Gnosticism
The 1945 discovery at Nag Hammadi of thirteen papyrus scrolls uncovered new insights and excited historians and theologians around the globe. Until this time, little was known about the mysterious religion of Gnosticism. It evolved into one of the main belief systems of the 1st century and helped shape modern religious traditions, including Orthodox Christianity. The Nag Hammadi finds revealed many things about this religion, including a better understanding of the basic belief system, their view on women, and the divergence from prevalent Orthodox Christian ideas. Elaine Pagels book The Gnostic Gospels clearly outlines excellent information on these views and understandings of Gnosticism. The Gnostic belief system sounds absurd to the modern Christian ear. From the early pages of the introduction to the last few sentences of the conclusion, Pagels delineates major differences in the practices of Orthodox Christians and Gnostics. Gnosticism is a philosophical and religious movement whose name is derived from the Greek word gnosis (knowledge.) The very implication of this name sheds light on one of the main characteristics of the Gnostic beliefs. To these people, self-knowledge was knowledge of God; meaning the self and th . . .
Response to Elaine Pagels The Gnostic Gospels Pagels book really exposed me to a side of Christianity that I have never even heard of. The Mother in this Trinity is the Holy Spirit. Many Gnostics gave the first being both masculine and feminine characteristics and appearance, backing their beliefs with reference to the creation account of Genesis 1. This Demiurge was looked at as only the image of God, and until one attained gnosis, the individual thought that this false God was the true Maker. Although we read a little in our textbooks about Gnosticism, I think that Pagels book far exceeded any expectations and thoughts on Gnosticism that I may have previously had from other exposure to the other writings. 3 Some Gnostics endorsed Docetism, an idea that the body of Jesus appeared to be fully human, but was not. The role of the Savior in Gnostic belief is unclear, but they seem to have thought of him as a liberator rather than the way to salvation. ” Although these beliefs were the basic structure of these two groups beliefs, exceptions to these patterns do occur. While the Gnostics felt that women had a voice in religious affairs, as seen through the writings of The Gospel of Mary, Christian women were not allowed to write or teach the gospels, as seen in Timothy 2:12 where it clearly states “I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent.
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