Posted on 04/13/2006 8:12:35 AM PDT by Mr. Silverback
Welcome to Holy Week, American style. Just as millions of Christians are preparing to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, the media is once again out to debunk historical Christianity.
Just last weekend I was in an airport bookstore and saw the new book counter filled with numerous editions of The Da Vinci Code. Then I picked up the New York Times, and there I was greeted with the headline on the front page that read, In Ancient Document, Judas, Minus the Betrayal.
You probably have seen the hype, including a one-hour National Geographic TV spectacular: After seventeen hundred years, the story goes, the long-lost text of the so-called Gospel of Judas has re-surfaced. It claims that Jesus secretly told Judas to betray Him; so Judas is really a good disciple.
Well, its not a new discovery. This new gospel and the heresy it espousesGnosticismwere rejected as fiction by Christian leaders and the Church as early as 180 A.D.
Gnosticism was an attempt to add to Christianity an essentially Eastern worldview dressed up with Christian language. It was presented to the Roman world as the true Gospelcomplete with endless mysteries that only those with secret knowledge could unravel. Many unsuspecting people were enthralled with Gnostic writings, particularly their sometimes gory and salacious initiation ceremonies. Christian pastors and theologians repeatedly rejected all forms of Gnosticism, until, by the middle of the third century, it had all but disappeared.
But now it is back with a vengeance, with supposed discoveries and works like Dan Browns The Da Vinci Code. It provides the means for Christianitys detractors to debunk the historical Jesus, and it certainly sells books. Seven million copies of The Da Vinci Code is testimony to that. Gnosticism has particular appeal today because of the postmodern age, which has rejected historical truth. So you can find God any way you wish, through your own group. This, of course, is the belief that is at the root of the spreading New Age movement.
The danger is that we have a biblically illiterate population. People today dont knowmaybe dont carewhether there is a difference between the Gospel of Judas and the Gospel of John. They are unfamiliar with the work of the ancient canonical councils of the Church (which rejected the Gnostic gospels time and again) or even of the basic creeds or confessions of the Christian Church. Sadly, people are as gullible today as ever.
Now it is tempting to get angry at National Geographic and the liberal press for unleashing this fraudulent gospel at the beginning of the holiest week of the year. But dont. Instead, lets use the media attention to debunk the debunkers, to point out to friends that this regurgitated Gnosticismthe Da Vinci Code and the gospel of Judas includedis nothing more than historically unsupportable fantasy.
Then we can point them to the knowledge that is accessible to all people that has been accessible to Christians for two thousand years and proven historically accurate. Its called the Bible.
But whatever you do, get informed first. Come to our website (see further reading below) or call us here at BreakPoint (1-877-322-5527) and find some of the resources that we are offering. And get busy because millions can be suckered inunless you and I set the record straight.
Great post.
Wow. Speaking of poor grasp ...
The sects of Valentinus and Basilides were extremely popular until the 4th century.
Marcionites plagued the Church well past the 5th century.
In the west, the Manichean school lasted into the 5th century (St. Augustine was a member for 10 years before he accepted the orthodoxy in 382). It was still active in Persia and Tibet until the 17th century.
A resurgence of Manicheanism spawned the Paulicians of Anatolia and the Cathars of France in the 9th century.
It was the suppression of the Cathars (Albigensian Crusade 1147-1229) that led to the creation of the Dominican Order. After the war the Inquisition was established to root out any remaining heretics. Which it infamously did until the last Cathar was executed in 1321.
The Apostle's Creed was the church creed written to ferret out Gnostics, and it was in use by the early 2nd Century.
Marcionites, and late 2nd Century (Confession of St. Irenaeus 180CE).
For anybody that's interested: Early Christian Writings
Wasn't this also related to Arianism?
Yep. The Arian heresy was widespread among gnostic and the orthodox sects.
Arius held that the Father existed before the Son. Since he was 'begotten', he came after. Jesus was therfore the lesser deity.
+
Uh, dude, it's being sold as "historically accurate" fiction. It's "fiction" with the same central theme as Islam, that Jesus is not the Son of God and did not die on the Cross. It's "fiction" that is being used to promote supposed "history" like "The Gospel of Judas."
It's not just a book. It's part of a movement bent on denying and desecrating all that Christ taught and his followers hold dear. It has much the same moral standing as well as the same general intent as The Protocols of the Elders of Zion.
Others may believe in God or Jesus, or not, as they choose, but no one can honestly fend off criticism of these works with the lame "it's fiction" cantrip. And the fact that the NAZIs promoted the same beliefs and the Jihadists do so today as well is enough for me to suspect the whff of evil is associated with all who espouse these views and either evil or willing ignorance with those who even intellectually defend it.
And do not try to hide behind the "you said NAZI" crap. Look up Theosophy, things like the "Ahnenerbe Forschungs und Lehrgemeinschaft" or people like Blavatsky or Otto Rahn, among tons of other references. The concepts championed by Brown in DaVinci Code and the folks now pushing the Gospel of Judas are not historically, intellectually or morally neutral. They are the stuff of racism, eugenics, murder and genocide.
Put me on the list, would you please?
2Tim 3:16-17
thank you, you beat me to it....talk about over reactions, 4Q needs to take his pills.
I wonder, who exactly gave these councils the authority to determine what was to be included or excluded from the biblical canon?
bump
Any talk about "special knowledge" turns religion into sorcery.
Yeah we should believe these documents written 300 years after The Lord's resurrection in heresy-ridden Egypt but the gospels written by Judas' friends should be put aside.
Nikos Kazantzakis had lots to say about Judas and Mary Magdalene as well 50+ years before Mr and Mrs Brown plagiarized the concept...too bad Nikos has passed on and can't sue the plagiaristic pants off the Browns.
Well, even the old heresies were once new and appeared the first time around. But to pull out a new heresy now is difficult. They could start a contest.
There are Christians who believe DVC is fact. That is scary.
I want THAT as a tagline! Pleeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaase?
Do you think the Bible just dropped out of the sky one day - fully written, edited and translated?
Of course different PEOPLE wrote it, other PEOPLE edited it, decided what should stay and what should go and other PEOPLE translated it from Hebrew to Aramaic to Greeek to Latin to English.
Where in the Bible is there the instruction for all that?
I checked out your about page. what's a "huband?" <grinning, ducking and running away>
First, let me say this: it's instructive to note that the late dating for Revelation is largely dependant on a single
...
Finally, those who hold that the book of Revelation was written in AD 95 face an even more formidable obstacle! ...
Uhh ... I said the Gospels, the 'Gospel according to John', -- Not the 'The Apocalypse of John' (Revelation).
But since you mentioned it, from Revelations:
' 1:9 I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. '
- and -
17:9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
17:10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.
17:11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.
The 'seven mountains' are clearly a reference to to Rome. The 'seven kings' are the Roman emperors. Nero Claudius Drusus or Nero was the fifth emperor; and according to text, he has already fallen.
In 69CE the Roman empire was in a state of civil war (the 'Year of Four Emperors') concerning the Julius-Claudian secession. Eventually, Caesar Vespasianus Augustus (Vespasian) was recalled from Judea where he commanded the Roman forces suppressing the Jewish revolt of 66. His son Titus continued the campaign in Judea. So Vespasian was the 6th emperor since Julius Ceasar.
He was succeeded by his eldest son Titus (of sack of Jerusalem fame) in 79. Titus the seventh emperor.
When Titus died (probably by poison), he was succeeded by his younger brother, Titus Flavius Domitianus (or Domitian) in 81CE -- making Domitian the tyrannical eighth emperor.
Vespasian is generally seen as a reformer, removing corrupt officials and promoting the able functionaries -- and notably for repealing Nero's laws concerning treason. It was those laws that affected nascent Christians the most by requiring a sacrifice offering the Emperor-God as a test of loyalty. Disloyalty in Roman times was a very bad thing.
So whether you accept that 'John of Patmos' was the same individual as Apostle John or not. The Book of Revelations is clearly after Nero (the fallen fifth king), after Vespasian (a good guy for repealing the sacrifice laws). And Titus, his son is unremarkable, besides he reigned for less than two years (the seventh king of the short space). So we're at Domitian at 81CE as the terminus a quo. Significatly, Domitian revived the treason laws to use against perceived enemies. And that included 'disloyal' Christians.
St. Jerome and Eusebius put the exile of John during the reign of Domitian.
Polycarp -- bishop of Smyrna, (one of the churches addressed in Revelations), specifically places the exile of 'John of Patmos' in the 14th year of Domitian's reign (as retold by Irenaeus). Clement of Alexandria reports John returned from exile to Ephesus after the death of Domitian.
So the the text itself says it was Domitian (the eighth emperor); the church fathers says it was Domitian.
What's to argue? It was during the reign of Domitian 81-95CE.
And if you take the text seriously, 'was in the isle that is called Patmos', it was after Domitian was assassinated in 96CE.
Okay back on topic: 'Gospel of John'
Consider one of the most amazing prophecies in all of Scripture. Jesus was leaving the Temple one day when his disciples called his attention to its buildings. As they gazed upon its massive stones and magnificent structures, Jesus uttered the unthinkable: "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down....
Except it wasn't prophecy. The 'Christ as the symbolic Temple' theme (and the interpolation in the 'Parable of the Wedding Feast') was developed after the sack of Jerusalem.
'John' in the 'Gospel of John' seems unaware of the existence of the Sadducees. He seems to think the Pharisees are the priestly authority in the (7:45-53; 9:13-38). Which was true after the destruction of the temple, but certainly not in the time of Jesus.
'John' is under the impression that Jesus and his followers we're not permitted in the synagogues (Jn 9:22, 12:42, 16:2), but the expulsions of Christians didn't occur until the Council of Jamnia in 90CE.
John mentions the 'Kingdom of God' just twice. Certainly an odd thing for a Jewish fisherman from Galilean Jew. While not conclusive, it indicates that the fervor of the parousia was waning as the apostles die or killed.
The Gospel was late in coming to be widely known because it originated in the Gnostic community. Naassene Fragment quoted by Hippolytus (Refutation ~120-140), and Valentinian texts comment on it (Clement of Alexandria's c. 140-160). The oldest known fragment of the New Testament, (the John Rylands fragment c. 120-130) was the Gospel of John from Gnostic sources.
I'm not trying to "attack you" in this post but just want to defend my Christian faith as I feel it has been misrepresented by someone who doesn't even espouse the faith any longer!
Not to worry. I don't sense that you're attacking at all.
I just share what I've learned.
I don't intend any attack on Christians or Christianity. I hope you don't feel you need to defend yourself.
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