Gnosticism
(Revision as of 08:51, 19 Sep 2004)
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What is Gnosticism?
Gnosticism has recently seen a resurgence of popularity due to revival in interest from popular books such as The Da Vinci Code and works by scolar Elaine Pagels such as The Gnostic Gospels. The Gospel of Thomas is the most popular and most often discussed work from a collection of Gnostic codices found near Nag Hammadi, Egypt in 1945.
But was Gnosticism a specific tradition? At least, in the same way that Hinduism, Judaism and Buddhism are traditions with particular mythologies, rites and credos? Because Gnostic groups were often discouraged by the more powerful religious orthodoxies, Gnosticism has traditionally been seen either as the insane ramblings of enemies of the true faith, and thus not worthy of scholarship, or as esoteric codes that were accessible only to an elitist group of initiates. Any mention of Christian Gnosticism, for example, was preserved from records of the persecutions of the Church and thus heavily simplified and biased. Until recently, these were the only forms of documentation available, and a study of Gnosticism before the 1900’s would be comparable to a far-future study of the gay pride movement using the ancient remnants of 700 Club newsletters as the only source.
In 1945 this all changed with the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library. Apart from a few texts discovered in the 18th and 19th centuries, Gnosticism has never been able to speak for itself until now. Since it does not have a long history of scholarship, much of this research is still ongoing, and indeed, Gnosticism can mean different things depending on how you define it.
Some scholars take a view that Gnosticism is a meta-religion, in the sense that each of the world’s religions have a sect that is considered Gnostic. Thus one can have Christian Gnostics (of which there were many groups in the first three centuries CE), Jewish Gnostics (Kabbalists), Pagan Gnostics (mystery cult devotees, theurgists, Neoplatonists), Muslim Gnostics (Sufis, possibly Yezidis), etc. In this way Gnosticism is simply a kind of belief that takes the form of a more mystical, experience-based form of worship of one’s own particular religion. However, since this mindset rejects the power structure of a hierarchy of officials or priests, claiming only the personal experience of the divine as valid, it often exists alongside the more standard forms of religion as a heterodoxy – sometimes grudgingly tolerated, at others violently exterminated.
Other scholars attest that Gnosticism was a completely separate faith that stood on its own. Though it drew heavily from Pagan and Christian sources, the myth of the descent of Sophia, the Greek magical papyri, and inscribed gems with Gnostic deities pointed to the existence of an independent religion.
Yet other scholars insist that Gnosticism per se is a product of early Christian heresiology compounded by 19th century secular scholarship. It is worth noting that "orthodox" Christian scriptures refer to gnosis (e.g. Colossians 2, 2 Peter 1), and that no evidence exists that the antique sects called "Gnostic" by modern readers (or "so-called Gnostic" by antique heresiologists) identified with the term any more strongly than their "orthodox" rivals. The various "Gnostic" groups of late antiquity often had less in common with each other than they did with the emerging orthodoxy. Understood in this sense, the term "Gnosticism" is a source of more confusion than clarity when addressing religion in antiquity, although it certainly applies to the Gnostic (or "neo-Gnostic") groups beginning in modernity, who look to extra-canonical and recovered Christian texts, Hermeticism and Catharism as sources of sacred wisdom.
A Gnostic gem inscribed with the image of Abraxas, the Demiurge.
Gnostic cosmology and the Sophia myth
The myth of the descent of Sophia resonates with the influence of the Pagan mystery cults of the Roman empire. These cults, based around dying and resurrecting gods and goddesses, performed a progressive series of initiations in which the initiate took part in the passion play of their particular god. Alongside the dying and resurrecting myths of Osiris, Dionysus, Mithras, and Demeter stands the Gnostic myth of Sophia. These myths were not considered records of the ancient past nor were they simply fairytales for children, but were thought to contain and convey an allegorical truth that was a vital key to understanding the human condition and thus oneself.
The myth of Sophia begins with the departure of this divine being (not exactly a goddess in the traditional sense, but one particular part of a divine unity) from the realms of fullness and perfection to wander the spheres of chaos and the created universe. Heavily influenced by the Neoplatonic philosophy taught in the academies of the Hellenistic world, the world was seen as a series of nested spheres that represented different levels of reality: the material world, the elements, the heavens, the angelic beings, and so on. This is mirrored in the view of the makeup of human beings: the body, the intellect, the spirit, or similar levels of differentiation. Thus in both humanity and the cosmos there exists a sort of spectrum of levels of reality from the gross to the fine, the physical to the spiritual. The lower levels are not evil per se, but simply farther away from the divine source and closer to the material realm. They are simply reflections or emanations from the highest, like the light from a candle seen through many panes of glass.
Anyway, Sophia separates herself from the highest of spheres: creation, the godhead, divinity, perfection, and wanders farther and farther from this source until she finds herself in the lowest realms of creation: the world of manifestation, the end result of creation. However she realizes that she has lost her way and is unable to return to the realm of source, and is stuck in a world of matter and manifestation. In her grief she creates the elements of the world, along with a sort of mini-god to rule over her creation – the Demiurge. However she becomes trapped in the Demiurge's own design, who is unaware even of her existence and proclaims himself the self-created ruler of the world. The Demiurge is not particularly malicious by nature, but simply acts out of ignorance of anything beyond himself. He proclaims himself a god and claims that the world and everything in it is his creation. Sophia remains trapped in exile, and longs for a way to return to the godhead.
Sensing its own loss, the Godhead sends another part of itself to bring back Sophia. This is the Christos, whose purpose is to redeem the world and liberate Sophia. When he finds Sophia, an interesting split occurs. Part of Sophia is united with her counterpart (or perhaps reunited, as they are both part of the godhead) and returns to the divine source, finally complete, and part of her remains with the world to remind it of its divine origin, seeking to illuminate it to the knowledge of its true nature.
This is where the Gnostic steps in. Sophia is seen as the innate divinity of each person, buried beneath a physical body, societal rules, parental upbringing, and religious/political customs. By recovering one’s own divinity by means of introspection, theurgy, philosophy, initiation, etc. one returns to the source from whence one came. Christian Gnostics saw Christ as a savior from the true godhead, sent to deliver us from the Old Testament god – the Demiurge – and his arbitrary regulations and judgments. Pagan Gnostics – especially Neoplatonists – saw a necessary progression from human to divine as the purpose of one’s life and the fullfillment of happiness. Mystery schools framed this ascent in terms of Greek or Egyptian mythologies, and Jewish Gnostics used Kabbalah as a road map to lead one back to the innocent state of Genesis before the fall. The details, meaning and importance of the myth may have varied among different Gnostic groups, but this allegory of the fall and reclamation of Sophia (literally, “wisdom”) was usually present in some regard.
The influence of Gnosticism
Philosophies that were contemporary with Gnosticism and influenced each other:
Neoplatonism – A later interpretation of the writings of Plato, this philosophy described a highly ordered universe and placed high importance on learning and introspection. Many schools were established throughout the Roman empire and the Platonic Academy taught until it was forcefully closed by Christian emperors in the sixth century. Neoplatonism is often seen as the philosophical expression of the message of the Gnostic religion.
Neo-Pythagoreanism – This interpretation of the teachings of Pythagoras and Plato unified Pythagoras’ number-theory with Plato’s later metaphysical teachings. They held a strict dualism between the soul and the body, and like the earlier Pythagoreans they adopted a code of vegetarianism and asceticism. In many ways Neo-Pythagoreanism is nearly identical with Neoplatonism.
Mithraism and Christianity – these two extremely popular Roman religions had groups of adherents that interpreted the mythologies of Christ and Mithras as saviors of Sophia, and many people found that variants of Christianity and Mithraism worked seamlessly with a Gnostic worldview. All Mithraism and Christian Gnostics were persecuted into extinction by the sixth century, but remnants of temples to Mithras have been found as far away as London.
Influences of Gnosticism on later schools of thought
Hermeticism – Largely evident in late medieval and Renaissance records of allegorical alchemy and theurgy, the highly structured universe and the path from human to divine is reminiscent of early Christian Gnostic papyri as well as the teachings of Plato. A mythical figure, Hermes Trismegistus, evolved in this period as the original Hermetic sage whose writings held the ancient hidden knowledge of the Greeks and Egyptians.
Sufism, Mandaeanism, and the Cathars – In medieval times Arabic scholars had access to the writings of the Greek philosophers and some argue that Islamic mysticism had a particularly Gnostic or Platonic flavor. The Cathars were a sect in southern France in the 12th century whose Gnostic-tinted beliefs brought upon themselves the beginning of Inquisition. The Mandaeans most likely originated as a Semitic sect, and revere John the Baptist as the true prophet. They are the only remaining Gnostic sect founded in antiquity which still survives to this day.
Manichaenism – A form of Zoroastrian Gnosticism that was based on the life and teachings of a Persian sage named Mani. It flourished for over a thousand years and its adherents included nobility and rulers of Persia, Turkoman, Mongolia, and China. It was a worldwide religion that included a full structure of priests, scripture and ritual. St. Augustine and St. Ambrose were adherents of this religion before converting to Christianity. Its doctrines featured a struggle between forces of light and darkness, with humanity in the middle.
Charismatic movements such as Quakers and Pentecostals – They may be Christian but they place an unorthodox amount of importance on personal experiences of the Holy Spirit.
Modern Gnosticism – With the occult revival in 19th century France, several Gnostic churches were founded. The more recent discovery of the Nag Hammadi texts combined with the popularity of Neo-Paganism and the reconstruction of ancient religions, as well as the lack of vigorous persecution from the Church, is encouraging towards a revival of Gnostic religions. Thelema encompasses several Gnostic organizations, including Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica as an ecclesiastical body and Ordo Templi Orientis as an initiatory body.
Hermes Trismegistus, a legendary Gnostic sage to whom medieval alchemists attributed the wisdom of the ancient Greeks and Egyptians.
Recommended books and websites
Hoeller, Stephan A. Gnosticism: New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner Knowing. Quest Books, 2002.
Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic Gospels. Vintage, reissue edition, 1989. (read an excerpt at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/story/pagels.html)
--. Beyond Belief. Random House, 2003.
Robinson, James (ed.). The Nag Hammadi Library in English: Revised Edition. Harper San Francisco, reprint edition, 1990.
Rudolph, Kurt. Gnosis: the Nature and History of Gnosticism. Harper San Francisco, 1987.
Websites that are worthwhile if you don’t want to plow through a book:
http://altreligion.about.com/od/gnostic/
http://www.religioustolerance.org/gnostic.htm
http://www.meta-religion.com/Esoterism/Gnosticism/gnosticism.htm
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