Gnosticism
Throughout the modern age the subject of Gnosticism has stood in contrast to the concepts of traditional, orthodox Christianity. The subject of Gnosticism has served to represent the ideas and practices of Christianity that were not sanctioned by orthodox Christianity. Generally, we have come to understand that the world of Christianity has been assembled and constructed in the first five centuries after the death of Christ. In a sense, events such as the Council of Nicaea represent arbitrary decisions to compile the official church-sanctioned version of Christianity. Any writings or practices that fell outside of the formal circle of Christian doctrine became candidates for the label of Gnosticism.
Regarding the crux of studies in Gnosticism, most modern scholars agree that “the most significant discovery was the cache of papyrus books found in 1945 near Nag Hammadi” (King 6). In this collection of writings we find a variety of mystical and mythological treatments of Christ and Christianity. The word Gnosticism is not used formally as a way of categorizing these writings. Rather, the word gnosis, Greek for knowledge, has come to represent a body of extracurricular Christian documents that tend to focus on personal mystical experience as opposed to official doctrines of salvation.
In this sense, although there is such a thing as Christianity, there may not actually be such a thing as Gnosticism. In some sense, the label of Gnosticism is conveniently applied to Christian mysticism, specifically, the personal experience of illumination or enlightenment. Whereas the Christian church has deflected emphasis on personal enlightenment, the documents that come under the heading of Gnosticism have been largely held up as blas...
... middle of paper ...
...terms of the life of Christ, but we can categorize them as either official or unofficial.
For modern scholars, it is becoming increasingly meaningless to qualify Gnosticism as a coherent series of ideas. Rather Christianity is the coherent doctrine, and the absence of adherence to that doctrine is what qualifies texts for Gnosticism. In Gnosticism, God is a villain or a fool. In Christianity, God is the one true creator of life. In Gnosticism, the rulers created the Garden of Eden. In Christianity, we find the only version of the creation myth that is accepted as official. Even the Bible contains many instances in which individuals decided for themselves what was proper or divine. Adam rebelled, as did Eve and Cain. Yet, the difference is that whatever is in the Bible is officially Christian, and whatever is not in the Bible is what scholars refer to as Gnostic.
The Gospel of Thomas is considered to be a non-canonical collection of sayings of Jesus that reportedly have been dictated to the apostle Thomas. Some of the statements within the Gnostic Scriptures are extremely bizarre and could not have possibly been said by Jesus of Nazareth. In contrast, some of the statements parallel with parables or statements that are present in the New Testament of the bible. While not all are included, some statements that readers can conclude came from the Jesus of Nazareth are described and their parallel to the New Testament is explored.
One’s worldview is usually dependant on how the particular individual interprets life and its occurrences. Additionally, if one believes something to be so, it will be so to them. It’s all a matter of perception. However, which perspective is truly accurate: Agnosticism, Theism, or Deism? These three worldviews have been the subject of countless debates throughout history and that have yet to be concluded. The purpose of this philosophical essay is to suggest that theism is likely to be considered the correct worldview.
I will divide this paper in a few key points. The first is what Gnosticism is. The second is the
2. Orthodox Christianity has a history of trying to deceive humanity. In her book, Ellerbe proclaims that: "Orthodox Christianity fostered humanity's shift towards a world view that pays little heed to the idea of divinity." (Ellerbe 165). In addition, the Grand Inquisitor "...claims it as a merit for himself and his Church that at last they have vanquished freedom and have done so to make men happy." (Dostoevsky 1081).
Gnosticism was a prominent movement during the 2nd century that claimed that the demiurge was a lesser divinity held responsible for the creation of the universe. Gnostics taught and preached that matter is evil, and that salvation and return to the spiritual world can only be obtained through gnosis. Although the demiurge is linked to the material universe, which is evil, the demiurge itself is considered to be a consequence of something else. Sophia, or wisdom, an aeon of Christ Self-Originate, desired to create. The Secret Book according to John (BJn), written sometime before or around 180, describes John the Apostle gaining gnosis from Jesus. Formatted in the structure of a fairytale, the story of how Sophia disrupted harmony by engaging
Oxtopy, W., & Segal, A. (2007). A concise introduction to world religions. (1st ed., p. 258). New York: Oxford University press.
There are several aspects to consider when exploring the Christian worldview. There are many facets or denominations and they each have their own distinct beliefs and practices, but they all share the same fundamental beliefs. In this Paper we will explore the character of God, His creation, humanity and its nature, Jesus’ significance to the world, and the restoration of humanity, as well as my beliefs and the way that I interact with Christianity and my personal worldview.
“Christianity, along with all other theistic belief systems, is the fraud of the age. It serves to detach the species from the natural world, likewise, each other. It supports blind submission to authority[control of the masses].”(Zeitgeist 2007) In this essay, we will explore the different roots of religion and the plagiarism that Christianity and a number of different religions have committed.
Throughout history, Christianity has been molded, hardened, melted, refined and shaped into the different sects that are witnessed today. While many different controversies and thinkers have influenced Christianity, Gnosticism contains the supreme importance in influencing Christianity. The Gnostic Conflict influenced church history into the culture it is today by spurring much of the intellectual foundations of faith by making claims in the subordinationism of the trinity and the incarnation of Christ, as well as producing some of the first sects in Christianity through Marion. By claiming that there are lesser and higher divinities in the universe, this set the tone for much of the arguments made for subordinationism in the upcoming centuries.
For centuries now Christians have claimed to possess the special revelation of an omnipotent, loving Deity who is sovereign over all of His creation. This special revelation is in written form and is what has come to be known as The Bible which consists of two books. The first book is the Hebrew Scriptures, written by prophets in a time that was before Christ, and the second book is the New Testament, which was written by Apostles and disciples of the risen Lord after His ascension. It is well documented that Christians in the context of the early first century were used to viewing a set of writings as being not only authoritative, but divinely inspired. The fact that there were certain books out in the public that were written by followers of Jesus and recognized as being just as authoritative as the Hebrew Scriptures was never under debate. The disagreement between some groups of Christians and Gnostics centered on which exact group of books were divinely inspired and which were not. The debate also took place over the way we can know for sure what God would have us include in a book of divinely inspired writings. This ultimately led to the formation of the Biblical canon in the next centuries. Some may ask, “Isn’t Jesus really the only thing that we can and should call God’s Word?” and “Isn’t the Bible just a man made collection of writings all centered on the same thing, Jesus Christ?” This paper summarizes some of the evidences for the Old and New Testament canon’s accuracy in choosing God breathed, authoritative writings and then reflects on the wide ranging
Church History in Plain Language is written by Bruce L. Shelley. This work focuses on the history of Christianity from 6 B.C. to the current period. It covers some of Christianity’s greatest events, theologians, and the various subsection of Christianity. Other than the events leading up to the death of Jesus, I had very little knowledge of Christianity’s history. After reading through the book, I have gained understanding on the Christian Councils, scholasticism, Christendom, and modern trends of Christianity.
“Agnosticism is the philosophical position that it is impossible to know about the nature or existence of God.” The term was invented in 1869 by Thomas H Huxley from the Greek “agnostos”. So one can define the difference between an Atheist and an Agnostic is simply as the Atheist emphasizes that there is no God, whereas the Agnostic maintains only that he does not know. Agnosticism is not a position one can take like theism or atheism, rather it’s more like an rational process.
“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” According to Buddha, everyone needs some form of spirituality to define his or her life and existence. Webster Dictionary defines spiritualism as “a system of beliefs or religious practices based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead, often times through mediums.” Though this is one general definition of spiritualism, this concept is one that does not hold a conclusive meaning. Each and every single person has the ability and right to create and practice their own idea of spiritualism. From ancient times to present day, the term and practice of spirituality has transformed, particularly from region to region. Despite the discrepancies in practices and overall understanding of this idea, spirituality has had an effect and impact upon all of humanity since the creation of time. This religion that is believed to have been established in the early eighteen hundreds, after two little girls claimed to have the ability to talk to spirits, sparked interest in this spiritual movement, allowing it to spread rather rapidly over many geographical locations. Aside from being recognized as a religion, spiritualism is also believed to be a form of philosophy and a science in which spiritualists believe that there is life after death and try to demonstrate this through the ability of attempting to communicate with those that have passed on. Spiritualism was socially different from other religions in existence at the time because it presented followers with a more tolerant belief system that assimilated the principles and facts from a selection the world's religions. Spiritualism also made it acceptable for women to play a disti...
Lutzer, Erwin. The Doctrines That Divide: a Fresh Look at the Historic Doctrines That Separate Christians. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1998.
Spirituality can have many different definitions, depending on who is asked. It can be something as simple as looking for a higher meaning to life, or something so complex that one can base their beliefs, religion and overall life around it. There are several different ways to express one's spirituality; rituals, songs, dances, stories, and writings are all common methods of expression.