Ebionites
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Ebionites (Ancient Greek: Ἐβιωναῖοι, romanized: Ebiōnaîoi, derived from Hebrew אֶבְיוֹנִים, ʾEḇyōnīm, meaning 'the poor' or 'poor ones') as a term refers to a Jewish Christian sect that existed during the early centuries of the Common Era.
Since historical records by the Ebionites are scarce, fragmentary and disputed, much of what is known or conjectured about them derives from the polemics of their Gentile Christian opponents, specifically the Church Fathers — Irenaeus, Origen, Eusebius, and Epiphanius of Salamis — who saw the Ebionites as distinct from other Jewish Christian sects, such as the Nazarenes.
The Church Fathers generally agree on key points about the majority of Ebionites, such as their voluntary poverty and rejection of proto-orthodox Christian beliefs in Jesus' divinity, pre-existence, and virgin birth; they argue these Ebionites believed that Jesus was a mere man, born the natural son of Joseph and Mary, who, by virtue of his righteousness in perfectly following the letter and spirit of the Law of Moses, was adopted as the son of God to be a Messiah.
According to these patristic sources, the Ebionites insisted on the necessity of following both the Law of Moses and the moral teachings of Jesus to be righteous; they revered James the Just, brother of Jesus, as an exemplar of righteousness and the true successor to Jesus (rather than Peter), while rejecting Paul as a false apostle and an apostate from the Law.: 88
However, the Church Fathers diverge on details regarding some specific Ebionite views about Jesus (the nature and mission of Christ), their use of additional scripture to the Hebrew Bible (one, some or all of the Jewish–Christian gospels), and their lifestyle practices (religious vegetarianism, ritual washing, etc.). These variations reflect the evolving and schismatic nature of early Christian sects, as well as the tendency of patristic polemicists to conflate different sects and misattribute unusual views and practices, more typical of Gnostic Christianity than Jewish Christianity, to Ebionites to discredit them.: 39
Some modern critical scholars argue the Church Fathers' condemnation of Ebionites as "heretics" and "Judaizers" is both ironic and tragic, since many Ebionite views may have been closer to the authentic views of not only the first disciples of Jesus but also of the historical Jesus himself.