the synoptics. Walter Bauer suggests: One reason for this 'orthodox ambivalence' was gnostic acceptance of the fourth gospel. The early Gnostic use is referred to by Irenaeus, Hippolytus and Origen in quoted commentary made on John by the Gnostics Ptolemy, Basilides and Heracleon. In the quote below Irenaeus argues against the gnostic heresy from his book Against Heresies: Several church fathers of the 2nd century never quoted John, but the earliest extant written commentary on any book of the New Testament was that written on John by Heracleon, a disciple of the gnostic Valentinus. The following table shows the number of times various church fathers cited John compared to the synoptic gospels. Gospel of John The authorship of the Gospel of John, the Fourth Gospel, is widely contested. Scholars have debated the authorship of Johannine literature since at least the third century, but especially since the Enlightenment. Overview A summary of the proposed candidates is as follows: The apostle John, son of Zebedee – traditionally the author was identified as John the Apostle, but his authorship is almost universally rejected by modern scholars. John of Patmos, the author of the Book of Revelation (alias the Apocalypse of John) – mainstream scholars conclude that John of Patmos did not write the Gospel of John due to a wide range of differences in eschatology, language, and tone between the two texts. John the Presbyter – an obscure early church figure mentioned in the writings of Papias of Hierapolis. John the Evangelist – apart from being a potential nickname for any of the figures mentioned above, he could be an otherwise unknown person called John who wrote the Fourth Gospel. The Disciple whom Jesus loved (or Beloved Disciple) – an unnamed person referenced several times in the Fourth Gospel itself. Some theologians and scholars have, by way of elimination, identified this disciple as one of the Twelve Disciples of Jesus, usually John, son of Zebedee. Other scholars point out that verse 21:24 indicates that the author is someone other than this disciple, and that the author has merely used a (written or oral) report, allegedly from this disciple, as a source for the writing of the Fourth Gospel. A hypothetical "Johannine community" – a number of different authors who wrote the Fourth Gospel together, none of whom were necessarily named 'John'. An unknown author – some scholars have concluded that, since the Fourth