believers in jesus also provided answers to the central mystery of life. the questions pagans were asking were, what was going to happen to me when i die? how do i get forgiveness from sin? the christian church said, we can provide you those answers. believe in the resurrected jesus and win eternal life. that was the message that had appealed across the roman empire. a message that first spread throughout the huge jewish community outside israel. over a million jews in egypt and alexandria, jews in damascus, jews in antioch, jews in athens, certainly jews in rome. and for the early christians, these early followers of jesus, some of these jews would have provided missionaries a home, missionaries a base by which they could reach other jews as well as gentiles. the romans had provided roads
the gnostic gospels look to stimulate knowledge and insight. gnosticism held a fascination for many christians for another reason. its gospels seemed to offer a more female-friendly faith. it was the gnostics that thought the role of the female as an image and the role of women within the church should be advanced so that god is not only male, god is also female. there are not only male leaders, there are female leaders. there are not only male priests, there are female priests, and in this way, there is a kind of gender balance found in these texts. that balance is not found in the gnostic gospel of thomas, where peter asks jesus to send mary magdalene on her way, for women aren t worthy of apostolic
women aren t worthy of apostolic life. and jesus replies, leave her alone for i shall make her a male, for every woman who becomes a male will enter into the kingdom of god. this isn t a very liberating view of women, and not one i think the people probably want to latch onto today. the gnostic gospels seemed to assault the very foundation of orthodox christianity, telling a different version of the life of jesus. not only does doubting thomas have a gospel, but so does judas escariot, the apostle who betrayed jesus for 30 pieces of silver. the gospel of judas escariot? what a provocative thought that is, that there could be good news or a gospel associated with the person who is most renowned as the betrayer of jesus. and now, lo and behold, a gospel
believers in jesus also provided answers to the central mystery of life. the questions pagans were asking were, what was going to happen to me when i die? how do i get forgiveness from sin? the christian church said, we can provide you those answers. believe in the resurrected jesus and win eternal life. that was the message that had appealed across the roman empire. a message that first spread throughout the huge jewish community outside israel. over a million jews in egypt and alexandria, jews in damascus, jews in antioch, jews in athens, certainly jews in rome. and for the early christians, these early followers of jesus, some of these jews would have provided missionaries a home, missionaries a base by which they could reach other jews as well as gentiles.
within two decades of the crucifixion of jesus, scholars say, christianity faced a life or death moment. this was the major dispute in early christianity, whether followers of jesus have to become jewish in order to worship the jewish god. the conflict threatened to destroy the new faith. how could it be saved? in jerusalem, around the year 48 to 49, the first apostolic council is called in order to resolve the issue of gentile christians. do they convert or don t they convert? paul argues that the holy spirit had descended upon the gentiles apart from the law of moses. therefore, there was no reason to insist that those gentiles be converted first to judaism in order to be a member of the church. and james, the brother of jesus, presiding over this jerusalem