The Greek word haeresis is the foundational origin for the English word heresy. In Greek the word means choice and its not a dangerous thing to commit. This choice was seen inherently as a good thing, a positive thing, being heretical was something to be encouraged. So how did the West get from seeing heresy as a beneficial choice to becoming contentious ideas that needed to be actively suppressed and those who espouse them killed? This huge shift in meaning comes down to how Christianity responded to things it saw as a threat to its own carefully curated orthodoxies. What this book does is blow the doors off some fundamental views of Christianity, as not being quite so uniquely special to them as they are habitually portrayed. The Christian church we see today emerged through the violent suppression, and eradication of rival alternative interpretations of the message of Christ.
In the time of Augustus there was a man well known for his acts of healing and wise prophetic words. Who claimed he was born of a virgin who had received a divine visitation .He wore his hair long and had simple linen robes. And walked around barefoot claiming he was the son of God, healing and raising people from the dead. But this particular saviour of mankind lived in Rome and was called Apollonius of Tyana. Its unclear exactly when he was born, so it cannot be established exactly whether he pre or post dated Jesus. But even the dates of the Jesus's life are also somewhat conjectural. However, it seems most likely they both were present in the Roman Empire in the same time period. Therefore its hard to ascertain quite who was imitating who, or were they both simply conforming to a well worn and pre-existing religious archetype? The arrival of 'Sons of God' who performed miracles and advocated for living a simple devotional life, such prophets were actually ten a penny during the time of Jesus. Which is why people generally didn't take much notice of him, disparaged his 'ministry' and any claim to being The Messiah. Oh God, not another one! they screamed.
Catherine Nixey's book draws a lot on Roman commentators writing their thoughts and views on Christian teachings. And they are quite unsparing in their criticisms. The third century philosopher Porphyry thought the parables of Jesus 'fictitious' garbage'. That they were 'little imaginative stories' 'replete with stupidity' written in a 'comical and unconvincing style' and disparaged the use of metaphors and their 'dubious little sayings'. Christian claims about virgin birth, being the son of god, sent to save the world from itself etc seemed to somewhat irk these commentators. Not just because they thought them ridiculous, which they did, but primarily because Christians were claiming them exclusively for themselves, as some how distinctly and uniquely them. But to Romans at the time these sorts of claims were extremely common. Celcus was clearly irritated by the Christian 'legends' which they regarded as 'noble and convincing' when he clearly saw them as fictional self delusions.
In the early years Christianity was very far from being of one uniform colour and creed. There was seemingly a multiplicity of what to us appear unfamiliar views and strange belief systems about who Jesus was. Often contained within an 'apocryphal' gospel. Two of which are The Infancy Gospel of Thomas and Infancy Gospel of James. These were always very popular gospels often incorporated into early Bibles. Though they were eventually excluded. they have had a long lasting influence on the incidental details of Jesus's birth and upbringing. The classic image of The Nativity, of donkeys in the stables etc and the given names of the three Magi all come from apocryphal sources, for example.
They also produced bizzare tales, One concerned the Virgin Mary. A midwife is examining her hymen to establish the truth or not of her virginity. But on removing her arms her hands have been completely dissolved away. There are also very far from meek and mild accounts of Jesus's teenage years. Where he is portrayed as cursing children that upset him, who are then crippled or drop down dead. There are stories about Jesus as an adult losing his temper and violently attacking someone who disagreed with him. Or the version of the crucifixion where Jesus laughs uproariously during it. Even at the time Jesus was accused of being a magician, a fake prophet, a charlatan, mostly by other Jews. Nixey discovered there were Christian sects where Jesus had become an all powerful Magus. The appearance of The Magi at his birth was hence felt to be somewhat prophetic. The explanations of why Jesus Christ came to earth had then, some very wildly fantastical interpretations.
As Christianity became more established, after Constantine's conversion, a bureaucratic desire for a predictable consistency took over. And the apocryphal gospels were more vociferously denounced as fanciful fictions. Yet, considering the sort of fantastical material that still remains in the Bible, this does feel like the pot calling the kettle black. Nixey conjures the world of Rome and its Empire, and how it actually worked on a day to day basis. Particularly in the interpretation of the Acts of the Apostles, it is obvious from closer examination that they must have traveled around the Mediterranean using well established trade routes. Either as a stowaway or working their passage. The places they stop off at are all the main trading ports in the eastern Mediterranean.
One of the obscure outliers of Christianity are the Thomas Christians based in Southern India and Sir Lankha, for whom their signature text is the apocryphal Acts of Thomas gospel. This tells of the Apostle Thomas's travels as he evangelised within India. Archaeologically speaking this South Indian sect is known to be very old. The earliest crucifixes in the world so far found, have come from this area, some of these numerous stone artifacts date back to the 2nd Century. So it is feasible an apostle,that may have been Thomas, did actually travel there. There has also been a degree of subsequent syncretism going on between indigenous Buddhism and Christianity. There is a Jesus Messiah Sutra which blends the Buddhist precepts into the foundations of an essentially Christian God based theology. Practicing these precepts without that connection with the divinity being declared a heresy.
One of the most shocking things recounted is how orthodox Christians reacted after Constantine's conversion. The standard way of dealing with heretical elements by the Roman Empire was to exile the ringleaders. They were always fearful of creating martyrs if they killed them, and sowing the seeds for further discontent. What happened after the conversion was a widespread series of attacks by Christians slaughtering in a savage manner any 'heretical' Christian group. Constantine himself was left bewildered and horrified by how out of control and vengeful Christians had so quickly become. One of the worst atrocities took a whole village of heretical Christians out to sea, tied weights to their heads and feet and massacred them by throwing them overboard. And having dispensed with the heretics Christianity always ensured their message died with them by destroying all their sacred books. Christianity provided the world with its first incidences of book burning.
Anyone who has an open minded curiosity about what the early years of Christianity were like, will find much to be really fascinated by in this book. Its an intriguing mixture of the weird cranky views of post resurrection Christian sects and a rough and ready exposition for how a the one true Church of Jesus Christ became established and was ruthlessly enforced. Central to that task was the role heresy played, becoming the most direct way of ensuring Christian theological conformity.
CARROT REVIEW - 6/8
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