Do you know anything of the Gnostic faith?

Question

Whis is not Agnostic, as agnostics don't say there is a God or there isn't. While Gnostics say there is, and it can be proven through personal experience?

Anthony Silva

Answer 1

The original version of Gnosticism died out long ago. There have been several efforts to revive it throughout history, such as the Bogomils, the Cathars and the writings of William Blake. The Gnostic sects of today are reconstructions.

The core belief is that Jesus did not (could not) die on the cross because he was purely divine. His "resurrection" and "ascension" were actually a single event, an apotheosis indicating his return to a purely divine state. "Salvation" is not about an exculpatory "sacrifice" but a transcendence of the impurity of fleshly life through meditation on "secret knowledge" about the nature of Christ. We do not "follow" Christ but realize the "Christ" inside us.

There's a strong dualistic, anti-world streak in Gnosticism. They believe the "God" of the Jewish scripture was an inferior demi-god who lost his way and created the corruptible universe of matter. The "true" God had other pure descendants, most notably Sophia (often associated with Wisdom or the Holy Spirit), whose "Son", the Christ, manifested in the appearance of a human to show us the way to enlightenment. Some flavors of Gnosticism have Christ taking over the body of a human Jesus at his baptism and abandoning him at the cross to preserve the sense of complete separation between the pure divine and the degraded human aspects.

The Gnostics had mystical rituals to mark levels of spiritual progress. The baptism of water marked initiation into the general church, but there were baptisms of "air", "fire" (symbolic) and "spirit" as well. Historians point out the similarities of Gnostic practices to other "Mystery" cults, such as that of Dionysius, Osiris or Tammuz.

Again, the goal was enlightenment, transcendence, purification and separation from the corruption of material life. Gnostics tended to avoid sex and indulging in coarse, sensual foods. Some (notably the Cathars/Abigensians) believed in reincarnation and gave special honor and deference to those they felt were nearly done transcending. But the paths were individual, solitary. Students did not study and ascend as a group. Enlightenment wasn't something that could be "taught" in a classroom. This left them at a distinct disadvantage before the more organized orthodox church who took the scriptures at face value.

Gnostic scriptures tend to be more obscure, more obviously allegorical than the Christian canon. Jesus and the people he met are all more than merely historical characters. In the gospel of Mary Magdalen, Mary represents the believer who understands, rather than the literal-minded Peter. In the gospel of Judas, Judas represents the believer who understands the underlying meaning of his acts, not the superficial appearances. The Gospel of Thomas emphasizes the nascent divinity in every rock, tree and human, held back only by its inferior, material condition. (Some scholars point to John's portrayal of "Thomas" as an incredulous fool as evidence that there was a bitter rivalry between these branches of "Christianity".) Gnostic Christ laughs at the figure on the cross because people misunderstand, it is in the nature of matter to die, but spirit lives forever.

Gnosticism is a fascinating study, but it does not lend itself to community relationships, and its more esoteric theological doctrines can be just as obscure and complex as those of conventional Christianity.

Answer 2

I do know that Gnostics have a very Heremetic philosophy and believe that God is both internal and external. People who are Gnostic tend to be very open minded about the exact nature of God from my experience.

Answer 3

A little bit. I disagree with it.

One of the main points about the Gnostic faith is that it teaches that Christ never had a body. He was a spirit in something like a Halloween costume.

However, according to the Covenant of works in the old testament, a human must fulfill God's conditions, or we all go to Hell.

Jesus, being human (and God, but this is dealing with his humanity) did fulfill the conditions and he died for us.

If he was not human, but only a spirit, no human would have fulfilled the conditions, and we'd all be going to Hell. That is why I must disagree with Gnosticism.

If you want to know anything else, please specify.

Answer 4

Gnosticism is a whole different philsophy. It teaches you to use your MIND in order to try to apprehend the concept of God, and to do it similar to the way we Buddhists do it... analytical meditation ("be still and know that I am God") and study. Agnostics don't say "there is no god" outright, they just don't believe the concept can be PROVEN and therefore take no solid stand for or against.

"Gnostic" means "to know"... A + Gnostic means "don't know"...

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