Nazoraean

Nazoraean is the designation given to a first century offshoot of Nazarene Judaism by Epiphanius. Their distinguishing characteristic was a belief that Jesus was a Nazirite. Nazoraeans might have been the post-Jesus continuation of the pre-christian Nasoraeans since a group fitting the description of Nazoraeans are called Nazorei by Jerome Fact|date=February 2007 while Filaster uses the term Nazorei to refer to the Nasoraeans Fact|date=February 2007. Theodoret likewise describes them (Nazaraeans) as nothing more than simply a post-Christian continuation of the pre-Christian Nasoraeans Fact|date=February 2007. In Jewish writings, although the term Notzrim came to be applied to Christians it actually pre-dates Jesus by at least a century and has the same meaning as Nasoraioi (watchers/guardians) described as fallen angels in the book of Jubilees.

Alternatively the two similarly named groups might have always existed side by side.

ee also

*Jewish Christians
*Judeo-Christian