Gnostic Writings Research Articles

A note on homer the raven

In the works of Clement of Alexandria pieces of Homeric verses surface from time to time as a testimony to a Christian truth or an interpretation of Scripture. Such instances in Gnostic writings presented evidence that these Gnostic writers treated Homer as their own prophet. It seems that in light of these accusations, Clement takes care to note that Homer did not understand the words he gave a voice to, any more than a raven does when he echoes what he hears. Furthermore, in all cases where Clement comes conspicuously close to implying a prophetic-like status for Homer, he does not fail to employ a phrase which explicitly divorces the poet from any theological authority.

Characterizing Gnostic Scriptural Interpretation

Abstract:Analysis of a range of Gnostic writings (the

Reconstructing Late Antique Psychology: Reversion, Conversion and Introversion of the Soul

The religious, theological and philosophical discourse in Late Antiquity concerning the human soul, the Greek psuchē , reveals a sophisticated and complex psychological language that was aimed at conceptualizing and articulating the act of conversion. The analysis of Gnostic, Orthodox Christian, and Neoplatonic writings in relation to the psuchē shows the cardinal role that this term played in formulating individual processes of mental transformation. Attributing active agency, mutability and relational aspect to the individual psuchē turned it into a unique conceptual device, necessary to define anew the human condition.

From Enoch to Seth: Primeval Patrons in Jewish-Apocalyptic and Christian-Gnostic Traditions

Second Temple Enochic writings, notably 1 (Ethiopic) Enoch and 2 (Slavonic) Enoch, played a major role in the development of the theology known as the “Two Powers in Heaven” through the ideas they expressed and the mystical practices to which they referred. Therefore, it would only be logical to expect that the figure of the patriarch Enoch had left his pseudepigraphical imprint on a significant number of gnostic writings, especially those produced by the Sethian branch of gnosticism in which such a dualism was radicalized and narrativized in the myth of the supreme invisible God and the Archon creator of this world. Actually, this was not the case, and although, on the one hand, the intertextual presence of Enochic themes, such as the story of the fallen angels or some peculiarities of the heavenly ascent, is undeniable, on the other hand, Enoch is never explicitly counted among the Sethian elect - with the exception of the Melchizedek tractate and the Pistis Sophia. This is a remarkable omission, which contrasts with the more positive role that Enoch continued to play in Manichaean writings. Such exclusion is also confirmed by the substitution in Sethian literature of Enoch with Seth as the author of the writings deemed worthy of being saved from the flood. This is a significant discontinuity in the post-Second Temple evolution of first Jewish, and then Christian gnosticism.

The Prayer of the Apostle Paul in the Context of Nag Hammadi Codex I

The first and perhaps most famous of the Nag Hammadi codices, first known as the “Jung Codex,” contains five gnostic writings, including the well-known “Gospel of Truth.” While most of the individual texts contained in Codex I have been studied intensively, less attention has been paid to the composition and logic of the codex as a whole, despite the fact that paleographical analysis shows that the contents of the codex were carefully chosen and carefully arranged. Particularly interesting is the role played by a brief prayer, ascribed to the apostle Paul, which the compiler of the codex used as an introduction to this collection of esoteric literature. In the hopes of contributing to the illumination of the logic underlying the compiler’s choice and arrangement of her material, in this presentation I will show why this prayer is such an appropriate introduction to the codex as a whole, and how it prefigures and subtly hints at the themes to be addressed in the other texts.

The Distinct Emotional Flavor of Gnostic Writings from the Early Christian Era

More than 500,000 scored words in 83 documents were used to conclude that it is possible to identify the source of documents (proto-orthodox Christian versus early Gnostic) on the basis of the emotions underlying the words. Twenty-seven New Testament works and seven Gnostic documents (including the gospels of Thomas, Judas, and Mary [Magdalene]) were scored with the Dictionary of Affect in Language. Patterns of emotional word use focusing on eight types of extreme emotional words were employed in a discriminant function analysis to predict source. Prediction was highly successful (canonical r = .81, 97% correct identification of source). When the discriminant function was tested with more than 30 additional Gnostic and Christian works including a variety of translations and some wisdom books, it correctly classified all of them. The majority of the predictive power of the function (97% of all correct categorizations, 70% of the canonical r2) was associated with the preferential presence of passive and passive/pleasant words in Gnostic documents.

Maria Madalena no Cristianismo Primitivo: Desafio para Reflexões Cristãs Modernas

This article has as its objective to initially present the situation that a women confronted in andocentric societies, localized in the Greek – Roman and Palestinian world, pointing to the existent dimensions of dependence, rupture and contradictions. The text reveals, based on Gnostic writings, the role that Mary Magdalene played in terms of leadership in primitive Christianity, and offers correlations for modern Christian reflections.

James the Just in History and Tradition: Perspectives of Past and Present Scholarship (Part II)

Part I of this article, published in CBR 5.1 (pp. 73-122), includes a general introduction to the scholarship on James the Just, discussion on James and the family of Jesus in the Gospels, Jesus' resurrection and the leadership of James, and a detailed survey on scholarly opinions concerning the so-called apostolic council and the conflict at Antioch (Acts 15 and Gal. 2). Part II of the article focuses on the study of traditions concerning James's ritual purity, his martyrdom, and succession, as well as his role in the Gnostic writings and later Christian evidence. The article concludes with reflections on the role of James the Just in present scholarship.

James the Just in History and Tradition: Perspectives of Past and Present Scholarship (Part I)

James the Just, the brother of Jesus, is known from the New Testament as the chief apostle of the Torah-obedient Christians. Up to the last quarter of the twentieth century, Jewish Christianity was regarded as an unimportant branch of the early Christian movement. Correspondingly, there was remarkably little interest in James. However, in the past two decades, while early Christianity has been studied as a form of Judaism, the literature on James has grown considerably. Now some scholars tend to assume that James was a loyal follower of his brother right from the beginning, and that his leadership in the church was stronger than traditionally has been assumed. Fresh studies on Acts 15 and Galatians 2 have opened new questions about the Christian Judaism of James and social formation of the community which he led. Part II of this article, to be published in a later issue of Currents, will treat the rest of the James tradition—James's ritual purity, martyrdom and succession, and his role in the Gnostic writings and later Christian evidence. It will conclude with reflections concerning James and earliest Jewish-Christian theology.

Kobieta - uczennica i nauczycielka w przekazach gnostyckich

Seven Gnostic writings were discussed in the article. They represent the mysterious teachings of the Savior, who passed it on to a chosen group of men and women. According to the author, these compositions reftect the factuai relationship of Gnostics towards women that is why they constitute an important argument for the issue of women's participation in Gnostic teachings.

The Fifth Gospel: The Gospel of Thomas Comes of Age

The Fifth Gospel: The Gospel of Thomas Comes of Age, by Stephen J. Patterson and James M. Robinson, with a New English Translation by Hans-Gebhard Bethge et al. Berliner Arbeitskreis fur koptische-gnostische Schriften. Harrisburg, PA; Trinity Press International, 1998. Pp.119. N.P. I hardly thought there was need for a new translation of the Gospel of Thomas until I read this one. The Gospel of Thomas was one of the first treatises of the Nag Hammadi Library to be published in translation, and several good translations already exist (by Robert McL. Wilson, Marvin Meyer, and the standard critical translation by Thomas O. Lambdin, among others). But this translation by the Berlin Working Group for Coptic Gnostic Writings (Berliner Arbeitskreis fur koptische-gnostische Schriften) under the leadership first of Hans-Martin Schenke and now of Hans-Gebhard Bethge, advances the grace and ease of translation more than any previous one. This English translation was prepared by the Berlin Working Group for inclusion in Kurt Aland's Synopsis Quattuor Evangeliorum (15th ed.) and is here presented in a further revised form. The translation tends toward demystifying the and rendering them in a more accessible wisdom language. Take, for example, the Introduction and the first saying, which are combined in the translation: These are the words that the living Jesus spoke. And Didymos Judas Thomas wrote them down. And he said: `Whoever finds the meaning of these words will not taste death.' Compared to Lambdin's translation (Nag Hammadi Library in English, ed. James M. Robinson), the secret sayings have become simply hidden words, while the interpretation of these sayings has become more straightforwardly to the meaning of these words. Effectively this translation strategy aligns these of Jesus with the larger corpus of gnomic literature as opposed to the more mystifying language that aligns them with the opaque language of Gnosticism. This translation strategy is evident in other as wellsayings 2 (be dismayed as opposed to being troubled) and 8 (sensible fisherman as opposed to wise) among many others. This translation also distinguishes itself by clarifying some of the more obscure and difficult readings of the Gospel of Thomas. Although scholars may disagree with certain readings, the general public will find them accessible. Two examples will illustrate this. First, Gos. Thorn. 27 renders the literal If you do not fast against the world of the Coptic as If you do not abstain from the world, you will not find the kingdom. The Berlin Group's translation goes directly to the meaning of the language rather than reproducing the Coptic literally into English. The second example is Gos. Thorn. 49, where the Coptic has been read more simply. The Berlin Group renders the saying as Blessed are the solitary ones, the elect. For you will find the kingdom. Lambdin's translationBlessed are the solitary and elect-implies that there are two groups, not one, that are blessed. …

The Original Doctrine of Valentinus the Gnostic

In the beginning On revient toujours a ses premiers amours. During the Second World War, in difficult circumstances, I tried to reconstruct the primitive doctrine of the Egyptian heresiarch Valentinus. The results of my exertions were published in the first issue of the journal Vigiliae Christianae (1947). This article was nothing more than a provisional attempt to unravel a tangled tale. But it so happened that it became basic, when Ptolemaeus' Epistle to Flora was published and the relation of his views on the Old Testament to those of his Master (Valentinus) were discussed; somewhat later, on May 10th 1952, the Jung Codex was acquired with five unknown gnostic writings which were held to reflect successive stages in the evolution of the school of Valentinus. Our basic presumption in editing these works was that Valentinus had been much more radical than his followers in the so-called Italic

Seth of De Terugkeer Naar Het Paradijs

Summary1. Literary sourcesIn the closing days of his life Adam sends his son Seth to Earthly Paradise in order to find the soothing Oil of Mercy. However, Seth receives a twig from the Tree of Life to be planted on Adam's grave. The Jews will use the wood for the construction of Christ's Cross (Jacobus de Voragine, Legenda Aurea, end 13th century).In 1962 Esther C. Quinn publishes the first monograph on the Seth-personage in the context of the Legend of the Crosswood. In 1977 A.F.J. Klijn studies the Seth personage as it appears in the commentaries on Genesis, in the apocrypha of the life of Adam, in gnostic writings. While the Jewish apocrypha already considered the Seth-personage as a new Abel and a new Adam, patristics also typified him as a forerunner of Christ. Created after the image of Adam, he also was the pivot in the apocrypha on the life of Adam and Eve after the Expulsion (Jewish Vita Adae et Evae (70 B.C.) and the christian Gospel according to Nicodemus (beginning 5th century). Two motives fr...

The Use of the Terms 'King' and 'Kingdom' in a Selection of Gnostic Writings in Comparison with theSongs of Sabbath Sacrifice

The Use of the Terms 'King' and 'Kingdom' in a Selection of Gnostic Writings in Comparison with the<i>Songs of Sabbath Sacrifice</i>

Gnostic Interpretation of the Old Testament in theTestimony of Truth(NHC IX,3)

Interpretation of the OT is a many-faceted thing in gnostic literature. The old view that Gnosticism implies a rejection of the OT has had to be considerably modified in the light of new discoveries. The Nag Hammadi texts have shown that the Gnostics made far more use of the OT than could have been expected on the basis of older premises. R. McL. Wilson, in a recent article, has pointed out that no less than seventeen OT books are quoted in the gnostic writings collected in Werner Foerster's anthology. To be sure, Genesis—especially the first chapters—is by far the most-quoted OT book. And it is obvious that the use made by the Gnostics of Genesis and other OT writings is hardly conventional, to say the least. Even so, it is of no use to scholarship simply to be satisfied with calling attention to the “perversity” of gnostic OT interpretation. For it is important to observe the manifold ways in which the OT is utilized in gnostic, especially Christian gnostic, texts. One can then attain a proper understanding of the role of biblical interpretation in the development of Gnosticism, as well as early Christian theology in general.

The Newly Discovered Gnostic ‘Epistle to Rheginos’ on the Resurrection: II

It is always somewhat precarious to speak about a Gnostic book and to assess its importance. Experience shows that some people, attracted by the very fact that a completely unknown book has been discovered, are more or less disappointed when they make their first acquaintance with one of these ‘Gospels from the Nile-sand’. Now this is a fairly general reaction; places marked in travel-guides with three stars very seldom meet with general approval except for snobs. I for one must always suppress a feeling of disappointment on entering a site of archaeological excavation of which I read glowing descriptions. But in the case of these Gnostic writings there is more that can explain the feeling I have mentioned.

The Terminology of Plotinus and of Some Gnostic Writings, Mainly the Fourth Treatise of the Jung Codex

The Terminology of Plotinus and of Some Gnostic Writings, Mainly the Fourth Treatise of the Jung Codex

Book Review: Newly Discovered Gnostic Writings: A Preliminary Survey of the Nag Hammadi Find

Book Review: Newly Discovered Gnostic Writings: A Preliminary Survey of the Nag Hammadi Find

GNOSTICISM AND CHRISTIANITY

New BlackfriarsVolume 42, Issue 488 p. 4-19 GNOSTICISM AND CHRISTIANITY The Nag-Hammadi Discoveries1 Joseph Bourke o.p. , Joseph Bourke o.p. Search for more papers by this author Joseph Bourke o.p. , Joseph Bourke o.p. Search for more papers by this author First published: January 1961 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-2005.1961.tb06843.x The text of a paper read at the Aquinas Centre, London, on November 10, 1960. This article is offered pot as an original contribution on the subject, which the author is not qualified to make, but as a synthesis of the conclusions drawn in certain of the more important recent publications. Notable among these is The Secret Books of the Egyptian Gnostics (Hollis and Garter, 1960; 42s.), by J. Doresse. This is the most complete and authoritative account so far available in English of the discoveries and their significance by the scholar who was the first to recognize that significance, and who has since shown himself to be a world authority on the nature, origins, history and influence of Gnostic literature in general, and of the Nag-Hammadi manuscripts in particular. Newly Discovered Gnostic Writings (S.C.M. Press, 1960; 7s. 6d.), by W. C. van Unnik, is in many ways the ideal short introduction for the uninitiated. It gives a clear account of the discovery, of the nature and significance of Gnosticism, and a brief description of four of the most important treatises, and it provides a useful bibliography. In Gnosticism and Early Christianity (Columbia University Press, 1959; 31s. 6d.) R. M. Grant tackles with courage and authority the vexed question of the relationship between Gnosticism and early Christianity. The signal merit of his approach is that he takes due cognizance of the various forms of Jewish apocalyptic as possible alternatives to Gnosticism proper, in assessing pre-Christian influences on certain areas of New Testament thought. Perhaps he slightly underestimates the importance of the idealization of wisdom in pre-Gnostic Judaism, as a common influence on both Gnosticism and the New Testament. Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Volume42, Issue488January 1961Pages 4-19 RelatedInformation

The Powers That Be. By Clinton D. Morrison. (S.C.M. Press; 9s. 6d.) - Newly Discovered Gnostic Writings. By W. C. van Unnik. (S.C.M. Press; 7s. 6d.)

The Powers That Be. By Clinton D. Morrison. (S.C.M. Press; 9s. 6d.) - Newly Discovered Gnostic Writings. By W. C. van Unnik. (S.C.M. Press; 7s. 6d.)