An explicit religious inclination, it is an experience which expresses itself through the realm of myths. It does not reveal stories that are not true, but rather the truth embodies the myths in a different manner from the doctrines of theology or philosophy. A personal religious experience, it is the teaching based on Gnosis, the knowledge of transcendence through the means of central perception. With its unique history and many influences, Gnosticism was a jumble of ideas and beliefs taken from past religions and faiths. However, becoming a direct threat during the spread of Christianity, this religion of Gnosticism created disturbances among the Christians with its different beliefs of salvation and Jesus. Religious traditions acknowledge that the world is imperfect, but Gnostics hold a belief almost shocking that the world is flawed, and was created in a faulty manner. Their outlook of the cosmos, the Deity, and the human being vary from that within Christianity and other religions. Creating a niche in the society of Christianity’s rooting, Gnosticism has managed to raise many questions and speculations because of its tangent views.
Gnosticism refers to a related body of teachings that stress the attainment of "gnosis,
. . .
One of the central principles of Gnosticism was the sharp dualism between spirit and matter. Gnosticism emphasizes the suffering of the earthly life. Once a person is reawakened by knowledge, the divine element in humanity, the spirit, can return to its origin in the transcendent spiritual dominion. Any other knowledge did not concern the Gnostics. Holding that Jesus specially came from God and the Spirit, they said he entered a body brought about by sexual intercourse between Mary and Joseph. For them the principle teacher of gnosis was Jesus; a special person who did not come from the Demiurge but had come directly from God and the Holy Spirit. Gnostics used terminology from existing religions to illustrate their great idea of the essential evil of this present existence and the duty to escape it by the help of magic spells and a superhuman Savior. Gnosticism is an esoteric religious movement that flourished during the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD and presented a major challenge to orthodox Christianity. If not, then the spirit is thrown back into the world of suffering into another body. Gnostics were individualists with a goal of self-fulfillment. The Gnostics thus rejected the suffering and death of Christ and the resurrection of the body.
Gnosticism was perceived as an attempt to transform Christianity into a religious value and to replace faith in the mysteries of revelation by theoretical explanations. Characteristic of their position was the doctrine that all material reality is evil.
Approximate Word count =
1691
Approximate Pages =
7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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