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 Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:18 pm
Whats you're thoughts on Gnostic Christianity,i find it very interesting.
Its more open minded to things as well ^^
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:26 pm
to be honest I never heard of it.... so one moment *goes off to read up on it* from the very short info I got on it, it seems like a scientific form of Christianity... note I only read a short thing on it... so I could be wrong http://www.gnosticchristianity.com/
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 9:29 pm
Southern_cross_nemesis to be honest I never heard of it.... so one moment *goes off to read up on it* from the very short info I got on it, it seems like a scientific form of Christianity... note I only read a short thing on it... so I could be wrong http://www.gnosticchristianity.com/ Its more of a open minded thing,=P,but it does count on some of scientific,but to me i kinda do too,they prove things,but it doesn't really hurt,but its more of now we know kinda thing xD. I don't know im going to convert,but im gonna take this route,its a very open minded belief,not a dogma thingy ^^ lol,anyway it makes alot of sense xD.
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 11:55 pm
Practicing Gnostic here and pastor of a small Gnostic Church ninja
I'll answer what I can since I'm limited on internet access. My computer and lappy are now both shot. I might be back online by the end of this week.
The big difference between gnostic and "catholic" based Christianity is accepted creation mythos. "catholic" based versions of Christianity use the Genesis creation mythos and base the interpretation on the Midres of the serpent being Satan and the little known text, the Life of Adam and Eve, which is almost verbatum how Genesis is typically interpreted from the catholic Christian view point. The Gnostic Creation mythos is a variation of the Genesis creation mythos, also know as the Sethian creation mythos. It will take some time to go into detail but the summary is Wisdom without Agape/Reason creates madness and evil. Wisdom can only be redeemed if it is in submission to Agape/Reason. Wisdom paired with Agape/Reason is the key to Truth and getting a glimpse of the Unknowable Father.
For a good academic read on the Gnostics and what they were about, I'd recommend David Brakke's "The Gnostic", Karen King's "Who were the Gnostics", and Michael Williams "Rethinking Gnosticism".
This will help give a better grasp of what is meant by gnostic rather than what's being promoted by New Agers/Evangelicals who paint these early Christians as ancient New Agers.
Again please understand that it may take me a while to respond due to having limited internet service.
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 1:26 am
Southern_cross_nemesis to be honest I never heard of it.... so one moment *goes off to read up on it* from the very short info I got on it, it seems like a scientific form of Christianity... note I only read a short thing on it... so I could be wrong http://www.gnosticchristianity.com/ seems like a good website for a nice starting point. The website that my mentor advised me as a starting point was The Pearl.
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 7:41 am
rmcdra Practicing Gnostic here and pastor of a small Gnostic Church ninja I'll answer what I can since I'm limited on internet access. My computer and lappy are now both shot. I might be back online by the end of this week. The big difference between gnostic and "catholic" based Christianity is accepted creation mythos. "catholic" based versions of Christianity use the Genesis creation mythos and base the interpretation on the Midres of the serpent being Satan and the little known text, the Life of Adam and Eve, which is almost verbatum how Genesis is typically interpreted from the catholic Christian view point. The Gnostic Creation mythos is a variation of the Genesis creation mythos, also know as the Sethian creation mythos. It will take some time to go into detail but the summary is Wisdom without Agape/Reason creates madness and evil. Wisdom can only be redeemed if it is in submission to Agape/Reason. Wisdom paired with Agape/Reason is the key to Truth and getting a glimpse of the Unknowable Father. For a good academic read on the Gnostics and what they were about, I'd recommend David Brakke's "The Gnostic", Karen King's "Who were the Gnostics", and Michael Williams "Rethinking Gnosticism". This will help give a better grasp of what is meant by gnostic rather than what's being promoted by New Agers/Evangelicals who paint these early Christians as ancient New Agers. Again please understand that it may take me a while to respond due to having limited internet service. thank you =P for the info ^^
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 11:44 pm
No problem. How open minded a gnostic group is really depends on the group itself. I'm assuming by open minded you mean that the group in question allows for variant beliefs and will question their established or tenative dogma. Some groups and small circles are good about this, some aren't. Some groups are very restrictive and manipulative, others help encourage you to grow as a person.
Groups to be cautious of:
-Groups that promise "godhood" or instant gnosis by doing some task/paying so much.
-Groups that claim that they are only way to recieve gnosis or somehow thier priests/pastors "grant" gnosis.
-Groups that claim they are just like the ancient Gnostics (there's not enough surviving material for a group to be just like the ancient Gnostics and also Gnostic was a catch all for various groups with different theologies).
-Groups that claim that Gnostics weren't Christians or were pagans pretending to be Christians or something similar (the Gnostics were mostly Gentile Christians but they did exist within all the various sects. Before the catholic (universalist) movement you had broadly three groups: Messianic Christians/Jews, Gentile Christians, and Torah observing Gentile Christians.)
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:49 am
rmcdra No problem. How open minded a gnostic group is really depends on the group itself. I'm assuming by open minded you mean that the group in question allows for variant beliefs and will question their established or tenative dogma. Some groups and small circles are good about this, some aren't. Some groups are very restrictive and manipulative, others help encourage you to grow as a person. Groups to be cautious of: -Groups that promise "godhood" or instant gnosis by doing some task/paying so much. -Groups that claim that they are only way to recieve gnosis or somehow thier priests/pastors "grant" gnosis. -Groups that claim they are just like the ancient Gnostics (there's not enough surviving material for a group to be just like the ancient Gnostics and also Gnostic was a catch all for various groups with different theologies). -Groups that claim that Gnostics weren't Christians or were pagans pretending to be Christians or something similar (the Gnostics were mostly Gentile Christians but they did exist within all the various sects. Before the catholic (universalist) movement you had broadly three groups: Messianic Christians/Jews, Gentile Christians, and Torah observing Gentile Christians.) yeah,i watch out for those,sounds to much like modern dogma Honestly,i've been Pagan,i still respect it,and love it. but i always have the thought in the back of my head on God xD,it was my dads death experinece he had along time ago,when he was normally a buddist. Anyway,i like the Gnostic way of,improve yourself in everything,question everything,even the bible pretty much agrees,says test all & hold onto whats good xD. but eh,i just love thinking,and learning though xD
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