water, Jesus fills his cloak with water and carries it back to his mother.
He miraculously multiplies a single grain of wheat into a hundred measures and distributes it to the poor, widows, and orphans.
Jesus even stretches a short piece of wood so Joseph, his father, can complete a carpentry job for a wealthy client. In one story, he heals his brother James from a snakebite by breathing on the wound, destroying the snake and ending the pain.
On another occasion, he resurrects a child who had died, bringing the child back to life and returning him safely to his mother.
These vivid episodes show that the text portrays a child Jesus who is not only powerful but also compassionate, using his extraordinary abilities to aid and protect those around him.
