chapter two
to specific ritual practice. Because sacrifices were abhorrent to Epipha-
nius’ Ebionites, we have every reason to accept his report that they cele-
brated the Eucharist with unleavened bread and water only. This practice
is not unique within early Christianity, but it certainly is distinctive, and
accords with Irenaeus’ report that the Ebionites “reject the commixture
of the heavenly wine and wish it to be water of the world only” (Irenaeus,
Haer. ..).^35
There are also, however, a number of features in the religious profile
of Epiphanius’ Ebionites that are not included in the earlier reports.
Were such features simply not mentioned by earlier heresiologists, or
were they in fact peculiar to the form of the Ebionite movement known
to Epiphanius? To what extent do they suggest significant development
in Ebionite belief and practice in the centuries between Irenaeus and
Epiphanius?
Among the new features found in Epiphanius’ account, for example,
are speculations about Christ’s preexistence (Pan. ..), his being cre-
ated and set over the angels (Pan. .., ..), and his pre-Christian
appearances in and to Adam and the patriarchs (Pan. .., ..).
Although these kinds of ideas are not explicitly attested in earlier descrip-
tions of the Ebionites, they do have a certain consistency with the basic
tenets of the Christology of the Irenaean Ebionites. Irenaeus’ description
implied that the Ebionites’ view of Christ wassimilar tothat of Cerinthus
and Carpocrates.^36 That would mean that, in the Ebionite view, Christ
entered Jesus at (or after) his baptism. It is precisely these beliefs we meet
in Epiphanius’ Ebionites, only in a more elaborate form: Christ took on
Jesus’ body, but this was not the first time he had done such a thing;
he had in fact done the same thing several times in the course of his-
tory.
A number of differences, however, seem much more significant. The
oaths and magical incantations attested in theBook of Elchasaiand
in the rites that the Ebionites themselves performed together with the
Christological speculations lend Epiphanius’ Ebionites a more syncretis-
tic outlook when compared to the earlier heresiologists’ views. Moreover,
Epiphanius’ Ebionites’ rejection of the temple and sacrifices as well as the
prophets represents not only, as noted above, a clear break with Jewish
(^35) Irenaeus’ main point is to criticize the Ebionites because they do not believe that
God was united with man in Jesus. Nevertheless, his argument carries conviction only if
the Ebionites’ Chalice contained no wine.
(^36) See above Chapter ...