according to ehrman, proto-orthodox christianity bequeathed to subsequent generations "four gospels to tell us virtually everything we know about the life, death, and resurrection of jesus" and "handed down to us the entire new testament, twenty-seven books". similar to later chalcedonian views about jesus, the proto-orthodox believed that christ was both divine as well as a human being, not two halves joined together. likewise they regarded god as three persons; the father, the son, and the holy spirit; but only one god.