The Didache: The Earliest Christian Writing After the Bible

[@nathanschreffler1415]

Very cool. It's lovely to know the church has stood clearly against abortion from the beginning.

[@janaelukezech9456]

My son studied the Didache in his homeschool last year - really neat to read it!

[@missinglink_eth]

Wow. That’s a great homeschooling education. Was this a part of a curriculum to coop or something your family taught? We homeschool and I’d love to include more church history.

[@janaelukezech9456]

I highly recommend Generations Curriculum! It’s in their church history for high school. 😊

[@missinglink_eth]

@@janaelukezech9456 thank you. I will definitely look into this.

[@missinglink_eth]

The older I get the more I want to learn church history.

[@trappedcat3615]

​@@MichaelTheophilus906 Except for you 😅

[@cmiddleton9872]

​@@MichaelTheophilus906"on this rock and I build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" but except for in 381 when the gates did prevail, right? That's what you're saying? Except of course for you.

[@cmiddleton9872]

I recommend 2000 Years Of Christ's Power. I think it has four volumes. I just started with the first, which starts during the apostolic age.

[@pedroguimaraes6094]

@@MichaelTheophilus906 This is what anabaptist believe, not what Reformed, Lutherans and Anglicans actually believe. Westminster teaches against the idea that the Church went completely ashtray in Chapter 25: 4. This catholic Church hath been sometimes more, sometimes less visible.a And particular churches, which are members thereof, are more or less pure, according as the doctrine of the gospel is taught and embraced, ordinances administered, and public worship performed more or less purely in them.b.

[@ChristIsLord247]

Then men at our church, and by proxy me cause I'm reading with my husband, are reading a book called Bullies and Saints I believe, that might be reversed. It's published by Crossway. Interesting book.

[@jordancain6491]

I heard of this work in a lecture on Church History by Dr. James White. It was fascinating! I wish Churches would address Church History more often. I don’t want to hear personal stories, movie comparisons, theatrical preaching, or sensationalism. I don’t have time for any of that. I rather hear more Bible, theology, and Church History.

[@missinglink_eth]

Yes!

[@Yesica1993]

Haven't listened to the video yet, but I agree with your statement 100%!

[@inYTbio_SiteLINKs2Verses_Bruv]

I wonder what White thought of homosexuality not being mentioned in it.

[@danielcarroll8889]

That was extremely interesting. Thank you for sharing

[@CB-ux7ov]

I thoroughly enjoyed this talk. You did a great job explaining the Didache and I took a lot from it, especially in regard to the abhorrent practice of abortion being an important issue to be addressed in the early church. Your message was very edifying. BTW, as an aside, I liked your outfit. Very professional looking and dapper.

[@BlainsTube]

The Teaching of the Twelve, I have not heard of for decades. Thank you for covering this document.

[@heidifluteatl]

Thank you for doing this. I have heard this document reference so many times. I even have it and have read it but never really understood it that well.

[@TheTruckingScribe]

I have heard the word Didache in my seminary class, but I was not introduced to the history behind it. Thank you for sharing. 💜💜💜

[@IndianaJoe0321]

If you're in seminary, you should definitely read it. Well worth it

[@greyhoundlovesme]

The didache is a practical guide, I think the gospel is inherent

[@JosiahM77]

This for me was easier to listen to on KZbin than read because of how rich its content is

[@jpsev75]

Thank you for this, Pastor Matt. I've wondered too at the lack of the gospel or any real theological and Christological teaching. I suspect, though, that this document wasn't meant to be comprehensive in the early church, but supplementary to the baptismal creed (the Apostles' Creed). If that is correct, then once having been instructed in the articles of the creed, including the gospel, this document would have functioned primarily as teaching on Christian living.

[@surfboy344]

The Didache seems to be about living the Christian life. The synoptic gospels give us the Good News and the Book of Acts & Paul's letters give us more of the gospel plus the practical application of Jesus's teaching that we need. When Jesus wanted a theologian, he got the attention of one on a road to Damascus. That meeting changed the history of the world.

[@JonJaeden]

”The law moreover enjoins us to bring up all our offspring: and forbids women to cause abortion of what is begotten; or to destroy it afterward. And if any woman appears to have so done, she will be a murderer of her child; by destroying a living creature, and diminishing human kind." -- Josephus, Contra Apion

[@jimmu2008]

We have various study Bibles with appendixes that include various creeds and confessions. If we can do that, it seems like the Didache and selections from the Apostolic Fathers would make suitable supplemental material in a study or reference Bible. I wish someone would do it. I mean, if we can even have a Jonathan Edwards Study Bible, why not?

[@jessebartunek3195]

The Didache and the Shepherd of Hermis were both bound with Scripture until only the last couple hundred years. They were non canonical but recognized as useful for instruction.

[@jimmu2008]

@@jessebartunek3195 No, they weren't bound with the Bible that recently.

[@jessebartunek3195]

@jimmu2008 I apologize, you are correct. I was being hasty. The Didache and Shepherd of Hermas were bound with the Bible into the 3 or 4 hundreds and was lost until the 1800s. You can purchase Bibles with the Didache today however.

[@jimmu2008]

@@jessebartunek3195 no need to apologize, actually. I yet to see a Bible with the Didache, unless the complier was heterodox.

[@jimmu2008]

@@jessebartunek3195 if you know of any, I'd like to know more.

[@pperrinuk]

25:20 surely every scribe would know the lord's prayer by heart, and so check/query if they were writing out a version they didnt recognise?

[@robertsirico3670]

Eastern Orthodox Christian here. Enjoyable talk, however your objections to the Gospel not being referenced enough is because there was not yet a universal biblical canon and that the early church was still in the phase of oral transmission. The sola Scriptura concept never entered into the Eastern Orthodox or the Roman Catholic tradition, and you can’t apply that standard to these documents. The authors quoted Jesus, not a document about Jesus, albeit a Gospel, also known as the memoirs of the Lord. Oral Tradition was much more important and in that period of time, and we seemed to have lost that consideration. Your next objection about giving alms for ransom is an injunction to show fruits of repentance at St John the Forerunner taught. So, sin is forgiven, and our alms are fruits of this new life… Ps… Early church life liturgical and much about the Lord’s supper and other sacraments was handled by the presbytery and not necessary to document for the receiver other than moral readiness, prayer and fasting .

[@imkadosh]

I am so thankful to my Father God and Lord Jesus Christ for having preserved the only manual I need-the Bible !! And when this disappears I can trust in the Holy Spirit to guide me through using the Scriptures I have memorized. That’s why I read it everyday and I ask the Holy Spirit to sear it into my heart, in my memory for I know the time will come when it will be banned.

[@mshopey32]

I read this this morning and found it rather refreshing. This lecture makes it seem like it's mostly doom and gloom and it's really not. The Didache makes things sweet and simple. If you want to know what sin looks like and how one thing leads to another, it's here. It is clear why the folks at the Council of Nicea kicked this one out: it clearly explains that a false prophet is one who asks for money, that a man having sex with a boy is sin, that abortion and infanticide is sin, that we are to consider true teachers and prophets to be from the Lord and to these we are to give the first 10%-- if no prophet or true teacher has settled nearby, give to the poor. It points out character traits that lead to life and character traits that lead to death. It explains how we should help an unskilled foreigner. I personally enjoyed it and would take this over Paul's convoluted letters any day of the week.

[@mpbd1480]

Could you add a link where we can download a copy of what you taught from? Ones I searched online are all different. Thank you!

[@leaj847]

Thank you for presenting this study. It is fascinating to have this window into the early church and to have a reference point into how they interpreted God's teaching. I had no idea that abortion was an issue during this time frame. And yes, this old Baptist certainly does appreciate hearing that they were dunking folks back then.

[@TheSulross]

I learned about the Didache via Bart Erhman. The guy is an expert in Greek and he's very adamant that it does teach that abortion (and infanticide) is one of the sins that is the way of death and not to be practiced by Christians. He describes the text over all as a kind of church manual. That it was copied by scribes down until the 4th century and that interest in copying it probably waned as organized church hierarchy took over. He too holds that it could indeed be a first century text - mainly because its contents depict a relatively early (primitive) state of Christianity

[@rampartranger7749]

Baptism was a Jewish practice well before Jesus, though it was especially practiced around the first century. Before going up to the temple, Jews immersed themselves, as a ritual cleansing called the “mikveh.” Most synagogues even today have “baptismal pools, used at important events, i.e., before a marriage, before major decisions, and yes, as part or conversion into Judaism.

[@leojmullins]

So did Jesus. The OT refers to Jesus from Genesis onwards.

[@msgjr]

Agreed, and as such the Jewish requirements for fasting are most likely assumed as well.

[@Hannodb1961]

I always thought 1 Clement was the earliest Christian writting after Revelation.

[@kevinclass2010]

It's contemporary to St Clement. These post-biblical texts are called patristic writings

[@BornAgain490]

The didache addresses right and holy living to the saved. Though it is not an exposition on the gospel, its teaching is in line with what Jesus taught, what Paul taught, what James taught, namely: if you love Christ, keep His commands; sin no more; submit yourselves as a living sacrifice; prove you are in the faith by doing rightly; do unto others as we would have them do unto us; do all things in remembrance of Christ our King. Blessings ❤

[@Kitiwake]

What James taught. Interesting.

[@DrGero15]

Where are the other Sunday School lessons posted? What was wrong with the Shepherd of Hermas?

[@padraicbrown6718]

Welcome to the Catholic Church's first catechism!

[@danielwarton5343]

Why chose pouring for baptism when it comes as the last option, when all the others aren’t available?

[@DrGero15]

Sloth?

[@larrymcclain8874]

And two different Greek words are used for "immerse" and "pour." Not the same thing, and "baptizo" always means immerse.

[@danielwarton5343]

@@larrymcclain8874 I agree. Why chose the lesser of the all the options if you don’t have to? just immerse and be biblical, also just baptist adult believers, like the Bible shows and teaches.

[@IndianaJoe0321]

If the other options are not available, one can still have water poured over her/head. If a convert really wants to be baptized and there is no water or container suitable for immersing, then why would anyone have a problem with pouring?

[@DrGero15]

@@IndianaJoe0321 I don't have a problem with it for cases like that, but churches should not be built with pouring in mind, it should never be the first option, and sprinkling should not be practiced

[@luisking7228]

I believe the ditache was written in the 80’s AD

[@mshopey32]

WHY does it matter that it doesn't focus on the crucifixion? Jesus didn't focus on that and nor did Yahweh in Hebrew Bible. Yahweh focused on them being obedient and so did Messiah. I dunno, what if the humans focused on life and not death

[@rampartranger7749]

“Do’s and Don’ts”: There cultures of the Greco p-Roman world, despite the prowess in war and architecture and art, was exceedingly, shockingly immoral. Lots of very sick behaviors were widely practiced. They needed don’ts.

[@FishermensCorner]

The Didache is great because the original greek is different than the translation we're given; why do we think that happens?

[@oracleoftroy]

Is there any particular changes you would like to implicate? Having studied Japanese, I can think of quite a lot of perfectly legitimate reasons why that might be the case. I don't know what translation issues arise going from ancient Greek to English, but going from Japanese, you might need to fabricate a subject and/or object to make a sentence work in English due to the very context derived nature of the language. That doesn't mean the translation is wrong, even if that info isn't completely clear from context, just that human languages are not 1 for 1 interchangable, and what makes sense in one might need additional support in another.

[@FishermensCorner]

@@oracleoftroy check out the greek form of Lord's "day." It's inconsistent.

[@Kitiwake]

This early church... where is it today?

[@davewhite756]

Still in Ethiopia

[@dylanwagoner9768]

Love that old credo-baptism document 😉

[@theshanghaier]

Where is the latest Daniel sermon? 👀

[@Mason_O]

I thought the teaching was about or around the same age as Barnabas like around 120 ish? Wouldn’t that make Clement 1 and Ignatius the oldest Christian documents after the new testament?

[@larrymcclain8874]

IMO I believe parts were written in the 80's AD, especially the ways of light/dark section.

[@julioalvarengamartinez8829]

i dont have a copy and i want one pastor Matt

[@bibleman7757]

Where can i wa5ch all your Sunday school classes and sermons

[@mainechild]

In Ivan Panin’s numeric translation there is no Matthew 5:13b. It ends with, But deliver us from the evil one. Just an interesting note, maybe there was no numeric pattern in 13b, like he found in the rest of the text.

[@patrickjames1492]

I find the baptismal fasting interesting. If newborn infants were baptised on the eighth day or earlier even, were they expected to fast?

[@msgjr]

If we look to the Jewish roots to help answer this, then no. Children were not expected to fast until around 8 or 9 as preparation for their initiation (sacraments).

[@patrickjames1492]

@@msgjr Thank you very much. Is there a quotable first-century source for that?

[@Theonly_Onyx]

It was written before the New testament was finished. But it doesn't matter because no one should be baptizing babies It's not biblical.

[@supersmart671]

Dr. Mathew what's the meaning of the word Nation..

[@IsoMorphix]

Why are we arguing on baptismal methods for this long? Both seem good, and are allowed for in scripture *and* the Didache soooooo lets move on?

[@Hannodb1961]

Because the arguments are teally not so much about baptism itself, but rather deeper theological disputes that manifest themselves in the way wee see baptism.

[@IsoMorphix]

@@Hannodb1961 Okay, but honestly why does it matter in the end of baptism itself saves or is an affirmation of the saving? It seems like trying to distinguish between a word and it's spelling. Yes it's not that word without those letters, but it can also not mean that thing even if it has those letters because the person using it meant something else. Is one pole all the more important than the other? Can God be utterly disentangled from Christ's Human Body? Well yes, but no, but yes, but no...etc... What I mean to say is, if you can show me how baptisms *exact mechanics* are more important than the mystical association set forth by Christ, then I'll stop being flippant. Either way it seems like a pure waste of time to try to settle issues that arent really issues.

[@Hannodb1961]

@@IsoMorphix I think it matters greatly whether baptism saves, or whether its just a symbol of salvation. Now, its impossible for me to go into depth without exposing my position and setting in motion an argument of one or the other. But I know of Christians who believe their children is destined for hell unless they made a profession of faith and are baptised. For you this might only be an issue of symantics, but for the parents who just lost their baby, this can cause an unspeakable amount of unnecessary agony if they hold to an incorrect view of scripture. Therefore, I would argue, that it _is_ important to know what we believe and why, also in the seemingly minor details. But yes, as a infant baptist myself, I must agree with my own pastor when I asked him about reformed baptists. He said that it is better to be a baptist who understand his position and can explain it from scripture, than it is to be an infant baptist through tradition only with little or no understanding why they do what they do.

[@IsoMorphix]

@@Hannodb1961 Well if that's the limit case, then I would add into the discussion the death of the unborn. If a child dies in the womb, now we have to debate whether or not his soul was saved, because he wasn't available for the baptism. This is what I mean by being caught up on this particular sacrament. I think vesting it with far too much authority in the act of saving--or on the other hand, saying it's simply a symbol--is something of an oversimplification of the Gospel for the sake of lay expediency. Look I get not everyone is a philosopher or a theologian, but these seems to me to be rooted in a kind of practical error in the church. I'm sure you know that baptism is not an arbitrary practice--its an extension of the ritual cleansing the Jewish priests had to do in order to stand in the presence of The Holy of Holiest and not suddenly be killed by the Shekinah, lol (he laughs with morbid reverence). It's a ritual cleansing of sin from the body by means of an outward sign. I don't claim to say it's *only* a sign, but surely God could still kill ya even if you were clean. Christ's blood is the baptism of the whole world, of all who trust he is Lord and are anointed in the water and blood that flows from his pierced side. I think when we over literalize our faith, we reduce it to a series of ordinances that formulate a checklist of salvation--which is simply *not* the Spirit of the Gospel. That's the spirit of pharisaism. I hate this necessity of definition. Baptism saves because Christ saves. Baptism doesn't save when it's just water, because baptism *is just words and water*. There is a Baptism that dwells behind the Baptism. *That* Baptism saves, and is shown and related through the other Baptism. Lol. I'm laughing cuz I believe this *and* it sounds ridiculous in a KZbin comment. It's both. The Didache knows this.

[@Hannodb1961]

@@IsoMorphix Yes, it sounds like we might have some disagreements there, but on your original point, I do think that these are discussions we as Christians should have. However, we should always have these discussions in truth and love. That is a tall order, as we all tend to either argue the facts with no consideration for the person, or accomodate the person at the expense of the facts. Both are sinful because it sets up truth and love as opponents of one another, but 1 John clearly states they are two sides of the same coin. I have no doubt that every christian either battles to speak truth with love or to love in truth, but we should practice this as a skill and pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

[@SeanRhoadesChristopher]

46:15 “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.” (Matthew 6.1-4, KJV) “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” (Philippians 2.12, KJV) “And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.” (Revelation 20.13, KJV) “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” (Matthew 25.31-46, KJV)

[@YankeeWoodcraft]

"To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant." --John Henry Cardinal Newman LEARN Christian history! Don't allow anyone to block you from reading it! See how The Church was formed from those who walked with The Apostles themselves! Remember, that Jesus built His Church ("house") on rock (Peter..."Peter" or Cephas in Aramaic...means "rock" or "Rock"). Jesus didn't change Simon's name to Peter which is an English word, but He changed Simon's name to "Rock" right before He told Simon that He'd build His Church on him after it was revealed that God chose Peter in Matthew 16:18. If you're allowed to, read the writings of Polycarp and of Clement and of Ignatius and prepare for the scales to fall off your eyes. ❤

[@SeanRhoadesChristopher]

45:00 “Water will quench a flaming fire; and alms maketh an atonement for sins. And he that requiteth good turns is mindful of that which may come hereafter; and when he falleth, he shall find a stay.” (Sirach 3.30-31, KJVA) “Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah. To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1.10-18, KJV)

[@E-pistol]

Check out "Acts of Paul and Thecla" and "Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicity" , brother ❤️

[@ScottPalmer-mp1we]

The Didache has many good principles, but it lacks grace.

[@privatepilot4064]

So essentially a sort of Strong’s Concordance of the day.

[@carlosf3421]

Follow Christian Orthodoxy ☦️🙏❤️.

[@ramonam9251]

The Early Christians were Catholic.

[@IndianaJoe0321]

That should be written with a little "c."

[@phil42]

The method of baptism must include certain words to be effective..,. Yeah, sounds like a magical incantation to me lol😂😅.

[@IndianaJoe0321]

Agreed. The whole point is for the convert to simply make a public profession & act of her/his newfound faith.

[@tuvoca825]

Stop talking "around it" and show what is "in" it. Maybe he got to it eventually but after a long time I skipped ahead and it was still the same... I want the meat.

[@oracleoftroy]

If you want to see what is in it, read it. You can find it online in any search engine. Did you need an audio book?

[@firstcenturychristianity6864]

I love to hear people talk about early Christianity. I was somewhat surprised that the Christ salesman issue wasn’t discussed. Although not too surprised. It’s the only reason I can think of that a pseudo Levitical priesthood would exclude this document from the canon.

[@IndianaJoe0321]

Just remember to keep things in context. Around the 200's, the Church fathers started to implement neo-platonic ideas into their theology. So if you're reading a Church father and something doesn't seem to line up with Scripture, just stick to the Word of God.

[@MereEdgeMinistry]

Baptism (a Greek transliteration) clearly means immersion. Teach whole counsel of God,. Unfollowing, sadly...

[@terryholt9469]

Reading and absorbing this document you will drift to Catholicism. Be aware it as it will cause inner conflict with other man made Protestantism. But this is about seeking God's unerring truth isn't it?

[@E-pistol]

The narrow path is set up on a lampstand for everyone to see, the Catholic Church ❤

[@ProfVonW]

Going to get infants to fast before their baptism? 😉

[@wilsontexas]

The didache tells us to pray to The Queen of Heaven and devote ourselves to her sacred Heart.❤

[@MatthewEverhard]

No it doesn't. Cite a chapter.

[@wilsontexas]

@@MatthewEverhard Yes, you are correct. Tell your catholic friends. None of the earliest church fathers prayed to Mary or raised her up and some sort of demi-god

[@juliealoem]

Hi, it absolutely does not. It's extremely easy and quick to read, give it a try maybe. It's easily found online. It's very interesting. But no, it does not talk about Mary, especially not about any sort of worship or specific reverence to her.

[@ChristopherAlsruhe-si9ff]

The Didache is The beginning of adding expectations Beyond the Bible.

[@jeffdevries8538]

There was NO Bible when this was written.

[@larrymcclain8874]

The Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms did exist, and all of the individual books of the New Testament existed. (Daniel 9:24 places the end of vision and prophecy by the end of the 70 "sevens," and the last great event of this period is the Jewish judgement when the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD.) Only a couple of the 27 books had issues but most all were quoted from as Scripture by the end of the first century and into the second. The Apostle Peter in 2 Peter 3:15-16 states that the writings of the Apostle Paul are Scripture, this in the first century.

[@ChristopherAlsruhe-si9ff]

Also, Paul claimed his writings to be scripture and his teaching to be inspired when he told the Thessalonians that they were right in accepting it for what it really is, the word of God. He knew he was teaching and writing by unique inspiration.

[@johnnilan8240]

What a waste of time.

[@bobSeigar]

0/10 Failed at title. Earliest *after* New Testament? I was not aware that 100-150AD came after 250-300 AD. As for '27 Books' there were over 100 written by the end of the second, but Paul (The literal Roman Propagandist) had writings that conflicted with the truth, like the Unity of Thomas. So, we ended up with a dualistic form of Christianity. Ever wonder why specifically, 'The Knowledge of Good & Evil' was a sin? It leads to "If Good, then opposite Bad" thinking. I.e. dualism. Sinaiticus is the oldest Neu-Testament (Read: Corruption) of the books stolen from the G.Sanhedrin. Authored at least an entire century AFTER the didache, and Marion's compilation. By the way, Jo'Cephas (See: Cephas/Alpheus/Yeshua ben Pantera) invented all the Characters as Psychological Substructures given Animus. Thomas is his 'Mirror Self' James is his 'Great Ideal', Christ is his 'Active Thinking' i.e. Logos. No. The bible is not a 'Historical' account. It is a diary of an entire people's shared trauma. Josephus chose J'eu and (Sheen Sheen - deep chaos) as a name to the people, followers of 'The Jew in Crisis' May she wrest the pearl from the clutches of your minds, lest you shatter it in your fear.

[@a-s-greig]

What the deuce.

[@bobSeigar]

​@@a-s-greigJosephus's Family: Father Levite Priest, HaKohen (Davidic Line) Mother: Hasmonean Princess. Wife: Maryamne Salome. Maryamne had a Child named John Mark, Josephus was not the father. It was 'Non-Consensual' thus, she remained, legally, a "young woman" See: Gospel of Mark (Old Greek), Babylon Talmud, Jerusalem Talmud, On the Embassy to Gaius, Gospel of Thomas & assorted other Hubraic histories. Also, that's the reason 'Mother Mary' carries the title of 'Morning Star' in the Catholic Church.

[@leojmullins]

The reference to 100AD - 150AD is wrt the date the Didache was written not to when the Catholic Church declared the writings authorised to be included in the OT and NT of the Church, which happened 4 centuries after Christ's resurrection and his founding of the Church by giving keys of his Kingdom to Peter.

[@tim31415]

Your apologetics bona fides come shining thru again as you falsely claim the Didache is the "earliest Christian writing". The Didache can be dated to the second quarter of the 2nd century, close to the time of Justin Martyr. Various writings clearly predate it, including Mathetes, Clement, Ignatius and Barnabas. We will omit Polycarp and Papias for this discussion. The Didache is obviously a rough draft of what would become the sermon on the Mount/Plain when the gospels were finally written several decades later. Your religion is a very poor belief system when it relies on blatant falsehoods to justify it.

[@leojmullins]

Beware! Certainty is a strong indicator of intellectual pride that comes with a closed mind and poor spiritual wisdom.