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'''Gnosticism''' is a blanket term for various mystical initiatory [[religion]]s and [[sect]]s, which were most prominent in the first few centuries [[Common Era|CE]]. It is also applied to modern revivals of these [[sect]]s and, sometimes, by analogy to all religious movements based on secret knowledge [[gnosis]], thus leading to confusion.
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'''Gnosticism''' is a general term describing various [[Mysticism|mystically]]-oriented groups and their teachings, which were most prominent in the first few centuries of the Common Era. It is also applied to later and modern revivals of these teachings. The term ''gnosticism'' comes from the Greek word for knowledge, ''gnosis'' (γνώσις), referring to esoteric consciousness, which is claimed by gnostics to be the key to unlocking transcendent understanding, self-realization, and/or unity with God.
  
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The [[occult]] nature of gnostic teaching and the fact that much of the evidence for that teaching has traditionally come from critiques by orthodox [[Christianity|Christians]] made it difficult to be precise about early Christian gnostic systems. [[Irenaeus]] (''Adversus Haereses'') described several different schools of 2nd century gnosticism in disparaging and often sarcastic detail while contrasting them with Christianity, to their detriment. Nevertheless, most discussion of gnosticism relied heavily on Irenaeus and other heresiologists; in fairness to investigators, this was not by choice, but because of a simple lack of alternative sources.  
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The origins of gnosticism are not clearly known, but there is general agreement that threads of the teachings must have arisen somewhere in what is today known as the [[Middle East]] and [[Asia Minor]]—areas in which several cultures could converge and synthesize. Many scholars find the roots of gnosticism in [[Neoplatonism]], which similarly devalues matter and regards the spirit as the true reality. A minority of scholars believe it to be of eastern origin because of its similarities to [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] ideas of [[enlightenment]], while others believe it has Mesopotamian or [[Judaism|Jewish]] roots. Gnostic groups became popular around the same time and often in the same places that [[Christianity]] did.  
  
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This state of affairs continued from antiquity through to modern times; in [[1945]], there was a chance discovery of a cache of 4th-century gnostic texts in [[Nag Hammadi]], [[Egypt]]. The texts, which had been sealed inside earthen jars, were discovered by a local man called Mohammed Ali. He at first was afraid to open the jars, as he believed they might contain an evil spirit or [[djinn]], and that opening a jar might release it. When he overcame his fear and returned home with the texts, his mother, possessed of a similar fear, burned several of the texts.  The remaining texts, now known as the ''[[Nag Hammadi library]]'', allowed for the study of apparently gnostic texts at first hand, for the first time since the 4th century. The translation of the texts into English was completed in 1977; other modern languages followed. This has immensely clarified more recent discussions of gnosticism in [[Antiquity]], though many would agree that the topic still remains a murky one.
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Gnosticism was widespread within the early Christian church until the gnostics were expelled in the second and third centuries C.E. Gnosticism was one of the first doctrines to be specifically declared a [[heresy]] and gnostic movements were often persecuted as a result. Gnostic groups also suffered under [[Islam|Islamic]] regimes. The response of orthodoxy to gnosticism significantly defined the evolution of Christian [[doctrine]] and church order. After gnostic and orthodox Christianity parted, gnostic Christianity continued as a separate movement in some areas for centuries. However some modern theologians think that several gnostic doctrines were absorbed by Christianity. Gnosticism has reappeared in various forms throughout history and into the contemporary era.
  
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At the same time, modern gnosticism has continued to develop, from origins in the [[Occultism]] of the 19th century. Thus "gnosticism" is also applied to many modern sects where only initiates have access to [[arcana]]. However, there has always been a great deal of diversity within gnosticism and modern gnostic doctrines sometimes have little to do with ancient gnosticism; the application of the antiquated term to these distinctly modern movements, far from being a clarification of the nature of gnosticism, further occludes its true nature.
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Central to many gnostic beliefs is a [[dualism|dualistic]] view of the universe, in which matter was seen as essentially illusory while spirit is the only true reality. Thus Christian gnostics emphasized spiritual knowledge and experience, rather than faith and the sacraments of the church, as the key to salvation or unity with God. Jesus, whom gnostics believe came as pure spirit, is set in stark contrast to the Old Testament Creator-God, who as the "Demiurge," the source of the material world, is not the true God. Another pillar of gnostic belief is that salvation lies in attaining ''gnosis,'' esoteric knowledge kept secret to all but the initiated. Other ideas, believed by all or some gnostic groups, include: the spiritual (not physical) nature of Jesus' [[resurrection]]; that Jesus did not possess a physical body; the femininity of the [[Holy Spirit]] (and/or other affirmation of male-female essentials); and that gnostic [[enlightenment]] liberates a person from moral constraints.  
  
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== Etymology ==
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Probably no single gnostic person or school of thought has believed all of these diverse ideas. Furthermore, a number of heterodox groups and beliefs have been labeled "gnostic" yet have only slender resemblance to the main currents of gnostic thought.
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The word '''gnosticism''' comes from the [[Greek language|Greek]] word for knowledge, ''[[gnosis]]'' (γνώσις), referring to the idea that there is special [[esoteric knowledge]], a key to transcendent understanding, that only a few may possess. This, being one of the few common defining characteristics of systems typically referred to as 'gnostic', makes it an ideal blanket term.
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Despite the centuries of historical submersion, gnosticism raises issues that are still important today. Amongst the gnostic ideas, some, no doubt, are believed and actively discussed among the widely divergent schools of thought within contemporary Christianity, while others of the ideas would be uniformly rejected. Some of the ideas are quite resonant with aspects of New Age thought and with aspects of some eastern religions.  
  
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However, the term '''gnosis''' refers to a very specialised form of knowledge.  Unlike modern English, ancient Greek was capable of discerning between several different forms of knowledge.  These different forms may be described in English as being "propositional knowledge" (such as "I know of Wikipedia" or "I know Berlin is in Germany") and knowledge acquired by participation or acquaintance (such as "I know Wikipedia well" or "I know Berlin, having visited"). 
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==Sources==
  
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Gnosis refers to knowledge of the second kind; this should reflect on our understanding of the movements referred to as "gnostic", as being reliant not on knowledge in a general sense, but on knowledge acquired by the individual through participation.  In most gnostic systems, the sufficient cause of salvation is often knowledge of the divine, commonly identified with an inward knowing or self-exploration comparable to [[Plotinus]]'.  Thus, a gnostic is one who seeks to know God on an intimate basis, by the pursuit self-knowledge or nurturing of self-awareness; thus gnosis might be argued to be a more intuitive form of knowledge then the term would at first suggest.
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There are two main historical sources for information on gnosticism: critiques by ancient orthodox [[Church Fathers]] and the original gnostic writings themselves.
  
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== Background == 
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Gnostics were prolific producers of sacred literature whose works of gnostic scripture far outnumbered written orthodox Christian scripture. Due to the Christian policy of destroying heretical books, however, no early gnostic literature was available except in the form of quotations in the writings of Church Fathers until the late nineteenth and the twentieth centuries. Scholars in the nineteenth century devoted considerable effort to collecting the scattered references in the works of opponents and reassembling gnostic materials.
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The elements of '''gnosticism''' are [[pre-Christian]]. Some scholars believe that that orthodox [[Christianity]] and its canonical texts do not predate the Gnostic movement, but grew up alongside it, out of some of the same sources. Other scholars contend that Gnosticism emerged in the late first and early second centuries C.E., after the key beliefs and writings of orthodox Christianity were already well-established. The negative reaction of Christian leaders to the writings of [[Cerinthus]] and [[Valentinius]] would seem to support this understanding of the emergence of Gnosticism.
 
  
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Many Gnostic sects were made up of Christians who embraced mystical theories of the nature of [[Jesus]] or the [[Christ]] which was increasingly at variance with the teachings of orthodox Christian faith as it developed. For example, Gnostics generally taught [[docetism]], the belief that Jesus did not have a physical body, but rather his apparent physical body was an illusion, and hence his crucifixion was not bodily.
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Several important finds of gnostic manuscripts have been made since, most importantly the [[Nag Hammadi]] library. Although we now possess a large collection of gnostic texts, they are still often difficult to relate to the history of gnosticism, due to the esoteric nature of gnostic teaching and difficulties of identifying which teachers or sects were associated with particular texts.
  
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[[image:Gnostic_cross.png|left|frame|The so-called Gnostic Cross, the circular, harmonic cross as used by several Gnostic sects, notably the Cathars]]There is really no universal symbol for the variant Gnostic movements, whether ancient or modern.
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==History==
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===Early Jewish Gnosticism===
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Some scholars, notably [[Gershom Scholem]], believe that [[Judaism|Jewish]] gnosticism predated its Christian counterpart. There is indeed some evidence of Jewish mysticism in the pre-Christian era. This can be seen for example in the philosophical writings of [[Philo]] of Alexandria, the revelations of [[Ezekiel]] (which produced a vast quantity of later [[kabbala|kabbalistic]] speculation), the apocalyptic sections of the [[Book of Daniel]], and detailed explanations about the angelic world in the apocryphal [[Book of Enoch]]. The latter certainly contributed to gnostic descriptions and names of the ''archons,'' ''aeons,'' etc. (See "[[Gnosticism#Gnostic_Cosmology|Gnostic Cosmology]]" below).
  
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==Matter==
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However, the data supporting a specifically gnostic Jewish worldview during this period is sparse. In later centuries, the works of the [[kabbalah]] clearly indicate a type of Jewish gnosticism. It has yet to be demonstrated, however, that this literature did not evolve out the interaction between gnostics and Jews, rather than springing from Judaism itself.
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Some Gnostics, in common with such [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonic]] philosophers as [[Plotinus]], held matter to be evil, but only as a method of depicting its extreme distance from the [[monad|monadic]] source of the universe (which is, of course, supremely good). Thus matter is not evil in and of itself, but only in its distance from and its contrast to its monadic source (compare [[summum bonum]]). Many Gnostics also made use of [[ritual]]; ritual being the manipulation of material objects in imitation of divine events or occurrences, this presupposes at least the ability of matter to be used for positive effect.  [[Valentinus]] himself, often referred to as the Gnostic teacher ''par excellence'', only referred to matter as an obscuration of the truth, not as inherently evil.
 
  
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Nevertheless, the apparently unsubtle characterisation of matter as simply evil is a trait that is commonly used to define gnostic systems, often by those who seek to detract from them, or by those too reliant on heresiological texts for their understanding of them (the two groups aren't mutually exclusive).
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Christian tradition—especially the writings of [[Justin Martyr]], [[Irenaeus]], and [[Hippolytus]]—blames the Jewish or [[Samaritan]] "sorcerer" [[Simon Magus]] as the originator of gnosticism. The Church Fathers described him as founding a gnostic sect that practiced [[antinomianism]]—the doctrine that moral laws did not apply to one who had attained [[salvation]] or [[enlightenment]]. According to the [[Book of Acts]], this Simon was simply a magician whose sin was that he wanted to buy the power of the Holy Spirit for personal gain. It is impossible to say for certain whether his teachings might have constituted a type of gnosticism, Jewish or otherwise.
  
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It would be more accurate to characterize the Gnostic relationship with matter as one fraught with ambivalence; their views are an attempt to explain and clarify the divine's relationship with the imperfect universe, and to create a contextual basis for the individual Gnostic's feeling of alienation within that universe.
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===Christian Gnosticism===
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Gnosticism can be viewed as one of the three main branches of early [[Christianity]]. The others are Jewish Christianity, which was practiced by the disciples of [[Jesus of Nazareth|Jesus]]; and [[Pauline Christianity]], which rejected Jewish traditions. German biblical historian Adolf von Harnack said that while Paul's teachings represented the ''hellenization'' of the original Jewish Christianity, gnosticism represented its "extreme hellenization."<ref>A. Harnack. ''History of Dogma,'' trans. Neil Buchanan (New York: Dover, 1961).</ref>
  
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==Theology==
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For some time, Pauline Christianity and gnostic Christianity coexisted. Gradually, the teachings of the two groups appear to have become more distinct. Certain of Paul's letters teach concepts in accord with gnostic teaching—such as the existence of a "god of this world" who has blinded unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4), the superiority of the spiritual man over the man of flesh (Rom. 8:5), and the existence of secret spiritual teachings that could not be shared with Christians who were not yet advanced enough to receive them (1 Cor. 3:1-2). So too, the [[Gospels]] speak of Christ as a pre-existent being of light (John 1:3-5), the triumph of light over darkness within the believer (Luke 11:36), and the devil as the ruler of the material world (Luke 4:6). Gnostic teachers made great use both of Paul's letters and the gospels, especially Luke and John.
  
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It is generally accepted by most historians that there is a significant amount of [[Buddhist]]/[[Hindu]] influence in Gnostic interpretations of the Bible. The standard tactic of Gnostic texts is to radically reinterpret a well-known text (usually Genesis and its related Biblical books) through the addition of an original prologue.  However, this is not to say that gnosticism necessarily post-dates orthodox Christianity or Judaism; rather, the two developed side by side, and ideas often inter-penetrated from one strand to another.
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Later Christian scriptures, however, directly attack gnosticism. For example:
  
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A common point of contention is whether or not the Gnostics believed seriously in the events they chronicled, or whether they were understood to be mere representations of the truth; a mythologised philosophy comprising both a cosmogony and a moral system, rather than a literally factual account of creation. It is difficult to state that one or the other is universally correct; it seems likely that a mixture of the two positions was common.
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*1 Timothy 1:3-4: "Stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies." The letter urges Timothy to "Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge ''(gnosis),'' which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith." (6:20-21)
  
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Commonly, the gnostic prologue to Genesis describes an unknown God, very different in nature to the common conception of God.  The normal conception defines God through a series of positives commonly taken to their superlative degrees: as well as being explicitly male, he is omniscient, omnipotent and truly benevolent. The gnostic conception of God is often defined through a string of negatives: he is immovable, invisible, intangible, ineffable; commonly, "he" is seen as being androgynous, a potent symbol for being, as it were, 'all-containing'.  This mode of thinking about God is so important in gnosticism that he is sometimes referred to as "the uncontained"; otherwise he may be referred to as ''[[Bythos]]'', the ''[[Monad]]'' as it is called by [[Monoimus]], or the first [[Aeon]].  In essence, gnosticism posits a God that may not be described in any rational sense; it is only possible to say what God isn't, and the experience of it remains something, again, in defiance of rational description.
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*2 John 7: "For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh; such a one is a deceiver and an antichrist." This passage warns against the gnostic teaching that Jesus was entirely a being of light, whose physical body (and its suffering) was only illusory.
  
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This original God went through a series of [[emanationism|emanations]], during which its essence is seen as expanding into many successive "generations" of paired male and female beings, called "aeons". A frequent complaint concerning gnostic texts is the complexity of their narratives and the numerous characters within them. Some gnostic texts posit as many as twenty of these aeons (Valentinius listed 30 such pairs). These should be seen as representative of the various attributes of God, themselves indiscernible when not abstracted from their origin.  In this sense, the aeons and their emanation are more akin to a poetic device; They allow an otherwise utterly unknowable God to be discussed in a meaningful way amongst initiates.  Collectively, God and the aeons comprise the sum total of the spiritual universe, known as the ''[[Pleroma]]''.
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*The short Letter of Jude was written to warn of "certain men… who have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality…" (1:4)—a probable reference to gnostic teachers who allegedly taught that Christians could dispense not only with the Jewish kosher and circumcision laws, but also with the commandments against adultery and fornication.  
  
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At this point in the myth the universe was still entirely non-material.  The increasing fragmentation of the nature of God into more and more aeons led, eventually, to instability within the primordial universe. This growing problem reached its climax with the appearance of the lowest aeon, called [[Sophia (gnosticism)|Sophia]] (Gr. "wisdom").  In several versions, Sophia attempts to surmount the rigid hierarchy of the divine nature, trying to approach close to God himself. (Recall that though the aeons comprise God in his totally, they are nevertheless at the same time individual characters abstracted from him, otherwise we would have the paradoxical situation of God divided into many essences.) In other cases, Sophia imitates God in performing an emanation of her own.  In both cases, this intransigence causes a crisis within the Pleroma, leading to the creation of Yaldabaoth, a "serpent with a lion's head" ([[Apocryphon of John]]).  This figure is commonly known as the [[Demiurge]], after the figure in [[Plato]]'s [[Timaeus]] (Gr. demiurgos - "one who shapes" (typical translation); "Tame Worker / One Who Domesticates" (literal translation)).  This being is at first hidden by Sophia, but later escapes, stealing a portion of divine power from his mother.
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Thus, various gnostic and semi-gnostic sects worked within mainline Christian groups. One such group has been named by contemporary scholars as the "School of Thomas"—those who read the [[Gospel of Thomas]], accepted Jesus as a teacher of mystical truth rather than as a savior who atoned for their sins, and believed the resurrection to be spiritual rather than physical.
  
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Using this stolen power, Yaldabaoth creates a material world in imitation of the divine Pleroma.  To complete this task, he spawns a group of entities known collectively as [[Archon]]s, "petty rulers" and craftsmen of the physical world. Like him they are commonly depicted as theriomorphic, having the heads of animals. At this point the events of the Gnostic narrative join with the events of Genesis, with the Demiurge and his Archontic cohorts fulfilling the role of the creator.  The Demiurge declares himself to be the only god, and that none exist superior to him.
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An important Christian semi-gnostic leader was [[Marcion]], a mid-second century teacher who gained a significant following in the Church of Rome. Marcion accepted the gnostic proposition that the Hebrew Creator-God was actually the ''Demiurge'' described in gnostic literature, and thus a different being from the heavenly father of Jesus Christ. He proposed that the Hebrew Bible scriptures should be rejected by Christians, while accepting only a shortened version of the [[Gospel of Luke]] and the letters of [[Epistles of Paul|Paul]] as authoritative.
  
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From here the events follow in the familiar fashion.  God creates Adam, during the process unwittingly transferring into Adam's body the portion of power stolen from his mother. He then creates Eve from the Adam's rib; the two are tempted by the serpent, and fall.  However, the addition of the prologue radically alters the nature of the fall; rather than attributing the fall to human weakness, gnostics locate the ultimate cause of the fall in the instability of the divine nature itself.  The fall of Adam and Eve thus becomes something of a redemption. Eating the fruit of Knowledge is the first act of human salvation from cruel, oppressive powers.  The Gnostic conception of the Fall as a divinely caused event follows.
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The church's rejection of [[Marcionism]] resulted in three important developments: Christianity's formal acceptance of the Jewish God as identical with the God of Christianity, the adoption of the [[Hebrew Bible]], and the creation of lists of authorized Christian scriptures that eventually became the New Testament canon. The church also created creeds and other liturgical formulas to weed out gnostic ideas. For example, the [[Apostles' Creed]] specifies that God the Father is the "creator of heaven and earth," thus refuting the gnostic/marcionite idea that the creator of the material world was not God but the Demiurge. It further states that Jesus "suffered" under [[Pontius Pilate]], thus refuting the gnostic idea that Christ did not suffer because he was not tied to his physical body. Furthermore, the creed's affirmation of belief in "the resurrection of the body" refutes the gnostic belief that the resurrection was spiritual, not physical, etc.
  
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==The Fall==
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===Valentinus, Basilides and the Sethians===
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In the Valentinian Gnostic creation myth, Sophia sought the unknowable One. In one account, she saw a distant light which was in fact a mirror image, and thus drifted even farther away from the pleroma.
 
  
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Sophia's anguish and fear of losing her life, just as she lost the light of the One, caused confusion and longing to return to it. Because of this longing, the [[matter]] (Greek: ''hyle'', U»·) and the [[soul]] (Greek: ''psyche'', ÈÅÇ®) accidentally came into existence through the four [[classical element]]s [[fire]], [[water]], [[earth]], and [[air]]. The creation of the lion-faced Demiurge was also a mistake during this exile; according to some Gnostic sources, the creation of the Demiurge resulted from Sophia trying to emanate on her own, without her male counterpart. The Demiurge created the physical world in which we live, ignorant of Sophia, who nevertheless managed to infuse a spiritual spark, the ''pneuma,'' into the creation of the Demiurge.
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The second century Christian gnostic teacher of widest renown was [[Valentinus]], who was to found his own school of gnosticism in both [[Alexandria]] and [[Rome]]. According to [[Tertullian]], Valentinus had been a significant figure in the Roman church at one time. He claimed to have received a revelation directly from the ''Logos.'' His human instructor was a certain Theudas, who in turn had supposedly received secret knowledge passed on to him by the Apostle Paul. According to [[Irenaeus]], Valentinus was the author of the [[Gospel of Truth]].  
  
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After this the savior (Christos) returned and let Sophia see the light again, bringing her knowledge of the [[Akasha|spirit]] (Greek: ''pneuma'', À½µæ¼±). Christ then was sent to earth in the form of the man [[Jesus]] to give men the [[gnosis]] they needed to rescue themselves from the physical world and return to spiritual world.
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Valentinus lived from about 100–175 C.E. While in Alexandria, where he was born, Valentinus probably would have had contact with another major gnostic teacher, [[Basilides]], and may have been influenced by him. The followers of Basilides can be viewed as forming a distinct sect from the Valentinians, although their views in many ways overlapped. The basic outline of Valentian mythology is summarized in "[[Gnosticism#Gnostic_Cosmology|Gnostic Cosmology]]" below.
  
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The three sensations experienced by Sophia created three types of humans, linked to the three elements found within all human beings:
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Valentinian gnosticism flourished throughout the early centuries of the common era, and the group's Christian opponents make its vitality clear. A list or heretics composed in 388 C.E., against whom Emperor [[Constantine I]] intended legislation, includes the Valentinians. Valentinus' students elaborated on the teachings and materials they received from him. Several varieties of their central myth are known.
  
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*''hylics'' (bound to the matter, the principle of evil)
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Valentinian works probably make up a significant part of the Nag Hammadi library, although some analysts identify the collection's "Sethian" literature as coming from a separate gnostic sect. Several other gnostic groups existed as well, although the evidence for them comes mostly from their opponents. For example, "Ophites" is a blanket term referring to various gnostic sects of this period. Included among them were both the Sethians and the Naasseners, the latter supposedly honoring the Demiurge, whom they identified with the serpent of [[Genesis]], as a hero.
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*''psychics'' (bound to the soul and partly saved from evil)
 
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*''pneumatics'', free to return to the [[pleroma]] if they achieve [[gnosis]] and can behold the world of light. The gnostics regarded themselves as members of this group.
 
  
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Most Gnostics identified the Demiurge with the [[God]] of the [[Old Testament]]. They rejected the Old Testament and [[Judaism]] and often celebrated those who were rejected by the Old Testament God. Some Gnostics were believed to identify the Demiurge with [[Satan]]; This perception contributed to the suspicion with which many Christians regarded them.
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===Manichaeism===
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[[Manichaeism]] was a distinct gnostic religion that originated in third century [[Babylon]], a province of [[Persian Empire|Persia]] at the time, eventually reached from [[North Africa]] to [[China]]. Named after its prophet, [[Mani]], its teachings moved west into Syria, Northern Arabia, Egypt and North Africa, where the future [[Augustine of Hippo|Saint Augustine]] was a member from 373-382. From Syria it progressed into [[Palestine]], [[Asia Minor]], and [[Armenia]]. There is evidence for Manicheans in [[Rome]] and [[Dalmatia]] in the fourth century, and also in [[Gaul]] and [[Spain]]. Many of the members of earlier Christian gnostic sects may have drifted into the orbit of Manichaeism. It possessed an organized clergy, liturgies, scriptures, and monasteries.
  
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Other Gnostics regarded the serpent in the [[Garden of Eden]] as a heroic figure because it wanted to help humanity free itself of the chains of Yaldabaoth. After the Demiurge came to rule over the physical world, Sophia sent a message by way of the [[Serpent]]. She gave [[gnosis]] to the humans this way, which angered the Demiurge, who believed himself to be the sole creator of the [[universe]] and the exclusive ruler of this world. So in the gnostic context, "original sin" was "original enlightenment", and not sin at all. Humans also learned that [[Seth]], the third son of Adam, was introduced to the gnostic teachings by both his father and his mother, and that this knowledge has been preserved throughout creation.
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A characteristic principle of Manichean theology is its dualism. Mani postulated two natures that existed from the beginning: light and darkness. The Manichees attempted to include various religious traditions in their faith, including Christian gnosticism. Mani described himself as a "disciple of Jesus Christ."  
  
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== Lifestyle ==
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Manichaeism was attacked by imperial edicts, church councils, and polemical writings by critics such as Augustine, but the religion remained strong in the western [[Roman Empire]] until the sixth century. In [[Islam]]ic lands, which normally tolerated both [[Christianity]] and [[Judaism]], it was repressed as a form of [[paganism]]. In the early years of the Arab conquest, however, Manichaeism found followers in [[Persia]] and flourished especially in Central Asia. There, in 762, Manichaeism became the state religion of the [[Uigar Empire]].
  
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Most Gnostics practiced [[celibacy]] and [[asceticism]], on the grounds that the pleasures of the flesh were evil; a few however practiced [[libertinism]], arguing since the body was evil they should defile it, or that since the body was evil it did not matter what was done with it. This led to further distrust, and was an accusation leveled against other groups who did not follow this practice.
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The scriptures of Manichaeism were lost until the modern era. However, in the early 1900s, German scholars excavated the ancient site of the Manichaean Uigur Kingdom near Turfan, in Chinese [[Turkestan]], and uncovered hundreds of pages of lost Manichaean scriptures, which are now available in translation.<ref>[http://gnosis.org/library/manis.htm The Gnostic Society Library: Manichaean Writings.]''gnosis.org''. Retrieved September 5, 2007.</ref>
  
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== Gnostic sects ==
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===Medieval Gnosticism===
  
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(Note: It is a matter of controversy if these sects had a real succession of ideas or communion with each other, or if they more or less coincidentally had the same basic doctrine.)
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Gnosticism, probably including Manichaeism, exerted an important later influence in the west through the emergence of the [[Paulicians]], [[Bogomils]] and [[Cathari]] in the middle ages. The Cathari, also called Abigensians, controlled significant areas of Southern France during the twelfth century. Through the [[Inquisition]] and the [[The_Crusades#Albigensian_Crusade|Albigensian Crusade]], these gnostic movements were ruthlessly stamped out as heresy by the [[Roman Catholic Church]]. Thus, gnosticism was forced underground.
  
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First, the gnostic sects are often divided into an eastern, or Persian school, and a Syrian-Egyptic school. The Persian school has a more definitive division between light and darkness, whereas the Syrian-Egyptic school is more [[platonism|platonist]] in character. The latter is the one usually associated with Gnosticism, and the one known to include several [[Christianity|Christian]] elements. A group referred to as the [[Ophites]] fall in between both of these strains.
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Unfounded accusations of gnosticism were leveled against the [[Knights Templar]], [[Freemasonry|Freemasons]], and other disfavored groups. Gnostic ideas can be seen to some extent in the works of [[alchemy|alchemists]], [[Rosicruciansism|Rosicrucians]] and other assorted mystics.
  
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*'''Persian Gnostics'''
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===Mandaeanism===
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**[[Mandaeanism]] which still exists today, but is non-Christian in character.
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A gnostic sect with ancient roots, [[Mandaeanism]] is still practiced in small numbers, in parts of southern [[Iraq]] and the [[Iran]]ian province of Khuzestan. The name of the group derives from the term: ''Mandā d-Heyyi'' which roughly means "knowledge of life." Although its exact chronological origins are not known, the group looks to [[John the Baptist]] as a central figure and teacher. Frequent ritual immersions and [[vegetarianism]] play a important part in Mandaean practice. Unlike Christian gnosticism and Manichaeism, Mandaeanism rejects [[Jesus of Nazareth]] as teacher of truth, believing him to be false [[prophet]] who perverted the teachings of the Baptist.
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**[[Manichaeism]] which was an entire religion on its own, but is now extinct.
 
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*'''Syrian-Egyptic Gnostics'''
 
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**[[Sethian (gnostic)|Sethian]]s, who produced many texts.
 
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**[[Cerinthus]]
 
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**[[Simon Magus]] and [[Marcion of Sinope]] both had Gnostic tendencies, but they were not completely Gnostics. They both developed a big apprenticeship. Simon Magus' pupil Menander could also be included.
 
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**The [[Valentinians]] under [[Valentinius]], better known as Valentinus (c. 100 - c. 153), developed most of the complex cosmology of Gnosticism. Valentinus was, for a time, the most successful Christian-Gnostic thinker.
 
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**The [[Basilides|Basilidians]]
 
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**The [[Ophites]] (so-named because they worshipped the serpent of [[Genesis]] as the bestower of knowledge).
 
−
**The [[Cainites]] (who worshipped [[Cain]], as well as [[Esau]], [[Korah]], and the [[Sodom|Sodomites]], and believed that indulgence in sin was the key to salvation because since the body is evil, one must defile it.)
 
−
**The [[Carpocrates|Carpocratians]]
 
−
**The [[Borborites]]
 
−
**The [[Bogomils]]
 
−
**The [[Cathar]]s (Cathari, Albigenses or Albigensians).
 
  
−
== Sources ==
+
Significant amounts of early Mandaean scripture survive in the modern era. The primary source text, known as the ''Genzā Rabbā,'' has portions identified by some scholars as having been copied as early as the second century C.E. In recent times, the Mandaeans were severely repressed under the regime of [[Saddam Hussein]]. With the fall of Saddam, they were legally free to practice their religion in public, but reported significant persecution by non-governmental forces, especially [[Shiite]] [[Muslims]], who consider them to be pagan infidels rather than "People of the Book."
  
−
[[Image:NagHammadi_1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The [[Nag Hammadi library]] codices remain the primary source of a Gnostic world-view.]]
+
===Kabbalism===
  
−
We have two main historical sources for information on Gnosticism: critiques on Gnosticism by orthodox Christians (i.e. [[heresy|Heresiologies]] such as those written by [[Tertullian]], [[Hippolytus]], [[Irenaeus]] and [[Epiphanius of Salamis]]), and the original Gnostic works.
+
The Jewish tradition known as the [[kabbalah]] is a mysticism that is firmly grounded in Jewish [[monotheism]]. Nevertheless, some of its literature shows gnostic characteristics. Kabbalists share with gnostics a belief in divine emanations originating from the original God—"the infinite" (Hebrew ''Ein Sof'' אין סוף) and extending into the created world; these are called the ten "vessels," or ''Sefirot.'' Their concept of the [[Shekhinah]] (already an orthodox Jewish concept) as manifesting God's feminine aspect parallels gnosticism's interest in the [[Goddess|Divine Feminine]].  
  
−
Neither of these two sources is entirely satisfactory. Attacks on Gnosticism by orthodox Christians, hostile as they are, most likely suffer from some degree of bias; and orthodox Christians had a tendency to conflate the many differing groups opposing them. There were considerably more Gnostic scriptures written than orthodox Christian ones, which are hinted at throughout the orthodox scriptures.  
+
Among the major kabbalistic texts is the ''[[Bahir]]'' (“The Brightness”), which was written in [[Provence]] in the twelfth century. Some scholars recognize influences from the gnostic [[Cathari]], who were flourishing in the area. The book's characterization of the feminine aspect of God—the [[Shekhinah]]—resembles the gnostic ''Sophia,'' for example.  
  
−
Many Gnostic scriptures and other works were written, but until the late 19th and the 20th centuries, none of them were available, except in isolated quotations in the writings of their opponents. Many 19th century scholars devoted considerable effort to collecting the scattered references in the works of opponents and reassembling the Gnostic materials.
+
Recently, [[kabbalah|kabbalism]] has experienced a resurgence in orthodox Jewish circles, and has also found popularity among secular Jews. It has also gained interest among gentiles because of its flexibility and accordance with certain New Age ideas.
  
−
Several finds of manuscripts have been made since, most importantly the [[Nag Hammadi library|Nag Hammadi]] codices. But though we now possess a reasonable collection of Gnostic texts, they are still often difficult to interpret, due to the [[esoteric knowledge|esoteric]] nature of Gnostic teaching. We are also faced with difficulties in identifying which teachers or sects authored which texts. The Nag Hammadi Library is available in an English translation and is without doubt the most important collection of source texts for research in Gnosticism. With some basic knowledge of Gnostic concepts, it is not too complicated a read.
+
==Gnostic Christian Teachings==
  
−
== Origins of Gnosticism ==
+
Many gnostic sects were made up of Christians who embraced mystical theories of the nature of Jesus. The [[Gospel of Thomas]], an early semi-gnostic collection of [[Jesus of Nazareth|Jesus]]' sayings that was apparently well known, represents this tendency. In this account, Jesus institutes no sacraments, and his death and resurrection are never mentioned. His role is not to die for mankind's sins, but to impart knowledge to those of his disciples who are able to receive it. "Whoever discovers the interpretation of these sayings," the gospel begins, "will not taste death." Thus it is not by [[faith]] in Jesus, but by knowing the true meaning of his teachings, that the believer will enter into eternal life.
  
−
The origins of Gnosticism are a subject of dispute amongst scholars: some think Gnosticism is fundamentally [[paganism|pagan]] in origin, but has adopted a Christian veneer; others trace its origin to [[Judaism]]; yet others think it derives from Jesus, and is a development of his teaching that is arguably as valid as the orthodox one.  Others still regard Gnosticism as a religious tradition in itself, the manifestation in related "systems" of a perennial philosophy of which, in some sense, more orthodox religious traditions are the contraries.  Most historians, however, agree that a significant influence in the mystical interpretations were influenced by [[Buddhism]].  In the end, it is difficult, perhaps impossible to confidently identify a clear origin for Gnosticism, due in part to its commonly syncretistic nature, and due also to the fluid (some might say "confused") relations between religious traditions in antiquity and, indeed, throughout history.
+
While gnosticism was a highly diverse and flexible phenomenon, certain elements can be identified as typifying the movement in its Christian manifestation.
  
−
It seems clear that Gnosticism, at least in some of its theologically more developed formulations, was heavily influenced by [[Platonism]], [[Neoplatonism]], [[Stoicism]], old [[Semitic]] religions, [[Christianity]] (and/or influenced the development of more [[orthodox]] Christianity) and (at least in the case of [[Monoimus]]) [[Pythagoreanism]].
+
*Gnostics tended toward a dualistic view in which matter was seen as essentially illusory.
  
−
== Gnostic texts ==
+
*Christian gnostics emphasized spiritual knowledge and experience, rather than [[faith]] and the [[sacrament]]s of the church, as the key to salvation or unity with God.
  
−
Note that like everything else about Gnosticism, the identification of a text as Gnostic or not may be controversial, however most Nag Hammadi codices may be assumed to be Gnostic in essence, except for the copy of [[Plato]] and the "sayings" ''[[Gospel of Thomas]]''.
+
*They tended to deny the physical resurrection of Jesus, believing this event to be purely spiritual in nature.
  
−
*Gnostic Works recovered before [[1945]]:
+
*By the mid-second century, Christian gnostics often believed that the God of the Jews was a different, lower being from the True God, having come into existence through the Fall of [[Sophia]] (see "[[Gnosticism#Gnostic Cosmology|Gnostic Cosmology]]" below).
−
**Works preserved by the Church:
 
−
*** ''[[Acts of Thomas]]'' (Especially ''[[The Hymn of the Pearl]]'' and ''[[The Hymn of the Robe of Glory]]'')
 
−
*** ''The [[Acts of John]]'' (Especially ''[[The Hymn of Jesus]]'')
 
−
**The [[Askew Codex]] ([[British Museum]], bought in [[1784]]):
 
−
*** ''[[Pistis Sophia]]: Books of the Savior''
 
−
**The [[Bruce Codex]] (discovered by [[James Bruce]]):
 
−
***''[[Books of Jeu|The Gnosis of the Invisible God]]'' or ''The [[Books of Jeu]]''
 
−
***''[[The Untitled Apocalypse]]'' or ''[[The Gnosis of the Light]]''
 
−
**The [[Berlin Codex]] or The Akhmim Codex (found in [[Akhmim]], [[Egypt]]):
 
−
*** ''[[The Gospel of Mary]]''
 
−
*** ''The [[Acts of Peter]]''
 
−
*** ''[[The Sophia of Jesus Christ|The Wisdom of Jesus Christ]]''
 
−
**Unknown origin:
 
−
*** ''[[Secret Gospel of Mark|The Secret Gospel of Mark]]''
 
−
*** ''The [[Hermetica]]''
 
  
−
*The [[Nag Hammadi library]] found in December [[1945]]. (Follow the link to [[Nag Hammadi library]] for a complete list.)
+
Many gnostics were highly disciplined and ascetic. Others, however, were accused of teaching that gnosis liberates a person from moral constraint. Many believed in a doctrine known as [[docetism]], the teaching that Jesus only appeared to possess a physical body. It was against this doctrine that John 1:7 famously objects when it states:
  
−
== Notable Gnostics ==
+
:Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.
  
−
Roughly in chronological order:
+
Various gnostic groups taught other doctrines which were rejected by the orthodox church, including:
−
* [[Simon Magus]], had Gnostic leanings, could be called proto-Gnostic, although accounts of his life are primarily legendary
 
−
* "[[Leucius Charinus]]" the legendary author of a cycle of late "Acts" of Apostles.
 
−
* [[Menander (gnostic)|Menander]]
 
−
* [[Saturninus]]
 
−
* [[Monoimus]]
 
−
* [[Carpocrates]], his wife Alexandra and his son [[Epiphanes (gnostic)|Epiphanes]]
 
−
* [[Bardaisan]] of [[Edessa, Mesopotamia|Edessa]]
 
−
* [[Ptolemy (gnostic)|Ptolemy]] and [[Colorbasus]]
 
−
* [[Valentinius]], potentially the most famous and influential Gnostic, and author of one of most complex and detailed Gnostic systems known
 
−
* [[Basilides]] of [[Alexandria]]
 
−
* [[Marcion of Sinope]], had gnostic tendencies
 
  
−
== Gnosticism in modern times ==
+
*that God is androgynous (embracing both masculinity and femininity)
 +
*that God himself is not a [[trinity]] but a unity
 +
*that the trinity which emerged from God is Father, Mother, and Son
 +
*that certain disciples (such as Thomas or [[Mary Magdalene]]) received special knowledge from Jesus, which was withheld from less enlightened disciples such as [[Saint Peter|Peter]]
 +
*that women can administer baptism and act as priests
  
−
Gnosticism has been treated at length by several modern authors, philosophers and psychologists:
+
Some gnostics, in common with such [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonic]] philosophers as [[Plotinus]], held matter to be evil. However, others believed that matter is not evil in and of itself. Rather, it is a person's identification with matter rather than spirit that leads one astray. Gnostics often taught a doctrine of the "bridal chamber," in which the human soul is reunited with God. In association with this idea, they were accused by orthodox Christians of engaging in licentious sexual rituals. Evidence from gnostic sources confirming this, however, is lacking.
  
−
*[[William Blake]], the nineteenth century [[Romantic]] poet and artist, was according to some sources well-versed in the doctrines of the Gnostics, and his own personal mythology contains many points of cohesion with several Gnostic myths (for example, the Blakean figure of Urizen bears many resemblances to the Gnostic Demiurge).  However, efforts to dub Blake a "Gnostic" have been complicated by the complex nature and extent of Blake's own mythology, and the variety of myths and themes that may be referred to as "Gnostic"; thus, the exact relationship between Blake and the Gnostics remains a point of scholarly contention, though a comparison of the two often reveals intriguing points of cohesion.
+
==Gnostic Cosmology==
−
*After a series of visions and archival finds of [[Cathar|Cathar-related]] documents, [[Jules Doinel]] "re-established" the Gnostic Church in the modern era.  Founded on extant Cathar documents with a heavy influence of Valentinian cosmology, the church, officially established in the autumn [[1890]] in [[Paris|Paris, France]], consisted of modified Cathar rituals as sacraments, a clergy that was both male and female, and a close relationship with several esoteric initiatory orders (see link http://www.gnostique.net for more information).  The church eventually split into two opposing groups that were later reconciled in the leadership of [[Joanny Bricaud]].  Another splinter church with more occult leanings was established by [[Robert Ambelain]] around 1957, from which several other schisms have produced a multitude of distantly-related occult-oriented marginal groups.
+
By the late second century, the gnostic movement had developed a rather involved cosmology. Although it varied widely and should not be oversimplified, a basic outline can be useful for our understanding:
−
*The "[[traditionalist]]" [[René Guénon]] founded in [[1909]] the Gnostic review ''La Gnose''. He believed in and throughout his works exposed the idea that ''modern thought'', by its preference to the [[quantity]] more than to the [[quality]], is the root of all evil aspects of [[modernity]]. The whole [[science|scientific]] enterprise would just be the beheaded relic of a lost [[Sacred Science]]. Modern [[technology]] and its realizations, worshipped by his contemporaries, would have been just a latter [[epiphany]] of the [[Kali Yuga]] (''alias'' [[Dark Age]]), in a [[Cyclical Conception]] of [[Time]].
 
−
*[[Carl Jung]] and his associate [[G. R. S. Mead]] worked on trying to understand and explain the Gnostic faith from a psychological standpoint.  Jung's "analytical psychology" in many ways schematically mirrors ancient Gnostic mythology, particularly those of [[Valentinus]] and the "classic" Gnostic doctrine described in most detail in the Apocryphon ("Secret Book") of John. Jung understands the emergance of the [[Demiurge]] out of the original, unified monadic source of the spiritual universe by gradual stages to be analogous to (and a symbolic depiction of) the emergence of the ego from the unconscious.  However, it is uncertain as to whether the similarities between Jung's psychological teachings and those of the Gnostics are due to their sharing a "[[perennial philosophy]]", or whether Jung was unwittingly influenced by the Gnostics in the formation of his theories; Jung's own "Gnostic sermon", the Septem Sermones ad Mortuos, would tend to imply the latter.  Uncertain too are Jung's claims that the Gnostics are aware of any psychological meaning behind their myths.  On the other hand, what is known is that Jung and his ancient forebears disagreed on the ultimate goal of the individual: whereas the Gnostics clearly sought a return to a supreme, other-worldly Godhead, Jung would see this as analogous to a total identification with the unconscious, a dangerous psychological state.
 
−
*[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky]], founder of [[Theosophy]] enjoyed and wrote extensively on Gnostic ideas.
 
−
*The philosopher [[Friedrich Nietzsche]] in his concept of the "[[eternal return]]".
 
−
*The philosopher [[Hans Jonas]] wrote extensively on Gnosticism, interpreting it from an [[existentialism|existentialist]] viewpoint.
 
−
*[[Eric Voegelin]] identified a number of similarities between ancient Gnosticism and those held by a number of modernist political theories, particularly Communism and Nazism. He identifies the root of the Gnostic impulse as alienation, that is, a sense of disconnectedness with society and a belief that this lack of concord with society is the result of the inherent disorderliness or even evil of the world.  This alienation has two effects. The first is the belief that the disorder of the world can be transcended by extraordinary insight, learning, or knowledge, called a Gnostic Speculation by Voegelin. The second is the desire to implement a policy to actualize the speculation, or as Voegelin describes to "Immanentize the [[Eschatology|Eschaton]]", to create a sort of heaven on earth within history.  The totalitarian impulse is derived from the alienation of the proponents of the policy from the rest of society. This leads to a desire to dominate (''libido dominandi'') which has its roots not just in the conviction of the imperative of the Gnostic's vision but also in his lack of concord with a large body of his society. As a result, there is very little regard for the welfare of those in society who are impacted by the resulting politics, which ranges from coercive to calamitous (cf. [[Stalin]]'s nostrum: "You have to crack a few eggs to make an omelet"). This totalitarian impulse in modernism has been noted by Catholic writers, particularly in [[Henri de Lubac]]'s work "The Drama of Atheist Humanism", which explores the connection between the totalitarian impulses of political [[Communism]], [[Fascism]] and [[Positivism]] with their philosophical progenitors [[Hegel]], [[Feuerbach]], [[Karl Marx|Marx]], [[Comte]] and [[Nietzsche]].  Indeed, Voegelin acknowledges his debt to this book in creating his seminal essay "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism". The Catholic [[catechism]] makes an oblique reference to the desire to "Immanentize the Eschaton" in article 676: ''The Antichrist's deception already begins to take shape in the world every time the claim is made to realize within history that messianic hope which can only be realized beyond history through the eschatological judgment. The Church has rejected even modified forms of this falsification of the kingdom to come under the name of [[millenarianism]], especially the "intrinsically perverse" political form of a secular messianism.'' Other Catholic scholars have extended it using vivid imagery created by Abbé [[Augustin Barruél]].
 
−
*[[Samael Aun Weor]] commented extensively on the [[Pistis Sophia]] in his book [[The Pistis Sophia Unveiled]], and founded ''International Gnostic Movement'', one of the Occultist movements that claimed inheritance from ancient Gnosticism.
 
−
*In the [[United States]] there are several gnostic churches with diverse lineages, one of which is the [[Ecclesia Gnostica]], affiliated with an organization for studies of gnosticism named the [[Gnostic Society]], primarily in [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]. The current leader of both organizations is [[Stephan A. Hoeller]] who has also written extensively on Gnosticism and the occult.
 
−
*[[Aleister Crowley]]'s [[Thelema]] system is influenced by and bears major features in common with Gnosticism, especially in that adherants work to come to their own direct knowledge of the divine (referred to as the [[Great Work]]). There are several Thelemic Gnostic organizations, including [[Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica]] as an ecclesiastical body and [[Ordo Templi Orientis]] as an initiatory body.
 
−
*[[Mar Didymos]] of the [[Thomasine Church]] has reinterpreted Gnosticism and the thomasine gospels from an [[Illuminist|Illuminist]] viewpoint. The method employed by clergy and initiates of the [[Thomasine Church]] involves the use of the [[scientific method]] and of [[critical thinking]] rather than [[dogmatism]]. Mar Didymos stresses the use of scientific theory or the use of a synthesis of well developed and verified hypotheses derived from empirical observation and deductive/indicative reasoning about factual data and tested through experimentation and peer review.  This is antithetical in principle and method as compared to all of the existing modern Gnostic churches.
 
−
*[[Mar Iohannes]] of the [[Apostolic Johannite Church]] is President of the [[North American College of Gnostic Bishops]], a group dedicated not to dogmatic statements, but to working together to promote gnostic growth. The AJC is a bridge-building Church with traditionally-styles Rites, but Gnostic understanding of those Rites. 'Experiential Knowledge' of the Divine is the final arbiter of Gnosis.
 
  
−
=== Gnosticism in popular culture ===
+
===Creation===
−
Gnosticism has also seen something of a resurgence in [[popular culture]] in recent years.
 
  
−
*[[Grant Morrison]]'s comic series ''[[The Invisibles]]'' draws on Gnostic mythemes, both in terms of overall structure and through occasional direct reference.  Morrison's other works, such as  ''[[Animal Man]]'' and ''[[The Filth]]'', also possess frequent moments of structural cohesion with Gnostic worldviews, though these make no direct reference.
+
[[Image:Ein-Sof.png|thumb|300px|This kabbalistic depiction of the ''Ein Sof'' (limitless God) encircled by its ten emanations has much in common with the traditional gnostic idea]]
−
*[[Alan Moore]], acclaimed writer of ''[[From Hell]]'', ''[[Watchmen]]'', ''[[V for Vendetta]]'' and ''[[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]]'', converted to Gnosticism in the late 1990s.  His work, like that of the Gnostics, demonstrates a keen interest with the often-ambivalent relationship between subject and reality, consciousness (especially altered and enlightened states of consciousness) and revolt against constrictive systems of control.  In Watchmen, one character who hatches a monstrous plot to save the world might be said to be subscribe to Gnosticism much as Voegelin describes the phenomenon.
 
−
*[[Anatole France]]'s novel ''The Revolt of the Angels'' (''La Revolte des Anges'') weaves the story of an unhappy guardian angel and the doctrine of Yaldabaoth, to satiric effect.
 
−
*Several works of [[science fiction author]] [[Philip K. Dick]] draw on various gnostic notions, especially his late novel ''[[Valis]]'' and ''The Divine Invasion''.
 
−
*[[Robert Charles Wilson]]'s work has gnostic themes to it, particularly overt in his novel ''Mysterium'' (1994).
 
−
*[[Allen Ginsberg]] uses several Gnostic terms in his [[poem]] ''[[Plutonian Ode]]''.
 
−
*[[Harold Bloom]] explores Gnosticism in his novel ''[[The Flight to Lucifer: A Gnostic Fantasy]]'', and, with [[William Golding]], traces Gnosticism in American beliefs in ''The American Religion: The Emergence of the Post-Christian Nation''. Another work of Bloom's - ''Genius'', in which he reviews 100 literary figures and identifies their own peculiar genius - makes introductory reference to Gnosticism as "the religion of literature".
 
−
*Some [[conspiracy theories]] have Gnostic overtones. (Much due to [[Eric Voegelin]].)
 
−
*Such films as ''[[Dark City (1998)|Dark City]]'', '' [[Pleasantville (movie)|Pleasantville]]'', ''[[The Matrix]]'', ''[[The Truman Show]]'', ''[[Twelve Monkeys]]'', ''[[Groundhog day]]'', ''[[Vanilla Sky]]'' and even ''[[Toy Story]]'' can be compared to Gnosticism because they present the idea that the world we perceive is an illusion created by someone who does not love us, and that the key to unravelling this illusion and perceiving reality (often this perception is concurrent to a "return" to reality) resides in a form of self-knowledge or enlightenment.<!--"but that there is a secret key to understanding": without the corollary these movies aren't "gnostic"—>
 
−
*[[Philip Pullman]]'s trilogy ''[[His Dark Materials]]'' draws heavily on Gnostic themes.
 
−
*The [[role playing game]] [[Kult]] is also based on Gnostic ideas, as is the [[MTV]] [[animated]] [[science fiction]] [[television series]], [[Æon Flux]].
 
−
*Gnosticism figures heavily in the ''[[Jesus Mysteries]]'' Thesis of [[Timothy Freke]] and [[Peter Gandy]].
 
−
*The authors [[Umberto Eco]], [[Emile Cioran]] and [[Jorge Luis Borges]] are heavily inspired by gnosticism.  In the case of the former, this is particularly evident in two novels: [[Foucault's Pendulum (book)|Foucault's Pendulum]] and [[Baudolino]].  In the latter novel, one character describes the Gnostic creation myth at length.
 
−
*The [[role-playing game]]s [[Final Fantasy]] VII and X, [[Chrono Trigger]], [[Chrono Cross]], and [[Xenogears]] by [[Square Co., Ltd.|Squaresoft]] as well as the [[Xenosaga]] series now in the hands of an ex-Square team known as [[Monolith Soft]] contain subtle, if not outright (as in the case of Xenosaga), themes of and references to Gnosticism.
 
−
*[[Dan Brown]]'s bestselling novel ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'' draws on Gnostic scriptures and modern re-interpretations of those works as well as a [[pseudohistory]] of christian faiths along the lines of ''[[Holy Blood, Holy Grail]]'.
 
−
* In her book "[[The Secret Magdalene]]", the writer [[Ki Longfellow]] explores the birth of gnosticism in her novel treatment of the life of Mary Magdalene, as well as in the life of Jesus - contending that both experienced "gnosis", which is also called "Christ Consciousness" as well as "Enlightenment".
 
−
* In her book "[[Piece By Piece]]", the musician [[Tori Amos]] explores the influences and experiences in her life that have shaped her musical compositions. In the first two chapters she explores the Gnostic belief that Mary Magdalene wrote the 4th Gospel of the apostles, this research would have a profound impact on her 2005 work [[The Beekeeper]].
 
−
* In the [[Marvel Comics]] universe, the origins of the Earth are described using Gnostic conventions, specifcally the Demiurge as the creator of the universe, and other ideas.  This view of the creation of the Marvel earth was expounded upon in the back-up features of the 1989 Annual issues of their comics, all part of the "Atlantis Attacks" crossover.
 
  
−
==See also==
+
The "classical" gnostic mythology posits a sort of prologue to the Judeo-Christian version of creation as described in the [[Book of Genesis]]. It speaks of an unknown God, defined as immovable, invisible, intangible, and ineffable. God is seen as being androgynous, both male and female, and "all-containing" or sometimes "the uncontained." God may also be referred to as the ''[[Monad]],'' or the first [[Aeon]]. In gnosticism, God cannot be accurately described in any positive sense through words; it is more possible to say what God isn't. It is only in experiencing God through ''gnosis'' that the Deity can be truly understood—but this, too, defies verbal description. For example, the Apocryphon of John states:
  
−
*[[Abraxas]]
+
<blockquote>He did not lack anything, that he might be completed by it; rather he is always completely perfect in light. He is illimitable, since there is no one prior to him to set limits to him. He is unsearchable, since there exists no one prior to him to examine him. He is immeasurable, since there was no one prior to him to measure him. He is invisible, since no one saw him. He is eternal, since he exists eternally. He is ineffable, since no one was able to comprehend him to speak about him. He is unnameable, since there is no one prior to him to give him a name. He is immeasurable light, which is pure, holy, immaculate. He is ineffable, being perfect in incorruptibility. (He is) not in perfection, nor in blessedness, nor in divinity, but he is far superior. He is not corporeal nor is he incorporeal. He is neither large nor is he small. There is no way to say, “What is his quantity?” or, “What is his quality?,” for no one can know him.</blockquote>
−
*[[Apocrypha]]
 
−
*[[Agnosticism]]
 
−
*[[Christian theosophy]]
 
−
*[[Christian Meditation]]
 
−
*[[First Council of Nicaea]]
 
−
*[[Gospel]]
 
−
*[[Zoroastrianism]]
 
−
*[[Esoteric Christianity]]
 
  
−
==References==
+
This original God went through a series of [[emanationism|emanations]], during which its essence is seen as expanding into many successive "generations" of paired male and female beings, called "aeons." Some gnostic texts posit 15-30 such pairs (probably the "endless genealogies" referred to in 2 Timothy, above). These can also be seen as representative of the various attributes of God. Collectively, God and the aeons comprise the sum total of the spiritual universe, known as the ''[[Pleroma]].'' One of the first of the aeons—according to one text—was the feminine counterpart of God.
 +
 
 +
<blockquote>His thought performed a deed and she came forth, namely she who had appeared before him in the shine of his light… the perfect glory in the aeons, the glory of the revelation, she glorified the virginal Spirit and it was she who praised him, because thanks to him, she had come forth. This is the first thought, his image. She became the womb of everything, for it is she who is prior to them all, the Mother-Father, the first man, the holy Spirit, the thrice-male, the thrice-powerful, the thrice-named androgynous one, and the eternal aeon among the invisible ones, and the first to come forth. ''(Apocryphon of John)''</blockquote>
 +
 
 +
In some versions of the myth, another of the first aeons was Christos, or Christ, who was later sent to earth as the savior. In others, Christ appears to embody several of the characteristics of the first aeons. One Valentinian list (the genealogies vary quite significantly) identifies the following generations of aeons:
 +
 
 +
*'''First generation''': Bythos or the Monad (the One)
 +
 
 +
*'''Second generation''': Caen (Power) and Akhana (Love)
 +
 +
*'''Third generation, emanated from Caen and Akhana''': Nous (Nus, Mind) and Aletheia (Veritas, Truth)
 +
 
 +
*'''Fourth generation, emanated from Nous and Aletheia''': Sermo (the Word) and Vita (the Life)
 +
 
 +
*'''Fifth generation, emanated from Sermo and Vita''': Anthropos (Humanity) and Ecclesia (Church)
 +
 
 +
*'''Sixth generation, emanated from Sermo and Vita''': Bythios (Profound) and Mixis (Mixture), Ageratos (Never old) and Henosis (Union), Autophyes (Essential nature) and Hedone (Pleasure), Acinetos (Immovable) and Syncrasis (Commixture), Monogenes (Only-begotten) and Macaria (Happiness); ''emanated from Anthropos and Ecclesia'': Paracletus (Comforter) and Pistis (Faith), Patricas (Paternity) and Elpis (Hope), Metricos (Maternity) and Agape (Love), Ainos (Praise) and Synesis (Intelligence), Ecclesiasticus (Son of Ecclesia) and Macariotes (Blessedness), Theletus (Perfection) and Sophia (Wisdom).
 +
 
 +
At this point in the gnostic cosmology, the universe was still entirely non-material. However, the emanations of God into increasing numbers of aeons led, eventually, to potential instability within the primordial universe. This reached a critical point with the appearance of the aeon most distant from the origin, [[Sophia]].
 +
 
 +
===Fall===
 +
Sophia's distance from the Original One produced a sense of anxiety and fear of losing her life, as well as confusion and longing to return to God. In some versions of the myth, Sophia attempts to surmount the rigid hierarchy of the divine nature, in order to approach close to God. In other versions, she imitates God by performing an emanation of her own, without her male counterpart. In both cases, this intransigence causes a crisis within the Pleroma, leading to the creation of the [[Demiurge]].
 +
 
 +
In the [[Apocryphon of John]], the Demiurge is referred to as Yaldabaoth, a "serpent with a lion's head."
 +
 
 +
<blockquote>And when she saw (the consequences of) her desire, it changed into a form of a lion-faced serpent. And its eyes were like lightning fires which flash. She cast it away from her, outside that place, that no one of the immortal ones might see it, for she had created it in ignorance. ''(Apocryphon of John)''</blockquote>
 +
 
 +
Sophia hides the Demiurge, but he later escapes. The Demiurge then creates the physical world in which we live. To assist in the completion of his task, the Demiurge spawns a group of entities known collectively as [[Archon]]s—the demigods and craftsmen of the physical world. Gnostic texts often ascribe them names identical with angels and archangels in Jewish and Christian scriptures.
 +
 
 +
At this point, the events of the gnostic narrative join with the events of Genesis, with the Demiurge and his cohorts fulfilling the role of the Creator and his angels. The Demiurge declares himself to be the only god, and that none exist superior to him. Thus, humankind became trapped in the Demiurge's web of material illusion, cut off from the true God and source of divine light.
 +
 
 +
===Redemption===
 +
 
 +
Regretting her action, Sophia managed to infuse a spiritual spark or ''pneuma'' into the Demiurge's creation. The savior (Christos) comes to Sophia and enables her to see the light again. Christos and Sophia work together to reawaken humans to the Truth. While Sophia remains in the Pleroma, Christos descends to earth in the form of the man Jesus to give men the [[gnosis]] they need to rescue themselves from the physical world and return to spiritual reality.
 +
 
 +
Three types of humans respond differently to Christ's message:
 +
 
 +
*'''hylics''', bound to the matter, the principle of evil
 +
*'''psychics''', bound to the soul and partly saved from evil
 +
*'''pneumatics''', free to return to the Pleroma if they achieve ''gnosis''
 +
 
 +
From this typology it can be seen that some human beings are destined to hell while some are predestined to salvation. This idea of predestination of a person to hell or heaven entered Christianity especially through the writings of the former [[Manichaeism|Manichaean]] [[St. Augustine]] of Hippo and was reaffirmed by the Reformers [[Martin Luther]] and [[John Calvin]].
 +
 
 +
Thus Sophia, despite her negative role in the tragedy of creation, plays a positive role in relation to helping humankind to reawaken from "forgetfulness" into the light of truth. In some cases she is seen as the spiritual female counterpart of Christ, the two working as a male-female unit:
 +
 
 +
<blockquote>The perfect Savior said: "The Son of Man consented with Sophia, his consort, and revealed a great androgynous light. His male name is designated 'Savior, Begetter of All Things'. His female name is designated 'All-Begettress Sophia'. Some call her 'Pistis' (faith). (The Sophia of Jesus, ''Pistis Sophia'')</blockquote>
 +
 
 +
Some gnostics not only rejected the Jewish God as the Demiurge, but consequently reinterpreted biblical stories so that the adversary of the Hebrew god became a hero. Thus, gnostics sometimes regarded the serpent in the [[Garden of Eden]] as a messenger of light who could help humanity free itself of the chains of the Demiurge, or Yaldabaoth. In this version of the myth, Sophia gives wisdom to humankind by way of the serpent, opening the way to ''gnosis.''
 +
 
 +
[[Seth]], the third son of Adam, was also an important figure in gnostic scriptures. He was introduced to the gnostic teachings by his father and/or his mother, and this knowledge has been preserved throughout the generations.
 +
 
 +
== Modern Gnosticism ==
 +
Although consistently repressed by the [[Roman Catholic Church]], western gnosticism continued to exist in various underground forms. After the [[Protestant Reformation]] and the advent of religious tolerance in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it began to resurface. The [[Occult]]ism of the nineteenth century has gnostic elements, for example. Hindu teachers from the East found common ground for their teachings among western students of gnostic ideas. By the late twentieth century, reformed gnostic churches and new age gnostic groups were commonplace. Specific examples include:
 +
 
 +
[[Image:Ancient-of-Days.jpg|thumb|200 px|Blake's "Ancient of Days"]]
 +
 
 +
*[[William Blake]], the nineteenth-century [[Romanticism|Romantic]] [[poetry|poet]] and [[art]]ist, was apparently well-versed in certain doctrines of the gnostics. However, Blake's personal [[mythology]] was complex, and the exact relationship between Blake and the gnosticism remains a point of scholarly contention.
 +
 
 +
*[[Carl Jung]] and his associate [[G. R. S. Mead]] worked on trying to understand and explain the gnostic faith from a psychological standpoint. The Jungian movement spawned wide interest in gnosticism.
 +
 
 +
*[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky]], founder of [[theosophy]], wrote extensively on gnostic ideas which permeate the various branches of this movement.
  
−
===Books===
+
*[[Jules Doinel]] "re-established" a Gnostic Church in the autumn 1890 in [[Paris]]. Founded on rediscovered Cathar documents with a heavy influence of Valentinian cosmology, the church used modified Cathar rituals as sacraments and had a clergy that was both male and female.<ref>See [http://www.gnostique.net The Eglise Gnostique Apostolique.] Retrieved September 5, 2007.</ref>
  
−
====[[Primary source]]s====
+
*Samael Aun Weor formed a partnership with Swami Sivananda of the Divine Life Society in India and founded the International Gnostic Movement, as well as several gnostic institutions in [[Latin America]].
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Robinson, James | Title=The Nag Hammadi Library | Publisher= | Year=1978 | ID=ISBN 0-06-066934-9}} (549 pages)
 
  
−
====[[Secondary source]]s====
+
*Several gnostic denominations exist in the United States. One of them is the Ecclesia Gnostica, with headquarters in [[Los Angeles]]. Another is the Apostolic Johannite Church led by Mar Iohannes, using traditional Christian rites with an gnostic interpretation. Iohannes is also president of the North American College of Gnostic Bishops, a group describing itself as dedicated to gnostic growth, while avoiding [[dogma]]. Mar Didymos I of the Thomasine Church has reinterpreted Gnosticism emphasizing critical thinking rather than dogmatism.
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Aland, Barbara | Title=[[Festschrift]] für Hans Jonas | Publisher=Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht | Year=1978 | ID=ISBN 3-525-58111-4}}
 
−
*{{Book reference | Author=Freke, Timothy and Gandy, Peter | Title=The Hermetica: The Lost Wisdom of the Pharaohs | Publisher=Tarcher | Year=1999 | ID=ISBN 0874779502 }}
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Freke, Timothy and Gandy, Peter | Title=Jesus and the Lost Goddess : The Secret Teachings of the Original Christians | Publisher=Three Rivers Press | Year=2002 | ID=ISBN 0-00-710071-X}}
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Haardt, Robert | Title=Die Gnosis: Wesen und Zeugnisse | Publisher=Müller | Year=1967 | ID= }} (352 pages)
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=[[Stephan A. Hoeller|Hoeller, Stephan A.]] | Title=Gnosticism - New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner Knowing | Publisher= | Year=2002 | ID=ISBN 0-8356-0816-6}} (257 pages)
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=[[Hans Jonas|Jonas, Hans]] | Title=Gnosis und spätantiker Geist vol. 2:1-2, Von der Mythologie zur mystischen Philosophie | Publisher= | Year= | ID=ISBN 3-525-53841-3}}
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=King, Karen L. | Title=What is Gnosticism? | Publisher=Harvard University Press | Year=2003 | ID=ISBN 0-674-01071-X}} (343 pages)
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Klimkeit, Hans-Joachim | Title=Gnosis on the Silk Road: Gnostic Texts from Central Asia | Publisher=Harper, San Francisco | Year=1993 | ID=ISBN 0-06-064586-5}}
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=Layton, Bentley, edited by L. Michael White, O. Larry Yarbrough | Title=Prolegomena to the study of ancient gnosticism (in The Social World of the First Christians: Essays in Honor of Wayne A. Meeks) | Publisher=Fortress Press, Minneapolis | Year=1995 | ID=ISBN 0800625854}}
 
−
*{{Book reference | Author=Longfellow, Ki | Title=The Secret Magdalene | Publisher= | Year=2005 | ID=ISBN 0-9759255-3-9}} (458 pages)
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=[[Elaine Pagels|Pagels, Elaine]] | Title=The Gnostic Gospels | Publisher= | Year=1979 | ID=ISBN 0679724532}} (182 pages)
 
−
* {{Book reference | Author=[[Elaine Pagels|Pagels, Elaine]] | Title=The Johannine Gospel in Gnostic Exegesis | Publisher= | Year=1989 | ID=ISBN 1555403344}} (128 pages)
 
−
*{{Book reference | Author=Williams,Michael | Title=Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category | Publisher=Princeton University Press | Year=1996 | ID=ISBN 0691011273 }}
 
  
−
===Audio lectures===
+
*[[Aleister Crowley]]'s Thelema system is influenced by, and bears major features in common with gnosticism.
−
*[http://www.bcrecordings.net/store/ BC Recordings] - Offers an excellent and extensive collecton of downloadable MP3 lecture by Stephan A. Hoeller on Gnosticism.
 
  
−
===Videos===
+
*[[Scientology]] has certain parallels with gnosticism in its emphasis on attaining self-knowledge and attaining the state "Clear."
  
−
*The Naked Truth - Exposing the Deceptions About the Origins of Modern Religions (1995)  ASIN: 1568890060
+
*Several contemporary Sethian movements emphasize channeled revelation from the spiritual realm, with varying degrees of connection to the traditional gnostic Sethian tradition.
  
−
==External links==
+
*Various New Age and Human Potential movements combine gnostic ideas with Jungian psychology, numerology, and other mystical teachings. Among them are a number of kabbalistic New Age centers.
  
−
===Ancient Gnosticism===
+
*Many gnostic themes can be found in the ideas of [[Marxism]].
−
*[http://www.gnosis.org/ Gnostic Society] - multiple texts on Gnosticism and a [http://www.gnosis.org/readlist.htm bibliography] of secondary reading
 
−
*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/gnostics.html Early Christian Writings] - primary texts
 
−
*[http://www.kheper.net/topics/Gnosticism/intro.htm Introduction to Gnosticism]
 
−
*[http://www.religioustolerance.org/gnostic.htm Religious Tolerance] - A survey of Gnosticism
 
−
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06592a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia Entry]
 
−
*[http://www.iep.utm.edu/g/gnostic.htm Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Entry]
 
−
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=280&letter=G&search=gnosticism Jewish Encyclopedia: Gnosticism]
 
−
*[http://www.theandros.com/pregnostic.html Proto-gnostic elements in the Gospel according to John] - Article in Theandros
 
−
*[http://www.gnosticweb.com/ Gnosticweb] - Article: Gnosis Through the Ages, Early Christian Gnostic texts to download.
 
  
−
===Modern Gnosticism===
+
==Notes==
−
*[http://www.johannite.org/ Apostolic Johannite Church]
+
<references/>
−
*[http://www.gnosis.org/ Ecclesia Gnostica]
 
−
*[http://www.gnostique.net/ French Gnostic Tradition (i.e. Doinel, et al.)]
 
−
*[http://www.nacgb.org The North American College of Gnostic Bishops]
 
−
*[http://www.egch.org Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica Hermetica] 
 
−
*[http://www.egliseduplerome.info Eglise du Plérôme - Cathar/Valentinian]
 
−
*[http:///www.gnosticsanctuary.org Church of Gnosis (Ecclesia Gnostica Mysteriorum)]
 
−
*[http://www.enemies.com/ The Gnostic Friends Network]
 
−
*[http://thomasinechurch.org/ Thomasine Church]
 
−
* [http://www.gnosticweb.com/ Gnosticweb] Samael Aun Weor group.
 
−
* [http://www.gnosticmovement.com/ The Gnostic Movement] Samael Aun Weor group.
 
−
* [http://www.mysticweb.org/ Mysticweb] Samael Aun Weor group.
 
  
−
===Gnosticism in popular culture===
+
==References==
−
*Frances Flannery-Dailey & Rachel Wagner, [http://www.whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/rl_cmp/new_phil_wakeup.html Wake Up! - Gnosticism & Buddhism in ''The Matrix''], an essay on Gnostic and [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] influences on ''[[The Matrix]]''.
+
* Aland, Barbara. ''Festschrift für Hans Jonas''. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1978. ISBN 3525581114
−
*Geoff Klock, [http://www.reconstruction.ws/043/Klock/Klock.html X-Men, Emerson, Gnosticism], an essay discussing Gnostic influences on ''[[X-Men|The X-Men]]''.
+
* Freke, Timothy and Peter Gandy. ''The Hermetica: The Lost Wisdom of the Pharaohs''. Tarcher, 1999. ISBN 0874779502
 +
* Freke, Timothy and Peter Gandy. ''Jesus and the Lost Goddess: The Secret Teachings of the Original Christians''. Three Rivers Press, 2002. ISBN 000710071X
 +
* Haardt, Robert. ''Die Gnosis: Wesen und Zeugnisse''. Müller, 1967.
 +
* Hoeller, Stephan A. ''Gnosticism - New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner Knowing''. Wheaton, IL: Quest Books, 2002. ISBN 0835608166
 +
* Jonas, Hans. ''Gnosis und spätantiker Geist'' vol. 2 (1993): 1-2. ISBN 3525538413
 +
* Jonas, Hans.''The Gnostic Religion''. Beacon, 2001. ISBN 0807058017
 +
* King, Karen L. ''What is Gnosticism?'' Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003. ISBN 067401071X
 +
* Klimkeit, Hans-Joachim. ''Gnosis on the Silk Road: Gnostic Texts from Central Asia''. San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993. ISBN 0060645865
 +
* Layton, Bentley. ''Prolegomena to the Study of Ancient Gnosticism (in The Social World of the First Christians: Essays in Honor of Wayne A. Meeks)''. Edited by L. Michael White and O. Larry Yarbrough. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995. ISBN 0800625854
 +
* Longfellow, Ki. ''The Secret Magdalene''. Brattleboro, VT: Eio Books, 2005. ISBN 0975925539
 +
* Pagels, Elaine. ''The Gnostic Gospels''. New York: Vintage Books, 1979. ISBN 0679724532
 +
* Pagels, Elaine. ''The Johannine Gospel in Gnostic Exegesis''. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 1989. ISBN 1555403344
 +
* Robinson, James. ''The Nag Hammadi Library''. New York: Harper & Row, 1978. ISBN 0060669349
 +
* Williams, Michael. ''Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category''. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1996. ISBN 0691011273
  
−
===Gnostic blogs===
+
==External links==
−
*[http://weblog.bergersen.net/terje/ inTerjeCted, weblog of Norwegian Gnostic Terje Bergersen]
+
All links retrieved June 23, 2017.
−
*[http://www.snant.com/fp/ fantastic planet, blog featuring Gnostic philosophy on events political, fortean and otherwise interesting]
 
−
*[http://egina.blogspot.com/ Ecclesia Gnostica in Nova Albion, blog of Jordan Stratford, a priest in The Apostolic Johannite Church]
 
−
*[http://homoplasmate.blogspot.com/ Homoplasmate, "A forum for the discussion of Gnosticism and Gnostic Christianity"]
 
−
*[http://noeticapprehension.blogspot.com/  Ecclesiastical Gnosis-Personal Reflections, weblog of Bishop Shaun McCann of The Apostolic Johannite Church]
 
−
*[http://www.enormousfictions.com/ Enormous Fictions: A website exploring Gnosticism, creativity, culture and various other ideas]
 
  
−
===Discussion groups and email lists===
+
*[http://www.gnosis.org/ The Gnosis Archive]
−
*[http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gnosticism2/ gnosticism2 - Learn the history and ideas of Gnostics]
+
*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/gnostics.html Gnostics, Gnostic Gospels, & Gnosticism] at Early Christian Writings
−
*[http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eglisegnostique/ eglisegnostique - Eglise Gnostique, share information, discuss issues, network]
+
*[http://www.kheper.net/topics/Gnosticism/intro.htm Introduction to Gnosticism] by M. Alan Kazlev
 +
*[http://www.religioustolerance.org/gnostic.htm Gnosticism: Ancient and Modern] &ndash; Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance (ReligiousTolerance.org)
 +
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06592a.htm Gnosticism] at the Catholic Encyclopedia
 +
*[http://www.iep.utm.edu/g/gnostic.htm Gnosticism] &ndash; Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
 +
*[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=280&letter=G&search=gnosticism Gnosticism] &ndash; Jewish Encyclopedia
 +
*[http://www.johannite.org/ Apostolic Johannite Church]
 +
*[http://www.gnostique.net/ French Gnostic Tradition (i.e. Doinel, et al.)]  
 +
*[http://www.nacgb.org The North American College of Gnostic Bishops]
 +
*[http:///www.gnosticsanctuary.org The Gnostic Sanctuary]  
  
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[[Category:Gnosticism|*]]
 
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[[Category:Ancient Roman Christianity]]
 
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[[Category:New Testament Apocrypha]]
 
  
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{{Link FA|eo}}
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[[Category: Philosophy and religion]]
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[[Category: Religion]]
  
 
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[[Category: Philosophy and religion]]  [[Category: Religion]]
 

Latest revision as of 19:08, 31 December 2023

Gnosticism is a general term describing various mystically-oriented groups and their teachings, which were most prominent in the first few centuries of the Common Era. It is also applied to later and modern revivals of these teachings. The term gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, gnosis (γνώσις), referring to esoteric consciousness, which is claimed by gnostics to be the key to unlocking transcendent understanding, self-realization, and/or unity with God.

The origins of gnosticism are not clearly known, but there is general agreement that threads of the teachings must have arisen somewhere in what is today known as the Middle East and Asia Minor—areas in which several cultures could converge and synthesize. Many scholars find the roots of gnosticism in Neoplatonism, which similarly devalues matter and regards the spirit as the true reality. A minority of scholars believe it to be of eastern origin because of its similarities to Buddhist ideas of enlightenment, while others believe it has Mesopotamian or Jewish roots. Gnostic groups became popular around the same time and often in the same places that Christianity did.

Gnosticism was widespread within the early Christian church until the gnostics were expelled in the second and third centuries C.E. Gnosticism was one of the first doctrines to be specifically declared a heresy and gnostic movements were often persecuted as a result. Gnostic groups also suffered under Islamic regimes. The response of orthodoxy to gnosticism significantly defined the evolution of Christian doctrine and church order. After gnostic and orthodox Christianity parted, gnostic Christianity continued as a separate movement in some areas for centuries. However some modern theologians think that several gnostic doctrines were absorbed by Christianity. Gnosticism has reappeared in various forms throughout history and into the contemporary era.

Central to many gnostic beliefs is a dualistic view of the universe, in which matter was seen as essentially illusory while spirit is the only true reality. Thus Christian gnostics emphasized spiritual knowledge and experience, rather than faith and the sacraments of the church, as the key to salvation or unity with God. Jesus, whom gnostics believe came as pure spirit, is set in stark contrast to the Old Testament Creator-God, who as the "Demiurge," the source of the material world, is not the true God. Another pillar of gnostic belief is that salvation lies in attaining gnosis, esoteric knowledge kept secret to all but the initiated. Other ideas, believed by all or some gnostic groups, include: the spiritual (not physical) nature of Jesus' resurrection; that Jesus did not possess a physical body; the femininity of the Holy Spirit (and/or other affirmation of male-female essentials); and that gnostic enlightenment liberates a person from moral constraints.

Probably no single gnostic person or school of thought has believed all of these diverse ideas. Furthermore, a number of heterodox groups and beliefs have been labeled "gnostic" yet have only slender resemblance to the main currents of gnostic thought.

Despite the centuries of historical submersion, gnosticism raises issues that are still important today. Amongst the gnostic ideas, some, no doubt, are believed and actively discussed among the widely divergent schools of thought within contemporary Christianity, while others of the ideas would be uniformly rejected. Some of the ideas are quite resonant with aspects of New Age thought and with aspects of some eastern religions.

Sources

There are two main historical sources for information on gnosticism: critiques by ancient orthodox Church Fathers and the original gnostic writings themselves.

Gnostics were prolific producers of sacred literature whose works of gnostic scripture far outnumbered written orthodox Christian scripture. Due to the Christian policy of destroying heretical books, however, no early gnostic literature was available except in the form of quotations in the writings of Church Fathers until the late nineteenth and the twentieth centuries. Scholars in the nineteenth century devoted considerable effort to collecting the scattered references in the works of opponents and reassembling gnostic materials.

Several important finds of gnostic manuscripts have been made since, most importantly the Nag Hammadi library. Although we now possess a large collection of gnostic texts, they are still often difficult to relate to the history of gnosticism, due to the esoteric nature of gnostic teaching and difficulties of identifying which teachers or sects were associated with particular texts.

History

Early Jewish Gnosticism

Some scholars, notably Gershom Scholem, believe that Jewish gnosticism predated its Christian counterpart. There is indeed some evidence of Jewish mysticism in the pre-Christian era. This can be seen for example in the philosophical writings of Philo of Alexandria, the revelations of Ezekiel (which produced a vast quantity of later kabbalistic speculation), the apocalyptic sections of the Book of Daniel, and detailed explanations about the angelic world in the apocryphal Book of Enoch. The latter certainly contributed to gnostic descriptions and names of the archons, aeons, etc. (See "Gnostic Cosmology" below).

However, the data supporting a specifically gnostic Jewish worldview during this period is sparse. In later centuries, the works of the kabbalah clearly indicate a type of Jewish gnosticism. It has yet to be demonstrated, however, that this literature did not evolve out the interaction between gnostics and Jews, rather than springing from Judaism itself.

Christian tradition—especially the writings of Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Hippolytus—blames the Jewish or Samaritan "sorcerer" Simon Magus as the originator of gnosticism. The Church Fathers described him as founding a gnostic sect that practiced antinomianism—the doctrine that moral laws did not apply to one who had attained salvation or enlightenment. According to the Book of Acts, this Simon was simply a magician whose sin was that he wanted to buy the power of the Holy Spirit for personal gain. It is impossible to say for certain whether his teachings might have constituted a type of gnosticism, Jewish or otherwise.

Christian Gnosticism

Gnosticism can be viewed as one of the three main branches of early Christianity. The others are Jewish Christianity, which was practiced by the disciples of Jesus; and Pauline Christianity, which rejected Jewish traditions. German biblical historian Adolf von Harnack said that while Paul's teachings represented the hellenization of the original Jewish Christianity, gnosticism represented its "extreme hellenization."[1]

For some time, Pauline Christianity and gnostic Christianity coexisted. Gradually, the teachings of the two groups appear to have become more distinct. Certain of Paul's letters teach concepts in accord with gnostic teaching—such as the existence of a "god of this world" who has blinded unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4), the superiority of the spiritual man over the man of flesh (Rom. 8:5), and the existence of secret spiritual teachings that could not be shared with Christians who were not yet advanced enough to receive them (1 Cor. 3:1-2). So too, the Gospels speak of Christ as a pre-existent being of light (John 1:3-5), the triumph of light over darkness within the believer (Luke 11:36), and the devil as the ruler of the material world (Luke 4:6). Gnostic teachers made great use both of Paul's letters and the gospels, especially Luke and John.

Later Christian scriptures, however, directly attack gnosticism. For example:

  • 1 Timothy 1:3-4: "Stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies." The letter urges Timothy to "Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge (gnosis), which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith." (6:20-21)
  • 2 John 7: "For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh; such a one is a deceiver and an antichrist." This passage warns against the gnostic teaching that Jesus was entirely a being of light, whose physical body (and its suffering) was only illusory.
  • The short Letter of Jude was written to warn of "certain men… who have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality…" (1:4)—a probable reference to gnostic teachers who allegedly taught that Christians could dispense not only with the Jewish kosher and circumcision laws, but also with the commandments against adultery and fornication.

Thus, various gnostic and semi-gnostic sects worked within mainline Christian groups. One such group has been named by contemporary scholars as the "School of Thomas"—those who read the Gospel of Thomas, accepted Jesus as a teacher of mystical truth rather than as a savior who atoned for their sins, and believed the resurrection to be spiritual rather than physical.

An important Christian semi-gnostic leader was Marcion, a mid-second century teacher who gained a significant following in the Church of Rome. Marcion accepted the gnostic proposition that the Hebrew Creator-God was actually the Demiurge described in gnostic literature, and thus a different being from the heavenly father of Jesus Christ. He proposed that the Hebrew Bible scriptures should be rejected by Christians, while accepting only a shortened version of the Gospel of Luke and the letters of Paul as authoritative.

The church's rejection of Marcionism resulted in three important developments: Christianity's formal acceptance of the Jewish God as identical with the God of Christianity, the adoption of the Hebrew Bible, and the creation of lists of authorized Christian scriptures that eventually became the New Testament canon. The church also created creeds and other liturgical formulas to weed out gnostic ideas. For example, the Apostles' Creed specifies that God the Father is the "creator of heaven and earth," thus refuting the gnostic/marcionite idea that the creator of the material world was not God but the Demiurge. It further states that Jesus "suffered" under Pontius Pilate, thus refuting the gnostic idea that Christ did not suffer because he was not tied to his physical body. Furthermore, the creed's affirmation of belief in "the resurrection of the body" refutes the gnostic belief that the resurrection was spiritual, not physical, etc.

Valentinus, Basilides and the Sethians

The second century Christian gnostic teacher of widest renown was Valentinus, who was to found his own school of gnosticism in both Alexandria and Rome. According to Tertullian, Valentinus had been a significant figure in the Roman church at one time. He claimed to have received a revelation directly from the Logos. His human instructor was a certain Theudas, who in turn had supposedly received secret knowledge passed on to him by the Apostle Paul. According to Irenaeus, Valentinus was the author of the Gospel of Truth.

Valentinus lived from about 100–175 C.E. While in Alexandria, where he was born, Valentinus probably would have had contact with another major gnostic teacher, Basilides, and may have been influenced by him. The followers of Basilides can be viewed as forming a distinct sect from the Valentinians, although their views in many ways overlapped. The basic outline of Valentian mythology is summarized in "Gnostic Cosmology" below.

Valentinian gnosticism flourished throughout the early centuries of the common era, and the group's Christian opponents make its vitality clear. A list or heretics composed in 388 C.E., against whom Emperor Constantine I intended legislation, includes the Valentinians. Valentinus' students elaborated on the teachings and materials they received from him. Several varieties of their central myth are known.

Valentinian works probably make up a significant part of the Nag Hammadi library, although some analysts identify the collection's "Sethian" literature as coming from a separate gnostic sect. Several other gnostic groups existed as well, although the evidence for them comes mostly from their opponents. For example, "Ophites" is a blanket term referring to various gnostic sects of this period. Included among them were both the Sethians and the Naasseners, the latter supposedly honoring the Demiurge, whom they identified with the serpent of Genesis, as a hero.

Manichaeism

Manichaeism was a distinct gnostic religion that originated in third century Babylon, a province of Persia at the time, eventually reached from North Africa to China. Named after its prophet, Mani, its teachings moved west into Syria, Northern Arabia, Egypt and North Africa, where the future Saint Augustine was a member from 373-382. From Syria it progressed into Palestine, Asia Minor, and Armenia. There is evidence for Manicheans in Rome and Dalmatia in the fourth century, and also in Gaul and Spain. Many of the members of earlier Christian gnostic sects may have drifted into the orbit of Manichaeism. It possessed an organized clergy, liturgies, scriptures, and monasteries.

A characteristic principle of Manichean theology is its dualism. Mani postulated two natures that existed from the beginning: light and darkness. The Manichees attempted to include various religious traditions in their faith, including Christian gnosticism. Mani described himself as a "disciple of Jesus Christ."

Manichaeism was attacked by imperial edicts, church councils, and polemical writings by critics such as Augustine, but the religion remained strong in the western Roman Empire until the sixth century. In Islamic lands, which normally tolerated both Christianity and Judaism, it was repressed as a form of paganism. In the early years of the Arab conquest, however, Manichaeism found followers in Persia and flourished especially in Central Asia. There, in 762, Manichaeism became the state religion of the Uigar Empire.

The scriptures of Manichaeism were lost until the modern era. However, in the early 1900s, German scholars excavated the ancient site of the Manichaean Uigur Kingdom near Turfan, in Chinese Turkestan, and uncovered hundreds of pages of lost Manichaean scriptures, which are now available in translation.[2]

Medieval Gnosticism

Gnosticism, probably including Manichaeism, exerted an important later influence in the west through the emergence of the Paulicians, Bogomils and Cathari in the middle ages. The Cathari, also called Abigensians, controlled significant areas of Southern France during the twelfth century. Through the Inquisition and the Albigensian Crusade, these gnostic movements were ruthlessly stamped out as heresy by the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, gnosticism was forced underground.

Unfounded accusations of gnosticism were leveled against the Knights Templar, Freemasons, and other disfavored groups. Gnostic ideas can be seen to some extent in the works of alchemists, Rosicrucians and other assorted mystics.

Mandaeanism

A gnostic sect with ancient roots, Mandaeanism is still practiced in small numbers, in parts of southern Iraq and the Iranian province of Khuzestan. The name of the group derives from the term: Mandā d-Heyyi which roughly means "knowledge of life." Although its exact chronological origins are not known, the group looks to John the Baptist as a central figure and teacher. Frequent ritual immersions and vegetarianism play a important part in Mandaean practice. Unlike Christian gnosticism and Manichaeism, Mandaeanism rejects Jesus of Nazareth as teacher of truth, believing him to be false prophet who perverted the teachings of the Baptist.

Significant amounts of early Mandaean scripture survive in the modern era. The primary source text, known as the Genzā Rabbā, has portions identified by some scholars as having been copied as early as the second century C.E. In recent times, the Mandaeans were severely repressed under the regime of Saddam Hussein. With the fall of Saddam, they were legally free to practice their religion in public, but reported significant persecution by non-governmental forces, especially Shiite Muslims, who consider them to be pagan infidels rather than "People of the Book."

Kabbalism

The Jewish tradition known as the kabbalah is a mysticism that is firmly grounded in Jewish monotheism. Nevertheless, some of its literature shows gnostic characteristics. Kabbalists share with gnostics a belief in divine emanations originating from the original God—"the infinite" (Hebrew Ein Sof אין סוף) and extending into the created world; these are called the ten "vessels," or Sefirot. Their concept of the Shekhinah (already an orthodox Jewish concept) as manifesting God's feminine aspect parallels gnosticism's interest in the Divine Feminine.

Among the major kabbalistic texts is the Bahir (“The Brightness”), which was written in Provence in the twelfth century. Some scholars recognize influences from the gnostic Cathari, who were flourishing in the area. The book's characterization of the feminine aspect of God—the Shekhinah—resembles the gnostic Sophia, for example.

Recently, kabbalism has experienced a resurgence in orthodox Jewish circles, and has also found popularity among secular Jews. It has also gained interest among gentiles because of its flexibility and accordance with certain New Age ideas.

Gnostic Christian Teachings

Many gnostic sects were made up of Christians who embraced mystical theories of the nature of Jesus. The Gospel of Thomas, an early semi-gnostic collection of Jesus' sayings that was apparently well known, represents this tendency. In this account, Jesus institutes no sacraments, and his death and resurrection are never mentioned. His role is not to die for mankind's sins, but to impart knowledge to those of his disciples who are able to receive it. "Whoever discovers the interpretation of these sayings," the gospel begins, "will not taste death." Thus it is not by faith in Jesus, but by knowing the true meaning of his teachings, that the believer will enter into eternal life.

While gnosticism was a highly diverse and flexible phenomenon, certain elements can be identified as typifying the movement in its Christian manifestation.

  • Gnostics tended toward a dualistic view in which matter was seen as essentially illusory.
  • Christian gnostics emphasized spiritual knowledge and experience, rather than faith and the sacraments of the church, as the key to salvation or unity with God.
  • They tended to deny the physical resurrection of Jesus, believing this event to be purely spiritual in nature.
  • By the mid-second century, Christian gnostics often believed that the God of the Jews was a different, lower being from the True God, having come into existence through the Fall of Sophia (see "Gnostic Cosmology" below).

Many gnostics were highly disciplined and ascetic. Others, however, were accused of teaching that gnosis liberates a person from moral constraint. Many believed in a doctrine known as docetism, the teaching that Jesus only appeared to possess a physical body. It was against this doctrine that John 1:7 famously objects when it states:

Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.

Various gnostic groups taught other doctrines which were rejected by the orthodox church, including:

  • that God is androgynous (embracing both masculinity and femininity)
  • that God himself is not a trinity but a unity
  • that the trinity which emerged from God is Father, Mother, and Son
  • that certain disciples (such as Thomas or Mary Magdalene) received special knowledge from Jesus, which was withheld from less enlightened disciples such as Peter
  • that women can administer baptism and act as priests

Some gnostics, in common with such Neoplatonic philosophers as Plotinus, held matter to be evil. However, others believed that matter is not evil in and of itself. Rather, it is a person's identification with matter rather than spirit that leads one astray. Gnostics often taught a doctrine of the "bridal chamber," in which the human soul is reunited with God. In association with this idea, they were accused by orthodox Christians of engaging in licentious sexual rituals. Evidence from gnostic sources confirming this, however, is lacking.

Gnostic Cosmology

By the late second century, the gnostic movement had developed a rather involved cosmology. Although it varied widely and should not be oversimplified, a basic outline can be useful for our understanding:

Creation

This kabbalistic depiction of the Ein Sof (limitless God) encircled by its ten emanations has much in common with the traditional gnostic idea

The "classical" gnostic mythology posits a sort of prologue to the Judeo-Christian version of creation as described in the Book of Genesis. It speaks of an unknown God, defined as immovable, invisible, intangible, and ineffable. God is seen as being androgynous, both male and female, and "all-containing" or sometimes "the uncontained." God may also be referred to as the Monad, or the first Aeon. In gnosticism, God cannot be accurately described in any positive sense through words; it is more possible to say what God isn't. It is only in experiencing God through gnosis that the Deity can be truly understood—but this, too, defies verbal description. For example, the Apocryphon of John states:

He did not lack anything, that he might be completed by it; rather he is always completely perfect in light. He is illimitable, since there is no one prior to him to set limits to him. He is unsearchable, since there exists no one prior to him to examine him. He is immeasurable, since there was no one prior to him to measure him. He is invisible, since no one saw him. He is eternal, since he exists eternally. He is ineffable, since no one was able to comprehend him to speak about him. He is unnameable, since there is no one prior to him to give him a name. He is immeasurable light, which is pure, holy, immaculate. He is ineffable, being perfect in incorruptibility. (He is) not in perfection, nor in blessedness, nor in divinity, but he is far superior. He is not corporeal nor is he incorporeal. He is neither large nor is he small. There is no way to say, “What is his quantity?” or, “What is his quality?,” for no one can know him.

This original God went through a series of emanations, during which its essence is seen as expanding into many successive "generations" of paired male and female beings, called "aeons." Some gnostic texts posit 15-30 such pairs (probably the "endless genealogies" referred to in 2 Timothy, above). These can also be seen as representative of the various attributes of God. Collectively, God and the aeons comprise the sum total of the spiritual universe, known as the Pleroma. One of the first of the aeons—according to one text—was the feminine counterpart of God.

His thought performed a deed and she came forth, namely she who had appeared before him in the shine of his light… the perfect glory in the aeons, the glory of the revelation, she glorified the virginal Spirit and it was she who praised him, because thanks to him, she had come forth. This is the first thought, his image. She became the womb of everything, for it is she who is prior to them all, the Mother-Father, the first man, the holy Spirit, the thrice-male, the thrice-powerful, the thrice-named androgynous one, and the eternal aeon among the invisible ones, and the first to come forth. (Apocryphon of John)

In some versions of the myth, another of the first aeons was Christos, or Christ, who was later sent to earth as the savior. In others, Christ appears to embody several of the characteristics of the first aeons. One Valentinian list (the genealogies vary quite significantly) identifies the following generations of aeons:

  • First generation: Bythos or the Monad (the One)
  • Second generation: Caen (Power) and Akhana (Love)
  • Third generation, emanated from Caen and Akhana: Nous (Nus, Mind) and Aletheia (Veritas, Truth)
  • Fourth generation, emanated from Nous and Aletheia: Sermo (the Word) and Vita (the Life)
  • Fifth generation, emanated from Sermo and Vita: Anthropos (Humanity) and Ecclesia (Church)
  • Sixth generation, emanated from Sermo and Vita: Bythios (Profound) and Mixis (Mixture), Ageratos (Never old) and Henosis (Union), Autophyes (Essential nature) and Hedone (Pleasure), Acinetos (Immovable) and Syncrasis (Commixture), Monogenes (Only-begotten) and Macaria (Happiness); emanated from Anthropos and Ecclesia: Paracletus (Comforter) and Pistis (Faith), Patricas (Paternity) and Elpis (Hope), Metricos (Maternity) and Agape (Love), Ainos (Praise) and Synesis (Intelligence), Ecclesiasticus (Son of Ecclesia) and Macariotes (Blessedness), Theletus (Perfection) and Sophia (Wisdom).

At this point in the gnostic cosmology, the universe was still entirely non-material. However, the emanations of God into increasing numbers of aeons led, eventually, to potential instability within the primordial universe. This reached a critical point with the appearance of the aeon most distant from the origin, Sophia.

Fall

Sophia's distance from the Original One produced a sense of anxiety and fear of losing her life, as well as confusion and longing to return to God. In some versions of the myth, Sophia attempts to surmount the rigid hierarchy of the divine nature, in order to approach close to God. In other versions, she imitates God by performing an emanation of her own, without her male counterpart. In both cases, this intransigence causes a crisis within the Pleroma, leading to the creation of the Demiurge.

In the Apocryphon of John, the Demiurge is referred to as Yaldabaoth, a "serpent with a lion's head."

And when she saw (the consequences of) her desire, it changed into a form of a lion-faced serpent. And its eyes were like lightning fires which flash. She cast it away from her, outside that place, that no one of the immortal ones might see it, for she had created it in ignorance. (Apocryphon of John)

Sophia hides the Demiurge, but he later escapes. The Demiurge then creates the physical world in which we live. To assist in the completion of his task, the Demiurge spawns a group of entities known collectively as Archons—the demigods and craftsmen of the physical world. Gnostic texts often ascribe them names identical with angels and archangels in Jewish and Christian scriptures.

At this point, the events of the gnostic narrative join with the events of Genesis, with the Demiurge and his cohorts fulfilling the role of the Creator and his angels. The Demiurge declares himself to be the only god, and that none exist superior to him. Thus, humankind became trapped in the Demiurge's web of material illusion, cut off from the true God and source of divine light.

Redemption

Regretting her action, Sophia managed to infuse a spiritual spark or pneuma into the Demiurge's creation. The savior (Christos) comes to Sophia and enables her to see the light again. Christos and Sophia work together to reawaken humans to the Truth. While Sophia remains in the Pleroma, Christos descends to earth in the form of the man Jesus to give men the gnosis they need to rescue themselves from the physical world and return to spiritual reality.

Three types of humans respond differently to Christ's message:

  • hylics, bound to the matter, the principle of evil
  • psychics, bound to the soul and partly saved from evil
  • pneumatics, free to return to the Pleroma if they achieve gnosis

From this typology it can be seen that some human beings are destined to hell while some are predestined to salvation. This idea of predestination of a person to hell or heaven entered Christianity especially through the writings of the former Manichaean St. Augustine of Hippo and was reaffirmed by the Reformers Martin Luther and John Calvin.

Thus Sophia, despite her negative role in the tragedy of creation, plays a positive role in relation to helping humankind to reawaken from "forgetfulness" into the light of truth. In some cases she is seen as the spiritual female counterpart of Christ, the two working as a male-female unit:

The perfect Savior said: "The Son of Man consented with Sophia, his consort, and revealed a great androgynous light. His male name is designated 'Savior, Begetter of All Things'. His female name is designated 'All-Begettress Sophia'. Some call her 'Pistis' (faith). (The Sophia of Jesus, Pistis Sophia)

Some gnostics not only rejected the Jewish God as the Demiurge, but consequently reinterpreted biblical stories so that the adversary of the Hebrew god became a hero. Thus, gnostics sometimes regarded the serpent in the Garden of Eden as a messenger of light who could help humanity free itself of the chains of the Demiurge, or Yaldabaoth. In this version of the myth, Sophia gives wisdom to humankind by way of the serpent, opening the way to gnosis.

Seth, the third son of Adam, was also an important figure in gnostic scriptures. He was introduced to the gnostic teachings by his father and/or his mother, and this knowledge has been preserved throughout the generations.

Modern Gnosticism

Although consistently repressed by the Roman Catholic Church, western gnosticism continued to exist in various underground forms. After the Protestant Reformation and the advent of religious tolerance in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it began to resurface. The Occultism of the nineteenth century has gnostic elements, for example. Hindu teachers from the East found common ground for their teachings among western students of gnostic ideas. By the late twentieth century, reformed gnostic churches and new age gnostic groups were commonplace. Specific examples include:

Blake's "Ancient of Days"
  • William Blake, the nineteenth-century Romantic poet and artist, was apparently well-versed in certain doctrines of the gnostics. However, Blake's personal mythology was complex, and the exact relationship between Blake and the gnosticism remains a point of scholarly contention.
  • Carl Jung and his associate G. R. S. Mead worked on trying to understand and explain the gnostic faith from a psychological standpoint. The Jungian movement spawned wide interest in gnosticism.
  • Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, founder of theosophy, wrote extensively on gnostic ideas which permeate the various branches of this movement.
  • Jules Doinel "re-established" a Gnostic Church in the autumn 1890 in Paris. Founded on rediscovered Cathar documents with a heavy influence of Valentinian cosmology, the church used modified Cathar rituals as sacraments and had a clergy that was both male and female.[3]
  • Samael Aun Weor formed a partnership with Swami Sivananda of the Divine Life Society in India and founded the International Gnostic Movement, as well as several gnostic institutions in Latin America.
  • Several gnostic denominations exist in the United States. One of them is the Ecclesia Gnostica, with headquarters in Los Angeles. Another is the Apostolic Johannite Church led by Mar Iohannes, using traditional Christian rites with an gnostic interpretation. Iohannes is also president of the North American College of Gnostic Bishops, a group describing itself as dedicated to gnostic growth, while avoiding dogma. Mar Didymos I of the Thomasine Church has reinterpreted Gnosticism emphasizing critical thinking rather than dogmatism.
  • Aleister Crowley's Thelema system is influenced by, and bears major features in common with gnosticism.
  • Scientology has certain parallels with gnosticism in its emphasis on attaining self-knowledge and attaining the state "Clear."
  • Several contemporary Sethian movements emphasize channeled revelation from the spiritual realm, with varying degrees of connection to the traditional gnostic Sethian tradition.
  • Various New Age and Human Potential movements combine gnostic ideas with Jungian psychology, numerology, and other mystical teachings. Among them are a number of kabbalistic New Age centers.
  • Many gnostic themes can be found in the ideas of Marxism.

Notes

  1. ↑ A. Harnack. History of Dogma, trans. Neil Buchanan (New York: Dover, 1961).
  2. ↑ The Gnostic Society Library: Manichaean Writings.gnosis.org. Retrieved September 5, 2007.
  3. ↑ See The Eglise Gnostique Apostolique. Retrieved September 5, 2007.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Aland, Barbara. Festschrift für Hans Jonas. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1978. ISBN 3525581114
  • Freke, Timothy and Peter Gandy. The Hermetica: The Lost Wisdom of the Pharaohs. Tarcher, 1999. ISBN 0874779502
  • Freke, Timothy and Peter Gandy. Jesus and the Lost Goddess: The Secret Teachings of the Original Christians. Three Rivers Press, 2002. ISBN 000710071X
  • Haardt, Robert. Die Gnosis: Wesen und Zeugnisse. Müller, 1967.
  • Hoeller, Stephan A. Gnosticism - New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner Knowing. Wheaton, IL: Quest Books, 2002. ISBN 0835608166
  • Jonas, Hans. Gnosis und spätantiker Geist vol. 2 (1993): 1-2. ISBN 3525538413
  • Jonas, Hans.The Gnostic Religion. Beacon, 2001. ISBN 0807058017
  • King, Karen L. What is Gnosticism? Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2003. ISBN 067401071X
  • Klimkeit, Hans-Joachim. Gnosis on the Silk Road: Gnostic Texts from Central Asia. San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 1993. ISBN 0060645865
  • Layton, Bentley. Prolegomena to the Study of Ancient Gnosticism (in The Social World of the First Christians: Essays in Honor of Wayne A. Meeks). Edited by L. Michael White and O. Larry Yarbrough. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995. ISBN 0800625854
  • Longfellow, Ki. The Secret Magdalene. Brattleboro, VT: Eio Books, 2005. ISBN 0975925539
  • Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic Gospels. New York: Vintage Books, 1979. ISBN 0679724532
  • Pagels, Elaine. The Johannine Gospel in Gnostic Exegesis. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 1989. ISBN 1555403344
  • Robinson, James. The Nag Hammadi Library. New York: Harper & Row, 1978. ISBN 0060669349
  • Williams, Michael. Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Dubious Category. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1996. ISBN 0691011273

External links

All links retrieved June 23, 2017.

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