Textual Criticism and the Historical Jesus

Abstract

Th is study argues that historical Jesus research needs to pay greater attention to the fi eld of textual criticism and study of early Christian manuscripts. It is accordingly argued that the fi eld of textual criticism impacts historical Jesus studies in at least three ways: (1) the textual integrity of the New Testament and the possibility of historical Jesus research; (2) the signifi cance of the agrapha ; and (3) text-critical contributions to historical issues in life of Jesus research.

The utility of adoptionism as a heuristic category: The baptism narrative in the Gospel of the Ebionites as a test case

“…Bird proposes that 'one thing that seems to connect the trio of Carpocrates, Cerinthus, and Ebion(ites) together is the belief that a separate power, person, Christ, angel, spirit, or aeon entered the man Jesus'. 29 Irenaeus surmised that the Ebionites' opinions were the 'same' (ὁμοιώς) as those endorsed by Cerinthus and Carpocrates (cf. Hippolytus, Refutation of All Heresies, 7.34.1, 10.22.1).…”