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| the gnostic handbook: The Books of Jeu and the Pistis Sophia as Handbooks to Eternity Erin Evans, 2015-08-11 Despite the surge of interest in Gnostic texts following the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library, the Coptic Books of Jeu and Pistis Sophia remain understudied. Often dismissed as convoluted, confused, and repetitious, Erin Evans convincingly shows that these texts represent the writings of a distinct religious group with a consistent system of theology, cosmology, and ritual practice. This book offers an in-depth examination of these texts, their relationship to other contemporary Gnostic ideas, and their use in the context of a practicing religious group. Three thematic sections demonstrate how the collection of texts functions as a whole, covering baptisms and mystical ascent procedures, guides to moral living, and introductory texts and myths. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Secret Book of John , 2012-12-14 This ancient Gnostic text can be a companion for your own spiritual quest The Secret Book of John is the most significant and influential text of the ancient Gnostic religion. Part of the library of books found in Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945, this central myth of Gnosticism tells the story of how God fell from perfect Oneness to imprisonment in the material world, and how by knowing our divine nature and our divine origins—that we are one with God—we reverse God’s descent and find our salvation. The Secret Book of John: The Gnostic Gospel—Annotated & Explained decodes the principal themes, historical foundation, and spiritual contexts of this challenging yet fundamental Gnostic teaching. Drawing connections to Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, kabbalistic Judaism, and Sufism, Davies focuses on the mythology and psychology of the Gnostic religious quest. He illuminates the Gnostics’ ardent call for self-awareness and introspection, and the empowering message that divine wholeness will be restored not by worshiping false gods in an illusory material world but by our recognition of the inherent divinity within ourselves. Now you can experience and understand this foundational teaching even if you have no previous knowledge of Gnosticism. This SkyLight Illuminations edition presents the most important and valued book in Gnostic religion with insightful yet unobtrusive commentary. It provides deeper insight into the understanding that in Gnosticism the distinction between savior and saved ceases to exist—you must save yourself and in doing so save God. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic World Garry W. Trompf, Gunner B. Mikkelsen, Jay Johnston, 2018-10-03 The Gnostic World is an outstanding guide to Gnosticism, written by a distinguished international team of experts to explore Gnostic movements from the distant past until today. These themes are examined across sixty-seven chapters in a variety of contexts, from the ancient pre-Christian to the contemporary. The volume considers the intersection of Gnosticism with Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Indic practices and beliefs, and also with new religious movements, such as Theosophy, Scientology, Western Sufism, and the Nation of Islam. This comprehensive handbook will be an invaluable resource for religious studies students, scholars, and researchers of Gnostic doctrine and history. |
| the gnostic handbook: A Gnostic Prayer Book Surekha Minati Keerthana, 2012-04-11 A collection of essential prayers, mantras, and spiritual practices for daily use, healing, protection, and more. Chosen from the Gnostic tradition taught by Moses, Solomon, Jesus and his Apostles, Hermes Trismegistus, Samael Aun Weor, and many others, the magical words and phrases given here are powerful and proven techniques for effective spiritual work. Based upon and directed towards personal experience of the Divine, this book provides a comprehensive set of tools anyone can use to develop and awaken their soul. Take this helpful companion with you anywhere, to assist you in times of need as a source of inspiration and strength. • Filled with tools to acquire Gnosis: conscious, experiential knowledge of the Divine • Gives techniques proven effective for thousands of years • Drawn from the most respected and widely known spiritual teachers When the mind has achieved absolute calm and silence, it can concentrate on the Inner Self. This concentration is done with the help of prayer. Pray to your Inner Self. Try to converse with your Inner Self. Remember that praying is conversing with God. You can pray without formulae; in other words, talk to God, tell Him what your heart feels with infinite love. - Samael Aun Weor |
| the gnostic handbook: The Book of Baruch by the Gnostic Justin Geoffrey Hill, 2019 At his death in 2016, Geoffrey Hill left behind The Book of Baruch by the Gnostic Justin, his last work, a sequence of more than 270 poems, to be published posthumously as his final statement. Written in long lines of variable length, with much off-rhyme and internal rhyme, the verse-form of the book stands at the opposite end from the ones developed in the late Daybooks of Broken Hierarchies (2013), where he explored highly taut constructions such as Sapphic meter, figure-poems, fixed rhyming strophes, and others. The looser metrical plan of the new book admits an enormous range of tones of voices. Thematically, the work is a summa of a lifetime's meditation on the nature of poetry. A riot of similes about the poetic art makes a passionate claim for the enduring strangeness of poetry in the midst of its evident helplessness. The relation between art and spirituality is another connecting thread. In antiquity, Justin's gnostic Book of Baruch was identified as the 'worst of heresies, ' and the use of it in Hill's poem, as well as the references to alchemy, heterodox theological speculation, and the formal logics of mathematics, music, and philosophy are made coolly, as art and as emblems for our inadequate and perplexed grasp of time, fate, and eternity. A final set of themes is autobiographical, including Hill's childhood, the bombing of London, his late trip to Germany, his alarm and anger at Brexit, and his sense of decline and of death close at hand. It is a great work, and in Hill's oeuvre it is a uniquely welcoming work, open to all comers. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Gospels Elaine Pagels, 1989-09-19 NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER • NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE WINNER • SELECTED BY THE MODERN LIBRARY AS ONE OF THE 100 BEST NONFICTION BOOKS • The landmark study exploring alternative perspectives of early Christianity as revealed through the Nag Hammadi texts that could have shaped the religion differently if included in the Christian canon • [Pagels] is always readable, always deeply informed, always richly suggestive of pathways her readers may wish to follow out for themselves.—Harold Bloom, The Washington Post “[Pagels] writes with the instincts of a novelist, the skill of a scholar, and the ability to sort out significances that many writers lack.”—Chicago Tribune • “An intellectually elegant, concise study . . . The economy with which [Pagels] evokes the world of early Christianity is a marvel.”—The New Yorker The Gnostic Gospels is a work of luminous scholarship and wide popular appeal. First published in 1979 to critical acclaim, winning the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award, The Gnostic Gospels has continued to grow in reputation and influence. It is now widely recognized as one of the most brilliant and accessible histories of early Christian spirituality published in our time. In 1945 an Egyptian peasant unearthed what proved to be the Gnostic Gospels, thirteen papyrus volumes that expounded a radically different view of the life and teachings of Jesus Christ from that of the New Testament. In this spellbinding book, renowned religious scholar Elaine Pagels elucidates the mysteries and meanings of these sacred texts both in the world of the first Christians and in the context of Christianity today. With insight and passion, Pagels explores a remarkable range of recently discovered gospels, including the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Mary Magdalene, to show how a variety of “Christianities” emerged at a time of extraordinary spiritual upheaval. Some Christians questioned the need for clergy and church doctrine, and taught that the divine could be discovered through spiritual search. Many others, like Buddhists and Hindus, sought enlightenment—and access to God—within. Such explorations raised questions: Was the resurrection to be understood symbolically and not literally? Was God to be envisioned only in masculine form, or feminine as well? Was martyrdom a necessary—or worthy—expression of faith? These early Christians dared to ask questions that orthodox Christians later suppressed—and their explorations led to profoundly different visions of Jesus and his message. Brilliant and stunning in its implications, The Gnostic Gospels is a radical, eloquent reconsideration of the origins of the Christian faith. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Nag Hammadi Library in English James McConkey Robinson, 1984 |
| the gnostic handbook: St. Mary Magdalene Tau Malachi, 2012-02-08 A gnostic biography that brings to light the importance and spirituality of the Christian saint Mary of Magdala. In the Gospels of the Bible there are a few comments about Mary Magdalene here and there. But in the Gnostic scriptures that have been discovered, there are tantalizing hints that both her relationship to Jesus and her role among Jesus' disciples may have been profoundly important. Among several schools of Gnostic Christianity, Mary plays an essential role in the revelation of the gospel. Here, for the first time in print, is a Sophian Gospel of St. Mary Magdalene. No secret oral tradition as extensive as this has ever been recorded, and none has ever presented a Gnostic view of Mary Magdalene as she is portrayed in this groundbreaking work—as a powerful holy woman, the innermost disciple and beloved wife of Jesus, and a Christed woman who is coequal with Jesus in the Christ revelation. |
| the gnostic handbook: Beyond Death: The Gnostic Book of the Dead Samael Aun Weor, 2011-05-18 Leaving behind both fear and belief, Samael Aun Weor explains through vivid stories what happens when we die and how we can prepare ourselves now to take full advantage of the experience. Instructions to prepare the soul for the process of dying and the experiences of the afterlife are found within the scriptures of every mystical tradition, especially the Bible, The Theban Recension (Egyptian Book of the Dead), and the Bardo Thodol (Tibetan Book of the Dead), yet they are veiled in cryptic symbolism and are difficult for most people to understand. Now, for the first time, this book fearlessly approaches the topics of death, dying, and the afterlife for our day and age -- and for those who are tired of theories and are ready to know the truth through their own experience. |
| the gnostic handbook: Gnostic Healing Tau Malachi, Siobhan Houston, 2010 Presents Gnostic healing practices in a clear and systematic way. Techniques include mystical prayer, meditation, and sacred ceremony, and are suitable for both beginning and experienced healers. |
| the gnostic handbook: Knowledge of the Heart June Singer, 1999 This text is based on one of the great religious literary discoveries; the finding of the Gnostic Gospels in Upper Egypt in 1945. Following an introduction to the Gnostic tradition, June Singer chooses 56 excerpts from the gospels offering them as a focus for meditation or worship. |
| the gnostic handbook: Gnosticism and the History of Religions David G. Robertson, 2021-08-12 Building on critical work in biblical studies, which shows how a historically-bounded heretical tradition called Gnosticism was 'invented', this work focuses on the following stage in which it was “essentialised” into a sui generis, universal category of religion. At the same time, it shows how Gnosticism became a religious self-identifier, with a number of sizable contemporary groups identifying as Gnostics today, drawing on the same discourses. This book provides a history of this problematic category, and its relationship with scholarly and popular discourse on religion in the twentieth century. It uses a critical-historical method to show how and why Gnosis, Gnostic and Gnosticism were taken up by specific groups and individuals – practitioners and scholars – at different times. It shows how ideas about Gnosticism developed in late nineteenth- and twentieth-century scholarship, drawing from continental phenomenology, Jungian psychology and post-Holocaust theology, to be constructed as a perennial religious current based on special knowledge of the divine in a corrupt world. David G. Robertson challenges how scholars interact with the category Gnosticism, and contributes to our understanding of the complex relationship between primary sources, academics and practitioners in category formation. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Religion Hans Jonas, 1992 |
| the gnostic handbook: What is Gnosticism? Karen L. King, 2003 A study of gnosticism examines the various ways early Christians strove to define themselves in a pluralistic Roman society, while questioning the traditional ideas of heresy and orthodoxy that have previously influenced historians. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Gospels Alan Jacobs, Vrej N. Nersessian, 2016-11-15 This eye-opening collection of texts sheds light on the esoteric knowledge of Gnosticism, revealing intimate conversations between Jesus and his Disciples In 1945, several gospels, hidden since the first century, were found in the Egyptian Desert at Nag Hammadi. This discovery caused a sensation as the scrolls revealed the mysteries of the Gnostics—a movement which emerged during the formative period of Christianity. ‘Gnosis’, from the Greek, broadly meaning ‘hidden spiritual knowledge’, was associated with renouncing the material world, and focusing on attaining the life of the Holy Spirit. Many Christian sects are derived from the esoteric knowledge of Gnosticism. The gospels selected here by Alan Jacobs reveal intimate conversations between Jesus and his Disciples. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene sheds new light on his relationship with his favorite follower, while the Gospel of Thomas consists of mini-parables of deep inward and symbolic meaning—many of which are not found in the New Testament. The wisdom in this inspiring collection of texts is wholly relevant to our lives today, addressing the questions of good and evil, sin and suffering, and the path to salvation. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Celtic Church John Michael Greer, 2013-04 The GCC has chosen to establish what was once called a regular clergy, as distinct from a secular clergy-that is to say, something much closer to monks than to ministers. This was the core model for clergy in the old Celtic Church in Ireland, Wales, Brittany, and other Celtic nations, in the days before the Roman papacy imposed its rule on the lands of Europe's far west. Members of the Celtic clergy were monks first and foremost, living lives focused on service to the Divine rather than the needs of a congregation, and those who functioned as priests for local communities did so as a small portion of a monastic lifestyle that embraced many other dimensions. In all Gnostic traditions, personal religious experience is the goal that is set before each aspirant and the sole basis on which questions of a religious nature can be answered-certain teachings have been embraced as the core values from which the Gnostic Celtic Church as an organization derives its broad approach to spiritual issues. Those core teachings may be summarized in the words Gnostic, Universalist, and Pelagian which are described in this book. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Philosophy Tobias Churton, 2003 |
| the gnostic handbook: Evagrius Ponticus Julia Konstantinovsky, 2016-04-22 A revered instructor of the eremitic monks of Nitria, Sketis and Kellia, Evagrius Ponticus is a fascinating yet enigmatic figure in the history of fourth-century mystical thought. This historical and theological re-evaluation of the teaching of Evagrius brings to bear evidence from the Greek and Syriac Evagriana. Focusing on Evagrius' concept of perfection as the acquisition of spiritual knowledge, this book revisits current perceptions of Evagrius's thought and character by comparing and contrasting him with his contemporaries and predecessors, both Christian and pagan. Ideas of the three 'Cappadocians' and the author of the Macariana, as well as Stoic, Neo-Platonic and earlier Christian writers such as Alcinoos, Plotinus, Clement and Origen, are all explored. Konstantinovsky draws attention to a lack of uniformity in the fourth-century views on the origin of the soul, the body-soul relation, and the eschatological destiny of humankind. |
| the gnostic handbook: Gnostic America Peter M. Burfeind, 2014-08-29 Gnostic America is a reading of current American culture, politics, and religious life according to the ancient movement known as Gnosticism. In it, Peter M Burfeind builds off the foundations of Hans Jonas, Denis de Rougement, Norman Cohn, William Voegelin, Carl Jung, and Harold Bloom, each of whom saw the effects of Gnosticism in contemporary American (and Western) life. He explores the spiritual mechanisms going on behind everything from transgenderism to so-called contemporary worship, from the deconstructionist movement to the role pop music and media have in our culture, from progressive politics to the Emergent Church. Particularly challenging is Burfeind's claim that both progressivism and Neo-evangelicalism -- seemingly at odds in the culture wars -- actually share the same Gnostic roots. Burfeind's book is a tour de force through contemporary rock, pop, movies, television, politics, and religion showing how many of the values driving these cultural elements are informed by the ancient esoteric teachings of Gnosticism. Burfeind marshals a ton of surprising evidence to make his case, taking us through ancient and Medieval history, through the Enlightenment and Romantic periods, to today. Those willing to grapple with the philosophical and spiritual positions of the fathers of contemporary American life will be rewarded. Gnostic America is a must read for those who sense a new spiritual but not religious religion has arisen in America, but who can't put their finger on what exactly this religion is. Burfeind commits the sacrilege of defining a religion that claims to be beyond definition. More importantly, he poses the question, if the spiritual trends of contemporary culture are indeed a religion, what First Amendment safeguards remain for those who haven't evolved with the emerging new consciousness, but choose to remain stuck in supposedly retrograde paradigms of thought? |
| the gnostic handbook: Not in His Image John Lash, 2006 Fully revised and with a new preface by the author, this timely update is perfect for readers of The Immortality Key. Since its initial release to wide acclaim in 2006, Not in His Image has transformed the lives of readers around the world by presenting the living presence of the Wisdom Goddess as never before revealed, illustrating that the truth of an impactful Gnostic message cannot be hidden or destroyed. With clarity, author John Lamb Lash explains how a little-known messianic sect propelled itself into a dominant world power, systematically wiping out the great Gnostic spiritual teachers, the Druid priests, and the shamanistic healers of Europe and North Africa. Early Christians burned libraries and destroyed temples in an attempt to silence the ancient truth-tellers and keep their own secrets. Not in His Image delves deeply into ancient Gnostic writings to reconstruct the story early Christians tried to scrub from the pages of history, exploring the richness of the ancient European Pagan spirituality-the Pagan Mysteries, the Great Goddess, Gnosis, the myths of Sophia and Gaia. In the 15th Anniversary Edition, Lash doubles down on his original argument against redemptive ideology and authoritarian deceit. He shows how the Gnostics clearly foresaw the current program of salvation by syringe, and places the Sophianic vision of life centrally in the battle to expose and oppose the evil agenda of transhumanism, making this well-timed update more relevant than ever--Publisher's description. |
| the gnostic handbook: Mary Magdalene Revealed Meggan Watterson, 2019 A gospel, as ancient and authentic as any of the gospels that the Christian bible contains, was buried deep in the Egyptian desert after an edict was sent out in the 4th century to have all copies of it destroyed. Fortunately, some rebel monks were wise enough to refuse-and thanks to their disobedience and spiritual bravery, we have several manuscripts of the only gospel that was written in the name of a woman: The Gospel of Mary Magdalene. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Scriptures, Second Edition Bentley Layton, David Brakke, John Collins, 2021-07-06 A collection of extra-biblical scriptures written by the gnostics, updated with three ancient texts including the recently discovered Gospel of Judas This definitive introduction to the gnostic scriptures provides a crucial look at the theology, religious atmosphere, and literary traditions of ancient Christianity and Hellenistic Judaism. It provides authoritative translations of ancient texts from Greek, Latin, and Coptic, with introductions, bibliographies, and annotations. The texts are organized to reflect the history of gnosticism in the second through fourth centuries CE. This second edition provides updates throughout and adds three new ancient texts, including the recently discovered Gospel of Judas. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Bible Willis Barnstone, Marvin W. Meyer, 2009 This expanded edition of The Gnostic Bible includes the Gospel of Judas'the recently discovered and translated gnostic text that was an instant best seller on its original appearance in 2006-in its most accessible translation yet. Also included are such important and topical texts as the Gospel of Mary Magdalene and the Gospel of Thomas. Religious thinkers engaged in the quest for wisdom and knowledge, the gnostics proclaimed that salvation could be found through mystical knowledge and intuition. Dating from the first to the thirteenth centuries, the texts in The Gnostic Bible represent Jewish, Christian, Hermetic, Mandaean, Manichaean, Islamic, and Cathar forms of gnostic spirituality, and they derive from Egypt, the Greco-Roman world, the Middle East, Syria, Iraq, China, France, and elsewhere. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Gospels of Thomas, Mary & John Katherine John, 2013-01-28 Collected here are three gnostic writings from Thomas, Mary, and John. These books that were left out of the New Testament shed light on the life and relationships of Jesus Christ and his friends and family, especially his mother Mary. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Book of Meditation (AGEAC) V M Kwen Khan Khu, Samael Aun Weor, 2021-04-06 Meditation, historically well known in the East, has now become fashionable in the West and even doctors and psychiatrists advise it for healing and improving the states of their patients. Unfortunately, a snobbish current has appeared, and much verbiage has been poured out on this subject. This leads the devotee along paths that prevent him from doing it correctly, since meditation is something profoundly transcendental.In the present treatise, all the texts left on this subject by the Avatar of Aquarius ─V.M. Samael Aun Weor─ are gathered, clarifying all the doubts, explaining the correct technique and guiding anyone who truly wants to enjoy meditation and harvest its fruits on a physical and metaphysical level. As it is well known that no effort of intimate self-realization can give results without meditation. Dr. Samael Aun Weor, prolific esotericist author and anthropologist, was born amidst the tribulations of a society that was succumbing to materialism and the decadence of all ethical, philosophical and transcendental values. After enormous personal sacrifices, he achieved his personal Self-Realization and dedicated his entire life and his immense work to teaching humanity the path of the true Awakening of Consciousness, traditionally known as Gnosis. Samael Aun Weor delivers, in his more than sixty works and renouncing all personal benefits, hundreds of practices and all the keys (including the Secreto Secretorum) of true esotericism in depth that allows the seeker to discover by himself the answers and experience the results, through a psychological work based on three factors: To be born (alchemically), To Die (to everything illusory) and the Sacrifice for Humanity (to pay our karmic debts).You can find more information about this unrivaled author at www.samael.org. AGEAC presents its collection of books in basic format, black and white. If you wish to purchase our books in color format and with exclusive design, please contact us through our web pages. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Cambridge Handbook of Western Mysticism and Esotericism Glenn Alexander Magee, 2016-04-18 Mysticism and esotericism are two intimately related strands of the Western tradition. Despite their close connections, however, scholars tend to treat them separately. Whereas the study of Western mysticism enjoys a long and established history, Western esotericism is a young field. The Cambridge Handbook of Western Mysticism and Esotericism examines both of these traditions together. The volume demonstrates that the roots of esotericism almost always lead back to mystical traditions, while the work of mystics was bound up with esoteric or occult preoccupations. It also shows why mysticism and esotericism must be examined together if either is to be understood fully. Including contributions by leading scholars, this volume features essays on such topics as alchemy, astrology, magic, Neoplatonism, Kabbalism, Renaissance Hermetism, Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, numerology, Christian theosophy, spiritualism, and much more. This Handbook serves as both a capstone of contemporary scholarship and a cornerstone of future research. |
| the gnostic handbook: Valentinian Christianity , 2020-07-21 Valentinus, an Egyptian Christian who traveled to Rome to teach his unique brand of theology, and his followers, the Valentinians, formed one of the largest and most influential sects of Christianity in the second and third centuries. But by the fourth century, their writings had all but disappeared suddenly and mysteriously from the historical record, as the newly consolidated imperial Christian Church condemned as heretical all forms of what has come to be known as Gnosticism. Only in 1945 were their extensive original works finally rediscovered, and the resurrected “Gnostic Gospels” soon rooted themselves in both the scholarly and popular imagination. Valentinian Christianity: Texts and Translations brings together for the first time all the extant texts composed by Valentinus and his followers. With accessible introductions and fresh translations based on new transcriptions of the original Greek and Coptic manuscripts on facing pages, Geoffrey S. Smith provides an illuminating, balanced overview of Valentinian Christianity and its formative place in Christian history. |
| the gnostic handbook: Gnostic Religion in Antiquity R. van den Broek, 2013-01-24 An examination of Gnostic religion in Late Antiquity within its historical and religious context, using Greek, Latin and Coptic sources. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gospel of Judas, Second Edition Rodolphe Kasser, Marvin Meyer, Gregor Wurst, Francois Gaudard, 2008-06-17 For 1,600 years its message lay hidden. When the bound papyrus pages of this lost gospel finally reached scholars who could unlock its meaning, they were astounded. Here was a gospel that had not been seen since the early days of Christianity, and which few experts had even thought existed–a gospel told from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, history’s ultimate traitor. And far from being a villain, the Judas that emerges in its pages is a hero. In this radical reinterpretation, Jesus asks Judas to betray him. In contrast to the New Testament Gospels, Judas Iscariot is presented as a role model for all those who wish to be disciples of Jesus and is the one apostle who truly understands Jesus. Discovered by farmers in the 1970s in Middle Egypt, the codex containing the gospel was bought and sold by antiquities traders, secreted away, and carried across three continents, all the while suffering damage that reduced much of it to fragments. In 2001, it finally found its way into the hands of a team of experts who would painstakingly reassemble and restore it. The Gospel of Judas has been translated from its original Coptic to clear prose, and is accompanied by commentary that explains its fascinating history in the context of the early Church, offering a whole new way of understanding the message of Jesus Christ. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Laughing Jesus Timothy Freke, Peter Gandy, 2005-07-12 Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, authors of The Jesus Mysteries and Jesus and the Lost Goddess, return with a powerful indictment of Jewish, Christian, and Islamic fundamentalism and a passionate reinterpretation of Gnostic spirituality. According to Freke and Gandy, religiously inspired acts of violence, such as the attacks on 9/11, are nothing new. They are the continuation of a long and bloody history of brutality caused by mistaking bizarre old books for the Word of God. The time has come to end religious intolerance and wake up to oneness by rediscovering the Gnostic way of transforming oneself and the world. Freke and Gandy's Incendiary New Book Is a Wake-Up Call to the World What if the Old Testament is a work of fiction, Jesus never existed, and Muhammad was a mobster? What if the Bible and the Qur’an are works of political propaganda created by Taliban-like fundamentalists to justify the sort of religious violence we are witnessing in the world today? What if there is a big idea that could free us from the us-versus-them world created by religion and make it possible for us to truly love our neighbors—and even our enemies? What if it is possible to awaken to a profound state of oneness and love, which the Gnostic Christians symbolized by the enigmatic figure of the laughing Jesus? Discover for Yourself Why the Gnostic Jesus Laughs |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostic Scriptures Bentley Layton, 1995 Ancient wisdom for the new age in gnostic scriptures which have been newly translated with annotations and commentary. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Spiritual Seed Einar Thomassen, 2006 This book is the first comprehensive study of the doctrines and history of Valentinianism, making full use of the documents from Nag Hammadi as well as the reports of the Church Fathers. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Flight to Lucifer Professor Harold Bloom, Harold Bloom, 1979-12-01 |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gospel of Mary of Magdala Karen L. King, 2003 Lost for more than fifteen hundred years, the Gospel of Mary is the only existing early Christian gospel written in the name of a woman. Karen L. King tells the story of the recovery of this remarkable gospel and offers a new translation. This brief narrative presents a radical interpretation of Jesus' teachings as a path to inner spiritual knowledge. It rejects his suffering and death as a path to eternal life and exposes the view that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute for what it is--a piece of theological fiction. The Gospel of Mary of Magdala offers a glimpse into the conflicts and controversies that shaped earliest Christianity. |
| the gnostic handbook: Rethinking "Gnosticism" Michael Allen Williams, 1999 Here Michael Williams challenges the validity of the category gnosticism and the ways it has been described. Williams uncovers the similarities and differences among some major traditions widely categorized as gnostic and provides an argument for a more accurate way to discuss these interpretive approaches. |
| the gnostic handbook: The Secret Book of John (Audio CD) Michael Waldstein, 2012-11-29 In recent years, Gnostic writings like The Secret Book of John have gained in popularity due to references from a variety of media sources. Even those of us who knew the claims in The Da Vinci Code were fictional struggled to articulate the historical truth. Dr. Michael Waldstein, expert translator and commentator on the Gnostic text of the The Secret Book of John, will guide you through the claims of this false gospel. His commentary will help you understand why this book, and others like it, were excluded from the canon of Scripture. Dr. Waldstein discusses the danger Gnosticism poses to true Christianity - how it attempts to repaint salvation history, divide the so-called God of the Old Testament from Jesus Christ in the New, and distort the truth and goodness of God's creation. In this course, you'll get the truth you need to combat any Gnostic misinformation. |
| the gnostic handbook: Gnostic Morality Revisited Ismo Dunderberg, 2015 |
| the gnostic handbook: The Gnostics Jacques Lacarrière, 1977 |
| the gnostic handbook: ˜Theœ Gospel of the Egyptians Alexander Böhlig, 1975 |
| the gnostic handbook: Introduction to "Gnosticism" Nicola Denzey Lewis, 2013-02-14 Introduction to Gnosticism: Ancient Voices, Christian Worlds is the first textbook on Gnosticism, guiding students through the most significant of the Nag Hammadi texts, grouping them by theme and genre, and revealing to the uninitiated their most inscrutable mysteries. |
What is Christian Gnosticism? | GotQuestions.org
Oct 15, 2024 · There are countless contradictions between the Gnostic “gospels” and the Bible. Even when the so-called Christian Gnostics quote from the Bible, they rewrite verses and …
What is the definition of the term Gnostic? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Gnostic thinking claims that deeper truth can be found apart from God. But Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and …
What are the Gnostic gospels? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · The Gnostic Christians, if they can truly be described as Christians, held a distinctly different view of the Bible, of Jesus Christ, of salvation, and of virtually every other major …
What is the Apocalypse of Adam? | GotQuestions.org
Oct 24, 2024 · The Apocalypse of Adam is an ancient Gnostic text, likely composed between AD 50 and 150. It is part of the Nag Hammadi Library, a collection of early Christian and Gnostic …
What is the Gospel of Thomas? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · The Gospel of Thomas is a Gnostic gospel, espousing a Gnostic viewpoint of Christianity. The Gospel of Thomas is simply a heretical forgery, much the same as the …
What is the Pistis Sophia? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · That is why and how the Pistis Sophia and the Gnostic gospels were created. The Gnostics fraudulently attached the names of famous Christians to their writings, naming their …
What is the Nag Hammadi library? | GotQuestions.org
Sep 6, 2024 · The Nag Hammadi library was supposedly the result of faithful efforts of Gnostic monks to save the truth about Jesus Christ from the persecution of non-Gnostic Christians. …
Who was Valentinus? What was Valentinianism? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Valentinus (AD 100—160) was an early Gnostic theologian. Valentinus was born in Phrebonis, Egypt, but moved to Alexandria as a child. He was given a Greek education and …
What is the Gospel of Mary (Magdalene)? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 30, 2025 · The Gnostic teachings found in the Gospel of Mary date it to the late 2nd century AD at the earliest. As a result, there is no validity to its teachings. Similar to the Gospel of …
What is the Pleroma? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Gnostics also hope to be able to experience the Pleroma themselves as they progress in Gnostic teaching. In the New Testament, the pleroma is the fullness of God, the …
What is Christian Gnosticism? | GotQuestions.org
Oct 15, 2024 · There are countless contradictions between the Gnostic “gospels” and the Bible. Even when the so-called Christian Gnostics quote from the Bible, they rewrite verses and …
What is the definition of the term Gnostic? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Gnostic thinking claims that deeper truth can be found apart from God. But Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and …
What are the Gnostic gospels? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · The Gnostic Christians, if they can truly be described as Christians, held a distinctly different view of the Bible, of Jesus Christ, of salvation, and of virtually every other major …
What is the Apocalypse of Adam? | GotQuestions.org
Oct 24, 2024 · The Apocalypse of Adam is an ancient Gnostic text, likely composed between AD 50 and 150. It is part of the Nag Hammadi Library, a collection of early Christian and Gnostic …
What is the Gospel of Thomas? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · The Gospel of Thomas is a Gnostic gospel, espousing a Gnostic viewpoint of Christianity. The Gospel of Thomas is simply a heretical forgery, much the same as the …
What is the Pistis Sophia? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · That is why and how the Pistis Sophia and the Gnostic gospels were created. The Gnostics fraudulently attached the names of famous Christians to their writings, naming their …
What is the Nag Hammadi library? | GotQuestions.org
Sep 6, 2024 · The Nag Hammadi library was supposedly the result of faithful efforts of Gnostic monks to save the truth about Jesus Christ from the persecution of non-Gnostic Christians. …
Who was Valentinus? What was Valentinianism? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Valentinus (AD 100—160) was an early Gnostic theologian. Valentinus was born in Phrebonis, Egypt, but moved to Alexandria as a child. He was given a Greek education and …
What is the Gospel of Mary (Magdalene)? - GotQuestions.org
Jan 30, 2025 · The Gnostic teachings found in the Gospel of Mary date it to the late 2nd century AD at the earliest. As a result, there is no validity to its teachings. Similar to the Gospel of …
What is the Pleroma? | GotQuestions.org
Jan 4, 2022 · Gnostics also hope to be able to experience the Pleroma themselves as they progress in Gnostic teaching. In the New Testament, the pleroma is the fullness of God, the …
