Nazarene (sect)
Encyclopedia
The Nazarene sect is used in two contexts:
, the plural Nazaraioi means "men from Nazareth". (see Nazarene (title)
). The title Nazarenes, "men from Nazareth," is first applied to the Christians by Tertullus
(Acts 24:5), though Herod Agrippa II (Acts 26:28) uses the term "Christians" which had first been used at Antioch
(Acts 11:2). The name used by Tertullus survives into Rabbinical and modern Hebrew
as notzrim (נוצרים) a standard Hebrew term for "Christian", and also into the Quran and modern Arabic as nasara (plural of nasrani "Christians"). The Arabic word nasara (نَصارى) comes from the Arabic root "n s r" (ن ص ر).
However, since "Christian" was the name the Christians accepted themselves, and is approved in 1 Peter, the term "Nazarene" used by Tertullus
appears to have never been adopted by Christians. Tertullian
(c.160–c.220, Against Marcion 4:8) records that the Jews called Christians "Nazarenes" from Jesus being a man of Nazareth, though he also makes the connection with Nazarites in Lamentations 4:7. Jerome
too records that "Nazarenes" was employed of Christians in the synagogues. Eusebius, around 311 AD, records that the name "Nazarenes" had formerly been used of Christians. The use relating to a specific "sect" of Christians does not occur until Epiphanius
. Epiphanius (see below) in discussing the 4th Century Nazarene sect claims pre-Christian origins for the sect, but there seems to be no evidence of the term prior to Tertullus, and no evidence for Epiphanius' opinion. According to Ehrhardt, just as Antioch coined the term Christians, so Jerusalem coined the term Nazarenes, from Jesus of Nazareth.
The terms "sect of the Nazarenes" and "Jesus of Nazareth" both employ the adjective nasraya (ܕܢܨܪܝܐ) in the Syrian Aramaic Peshitta
, from Nasrat (ܢܨܪܬ ) for Nazareth.
in his Panarion the 4th Century Nazarenes were originally Jewish converts of the Apostles who fled Jerusalem because of Jesus' prophesy on its coming siege ( during the Great Jewish Revolt in 70 A.D.). They fled to Pella
, Peraea (which is northeast of Jerusalem), and eventually spread outwards to Beroea and Bashanitis, where they permanently settled. It is close to a historical certainty that Matthew belonged to this group, as The Gospels affirm this to be true.
The Nazarenes were an early Jewish Christian sect located in and about Jerusalem which proclaimed Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah
and the Son of God
.
The Nazarenes were similar to the Ebionites
, in that they considered themselves Jews
, maintained an adherence to the Law of Moses
, and used only the Aramaic Gospel of the Hebrews
, rejecting all the Canonical gospels. However, unlike half of the Ebionites, they accepted the Virgin Birth
.
As late as the eleventh century Cardinal Humbert of Mourmoutiers still referred to the Nazarene sect as a Sabbath
-keeping Christian body existing at that time (Strong’s Cyclopedia, New York, 1874, I, 660). Modern scholars believe it is the Pasagini or Pasagians
who are referenced by Cardinal Humbert suggesting the Nazarene sect existed well into the eleventh century and beyond.(The Catholic
writings of Bonacursus entitled "Against the Heretics"). It is believed that Gregorius of Bergamo, about 1250 CE, also wrote concerning the Nazarenes as the "Pasagini".
of Matthew partially reconstructed from the writings of Jerome
.
also refers to Nazarenes as those "...who accept Messiah in such a way that they do not cease to observe the old Law." In his Epistle 79, to Augustine, he said:
Jerome
viewed a distinction between Nazarenes and Ebionites, a different Jewish sect, but does not comment on whether Nazarene Jews considered themselves to be "Christian" or not or how they viewed themselves as fitting into the descriptions he uses. He clearly equates them with Filaster's Nazarei. His criticism of the Nazarenes is noticeably more direct and critical than that of Epiphanius.
The following creed is that of a church at Constantinople at the same period:
"Nazarenes" are referenced past the fourth century AD as well. Jacobus de Voragine (1230–1298) described James as a "Nazarene" in The Golden Legend, vol 7. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) quotes Augustine of Hippo who was given an apocryphal book called Hieremias by a "Hebrew of the Nazarene Sect" in Catena
Aurea - Gospel of Matthew, chapter 27. So this terminology seems to have remained at least through the 13th century in European discussions.
Epiphanius confused Philo of Alexandria's description of the Therapeutae
with "Jessaens," (Iessaioi), according, incorrectly, to Epiphanius a Christian group.
- Firstly of the New Testament early church where in Acts 24:5 Paul is accused before FelixAntonius FelixMarcus Antonius Felix was the Roman procurator of Iudaea Province 52-58, in succession to Ventidius Cumanus.- Life :...
at Caesarea by TertullusTertullusIn the Bible, Tertullus was a lawyer, who was employed by the Jews to state their case against Paul in the presence of Felix ....
of being "a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes."
- Secondly of a 4th Century Jewish-Christian sect located in TransjordanTransjordanThe Emirate of Transjordan was a former Ottoman territory in the Southern Levant that was part of the British Mandate of Palestine...
called the Nazarenes by EpiphaniusEpiphanius of SalamisEpiphanius of Salamis was bishop of Salamis at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy...
, JeromeJeromeSaint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
and Augustine of HippoAugustine of HippoAugustine of Hippo , also known as Augustine, St. Augustine, St. Austin, St. Augoustinos, Blessed Augustine, or St. Augustine the Blessed, was Bishop of Hippo Regius . He was a Latin-speaking philosopher and theologian who lived in the Roman Africa Province...
.
Nazarene (title)
The title "Nazarene" is first found in the Greek texts of the New Testament as an adjective, nazarenos, used as an adjectival form of the phrase apo Nazaret "from Nazareth."The Sect of the Nazarenes (1st Century)
The name Nazaraios is the standard Greek spelling in the New Testament for a man from NazarethNazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...
, the plural Nazaraioi means "men from Nazareth". (see Nazarene (title)
Nazarene (title)
Nazarene is a title applied to Jesus , who grew up in Nazareth, a town in Galilee, now in northern Israel. The word is used to translate two related words that appear in the Greek New Testament: the adjective Nazarēnos and the Nazōraios...
). The title Nazarenes, "men from Nazareth," is first applied to the Christians by Tertullus
Tertullus
In the Bible, Tertullus was a lawyer, who was employed by the Jews to state their case against Paul in the presence of Felix ....
(Acts 24:5), though Herod Agrippa II (Acts 26:28) uses the term "Christians" which had first been used at Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
(Acts 11:2). The name used by Tertullus survives into Rabbinical and modern Hebrew
Modern Hebrew
Modern Hebrew , also known as Israeli Hebrew or Modern Israeli Hebrew, is the language spoken in Israel and in some Jewish communities worldwide, from the early 20th century to the present....
as notzrim (נוצרים) a standard Hebrew term for "Christian", and also into the Quran and modern Arabic as nasara (plural of nasrani "Christians"). The Arabic word nasara (نَصارى) comes from the Arabic root "n s r" (ن ص ر).
However, since "Christian" was the name the Christians accepted themselves, and is approved in 1 Peter, the term "Nazarene" used by Tertullus
Tertullus
In the Bible, Tertullus was a lawyer, who was employed by the Jews to state their case against Paul in the presence of Felix ....
appears to have never been adopted by Christians. Tertullian
Tertullian
Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian , was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He is the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of Latin Christian literature. He also was a notable early Christian apologist and...
(c.160–c.220, Against Marcion 4:8) records that the Jews called Christians "Nazarenes" from Jesus being a man of Nazareth, though he also makes the connection with Nazarites in Lamentations 4:7. Jerome
Jerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
too records that "Nazarenes" was employed of Christians in the synagogues. Eusebius, around 311 AD, records that the name "Nazarenes" had formerly been used of Christians. The use relating to a specific "sect" of Christians does not occur until Epiphanius
Epiphanius of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis was bishop of Salamis at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy...
. Epiphanius (see below) in discussing the 4th Century Nazarene sect claims pre-Christian origins for the sect, but there seems to be no evidence of the term prior to Tertullus, and no evidence for Epiphanius' opinion. According to Ehrhardt, just as Antioch coined the term Christians, so Jerusalem coined the term Nazarenes, from Jesus of Nazareth.
The terms "sect of the Nazarenes" and "Jesus of Nazareth" both employ the adjective nasraya (ܕܢܨܪܝܐ) in the Syrian Aramaic Peshitta
Peshitta
The Peshitta is the standard version of the Bible for churches in the Syriac tradition.The Old Testament of the Peshitta was translated into Syriac from the Hebrew, probably in the 2nd century AD...
, from Nasrat (ܢܨܪܬ ) for Nazareth.
The Nazarenes (4th Century)
According to EpiphaniusEpiphanius of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis was bishop of Salamis at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy...
in his Panarion the 4th Century Nazarenes were originally Jewish converts of the Apostles who fled Jerusalem because of Jesus' prophesy on its coming siege ( during the Great Jewish Revolt in 70 A.D.). They fled to Pella
Pella, Jordan
Pella is a village and the site of ancient ruins in northwestern Jordan. It is half an hour by car from Irbid, in the north of the country....
, Peraea (which is northeast of Jerusalem), and eventually spread outwards to Beroea and Bashanitis, where they permanently settled. It is close to a historical certainty that Matthew belonged to this group, as The Gospels affirm this to be true.
The Nazarenes were an early Jewish Christian sect located in and about Jerusalem which proclaimed Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
and the Son of God
Son of God
"Son of God" is a phrase which according to most Christian denominations, Trinitarian in belief, refers to the relationship between Jesus and God, specifically as "God the Son"...
.
The Nazarenes were similar to the Ebionites
Ebionites
Ebionites, or Ebionaioi, , is a patristic term referring to a Jewish Christian sect or sects that existed during the first centuries of the Christian Era. They regarded Jesus as the Messiah and insisted on the necessity of following Jewish religious law and rites...
, in that they considered themselves Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
, maintained an adherence to the Law of Moses
Law of Moses
The Law of Moses is a term first found in Joshua 8:31-32 where Joshua writes the words of "the Law of Moses" on the altar at Mount Ebal. The text continues "And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the book of the law."...
, and used only the Aramaic Gospel of the Hebrews
Gospel of the Hebrews
The Gospel of the Hebrews , commonly shortened from the Gospel according to the Hebrews or simply called the Hebrew Gospel, is a hypothesised lost gospel preserved in fragments within the writings of the Church Fathers....
, rejecting all the Canonical gospels. However, unlike half of the Ebionites, they accepted the Virgin Birth
Virgin Birth
The virgin birth of Jesus is a tenet of Christianity and Islam which holds that Mary miraculously conceived Jesus while remaining a virgin. The term "virgin birth" is commonly used, rather than "virgin conception", due to the tradition that Joseph "knew her not till she brought forth her firstborn...
.
As late as the eleventh century Cardinal Humbert of Mourmoutiers still referred to the Nazarene sect as a Sabbath
Sabbath
Sabbath in Christianity is a weekly day of rest or religious observance, derived from the Biblical Sabbath.Seventh-day Sabbath observance, i.e. resting from labor from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset, is practiced by seventh-day Sabbatarians...
-keeping Christian body existing at that time (Strong’s Cyclopedia, New York, 1874, I, 660). Modern scholars believe it is the Pasagini or Pasagians
Pasagians
Pasagians were a religious sect appearing in Lombardy in the late 12th or early 13th century, and possibly appearing much earlier in the East. The name, if from the Italian passagieri meaning birds of passage, is either suggestive of an emigration from another place, or their iterant lifestyle...
who are referenced by Cardinal Humbert suggesting the Nazarene sect existed well into the eleventh century and beyond.(The Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
writings of Bonacursus entitled "Against the Heretics"). It is believed that Gregorius of Bergamo, about 1250 CE, also wrote concerning the Nazarenes as the "Pasagini".
Gospel of the Nazarenes
The Gospel of the Nazarenes is the title given to fragments of one of the lost Jewish-Christian GospelsJewish-Christian Gospels
Jewish-Christian Gospels are non-canonical Gospels used by various Jewish Christian groups that were declared heretical by other members of the Early Church. They are mentioned by Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Eusebius, Epiphanius and Jerome...
of Matthew partially reconstructed from the writings of Jerome
Jerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
.
Patristic references to "Nazarenes"
In the 4th century JeromeJerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
also refers to Nazarenes as those "...who accept Messiah in such a way that they do not cease to observe the old Law." In his Epistle 79, to Augustine, he said:
- "What shall I say of the Ebionites who pretend to be Christians? To-day there still exists among the Jews in all the synagogues of the East a heresy which is called that of the Minæans, and which is still condemned by the Pharisees; [its followers] are ordinarily called 'Nasarenes'; they believe that Christ, the son of God, was born of the Virgin Mary, and they hold him to be the one who suffered under Pontius Pilate and ascended to heaven, and in whom we also believe. But while they pretend to be both Jews and Christians, they are neither."
Jerome
Jerome
Saint Jerome was a Roman Christian priest, confessor, theologian and historian, and who became a Doctor of the Church. He was the son of Eusebius, of the city of Stridon, which was on the border of Dalmatia and Pannonia...
viewed a distinction between Nazarenes and Ebionites, a different Jewish sect, but does not comment on whether Nazarene Jews considered themselves to be "Christian" or not or how they viewed themselves as fitting into the descriptions he uses. He clearly equates them with Filaster's Nazarei. His criticism of the Nazarenes is noticeably more direct and critical than that of Epiphanius.
The following creed is that of a church at Constantinople at the same period:
- "I renounce all customs, rites, legalisms, unleavened breads & sacrifices of lambs of the Hebrews, and all other feasts of the Hebrews, sacrifices, prayers, aspersions, purifications, sanctifications and propitiations and fasts, and new moons, and Sabbaths, and superstitions, and hymns and chants and observances and Synagogues, and the food and drink of the Hebrews; in one word, I renounce everything Jewish, every law, rite and custom and if afterwards I shall wish to deny and return to Jewish superstitionJudaizersJudaizers is predominantly a Christian term, derived from the Greek verb ioudaïzō . This term is most widely known from the single use in the New Testament where Paul publicly challenges Peter for compelling Gentile believers to "judaize", also known as the Incident at Antioch.According to the...
, or shall be found eating with the Jews, or feasting with them, or secretly conversing and condemning the Christian religion instead of openly confuting them and condemning their vain faith, then let the trembling of Gehazi cleave to me, as well as the legal punishments to which I acknowledge myself liable. And may I be anathema in the world to come, and may my soul be set down with Satan and the devils."
"Nazarenes" are referenced past the fourth century AD as well. Jacobus de Voragine (1230–1298) described James as a "Nazarene" in The Golden Legend, vol 7. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) quotes Augustine of Hippo who was given an apocryphal book called Hieremias by a "Hebrew of the Nazarene Sect" in Catena
Catena (Biblical commentary)
A catena is a form of biblical commentary, verse by verse, made up entirely of excerpts from earlier Biblical commentators, each introduced with the name of the author, and with such minor adjustments of words to allow the whole to form a continuous commentary.The texts are mainly compiled from...
Aurea - Gospel of Matthew, chapter 27. So this terminology seems to have remained at least through the 13th century in European discussions.
Nazarene Beliefs
The beliefs of the Nazarene sect or sects are described through various church fathers and heresiologists.- in Jesus as Messiah:
- in the Virgin Birth:
- in Jesus as the Son of God:
- Adhering to circumcision and the Law of Moses:
- Use of Old Testament and New Testament:
- Use of Hebrew and Aramaic New Testament source texts:
Epiphanius confused Philo of Alexandria's description of the Therapeutae
Therapeutae
The Therapeutae were a Jewish sect in which flourished in Alexandria and other parts of the Diaspora of Hellenistic Judaism in the final years of the Second Temple period. The primary source is the account De vita contemplativa by the Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria who appears to have...
with "Jessaens," (Iessaioi), according, incorrectly, to Epiphanius a Christian group.
Nazarene churches
Most churches using the name "Nazarene" use it in relation to Jesus, and not in connection to the 4th Century sect described by Epiphanius.- The Swiss Nazarener Baptist movement, the ancestor of the Apostolic Christian ChurchApostolic Christian ChurchThe Apostolic Christian Church is a religious body in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Paraguay, and Japan that originates from the Anabaptist movement....
in America, many branches of which also use the term "Nazarene" or "Nazarean" in their name. - The Church of the NazareneChurch of the NazareneThe Church of the Nazarene is an evangelical Christian denomination that emerged from the 19th century Holiness movement in North America with its members colloquially referred to as Nazarenes. It is the largest Wesleyan-holiness denomination in the world. At the end of 2010, the Church of the...
, a mainstream Christian (Protestant) denomination that was born out of the Holiness MovementHoliness movementThe holiness movement refers to a set of beliefs and practices emerging from the Methodist Christian church in the mid 19th century. The movement is distinguished by its emphasis on John Wesley's doctrine of "Christian perfection" - the belief that it is possible to live free of voluntary sin - and...
of the early 20th century. The Church of the Nazarene took its name in order to associate itself with the humbleness of Jesus' town of origin, as they seek to reach the "humble" in society. - The Syrian Malabar NasraniSyrian Malabar NasraniThe Syrian Malabar Nasrani people, also known as Saint Thomas Christians, "'Nasrani Mappila'" and Nasranis, are an ethnoreligious group from Kerala, India, adhering to the various churches of the Saint Thomas Christian tradition...
and KnanayaKnanayaThe Knanaya also known as Q'nanaya, Q'nai, Kanai, or Thekkumbagar, are endogamous Jews who settled in Kerala, India. Their origins are unclear and are hotly disputed by academic scholars...
"Nazarenes", a Christian group claiming ethnic Jewish descent in KeralaKeralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India.
External links
- Catena Aurea - Gospel of Matthew Ch. 27
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Nazarene
- Epiphanius of Salamis' Panarion
- Eusebius of Caesarea's Ecclesiastical History 4.22
- Jerome's Lives of Illustrius Men Ch. 3
- Jewish Encyclopedia: Nazarenes
- Letter 75 Jerome to Augustine
- NetzariPedia: The Term Nazarene Pt1
- The Golden Legend, Volume 7