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The Church Fathers · c. 150–200
The Infancy Gospel of Thomas
Anonymous
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What it is
Episodes from the childhood of Jesus between the ages of five and twelve, including sparrows made from clay and brought to life, and a schoolmaster who regrets his lesson.
Why it lasted
Enormously popular in the medieval West and East, and the source of most of what Christian legend says about Jesus as a boy.
Where to read it
Public domain and free to read in full, though not held here. The archives below have it.
These open a search on each archive rather than a direct link, which is the honest way to point at an edition nobody here has checked line by line.
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