Lost Christianities
Mike Ervin

Lost Christianities

 – Bart D. Ehrman

Subtitle: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew

Published: 2003

Overview

Ehrman, a scholar of early Christianity and former evangelical turned agnostic, argues that what we now call “orthodox” Christianity was only one of many competing Christian movements in the first few centuries after Jesus. Many groups had different views on Jesus, God, scripture, and salvation — and what we now consider heretical was once widespread or even dominant in some regions. Over time, proto-orthodox Christians gained power, declared rival views heretical, and helped shape the New Testament canon.

Major Themes

1. Early Christian Diversity

• Christianity was never a unified movement at its beginning.
• There were Ebionites (Jewish Christians who saw Jesus as a prophet), Marcionites (who rejected the Old Testament God), Gnostics (who believed in secret spiritual knowledge), and proto-orthodox Christians.
• Each group had its own gospels, letters, and theological frameworks.

2. Struggles Over Scripture

• There wasn’t a fixed New Testament until centuries later.
• Competing gospels (e.g., Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Peter) circulated widely.
• Some groups accepted only parts of what is now canon; others had entirely different sacred texts.
• Canon formation was driven by debates over which books rightly conveyed apostolic teaching and aligned with the theological views of the emerging orthodox camp.

3. The Role of Power

• Doctrinal victory wasn’t purely theological — it was also political and institutional.
• The proto-orthodox movement gained key supporters and outlasted rivals by organizing bishops, creating doctrinal standards (like creeds), and aligning with imperial power (e.g., Constantine’s backing of Nicene Christianity).
• Once in power, orthodox leaders declared other groups heretical and suppressed or destroyed their texts.

4. Rediscovery of “Lost” Texts

• Many once-lost Christian writings have been rediscovered (especially after the Nag Hammadi library was found in 1945).
• These texts, like the Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Mary, or Apocalypse of Peter, reveal dramatically different portraits of Jesus and salvation.
• Ehrman argues these writings help us understand the full range of early Christian thought and question the assumption that today’s orthodoxy was inevitable or original.

✨ Notable “Lost Christianities” Explored Group Core Belief Key Texts Ebionites Jesus was a human messiah; strict Jewish law must be followed Gospel of the Hebrews Marcionites Jesus was divine, not human; rejected the OT God Marcion’s Gospel, Antitheses Gnostics Salvation comes from hidden knowledge; the material world is evil Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Truth, Secret Book of John Docetists Jesus only appeared to be human Fragmentary texts, refuted by early Church Fathers Proto-Orthodox Jesus was both fully God and fully man; salvation by faith; value in Hebrew scriptures Four canonical Gospels, Pauline letters, Pastoral epistles

📚 Structure of the Book (Chapter Highlights)

      1.   Recapturing a Past – Introduces the idea of “lost Christianities.”

      2.   Christianities of the Second and Third Centuries – Explores the major sects and theological battles.

      3.   Forgery and Counterforgery – Discusses how pseudonymous texts shaped debates.

      4.   The Battles for the Bible – Traces the development of the canon and the exclusion of rival texts.

      5.   Winners and Losers – Shows how history was written by the victors — and how orthodoxy became “the faith.”

Key Takeaways

   •       Orthodoxy emerged from diversity, not before it.

   •       Heresy wasn’t deviation from a single truth but part of the broader early Christian conversation.

   •       The Bible we know today is the product of centuries of theological debate and exclusion.

   •       Rediscovered texts challenge modern assumptions about what Christianity has always believed.

Why It Matters

Ehrman’s work pushes readers — both religious and secular - to reconsider the roots of Christianity. It invites us to ask:

   •       What if one of the “lost Christianities” had won out?

   •       How might Christian doctrine and the Bible be different today?

   •       And how does understanding early diversity help us navigate religious pluralism now?

Lost Christianities

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