Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com

it's quite surprising how many were Gnostics, even into the mid 2nd century, and the relative sparseness of Christian communities and Christian leaders Bauer remarks how, in third/fourth century Edessa, the Marcionites were called "Christians," while it were the so-called orthodox who had...

John-the-Evangelist -the-Apostle (Ephesus), and his followers It's worth mentioning that the Gospel of John is sometimes located in Syria. http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rak//publics/new/BAUER04.htm perhaps in Syria, where as I still hold to be extremely probable, the longer Johannine Epistle and the Go...

Bauer also detects the 'heresies' of Ephesus and Crete in the locations addressed by the pseudepigraphic pastoral epistles: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rak//publics/new/BAUER04.htm The pastoral Epistles (see below, chap. 9) are chronologically most recent, compared with Acts, Ignatius, and the Apocaly...

The book "Acts of the Apostles" has some geographical information (some that seems 'retroverted' into an earlier situation but which might have historical meaning all the same). There is, of course, this famous verse, which you can interpret as you wish: Acts 11:26 And for an entire year t...

Bauer has some special comments concerning the addressees of Ignatius and of the Revelation: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rak//publics/new/BAUER04.htm Of the seven communities of Asia Minor mentioned in Revelation, Ignatius addresses only three -- Ephesus, Smyrna, and Philadelphia; [[79]] [[*83]] he do...

Gaul/Lyon Africa/Carthage Written ca. 175-180, these documents regarding martyrs attest to the regions of Gaul and Africa: http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/viennalyons.html http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/scillitan.html Eusebius gives a name for the predecessor of Irenaeus: http://www.ne...

I don't really doubt that Celsus had heard something or other regarding Jewish views of Jesus.

I am here interested on feedback regarding the interpretation I offered, of the section quoted from book 3 of the Against Celsus.

Eusebius has this notice about Bardasanes (fl. ca. 180), who had a large influence on Syria and the kingdom around Edessa (and was a Valentinian): http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/250104.htm 1. In the same reign, as heresies were abounding in the region between the rivers, a certain Bardesanes, a mo...

Don't forget Greece, Macedonia, Thrace, and Crete . Corinth (bishops) -- Dioynsius, Bacchylus Some bishops of Athens mentioned: Publius [bishop & martyr], Quadratus [time of Hadrian] http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/250104.htm 3. He mentions Quadratus also, stating that he was appointed their b...

Antioch Ignatius of Antioch (via Rome ) (c.35 or 50 – c.108 CE) 5 of his 7 extant letters are to Anatolian cities Theophilus of Antioch (d. 181) http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rak//publics/new/BAUER03.htm At any rate, already prior to Ignatius, gnosticism made itself felt in Antioch in a serious way. Me...