Jesus Essenes Qumran

There are more writings for the Essenes and Gnostic Gospel version of Jesus, than for Paul’s version, why?

As in, when they found those dead sea scrolls and the Qumran library, they found the oldest NT John and Mark I believe, but there were waay more texts of the Essene version of the Gospels and the Gnostics. So how did Paul’s version(that’s just what we’ll call it for now) beat out the other versions that were most likely more widely read?

There is always something to be said for quality. Paul’s “version” won because it made more sense and wasn’t bound up in mystical speculation. He kept the theology and the Christ story simple (Jesus died and was raised) and applied the Christian message practically, to everyday relationships and activities.

His Christianity was community-based, unlike the Gnostic approach, which focused exclusively on individual “enlightenment”. While the Essenes had a community, they completely avoided contact with the outside world. Christians believed in a separate community, but their goal was always to gradually spread into the world.

Essentially, the problem for Essenes and Gnostics was a poor recruitment model. Essenes hated compromise and contamination, and weren’t even trying to proselytize, so their numbers were unlikely to grow much. Gnostic Christianity was too individualistic and elitist, so most people were discouraged from joining. The proto-orthodox approach stressed equality and inclusion, accepting people from all classes and occupations, without regard to level of “purity”. Ortho-Christians considered their organization a work in progress rather than a perfection to be maintained.

Anyone can write a “gospel”. But not everyone can write a good one.

Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls

Unearthed: The Caves of Qumran/The Jesus Boat $1.99 …

Unearthed: The Caves of Qumran/The Jesus Boat $9.99 …

The Secret Initiation of Jesus at Qumran: The Essene Mysteries of John the Baptist An examination of the early, mysterious Essene community at Qumran that links it with John the Baptist, Jesus, and the beginnings of Christianity• Offers an eyewitness account of the final burial place of John the Baptist• Makes the case that Christianity grew out of a form of monotheism first formulated by the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten• Includes physical and photographic evidence …

The Messiah before Jesus: The Suffering Servant of the Dead Sea Scrolls (S. Mark Taper Foundation Imprint in Jewish Studies) $19.00 In a work that challenges notions that have dominated New Testament scholarship for more than a hundred years, Israel Knohl gives startling evidence for a messianic precursor to Jesus who is described as the “Suffering Servant” in recently published fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Messiah before Jesus clarifies many formerly incomprehensible aspects of Jesus’ life and confirms the story in …

The Library of Qumran: On the Essenes, Qumran, John the Baptist, and Jesus $10.00 The incredible discoveries at Qumran are unveiled in this compelling volume by one of the world’s foremost experts on biblical archaeology and the ancient Qumran community. Drawing on the best of current research and a thorough knowledge of all the Dead Sea Scrolls, Hartmut Stegemann analyzes the purpose of the Qumran settlement, paints a picture of how daily life was carried on there, explores th…