Readers of the New Testament in Christian congregations (and among a wider public too) are quite likely these days to feel a certain amount of bewilderment at the variety and complexity of what is written on the subject. Those who venture a little into the scholarly literature, as well as those who pick up the latest sensational stories in the media about “lost” gospels and alternative histories, may feel like echoing Mary Magdalene: “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where