One of the most controversial issues appears when dealing with the Gospel of Philip. The Gospel of Philip portrays much background; it deals with the importance of the sacraments, and deals with Jesus’s relationship with Mary Magdalene.
A single manuscript of the Gospel of Philip was found in the Nag Hammadi library in 1945. A cache of documents were secreted in a jar and buried in the Egyptian desert at the end of the fourth century. At this time Gnostic writings and pagan ones were being burned by the official church. The Gospel of Philip was buried in the same codex that contained the Gospel of Thomas.
The book of Philip is written in the Coptic language and is dated to approximately the 4th century A.D. The gospel of Philip is a Gnostic gospel, presenting a Gnostic viewpoint of Jesus and his teachings. While there are a few verses in the gospel of Philip that resemble the four biblical Gospels, a reading of the gospel of Philip will reveal many differences and a completely different message regarding who Jesus was and what he came to do.
Much of the Gospel of Philip is concerned with views of nature of mankind and the sacraments of baptism and marriage. The Gospel emphasizes the sacramental nature of the embrace between man and woman in the nuptial chamber, which is an archetype of spiritual unity, which shows the endless nature of marriage.
The Gospel of Philip has been cited for the idea that Jesus married Mary Magdalene. Much of the Gospel of Philip is dedicated to a discussion of marriage as a sacred mystery, and passages directly refer to Mary Magdalene and her close relationship with Jesus.
“There were three who always walked with the Lord: Mary, his mother, and his sister, and Magdalene, the one who was called his companion. His sister and his mother and his companion were each a Mary.”
That passage is also interesting for its mention of Jesus' sister, who is also mentioned in the New Testament at Mark 6:3. The text at many points...