A beautiful, intelligent, and moving novel.

It's important to remember that this book is a work of fiction. That should be an obvious statement, but I've read several ignorant reviews that indicate that some readers forget what "fiction" means.

The Gospel of Judas is the story of a Roman priest, Leo Newman, who experiences a crisis of faith at the same time he meets and eventually falls in love with an intriguing yet unstable married woman, Madeleine. Leo is also a scholar who is called to investigate a mysterious papyrus document which could be a firsthand account of Jesus' disciple and betrayer, Judas. It is to this fictional document that the title refers, not to a gnostic gospel that would date much more recently. There are two other storylines: Leo Newman as an older man, embarking on an affair with a strange young student, and a seemingly unrelated story of an extramarital affair between a diplomat's wife and her son's tutor in WWII-era Italy.

This novel has been referred to "The Da Vinci Code for smart people" which is accurate in a way but not the whole story. The Gospel of Judas is a profound psychological novel that explores the collusion of religious ecstasy and romantic and sexual love and its devastating consequences. ( )

Father Leo Newman is an expert on ancient biblical texts. When he is asked to examine and verify the authenticity of an ancient papyrus that purports to be the earliest of writings about Jesus ever discovered, he falls into a dark pit of doubt as his scientific assessment makes clear that this long-lost gospel of Judas contradicts everything he has believed and taught. The Gospel of Judas is about a crisis in faith, about what happens when someone discovers that their life, both public and private, has been based on a false assumption.

This is the second of Simon Mawer’s novels that I’ve read. In each, there is a subtle thread of suspense that lends the air of a thriller, but without gun fire and chase scenes. In each his protagonist is an intellectual, an international expert in his field. In each the story hinges on an improbable love affair. And in each there is an ending that startles the reader into uncomfortable conjecture about what could have followed. His endings are beginnings—much as in real life. We are left neither with the horror of a certain disaster nor the comfort of an implied happily-ever-after. The star in each of these novels is his writing, his magnificent use of language. ( )

An interesting novel. The Magda chapters are confusing as it is not immediately obvious that they take place later in time.

The gospel find in this novel is not at all similar to the one recently published. ( )

Loved this book. Story of a priest who has fallen by the wayside, dwells too much on his mother's life, who questions his vocation and is asked to verify evidence which questions Jesus' death and which in turn will turn the Catholic church in the greatest of turmoil. ( )

eh it was good but i am so confused about the charcters and places. i really don;t know what happened here...... ( )