Judaic-Christianity, Gnostic Christianity and Proto-Orthodox Christianity

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Judaic-Christianity, Gnostic Christianity and
Proto-Orthodox Christianity

• Dr. Matthew R. Anderson
• With materials from Delmer Burketts An
  Introduction to the New Testament and the Origins
  of Christianity. Cambridge, 2002

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Varieties of the movement, CE 30-70

• Judaic Christianity
• Hellenistic Jewish-Christianity
• Samaritan Christianity
• Gentile Christians
• Centers of the movement
• Jerusalem
• Antioch
• Rome
• (later) Alexandria

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The NT and the types of early Christianity

• Traces of each of these movements may be found in
  the NT literature
• However, a very important question is to what
  extent any particular book (ie the Gospel of
  Matthew) may represent a movement (ie Judaic
  Christianity in transition) or simply the needs
  and personality of an individual

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Judaic Christianity

• Burketts term for those who were Jewish
  Christians, but continued to practice the
  religion of Judaism as the way to God (91)
• This means they continued to follow the Jewish
  Law, circumcising their male children, observing
  the Jewish dietary restrictions, keeping the
  Sabbath and offering sacrifices at the
  Templebut regarding Jesus as the Jewish
  Messiah (91)
• In other words, Torah-observing Jewish Christians

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The scope of Judaic Christianity

• In the years 30-70 CE, Judaic Christianity was
  perhaps still the strongest form
• It was still in some ways, most purely a sect of
  Judaism
• The twelve apostles and the three pillars
  first Peter, James and John sons of Zebedee,
  later James brother of the Lord to replace the
  first James, were the head of this church and the
  acknowledged heads of all the Christian movement
  (leadership structure similar to Qumran Manual
  of Discipline 81)
• Jesus family, including Mary, were perhaps
  leaders of this movement (Acts 1217, 1513,
  2118 Gal 119 1 Cor 157)
• Judaic Christianity was Aramaic-speaking and
  centred in Jerusalem
• When the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70, this
  spelled the end of the leadership of Judaic
  Christianity within the movement

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Judaic Christianity remembered

• Judaic Christianity came into some conflict (cf
  Galatians) over the issue of what Gentiles must
  do to become Christians (ie should they become
  observant Jews first)
• Conflict happened with Antioch, with the growing
  movements of Hellenistic Jewish-Christianity and
  with the Pauline forms of Gentile Christianity
  (resulting in the so-called Jerusalem conference
  (Acts 15, Galatians 21-10)

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The fate of Judaic Christianity

• The sources we have are unclear on exactly what
  happened to Judaic Christianity
• Some sources say that the Jerusalem church fled
  to Pella (a Gentile city east of the Jordan) just
  before the fall of Jerusalem
• Other sources say that the group became known as
  the Nazoreans (Acts 245) and were eventually
  repudiated by Judaism (the Haminim curse against
  Nazoreans and heretics in the synagogues)
• Early (Gentile) Christian fathers such as
  Ignatius, Justin Martyr and Irenaeus condemned
  the ongoing practice of Judaism by Christians,
  Jewish or other
• Irenaeus called these early Judaic Christians the
  Ebionites, meaning the poor (cf also Matthew
  53 Romans 1526 Gal 210 James 25)
• Although writers continue to mention Jewish
  Christians living east of the Jordan, they
  disappear eventually as a group

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More on Judaic Christianity

• For more information on the little scholars know,
  see Burkett, pp 384 ff.

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Proto-orthodox Christianity

• Called proto-Orthodox (right teaching) or
  early Catholic (universal) Christianity
• (ideal) characteristics non-dualistic, salvation
  through faith, non-elitistic but open to all
• View of Christ as sacrifice for sin and
  eschatological judge (the latter shared with
  Judaic Christianity)
• Irenaeus of Lyons, 2nd c. writer, Against all the
  Heresies
• Against the Gnostics, Irenaeus emphasizes
• Apostolic succession
• Rule of faith
• Unity of belief

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Proto-Orthodox Christianity

• According to Burkett and others, this strain of
  early Christianity derived from both Pauline
  Christianity and the communities behind the
  Gospel and letters of John
• This type of Christianity was Gentile
• Jesus was viewed both as an eschatological
  Messiah and as a ransom or redeemer from sin
• Proto-Orthodox Christianity was characterized by
• A professional clergy
• A closed (or closing) canon of scripture
• Adherence to creeds

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Criteria for scriptural canonicity

• Ancient a sacred authority has to date back to
  near the time of Jesus
• Apostolic an authority had to be written by an
  apostle or at least by a companion of the
  apostles
• Catholic (i.e., universal) books had to have
  widespread acceptance among established churches
  (e.g., the Apocalypse of Peter in the Muratorian
  canon)
• Orthodox the most important criterion the
  views set forth in a book had to conform with the
  views in already accepted books (e.g. docetic
  christology is unacceptable)
• Inspiration books accepted as canonical ended
  up being regarded as inspired by God

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Gnostic Christianity

• As a full-blown movement, Gnosticism only seems
  to surface in the second century
• There were both Christian and non-Christian forms
  of Gnosticism (and still are!)
• Gnostic Christianity fused Christian elements
  with a Greek (primarily Platonic) world-view
  (Burkett 407)
• There was never any single Gnostic Christianity.
  It was a widespread, wide-ranging and disparate
  movement without an official clergy, official
  canon or official governance

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Common traits of Gnosticism

• The world
• The physical world itself is inherently evil, in
  opposition to the world of the spirit which is
  good
• The divine realm
• The good God generated other divine offspring
• These offspring, in pairs, reproduced
• An accident occurred when one divine being
  (Sophia, a feminine deity) separated from the
  rest and spontaneously generated another being
• The latter, born outside the divine realm, was
  evil
• This latter being created the evil world

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Common traits of Gnosticism

• Humans
• Sophia was captured and imprisoned in the
  material world in the bodies of humans
• Many humans (though not all) have this spark of
  divinity in them
• Salvation
• The divine spark within humans can escape only by
  learning through knowledge (Gk. Gnosis) where it
  came from and how it can return
• The church
• Gnostics admit that Christians who have faith in
  Christ and do good works can experience some
  salvation
• But the real afterlife is only available to the
  Gnostics
• Gnostics come to the full knowledge of the
  secrets of salvation

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Common traits of Gnosticism

• The divine redeemer
• The salvific knowledge comes from outside the
  world
• It is brought by a divine redeemer
• For Christian Gnostics, Christ is the one who
  brings this knowledge from above
• Some Gnostics (docetists, Gk. Dokeo to seem, to
  appear) thought the Christ came to earth
  seemingly as a human
• He did not suffer, because he was not flesh and
  blood
• Other Gnostics, believed that the divine Christ
  entered the body of a man Jesus when he was
  baptized
• Christ then left Jesus prior to his death (hence
  My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?)

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Gnosticism

• Gnostic Society Library www.gnosis.org/gnosis/gn
  osis101.html
• La bibliotheque copte de Nag Hammadi
  www.ftsr.ulaval.ca/bcnh/