patristic testimonies reconsidered In addition, Talmudic tradition includes some references to notsrim
( )^49 and some versions of the JewishEighteen Benedictionsinclude a
curse against thenotsrim, which seems to refer to Christians in general.^50
The assumption thatnotsrimin theEighteen Benedictionsrefers to
Christians in general is in harmony with Jerome’s references. In his
Commentary on Amos, Jerome writes: “Until today they blaspheme the
Christian people under the name of Nazarenes.” (Comm. Am. .–).
Epiphanius also knows about the versions of theEighteen Benedictions
that refer tonotsrimbut he connects the curse only to the heretical sect
of the Nazarenes he is describing inPanarion.
Overall, among early Christian and Jewish writers, there are only
two men, Epiphanius and Jerome, and some later writers who depend
on them, who clearly used the term Nazarenes to designate a specific
Jewish-Christian group. Furthermore, of these two writers, it is mainly
Epiphanius who condemns the Nazarenes as heretics. For Jerome, the
Nazarenes provided useful information from Hebrew writings. For the
majority of writers before and after Epiphanius and Jerome, the term
Nazarenes referred to (Jewish) Christians in general.
... TheProfileofEpiphanius’Nazarenes...................
An Overview of the Main Sources and Composition of Pan.
Eusebius’Ecclesiastical Historyand Acts provided the background for the
information Epiphanius collected inPanarion. Most of the informa-
tion that Epiphanius used from Eusebius’Ecclesiastical Historycan be
found betweenHist. eccl. . and ., which covers the time from Mark’s
alleged preaching in Egypt to the disciples’ flight from Jerusalem, as is
shown by the following table:
Mark’s preaching in Egypt, Hist. eccl.. Pan. ..
Philo’s description of Therapeutae Hist. eccl.. Pan. ..–
James as the first bishop Hist. eccl.. Pan. ..–
The disciples’ flight from Jerusalem Hist. eccl. .. Pan. ..
(^49) b.#Abod. Zar.a;b. Ta#an. b.
(^50) Thus, for instance, Horbury , –, esp. –, in contrast to Kimelman ,
–, and de Boer , . The different versions are discussed by Schäfer ,
–, –, esp. – who suggests thatnotsrimwere included in the prayer in
localities where the “Nazarenes” had become a problem. In most cases, the “benediction”
refers only to theminim.