Posted: April 20 2006 at 10:36am | IP Logged

Gnostic literature, therefore, possesses little or no intrinsic value, however great its value for history and psychology. It is of unparalleled importance in the study of the surroundings in which Christianity first arose....

Gnosticism died not by chance, but because it lacked vital power within itself; and no amount of theosophistic literature, flooding English and German markets, can give life to that which perished from intrinsic and essential defects. ....Both Hegesippus and Irenaeus proved that Gnostic doctrines did not belong to that deposit of faith which was taught by the true succession of bishops in the primary sees of Christendom; both in triumphant conclusion drew up a list of the Bishops of Rome, from Peter to the Roman bishop of their day; as Gnosticism was not taught by that Church with which the Christians everywhere must agree, it stood self-condemned.

The Apostolic Age:
Christianity soon came into contact with Gnosticism--a movement active in many paces and in various forms. Most of the Gnostics taught that perfect faith and full spiritual power were privileges of the "Initiated" who possessed finer intellects and better education than the multitude. They also made a distinction between the Supreme God and the lesser being who created the material universe--a doctrine which tended to foster fanatical and even immortal theories about matter and the body.

Some Gnostic groups composed apocryphal gospels, borrowed the Christian vocabulary, claimed their own "esoteric" revelation, and circulated a very distorted form of Christianity over an alarmingly wide area....

Heresies: Gnosticism From Samaria and Syria Gnosticism spread into Egypt, where its leading representatives were Valentinus, Basilides and Carpocrates. Valentinus, most popular of all heretical teachers in his day, went to Rome in the last quarter of the century and was attacked by St. Irenaeus; and another conspicuous Gnostic, Marcion, was refuted by Tertullian. A significant event was the conversion to Gnosticism of the distinguished Christian apologist, Tatian.

Among the elements common to the different Gnostic systems were these two doctrines: (1) That the Incarnation was merely a temporary union between a divine being and a human person (or even that Jesus was a phantom, not a real man--Docetism); (2) That the soul is in essential antagonism with the body, which it must attempt to annihilate and for which it has not responsibility--a theory highly encouraging to fanaticism and immorality.

The Gnostics supported their theories both by claiming the possession of secret traditions which preserved the Christian revelation in its purity and also by writing numerous books, some of which were widely circulated apocryphal gospels. The Gnostic writings evoked a number of replies--for example, from St. Justin, Hegesippus, St. Irenaeus, St. Hippolytus.

Posted: April 24 2006 at 2:27pm | IP Logged

saintanneshs wrote: Jenn, Just thought I'd share a laugh (since everyone else responded seriously )...Father Riley had a field-day with The Gospel of Judas (and also The Divinci Code and Gospel of Thomas) yesterday at mass. His words were, and I quote, "When you're from Texas and you step in a cow patty, you don't have to taste it to know where it came from."

If, according to The Gospel of Judas, of which there has been much talk in recent days, Jesus himself orders the apostle to betray him, it is because, by dying, the divine spirit which was in him would finally be able liberate itself from involvement of the flesh and re-ascend to heaven. Marriage oriented to births is to be avoided; woman will be saved only if the “feminine principle” (thelus) personified by her, is transformed into the masculine principle, that is, if she ceases to be woman.