ISBN : 9780199287864
Scholars are divided on the number of gospels to which fragmentary Jewish-Christian gospel traditions should be attributed. In this book Gregory attributes them to two gospels: the Gospel according to the Hebrews and the Gospel of the Ebionites, with no need for any postulated Gospel of the Nazoraeans. As two distinct texts, each gospel is treated on its own terms, with its own introduction, followed by a text, translation and commentary on each fragment, and further discussion about what we may conclude about the overall character of the text on the basis of the fragments that survive. Yet they share certain common features that warrant them being treated together in one volume with an introduction that discusses certain critical issues that are relevant to them both. One common factor is the partial and indirect way in which these texts have been preserved. No independent manuscript tradition survives for either text, so they have been transmitted only to the extent that they were quoted or discussed by a number of early Christian authors, none of whom claims to be the author of the text from which he appears to quote or to which he appears to refer. This raises a number of questions of a literary nature about how excerpts from these texts may be interpreted. Another common factor is that these gospel traditions are usually referred to as Jewish-Christian, which may raise questions about their historical origins and theological outlook. Any judgment about the historical origins or theological nature of these gospels must rest upon prior examination of what may be reconstructed of their texts, and Gregory is careful to distinguish between what we may conclude from these gospels as texts and how they might contribute to our knowledge of early Christian history. The book also includes a number of appendices in which he discusses issues that have been prominent in the history of scholarship on these texts, but which he argues are not relevant to these two gospels as he presents them. These include claims about an original Hebrew gospel of Matthew, the postulated Gospel of the Nazoraeans and the so-called 'Jewish gospel', as well as what may be known about the Nazoraeans and the Ebionites.
Part I: Introduction: 'Jewish-Christian Gospel Tradition'
Literary issues
- 'Jewish-Christian Gospel Tradition': Its sources and its scope
- From quotations to texts: preliminary methodological observations
- From quotations to texts: determining the number of gospels
Theological and historical issues
- Artefacts or texts?
- A note on terminology: 'Jewish Christianity', 'Jewish Christians' and 'Jewish-Christian gospel traditions'
- The date of Jewish-Christian gospels, and the question of their value as historical witnesses to Jesus
The structure of this book
Part II: The Gospel according to the Hebrews
Witnesses to the text
- The Alexandrians: Clement, Origen, and Didymus
- Eusebius
- Jerome
- Ps-Origen
- Doubtful and spurious witnesses
Literary issues
- Title
- Date and place of composition
- Language
- Literary form
- Relationship to other gospel traditions
- Extent and scope
The fragments (text, translation, commentary)
- Probable and possible testimony
- Doubtful testimony
Theological characteristics
- Christology and soteriology
- The Spirit and Wisdom
- The need for sibling solidarity
- A gnostic or sapiential text?
Jewish-Christian profile
Part III: The Gospel of the Ebionites
Witnesses
- The testimony of Epiphanius
Literary issues
- Title
- Date and place of composition
- Language
- Literary form and relationship to other gospel traditions
- Extent and Scope
- The order and enumeration of the excerpts
Fragments (text, translation, commentary)
Theological characteristics
- Christology: Jesus the son of God
- Mission to Israel
- The role of John the Baptist
- Sacrifice and diet
- Jewish-Christian profile
Part IV: Appendices
Appendix 1. Hebrew gospel according to Matthew?
Appendix 2. The Jewish gospel and the Zion Gospel Edition
Appendix 3. Spurious patristic witnesses to the Gospel according to the Hebrews
Appendix 4. Latin and Irish medieval witnesses to Jewish-Christian gospel traditions
Appendix 5. From texts to sects: Hebrews, Ebionites, and Nazoraeans
Bibliography
Index