Paul said, "Whether. So let's glorify God by correcting any warped ideas that our minds—the spiritual part of us—are more important than matter—the physical part of us. Taken from Derrick G. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Derrick G. Jeter holds a master of theology degree from Dallas Theological Seminary and served as a writer for the Creative Ministries Department of Insight for Living Ministries.
He has authored or coauthored more than twenty-five books. Derrick's writing has appeared on influential Web sites, and he is a contributing writer for The Christian Post. He and his wife, Christy, have five children and live in the Dallas area. He blogs at www. Article Library. Jeter Derrick G. More articles by Derrick G. The Manichaean cosmology began with two opposed first principles, as in Zoroastrianism: the God of Light, and the Ruler of Darkness.
This Primal Man possesses a pentadic soul, consisting of fire, water, wind, light, and ether. Surprisingly, the Primal Man is defeated, and his soul scattered throughout the Realm of Darkness. However, the Manichaeans understood this as a plan on the part of the Ruler of Light to sow the seeds of resistance within the Darkness, making possible the eventual overthrow of the chaotic realm.
This process will continue throughout the ages of the world, until all the particles eventually reach their proper home and the salvation of the godhead is complete. It should be clear from this brief exposition that humanity as such does not hold the prime place in the salvific drama of Manichaeism, but rather a part of the godhead itself—that is, the scattered soul of Ohrmazd.
The purpose of humanity in this scheme is to aid the particles of light in their ascent to the godhead. Of course, these particles dwell within every living thing, and so the salvation of these particles is the salvation of humanity, but only by default, as it were; humanity does not hold a privileged position in Manichaeism, as it does in the Western or strictly Christian Gnostic schools. All of this, however, is a long way from philosophy.
Now that we have examined one of the non-philosophical directions taken by Gnostic thought, let us proceed to discuss its role in the philosophical development of the era. For Plato, this did not imply that the cosmos is under the control of a corrupt or ignorant god, as it did for the Gnostics, but simply that this cosmos, like the human soul, possesses a rational and an irrational part, and that it is the task of the rational part to govern the irrational.
Was he declaring that a part of the cosmos is evil? Both of these conjectures flew in the face of everything that the ancient thinkers believed about the cosmos—that is, that it was divine, orderly, and perfect. Timaeus 37d. Several centuries after Plato, around the time when the great Gnostic thinkers like Valentinus and Ptolemy were developing their systems, we encounter the Platonic philosopher Numenius of Apamea fl.
So in virtue of not being in contact with the Intelligible which would mean being turned in upon Himself , by reason of looking towards Matter and taking thought for it, He becomes unregarding aperioptos of Himself. In this fragment, Numenius is transferring a basic Gnostic anthropological idea into the realm of cosmology. However, neither Platonism nor Gnosticism described such a danger as affecting, in any way, the Demiurge; for the Gnostics declared the Demiurge to be just as much a part of the cosmos as he was its ruler , and the orthodox Platonists located the Demiurge outside the cosmos, declaring the cosmos to be self-sufficient following Timaeus 34b.
Enneads I. Unlike Plotinus, however, who leaves the World-Soul or active part of the Demiurge safely beyond the affective cosmic realm, Numenius posits a Demiurge that is both transcendent and immanent, and arrives at a doctrine of a cosmos that, even on the highest level—the level of the celestial bodies—is not devoid of evil influence, since even the Demiurge, the highest cosmic deity, is infected by the tainting influence of Matter. Plotinus, during the height of his teaching career at Rome ca.
Porphyry, in his Life of Plotinus , tells us that Plotinus commissioned him, along with his fellow student Amelius, to write more treatises attacking the Gnostics on points that Plotinus skipped over Porphyry, Life of Plotinus Porphyry also mentions by name two Gnostic treatises that were discovered in Egypt in , and are now readily available to scholars: Zostrianos , and Allogenes , in the Nag Hammadi Collection of Codices.
These texts, as well as the Tripartite Tractate also in the Nag Hammadi Collection show how tightly Platonism and Gnosticism were intertwined in the early centuries of our era. Gnosticism began with the same basic, pre-philosophical intuition that guided the development of Greek philosophy—that there is a dichotomy between the realm of true, unchanging Being, and ever-changing Becoming.
This general Gnostic myth came to exercise an influence on emerging Christianity, as well as upon Platonic philosophy, and even, in the East, developed into a world religion Manichaeism that spread across the known world, surviving until the late Middle Ages. In the twentieth century, there began a renewed interest in Gnostic ideas, particularly in the pioneering work of Hans Jonas, the Existentialist philosopher and student of Martin Heidegger. The psychologist Carl Jung, as well, drew upon Gnostic motifs in his theoretical work, and the increasing emphasis on Hermeneutics in late twentieth century thought owes something to the analyses of Gnostic myth and exegesis done by Harold Bloom, Paul Ricoeur, and others.
More than any of these accomplishments, however, it was the discovery in , in Egypt, of a large collection of Coptic Gnostic codices, now known as the Nag Hammadi Collection, or the Nag Hammadi Library. This collection contains works of the Valentinian School, as well as of many earlier and contemporaneous sects, and sheds much needed light on the nature and structure of what to this day is still called, with some reservations, the Gnostic Religion.
Moreover, he argues, such a wholesale consignment of these texts to what is, in fact, a modern designation, blinds us to the deeper meaning of these diverse intellectual monuments.
The insights of these writers, then, who were living and working side by side, and almost always in conflict with, members of the Gnostic sects, should be given priority over any modern attempts to revise our understanding of what Gnosticism is. Edward Moore Email: emoore theandros.
Elias School of Orthodox Theology U. The Philosophical Character of Gnosticism Gnosticism, as an intellectual product, is grounded firmly in the general human act of reflecting upon existence. Psychology Who are we? Reception and Revelation Where are we heading?
The Myth of Sophia According to Gnostic mythology in general We, humanity, are existing in this realm because a member of the transcendent godhead, Sophia Wisdom , desired to actualize her innate potential for creativity without the approval of her partner or divine consort.
Basilides The Christian philosopher Basilides of Alexandria fl. Marcion Marcion of Sinope , in Pontus, was a contemporary of Basilides. Mani and Manichaeism The world religion founded by Mani CE and known to history as Manichaeism has its roots in the East, borrowing elements from Persian dualistic religion Zoroastrianism , Jewish Christianity, Buddhism, and even Mithraism.
Numenius of Apamea and Neo-Platonism Several centuries after Plato, around the time when the great Gnostic thinkers like Valentinus and Ptolemy were developing their systems, we encounter the Platonic philosopher Numenius of Apamea fl. Concluding Summary Gnosticism began with the same basic, pre-philosophical intuition that guided the development of Greek philosophy—that there is a dichotomy between the realm of true, unchanging Being, and ever-changing Becoming.
References and Further Reading a. Sources Dillon, John Filoramo, Giovanni. A History of Gnosticism , tr. Anthony Alcock Oxford: Blackwell Publishers , Hegel, G. Haldane and Frances H. Jonas, Hans , Layton, Bentley Laws , tr. Trevor J. Saunders, in Plato: Complete Works , ed. John M. Cooper Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Timaeus , tr. Donald J. Zeyl, in Plato: Complete Works. The Enneads , tr.
Armstrong, in 7 volumes Harvard: Loeb Classical Library Ricoeur, Paul. Rudolph, Kurt. Gnosis: The Nature and History of Gnosticism , tr. Clark Ltd. Segal, Robert A. Suggestions for Further Reading Barnstone, Willis ed. Bultmann, Rudolph We are not spiritual by nature —this is a gift available to all by faith through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. By faith in Jesus Christ, a person receives the Holy Spirit who provides spiritual life, resurrects their flesh to eternal life, and redeems the created world.
CHRIST Jesus Christ is the one and only Savior, the eternal Son of God made flesh, who truly suffered for the sins of humanity and was truly raised in immortal, incorruptible flesh for their resurrection to eternal life.
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