Have you investigated Gnostic Christianity?

[Greatest I am]

Have you investigated Gnostic Christianity?

The Gnostic wing of Christianity, if it can even be called that today, has quite a few differences to Christianity and Catholicism. If the old Gnostic Christians were here, they would hardly recognize what has happened to the original Orthodox Catholic Church or its various offshoots in Protestantism and Islam. The Gnostic Christian Jesus would have a fit and would be quite disappointed I think. I know that this Gnostic Christian is.

Please suffer through a bit of history.

The main differences that moved the old Christians to decimate Gnostic Christians and burn their scriptures was literalism in reading scriptures. They were also more patriarchal and were not about to grant equality to women. Much later, gays would also lose the equality that they enjoyed.

The Gnostic version of Jesus and his Father was that they were Universalist.That communistic view of the demographics of heaven did not go over well with those who had a more pyramidal view of what they wanted God to be. War was declared and my side lost.That is why we think literalism to be quite evil.

Proof is shown by the fact that it led to the Dark Ages, the Inquisition and all the other affronts to humanity that the Abrahamic cults have collectively done and continue to do to civilized society. Not too civilized but the Abrahamic cultists were what they were. If they were not sinners they would not be seeking a God to forgive them. My cult has no such need. We do not see us as ever condemned.

The Gnostic Christian Jesus, and the Gnostic Christians of that flavor, see a spark of God in all people including women and gays. That fact, to me, makes Gnostic Christianity a more desirable denomination of Christianity than all the rest. After all, if a religion cannot accept equality of humans as a starting place, then it cannot be a good religion. All souls are equal. That is scripture. That is why we connect equality to righteousness. If a religion cannot abide with equality of the sexes then to my mind it is not a just religion and is not worthy of the support of moral people.

Inequality is an immoral position and most of the Abrahamic cults are of that immoral persuasion. They take, --- he shall rule over you, --- to an immoral institutionalized position.

As the superior Catholic theology, it is my hope that Gnostic Christianity will eventually absorb the non-egalitarian and immoral Christian cults. I hope their members recognize that equality is the right moral system for all to live under, and that as religionists, to not actively support equality for all, would make any denomination of the Abrahamic cults more of a satanic cult than a God loving one.

Regards
DL

 

[Thana]

I haven't found much of a reason to. Gnostics have been dismissed as heretics, And I don't base my feelings towards Gnosticism on that, However it was what kept me from it at first.
Then their beliefs being absolutely contrary to the teachings of the bible convinced me that they have the right understanding about as much as the Catholics. And as a Protestant, I believe the Catholics couldn't be more wrong even if they started worshipping dirt.

In my opinion, The best denomination of Christianity is no denomination at all, But as I believe I'm the only one on this forum whereas there's quite a few Gnostics on here so go figure.

 

[Katzpur]

I haven't found much of a reason to. Gnostics have been dismissed as heretics...

Just curious: Who gets to determine what constitutes heresy?

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

Then their beliefs being absolutely contrary to the teachings of the bible convinced me that they have the right understanding about as much as the Catholics. And as a Protestant, I believe the Catholics couldn't be more wrong even if they started worshipping dirt.

The less you say about Catholicism, the better.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

Gnosticism is very interesting to me, but every time I try to get into it, it ends up making me depressed. You have a very rose-colored, unrealistic view of Gnosticism, too. There was plenty of sexism in Gnosticism and they did not view all souls as equal.

 

[Thana]

Just curious: Who gets to determine what constitutes heresy?

I'm not exactly sure, I imagine the Church has dibs on that, Though I think from a general point of view anything that goes against the fundamentals of Christianity.
But like I said, I don't base my opinion on Gnosticism over that.

The less you say about Catholicism, the better.

I didn't criticize Catholicism I just said what I felt about it.
Am I not allowed to do that?

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

I didn't criticize Catholicism I just said what I felt about it.
Am I not allowed to do that?

Just as you're allowed to express your opinion, I am allowed to express my opinion about your opinion.

 

[StarryNightshade]

I looked into Gnosticism a couple of years back, but there were a few things that prevented me from fully adopting it.

1.) The view that the material world is "evil" or "undesirable". Hinduism (in general) states that we shouldn't let just the material guide us, but also that enjoying life isn't bad either.

2.) The horribly New Age interpretation of modern Gnostic groups.

3.) It has a lot of sexism and homophobia, despite being a religion dedicated to knowledge and enlightenment.

 

[Katzpur]

I'm not exactly sure, I imagine the Church has dibs on that,

And which Church would that be? The Catholic Church, the LDS Church, the Lutheran Church, or some opther church?

Though I think from a general point of view anything that goes against the fundamentals of Christianity.

And those fundamentals are?

 

[Thana]

And which Church would that be? The Catholic Church, the LDS Church, the Lutheran Church, or some opther church?

And those fundamentals are?

The Catholic Church. I thought it was common knowledge that referring to the Church meant the Catholic Church.

The fundamentals are the death and resurrection of Jesus, His bringing the gentiles salvation, God being the one God etc.
Adding onto that, For example, A demiurge which completely discredits Genesis would probably be considered heresy.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

The Catholic Church. I thought it was common knowledge that referring to the Church meant the Catholic Church.

Well, us Catholics would like it that way. But it doesn't always refer to the Catholic Church. Orthodox Christians would use it to refer to the Orthodox communities in communion with each other, for example.

 

[Desert Snake]

'The Church' has to be specified. That's going to mean different things to different people. To me, just a vague title, it's too vague to tell me anything.

 

[gnostic]

Have you investigated Gnostic Christianity?

Yes, I have.

But most through their variants of scriptures, and not because of belief or of their rites and customs.

I am an amateur mythologist, so I was interested mostly interested in the Gnostic creation myths, hence I was far more interested in Barbelo, Sophia, Ialdabaoth, the Aeons and the Archons, and of course their versions of Adam and Eve.

I was particularly interested in the following works from the Nag Hammadi Library:

• Apocryphon of John
• The Hypostasis of the Archons
• On the Origin of the World
• The Apocalypse of Adam
• The Gospel of the Egyptians

That didn't mean I didn't look into the gospels of Thomas, Philip, Mary Magdalene, etc, or the The Thunder, Perfect Mind. It is just that other texts took most of my focus to the Gnostic literature.

I was always more interested in the stories of religious scriptures, and not boring ethics, morals, laws, customs and rituals.

 

[Pleroma]

I looked into Gnosticism a couple of years back, but there were a few things that prevented me from fully adopting it.

1.) The view that the material world is "evil" or "undesirable". Hinduism (in general) states that we shouldn't let just the material guide us, but also that enjoying life isn't bad either.

Not all Gnostics considered the material world to be evil or undesirable. The Valentinians had a very positive attitude towards procreation and marriage and their opinion towards matter and creation was neither positive nor negative instead it was neutral. They did not considered the God of the Old Testament, Jehovah to be an evil God instead they just believed he was an ignorant, jealous and a just god, also called the Law giver or the Mediator.

 

[Katzpur]

The Catholic Church. I thought it was common knowledge that referring to the Church meant the Catholic Church.

I actually did know what you meant. It's just that it was strange to me that you, as a non-denominational Christian, would think the Catholic Church had the authority to declare which doctrines were heresy. Since you're not a Catholic, you undoubtedly have some beliefs that would conflict with what "the Church" says are orthodox. My whole point was to show that the words "heresy" and "orthodoxy" are relative. What may be heresy to one group of Christians is orthodox to another.

 

[Thana]

I actually did know what you meant. It's just that it was strange to me that you, as a non-denominational Christian, would think the Catholic Church had the authority to declare which doctrines were heresy. Since you're not a Catholic, you undoubtedly have some beliefs that would conflict with what "the Church" says are orthodox. My whole point was to show that the words "heresy" and "orthodoxy" are relative. What may be heresy to one group of Christians is orthodox to another.

Exactly why I said that it didn't affect my opinion.
And they did have the authority at one point to declare what is and is not heresy, And at one point Protestantism was considered heresy.
I take what they think with a grain of salt, But I also won't deny our history and their influence on Christianity then and now.

 

[`mud]

hey Thana,
Please pass that shaker, and some pepper also,
the Catholics you know, given as little thought and spices as I can.
But as to the Gnostics, I believe that there's a bit of them in all of us.
Saul(Paul) did that to all of us, with the help of Matt.
Ahhhhh...nuff stuff, where's my gnosis ?
~
'mud

 

[ChristineES]

I've read plenty of Gnostic writings; their gospels, their creation stories, etc. But, no, I don't follow it.

 

[Jumi]

I have read the Nag Hammadi Library when I was younger. It's interesting that the Church wanted to destroy the books and the monks had to hide them to save them. I wonder what books still lay hidden, undiscovered?

 

[Greatest I am]

I haven't found much of a reason to. Gnostics have been dismissed as heretics, And I don't base my feelings towards Gnosticism on that, However it was what kept me from it at first.
Then their beliefs being absolutely contrary to the teachings of the bible convinced me that they have the right understanding about as much as the Catholics. And as a Protestant, I believe the Catholics couldn't be more wrong even if they started worshipping dirt.

In my opinion, The best denomination of Christianity is no denomination at all, But as I believe I'm the only one on this forum whereas there's quite a few Gnostics on here so go figure.

As a woman, I would have thought that since we are one of the few of the Abrahamic cults that give women full equality as compared to the misogynistic cults, that we would be of interest to you.

Oh well. I guess equality is not something you seek.

No worries, you will not get it if the mainstream religions have their way.


Regards
DL