Meaning of JUDAIZERS

They were those who wanted to impose the observance of the law of Moses on Christian converts from among the Gentiles, arguing that it was necessary for salvation.

This noun does not appear, however, in the Scriptures, where what does appear is the verb "Judaize" (Gal. 2:14).

This was a strong tendency within the apostolic church, and one that had to be thoroughly examined and combated.

The council of Jerusalem had already given a definitive declaration regarding Christian freedom (Acts 15, cf. COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM), and Paul gives, in his Epistle to the Galatians, a powerful refutation of the Judaizing line, which wanted to enslave Christians under the yoke of the law of Moses, from which they had been freed, being under grace through the redemptive work of Christ.


Among the groups that arose from the early Judaizers may be mentioned the sect of the Ebionites, who fell into profound errors regarding the person of Christ, having arisen from a rejection of the efficacy and character of his work. Irenaeus (Against Heresies, I, 26:2) reports that they rejected the divinity of Christ.

They used the so-called Gospel according to the Hebrews, known only through fragmentary quotations (see APOCRYPHAS). They rejected Paul as a renegade. There were Ebionites of Gnostic current.