In the first few centuries following the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, many writings appeared, often claiming to have been penned by the Apostles of Christ. While the Church tended to accurately discern which were valid, the writings of those who claimed Christianity, but were outside the orthodox theological stances still held some influence. They prompted early Christians to define specific concepts which permanently influenced Christianity, particularly the issue as to the Divinity and Humanity of Jesus Christ. The main theological controversy within early Christianity following the New Testament period was a movement called Gnosticism.
Proto-Gnosticism
Gnosticism held that the physical realm was evil, and Jesus Christ either had a limited humanity or was not a physical human at all and a mere ghost or phantasm. A sort of proto-gnosticism was already arising within Christianity during the time of Paul and the other apostles. The Apostle John argues against it in his second epistle:
“For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist.”
Writings of the Gnostics
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Sign up to our Free Weekly NewsletterThe Gospel of Peter, The Gospel of Thomas, and the Apocryphon of John are just three of the various texts produced by the gnostics, typically in the second century. Many of the gnostic texts were only known by name or brief reference from the early church leaders such as Irenaeus of Lyons or Serapian of Antioch. For centuries, almost all that was known of Gnosticism was through those who opposed it.
The Nag Hammadi Discovery
In 1945, a collection of papyrus codices was discovered in the Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi. The Nag Hammadi library, as it came to be called, contained 52 gnostic texts (and a few others) which date from the 200s or 300s CE. These texts were direct copies of the gnostic writers and provide a valuable insight into their writings and beliefs.
Problems Created by Gnostic Texts
Dissemination of gnostic texts brought about the need for the early church to determine which texts were orthodox and which were heretical. This prompted some church leaders to compile lists upon which the Church could rely as the appropriate scriptures. Athanasius in his Festal Letter of 367, where he lists the canon, concludes of gnostic and other non-canonical writings.
“… nor is there any place a mention of secret writings. But such are the invention of heretics, who indeed write them whenever they wish, bestowing upon them their approval, and assigning to them a date, that so, using them as if they were ancient writings, they find a means by which to lead astray the simple-minded.”
Docetism
Serapion of Antioch, a bishop in the late 2nd/early 3rd century, also wrote against a form of Gnosticism called Docetism. The church in Rossus in Syria had been using the pseudo-Gospel of Peter within their congregation, and Serapion found that it was not a true Gospel written by Peter, and advised against its use once knowing its contents.
The solution to Gnosticism winds up being a great help to Christianity, as it helps early Christians sift through the many writings and develop methods and means by which they could discern what the Apostles of Jesus Christ intended to pass down. The identity and nature of Jesus Christ to the Christian is of utmost importance, and determining those writings which establish the truth was of primary importance to resolve within the early church.
