Misplaced Pages

Gnosticism in modern times: Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editContent deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 21:31, 24 May 2006 editLambiam (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Page movers63,480 editsm rv repeated vandalism by sockpuppet evading block← Previous edit Latest revision as of 18:15, 15 December 2024 edit undoフローレンス (talk | contribs)311 editsm →Late-20th century and 21th century 
(545 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Contemporary religious movements with origins in the Judeo-Christian milieux}}
{{sprotected}}
{{gnosticism}} {{gnosticism|expanded=Influence on}}
'''Gnosticism in modern times''' (or '''Neo-Gnosticism''') includes a variety of contemporary religious movements, stemming from ] ideas and systems from ancient ] society. Gnosticism is an ancient name for a variety of religious ideas and systems, originating in Jewish-Christian milieux in the first and second century CE.
''']''' includes a variety of ancient religions prevalent in the ] in the third century ]. Prior to the 20th century, little was known about the various '''Gnostic''' movements, due to paucity of original material available to scholars and the public. Since the emergence of the ] in ], and its translation into ] and other modern languages in ], Gnosticism has undergone something of a rapid dissemination, and has as a result had observable influence on several modern figures, and upon modern Western ] in general. This article attempts to summarise those modern figures and movements that have been influenced by Gnosticism, both prior and subsequent to the ] discovery.


The ] are an ancient Gnostic ] that have survived and are found today in Iran, Iraq and diaspora communities in North America, Western Europe and Australia.
===Scholars of Gnosticism and those influenced by it===
There follows a list of those figures who are known to have undertaken a study of Gnosticism, and who have occasionally incorporated elements of Gnostic systems into their own work, or whose own work subsequently contains recognizably Gnostic traits. All figures and movements, as throughout the article, are organised ]: individuals are organised by surname, while groups are organised by title. Thus, both "Jules '''D'''oinel" and "'''E'''cclesia Gnostica" precede "René '''G'''uénon" in the listing. Where two or more figures are discussed (for example, in the case of co-authorship of a text), listing is based on the first surname alphabetically.


The late 19th century saw the publication of popular sympathetic studies making use of recently rediscovered source materials. In this period there was also the revival of a Gnostic religious movement in France. The emergence of the ] in 1945 greatly increased the amount of source material available. Its translation into English and other modern languages in 1977 resulted in a wide dissemination, and as a result had observable influence on several modern figures, and upon modern Western culture in general. This article attempts to summarize those modern figures and movements that have been influenced by Gnosticism, both prior and subsequent to the Nag Hammadi discovery.
*Between 1950 and 1977, ] wrote some seventy books about ] and Gnosticism, explaining the universal basis of all religions in ] and ] terms. Perhaps the most dramatic is ], a 650-page revelation of the long-debated Gnostic scripture. His works are only recently becoming available in English, although his schools count their students in the millions.
*], founder of ], wrote extensively on Gnostic ideas.
*]'s ] system is influenced by and thus bears major features in common with Gnosticism, especially in the requirement that adherants work to arrive at their own direct knowledge (or 'gnosis') of the divine (this is referred to in the Thelemic system as the ']'). There are several Thelemic Gnostic organizations, including ] as an ] body and ] as an initiatory body.
*The ] ] wrote extensively on Gnosticism, interpreting it from an ] viewpoint. For some time, his study '']'' was widely held to be a pivotal work, and it is as a result of his efforts that the ] division of Gnosticism came to be widely used within the field.
*] and his associate ] worked on trying to understand and explain the Gnostic faith from a psychological standpoint. Jung's "]" in many ways schematically mirrors ancient Gnostic mythology, particularly those of ] and the 'classic' Gnostic doctrine described in most detail in the ''Apocryphon of John'' (see ]). Jung understands the emergence of the ] out of the original, unified monadic source of the spiritual universe by gradual stages to be analogous to (and a symbolic depiction of) the emergence of the ego from the unconscious.<br>However, it is uncertain as to whether the similarities between Jung's psychological teachings and those of the gnostics are due to their sharing a "]", or whether Jung was unwittingly influenced by the Gnostics in the formation of his theories; although Jung's own 'gnostic hymn', the '']'' ('The Seven Sermons to the Dead'), would tend to imply the latter, the issue remains unresolved.<br>Uncertain too are Jung's claims that the gnostics were aware of and intended psychological meaning or significance within their myths. On the other hand, what ''is'' known is that Jung and his ancient forebears disagreed on the ultimate goal of the individual: whereas the gnostics clearly sought a return to a supreme, other-worldly Godhead, ], in a study of Jung, claimed that the eminent psychologist would have found the psychological goal of Gnosticism (that is, re-unification with the Pleroma, or the unknown God) to be psychically 'dangerous', as being a total identification with the unconscious. While Jungian individuation involves the addition of unconscious psychic tropes to consciousness in order to achieve a trans-conscious centre to the personality, this addition is not intended to take the form of a ''complete'' unconscious-identification. Thus, to contend that there is at least some disagreement between Jung and Gnosticism is at least supportable.
*] identified a number of similarities between the characteristics of ancient Gnosticism and those of a number of modern ] theories, particularly ] and ]. He identifies the root of the Gnostic impulse as alienation, that is, a sense of disconnectedness with society and a belief that this lack of concord between the individual and the wider community is the result of the inherent disorderliness or even the ''evil'' of the world.<br>This alienation has two effects. The first is the belief that the disorder of the world can be transcended by extraordinary insight, learning, or knowledge, called a 'Gnostic speculation' by Voegelin. The second is the desire to implement a policy to actualise the speculation, or, as Voegelin describes it, to "Immanentize the ]": to create an, as it were, heaven on earth within history.<br>The totalitarian impulse is derived from the alienation of the proponents of the policy from the rest of society. This leads to a desire to dominate (''libido dominandi'') which has its roots not just in the conviction of the imperative of the Gnostic's vision but also in his or her lack of concord with a large body of society. As a result, there is very little regard for the welfare of those in society who are impacted by the resulting politics, which may range from coercive to calamitous in nature(cf. ]'s nostrum: "You have to crack a few eggs to make an omelet").<br>This totalitarian impulse in ] has been noted by Catholic writers, particularly in ]'s work "The Drama of Atheist Humanism", which explores the connection between the totalitarian impulses of political Communism, ] and ] with their philosophical progenitors ], ], ], ] and ]. Indeed, Voegelin acknowledges his debt to this book in creating his seminal essay "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism".<br>Evidence exists that later Voegelin came to regret the emphasis laid upon Gnosticism in his work, at the expense of not acknowledging other potentially negative influences on Western cultural and political development. <br>Voegelin's identification of Gnosticism as being best defined as opposition to the world (what he called "the gnostic attitude") has been criticised, as it led to a tendency for him to find Gnosticism in almost anything. Thus, Voegelin saw Gnosticism as the preeminent western philosophy since the middle ages, and the greatest threat to decency on earth. In fact, it would seem that in seeing the negative influence of Gnosticism in everything, and by so urgently suggesting a return to fundamentals, Voegelin too was guilty of the "gnostic attitude," and was indeed trying to "immanentize the eschaton" himself.


A number of ecclesiastical bodies that identify as Gnostic have set up or re-founded since World War II as well, including the ], ], ], the ], the Thomasine Church (not to be confused with the ] of India), the Alexandrian Gnostic Church, the ], the ], ], the ], and the North American College of Gnostic Bishops.{{sfn|Taussig|2013|p=532}}
There follows a list of those whose influence by Gnosticism is contested, or is otherwise as yet unproven conclusively either way; also those whose work bears a structural or thematic resemblance to Gnosticism.


==Late 19th century==
*], the nineteenth century ] ] and ], was according to ], his ], well-versed in the doctrines of the Gnostics, and his own personal mythology contains many points of cohesion with several Gnostic mythemes (for example, the Blakean figure of ] bears many resemblances to the Gnostic Demiurge). However, efforts to dub Blake a "Gnostic" have been complicated by the complex nature and colossal extent of ], and the variety of myths and themes that are referred to as "Gnostic"; thus, the exact relationship between Blake and the Gnostics remains a point of scholarly contention, though a comparison of the two often reveals intriguing points of correspondence.
Source materials were discovered in the 18th century. In 1769, the ] was brought to England from Upper Egypt by the Scottish traveller ], and subsequently bequeathed to the care of the Bodleian Library, Oxford. Sometime prior to 1785, The ] (a.k.a. ''Pistis Sophia'') was bought by the British Museum from the heirs of Dr. Askew. The ''Pistis Sophia'' text and Latin translation of the Askew Codex by M. G. Schwartze were published in 1851. Although discovered in 1896, the Coptic Berlin Codex (a.k.a. the Akhmim Codex) was not 'rediscovered' until the 20th century.
*The philosopher ] appears to echo Gnostic ideas in his concept of the "]", in which a demon condemns human subjects to live out their lives in endless repeating cycles; this appears to bear resemblance to the Gnostic ]s, which rule the world and impede the spirit's progression beyond it.


===Modern gnostic 'revivals'=== ===Charles William King===
] was a British writer and collector of ancient ]s with magical inscriptions. His collection was sold because of his failing eyesight, and was presented in 1881 to the ]. King was recognized as one of the greatest authorities on gems at the time.<ref>1911 Encyclopædia Britannica</ref>
*In the ] there are several Gnostic churches with diverse lineages, one of which is the ], based primarily in ], which is affiliated with the ], an organization dedicated to the study of Gnosticism. The current leader of both organizations is ] who has also written extensively on Gnosticism and the occult. Parishes of the Ecclesia Gnostica and educational organizations affiliated with the Gnostic Society are active in ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ], ].

*] founded many Gnostic institutions in Latin America, and formed a partnership with ] of the ] in India. Among the students of these groups were many noted celebrities (such as ]) and political leaders of Latin America. Subsequent to his death, his schools and organizations separated and spread to every continent in the world. As an example, although there are hundreds of Gnostic schools teaching in the United States, only a small handful teach in English.
In ''The Gnostics and their Remains'' (1864, 1887 2nd ed.) King sets out to show that rather than being a Western heresy, the origins of Gnosticism are to be found in the East, specifically in ]. This theory was embraced by Blavatsky, who argued that it was ''plausible'', but rejected by ]. According to Mead, King's work "lacks the thoroughness of the specialist."<ref>]</ref>
*] of the has reinterpreted Gnosticism and the thomasine gospels from an ] viewpoint. The method employed by clergy and initiates of the Thomasine Church involves the use of the ] and of ] rather than ]. Mar Didymos stresses the use of scientific theory or the use of a synthesis of well developed and verified hypotheses derived from empirical observation and deductive/indicative reasoning about factual data and tested through experimentation and peer review. The Thomasine Church describes this as antithetical in principle and method as compared to all of the existing modern Gnostic churches.

*After a series of visions and archival finds of ] documents, ] "re-established" the Gnostic Church in the modern era. Founded on extant Cathar documents with a heavy influence of ] ], the church, officially established in the ] of ] in ], consisted of modified Cathar rituals as sacraments, a clergy that was both male and female, and a close relationship with several esoteric initiatory orders (see for more information). The church eventually split into two opposing groups that were later reconciled under the leadership of ]. Another splinter church with more ] leanings was established by ] around ], from which several other schisms have produced a multitude of distantly-related marginal groups, orientated towards the occult.
===Madame Blavatsky===
*The "]" ] founded in ] the Gnostic review '']''. He believed in and throughout his works exposed the idea that ''modern thought'', by its preference to the ] more than to the ], is the root of all evil aspects of ]. The whole ] enterprise would just be the beheaded relic of a lost ]. Modern ] and its realizations, worshipped by his contemporaries, would have been just a latter ] of the ] (''alias'' ]), in a ] of ].
], co-founder of ], wrote extensively on Gnostic ideas. A compilation of her writings on Gnosticism is over 270 pages long.<ref>]</ref> The first edition of King's ''The Gnostics and Their Remains'' was repeatedly cited as a source and quoted in '']''.
*] of the ] is president of the ], a group dedicated to working together to promote Gnostic growth, while avoiding the production of ]. The Apostolic Johannite Church is a bridge-building organisation with traditionally-styled rites, understood via a Gnostic interpretation.

===G. R. S. Mead===
G. R. S. Mead became a member of Blavatsky's Theosophical Society in 1884. He left the teaching profession in 1889 to become Blavatsky's private secretary, which he was until her death in 1891. Mead's interest in Gnosticism was likely awakened by Blavatsky who discussed it at length in ''Isis Unveiled''.<ref>]</ref>

In 1890–1891 Mead published a serial article on Pistis Sophia in ], the first English translation of that work. In an article in 1891, Mead argues for the recovery of the literature and thought of the West at a time when Theosophy was largely directed to the East, saying that this recovery of Western antique traditions is a work of interpretation and "the rendering of tardy justice to pagans and heretics, the reviled and rejected pioneers of progress..."<ref>]</ref> This was the direction his own work was to take.

The first edition of his translation of ''Pistis Sophia'' appeared in 1896. From 1896 to 1898 Mead published another serial article in the same periodical, "Among the Gnostics of the First Two Centuries", that laid the foundation for his monumental compendium ''Fragments of a Faith Forgotten'' in 1900. Mead serially published translations from the ''Corpus Hermeticum'' from 1900 to 1905. The next year he published ''Thrice-Greatest Hermes'', a massive, comprehensive three volume treatise. His series ''Echoes of the Gnosis'' was published in 12 booklets in 1908. By the time he left the Theosophical Society in 1909, he had published many influential translations, commentaries, and studies of ancient Gnostic texts. "Mead made Gnosticism accessible to the intelligent public outside of academia".<ref>]</ref> Mead's work has had and continues to have widespread influence.<ref>]</ref>

===The Gnostic Church revival in France===
After a series of visions and archival finds of ]-related documents, a librarian named Jules-Benoît Stanislas Doinel du Val-Michel (a.k.a. ]) established the '']'' (French: ''Gnostic Church''). Founded on extant Cathar documents with the Gospel of John and strong influence of Simonian and Valentinian cosmology, the church was officially established in the autumn of 1890 in Paris. Doinel declared it "the era of Gnosis restored." Liturgical services were based on Cathar rituals. Clergy was both male and female, having male bishops and female "sophias."<ref name="Pearson, J. 2007 p. 47">]</ref><ref name="Hoeller 2002 p. 176-8">]</ref>

Doinel resigned and converted to Roman Catholicism in 1895, one of many duped by ]'s ]. Taxil unveiled the hoax in 1897. Doinel was readmitted to the Gnostic church as a bishop in 1900.

==Early to mid-20th century==

===Carl Jung===
] evinced a special interest in Gnosticism from at least 1912, when he wrote enthusiastically about the topic in a letter to Freud. After what he called his own 'encounter with the unconscious,' Jung sought for external evidence of this kind of experience. He found such evidence in Gnosticism, and also in ], which he saw as a continuation of Gnostic thought, and of which more source material was available.<ref>]</ref> In his study of the Gnostics, Jung made extensive use of the work of GRS Mead. Jung visited Mead in London to thank him for the ''Pistis Sophia'', the two corresponded, and Mead visited Jung in Zürich.<ref>]</ref>

Jung saw the Gnostics not as ] schools of mixed theological doctrines, but as genuine visionaries, and saw their imagery not as myths but as records of inner experience.<ref>]</ref> He wrote that "The explanation of Gnostic ideas 'in terms of themselves,' i.e., in terms of their historical foundations, is futile, for in that way they are reduced only to their less developed forestages but not understood in their actual significance."<ref>]</ref> Instead, he worked to understand and explain Gnosticism from a psychological standpoint. While providing something of an ancient mirror of his work, Jung saw "his psychology not as a contemporary ''version'' of Gnosticism, but as a contemporary ''counterpart'' to it."<ref>]</ref>

Jung reported a series of experiences in the winter of 1916-17 that inspired him to write '']'' (Latin: Seven Sermons to the Dead).<ref name="Goodrick-Clarke 2005 p. 31">]</ref><ref>]</ref>

==== The Jung Codex ====

Through the efforts of ], the '']'' was the first codex brought to light from the Nag Hammadi Library. It was purchased by the ] and ceremonially presented to Jung in 1953 because of his great interest in the ancient Gnostics.<ref>]</ref> The first publication of translations of Nag Hammadi texts occurred in 1955 with ''the Jung Codex'' by H. Puech, Gilles Quispel, and W. Van Unnik.

===French Gnostic Church split, reintegration, and continuation===
] had been involved with the Eliate Church of Carmel of {{ill|Eugène Vintras|fr}}, the remnants of ] ] (Johannite Church of Primitive Christians), and the ] before being consecrated a bishop of the '']'' in 1901. In 1907 Bricaud established a church body that combined all of these, becoming patriarch under the name Tau Jean II. The impetus for this was to use the ]. Briefly called the ''Église Catholique Gnostique'' (Gnostic Catholic Church), it was renamed the ''Église Gnostique Universelle'' (Universal Gnostic Church, EGU) in 1908. The close ties between the church and Martinism were formalized in 1911. Bricaud received consecration in the ] line of ] in 1919.<ref name="Pearson, J. 2007 p. 47"/><ref name="Hoeller 2002 p. 176-8"/>

The original church body founded by Doinel continued under the name ''Église Gnostique de France'' (Gnostic Church of France) until it was disbanded in favor of the EGU in 1926. The EGU continued until 1960 when it was disbanded by Robert Amberlain (Tau Jean III) in favor of the ''Église Gnostique Apostolique'' that he had founded in 1958.<ref>]</ref> It is active in France (including ]), ], and the ].

===Modern sex magic associated with Gnosticism===
The use of the term 'gnostic' by ] groups is a modern phenomenon. Hugh Urban concludes that, "despite the very common use of sexual symbolism throughout Gnostic texts, there is little evidence (apart from the accusations of the early church) that the Gnostics engaged in any actual performance of sexual rituals, and certainly not anything resembling modern sexual magic."<ref>]</ref> Modern sexual magic began with ].<ref>]</ref> The connection to Gnosticism came by way of the French Gnostic Church with its close ties to the strong esoteric current in France, being part of the same highly interconnected milieu of esoteric societies and orders from which the most influential of sexual magic orders arose, ] (Order of Oriental Templars, O.T.O.).

Theodor Reuss founded O.T.O. as an umbrella occult organization with sexual magic at its core.<ref>]</ref> After Reuss came into contact with French Gnostic Church leaders at a Masonic and Spiritualist conference in 1908, he founded ''Die Gnostische Katholische Kirche'' (the Gnostic Catholic Church), under the auspices of O.T.O.<ref name="Pearson, J. 2007 p. 47"/> Reuss subsequently dedicated O.T.O. to the promulgation of Crowley's philosophy of ]. It is for this church body, called in Latin the ] (EGC), that ] wrote the ''Ecclesiæ Gnosticæ Catholicæ Canon Missæ'' ("Canon of the Mass of the Gnostic Catholic Church"),<ref>]</ref> the central ritual of O.T.O. that is now commonly called the ].

===The Gnostic Society===
{{main|Gnostic Society}}
The Gnostic Society, was founded for the study of Gnosticism in 1928 and incorporated in 1939 by Theosophists ] and his brother John Pryse in Los Angeles.<ref name="Pearson, B. 2007 p. 240">]</ref><ref name="Smith 1995 p. 206">]</ref> Since 1963 it has been under the direction of ] and operates in association with the ]. Initially begun as an archive for a ] ] in 1993, became the first web site to offer historic and source materials on Gnosticism.

==Mid-20th century==

], held to be the most complete of the Nag Hammadi texts, is the subject of the book ''The Mustard Seed'' by Indian mystic ], also known as Osho.<ref>{{cite book |last= Osho|date= 1974|title= The Mustard Seed – Commentaries on the Fifth Gospel of Saint Thomas |url= https://www.osho.com/iosho/library/read-book/online-library-the-mustard-seed-f17c62b563ee?p=247a23d05558f25ee8080d0ca6639fdc|location= Switzerland|publisher= OSHO International Foundation|author-link= Rajneesh}}</ref>

===''Ecclesia Gnostica''===
Established in 1953 by Richard Duc de Palatine in England under the name 'the Pre-nicene Gnostic Catholic Church', the Ecclesia Gnostica (Latin: "Church of Gnosis" or "Gnostic Church") is said to represent 'the English Gnostic tradition', although it has ties to, and has been influenced by, the French Gnostic church tradition. It is affiliated with the Gnostic Society, an organization dedicated to the study of Gnosticism. The presiding bishop is the Rt. Rev. ], who has written extensively on Gnosticism.<ref name="Goodrick-Clarke 2005 p. 31"/><ref name="Pearson, B. 2007 p. 240"/>

Centered in Los Angeles, the Ecclesia Gnostica has parishes and educational programs of the Gnostic Society spanning the Western US and also in the Kingdom of Norway.<ref name="Pearson, B. 2007 p. 240"/><ref name="Smith 1995 p. 206"/> The lectionary and liturgical calendar of the Ecclesia Gnostica have been widely adopted by subsequent Gnostic churches, as have the liturgical services in use by the church, though in somewhat modified forms.

==== ''Ecclesia Gnostica Mysteriorum'' ====
The (EGM), commonly known as "the Church of Gnosis" or "the Gnostic Sanctuary," was initially established in Palo Alto by bishop ] as a parish of the Ecclesia Gnostica, but soon became an independent body with emphasis on the experience of gnosis and the balance of the divine masculine and feminine principles. The Gnostic Sanctuary is now located in Redwood City, California.<ref name="Pearson, B. 2007 p. 240"/><ref name="Smith 1995 p. 206"/> The EGM also claims a distinct lineage of Mary Magdalene from a surviving tradition in France.{{sfn|Keizer|2000|p=48}}
===Samael Aun Weor in South America===
] had been a member of an occult order called the ], but left after the death of ]. He reported an experience of being called to his new mission by the venerable White Lodge (associated with Theosophy). Samael Aun Weor taught a "New Gnosis," consisting of sexual union between man and woman, without the ejaculation of the sexual liquid. He called this the ''Arcanum AZF''. For him it is "the synthesis of all religions, schools and sects."{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}}

Moving through Latin America, he finally settled in Mexico where he founded the Movimiento Gnostico Cristiano Universal (MGCU) (Universal Gnostic Christian Movement), then subsequently founded the Iglesia Gnostica Cristiana Universal (Universal Gnostic Christian Church) and the Associacion Gnostica de Estudios Antropologicos Culturales y Cientificos (AGEAC) (Gnostic Association of Scientific, Cultural and Anthropological Studies) to spread his teachings.<ref>]</ref>

The MGCU became defunct by the time of Samael Aun Weor's death in December 1977. However, his disciples subsequently formed new organizations to spread his teachings, under the umbrella term 'the International Gnostic Movement'. These organizations are currently very active via the Internet and have centers established in Latin America, the US, Australia, Canada and Europe.<ref>]</ref>

===Hans Jonas===
The philosopher ] wrote extensively on Gnosticism, interpreting it from an ] viewpoint.{{sfn|Sariel|2023|pp=91-122}} For some time, his study '']: The message of the alien God and the beginnings of Christianity'' published in 1958, was widely held to be a pivotal work, and it is as a result of his efforts that the ] division of Gnosticism came to be widely used within the field. The second edition, published in 1963, included the essay "Gnosticism, Existentialism, and Nihilism," where ] claimed that attitude previously manifest as ancient ] was transformed into ] (largely identified as ]) by the secular-atheist approach typical of ] and ].{{sfn|Sariel|2023|pp=91-122}}

===Eric Voegelin's anti-modernist 'gnostic thesis'===
In the 1950s, ] brought a German academic debate concerning the classification of ] to the attention of English-language readers. He responded to ]'s 1949 ''Meaning in History: the Theological Implications of the Philosophy of History'' and ]'s 1947 ''Occidental Eschatology''. Voegelin put forward his version of a "gnosticism thesis": criticizing modernity by identifying an "immanentist eschatology" as the "gnostic nature" of modernity. Differing with Löwith, he did not criticize eschatology as such, but rather the immanentization which he described as a "pneumopathological" deformation. Voegelin's gnosticism thesis became popular in American ] and cold war political thought.<ref>]</ref> The category of gnosticism has been adopted by other scholars to frame several revolutionary phenomena (such as Bolshevism and Nazism, Puritanism, radical Anabaptism, Jacobinism,<ref>]</ref> and lastly Salafi-Jihadism<ref>]</ref>).

=== Gershom Scholem's Kabbalah as Jewish Gnosticism ===

] (5 December 1897 – 21 February 1982), was a German-born Israeli philosopher and historian. Widely regarded as the founder of modern academic study of the ], Scholem produced the hypothesis that the source of the 13th century ] (such as the ]) was Jewish gnosticism that preceded ]. For example, in the title of his 1960's ''Jewish Gnosticism, Merkabah Mysticism, and the Talmudic Tradition.''

==Late-20th century and 21st century==
=== Neo-Gnostic movement in Finland ===
] founded the ] (Turun Hengentieteen Seura) on September 1, 1971. Siitoin believed in ] and ] and combined these with antisemitism and satanism. To him, Lucifer, Satan and Jesus were subordinate to the ], and could be worshiped together. Lucifer was a ] figure who created the original humanity and granted them ] so that they would evolve to be equal to Gods in time, while Jehova-Demiurge created the Jewish race to usurp Lucifer's power and lord over humanity. Siitoin was also influenced by Christian apocrypha, like ] and to him Jesus was an agent of the Monad and Lucifer against the Demiurge.<ref>Western Esotericism in Scandinavia, 2016, p. 326-328. Edited by Henrik Bogdan and Olav Hammer.</ref><ref>Granholm, Kennet. “‘Worshipping the Devil in the Name of God’: Anti-Semitism, Teosophy and Christianity in the Occult Doctrines of Pekka Siitoin.” Journal for the Academic Study of Magic, no. 5 (2009): 256–286.</ref><ref>Pasanen, T. (2021). Christus verus Luciferus, Demon est Deus Inversus: Pekka Siitoin’s Spiritism Board. Temenos - Nordic Journal for the Study of Religion, 57(2), 181–207. https://doi.org/10.33356/temenos.107763</ref><ref>Keronen, Jiri: Pekka Siitoin teoriassa ja käytännössä. Helsinki: Kiuas Kustannus, 2020. ISBN 978-952-7197-21-9</ref> Several of the perpetrators of the ] in November 1977 were members of the society.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yle.fi/aihe/artikkeli/2015/05/04/pekka-siitoin-oli-uusfasismin-kasvot-suomessa|title=Pekka Siitoin Was the New Face of Neo-Fascism in Finland |accessdate=24 July 2017|date=4 May 2015|publisher=]|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150506042418/http://yle.fi/aihe/artikkeli/2015/05/04/pekka-siitoin-oli-uusfasismin-kasvot-suomessa|archivedate=6 May 2015}}</ref>

The neo-Nazis arrested in the 2021 ] were also inspired by the neo-Gnostic movement and had built a shrine with gnostic symbols and literature.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kankaanpaanseutu.fi/uutiset/art-2000010709473.html|work=]|date=5 December 2024|title=Terrorismirikoksista syytetyt kertovat, miten nimien julkitulo vaikutti työpaikkojen menettämiseen – varat jäädytettiin ja talo meni asumiskelvottomaksi}}</ref>


==Gnosticism in popular culture== ==Gnosticism in popular culture==
Gnosticism has seen something of a resurgence in popular culture in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. This may be related, certainly, to the sudden availability of Gnostic texts to the reading public, following the emergence of the Nag Hammadi library.
{{main|Gnosticism in popular culture}}

Gnosticism has seen something of a resurgence in popular culture in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. This may be related, certainly, to the sudden availability of Gnostic texts to the reading public, following the emergence of the Nag Hammadi library.
* ] explored gnosticism in many of his later works, particularly the ].
* A novel by ] explicitly aimed to introduce readers to Gnosticism: '']''. New York: Vintage Books, 1980. ISBN 0-394-74323-7.
*Polish ] laureate ] depicts worlds that strongly resemble one known from the Gnostic cosmogony. Notable examples are '']'' and '']''.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019-10-10|title=Granica, która oddziela od światła. Obraz(y) czasu w twórczości Olgi Tokarczuk - Krzysztof Brenskott {{!}} Nowy Napis|url=https://nowynapis.eu/tygodnik/nr-18/artykul/granica-ktora-oddziela-od-swiatla-obrazy-czasu-w-tworczosci-olgi-tokarczuk|access-date=2021-10-08|website=nowynapis.eu|language=pl}}</ref>
* '']'' by American author ] features several Gnostic elements.<ref>Daugherty, Leo. "Gravers False and True: Blood Meridian as Gnostic Tragedy," ''Southern Quarterly'', 30, No. 4, Summer 1992, pp.&nbsp;122–133.</ref><ref>Owens, Barcley. ''Cormac McCarthy's Western Novels''. University of Arizona Press, 2000. {{ISBN|0-8165-1928-5}}.</ref>
* Paperback – September 1, 2013, by Scott David Finch (Author, Illustrator)
* '']'' was said by director ] to have been inspired by Gnosticism.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blog.playstation.com/2012/10/12/behind-the-classics-amy-hennig-talks-soul-reaver-secrets/|title=Behind the Classics: Amy Hennig Talks Soul Reaver Secrets|website=blog.playstation.com|language=en|access-date=2023-01-17}}</ref>
* The ] video game series '']'' extensively uses Gnostic terms and concepts.
* ] presented by ] refer to a ] as ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newstatesman.com/lifestyle/2014/11/psycho-lizards-saturn-godlike-genius-david-icke|title=Psycho lizards from Saturn: The godlike genius of David Icke!|first=Dorian|last=Lynskey|publisher=]|date=6 November 2014|access-date=2021-08-17}}</ref>
* Catholic priest Alfonso Aguilar has described '']'', '']'', and '']'' as embodying Gnostic views, as "two signs of the power of the real enemy: Gnosticism" and stressing the need to "examine their philosophical background and reject what is incompatible with our Christian faith."<ref name=aguilar>{{cite web|last=Aguilar|first=Father Alfonso|title=Gnosticism and the Struggle for the World's Soul|url=https://www.catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/gnosticism-and-the-struggle-for-the-world-s-soul.html|website=Catholic Education Resource Center|access-date=15 December 2021|date=6–12 April 2003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161106134108/https://catholiceducation.org/en/culture/catholic-contributions/gnosticism-and-the-struggle-for-the-world-s-soul.html|archive-date=6 November 2016}}</ref>
* In ''The Matrix'', ] offering ] the truth and asking him to choose between a ] symbolizing materialistic ] and secret ] respectively, which has been compared to Gnosticism in scholarly criticism.<ref>Flannery-Dailey, Frances, and Rachel Wagner. "Wake up! Gnosticism and Buddhism in the Matrix." Journal of Religion and Film 5.2 (2001).</ref>
* In '']'', there is many themes and references to Gnosticism, such as in the end of the game where the player has to kill ] as a final boss.
* The JRPG ] series extensively uses Gnosticism as the primary theme in most of its entries.

==See also==
*Gnostic churches:
**] (disputed)
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
**]
*]


==Modern gnostic mysticism== == Notes ==
{{reflist|3}}
Gnostic believers today retain much of the ], in particular that
*human minds (equated with souls) are independent of the realm of matter, and are emanations of ], the non-physical Spirit;
*the physical world is an illusion created by the '']'' manifesting himself, and it is ruled by ''Archons'', or demons, which prevent the spiritual progress of the mind in every possible way and maintain its entrapment in matter. ''Aeons'', or angels, help human minds to fight the demons in many situations.


== References ==
These doctrines are well explained by Dutch gnostic scholar and ] ].
{{refbegin|indent=yes}}
*<cite id=refArrigo>{{cite book
| last = Arrigo
| first = Giacomo Maria
| title = Gnostic Jihadism. A Philosophical Inquiry into Radical Politics
| publisher = Mimesis International
| year = 2021
| location = Milan
| isbn = 978-8-86977-304-4}}</cite>
*<cite id=refCrowleyEquinox>{{cite book
| last = Crowley
| first = Aleister
| title = The Equinox vol. III no. 1
| publisher = Weiser
| year = 2007
| location = San Francisco
| isbn = 978-1-57863-353-1}}</cite>
*<cite id=refDawsonNew>{{cite book
| last = Dawson
| first = Andrew
| title = New era, new religions: religious transformation in contemporary Brazil
| publisher = Ashgate Publishing
| year = 2007
| location = Burlington, VT
| isbn = 978-0-7546-5433-9}}</cite>
*<cite id=refGoodGRS>{{cite book
| last = Goodrick-Clarke
| first = Clare
| title = G. R. S. Mead and the Gnostic Quest
| publisher = North Atlantic Books
| year = 2005
| location = Berkeley
| isbn = 1-55643-572-X}}</cite>
*<cite id=refGreerEncy>{{cite book
| last = Greer
| first = John Michael
| title = The New Encyclopedia of the Occult
| publisher = Llewellyn
| year = 2003
| location = St. Paul
| isbn = 1-56718-336-0}}</cite>
*<cite id=refHoellJung>{{cite book
| last = Hoeller
| first = Stephan
| author-link = Stephan A. Hoeller
| title = The Gnostic Jung and the Seven Sermons to the Dead
| publisher = Quest Books
| year = 1989
| isbn = 0-8356-0568-X}}</cite>
*<cite id=refHoellGnos>{{cite book
| last = Hoeller
| first = Stephan
| author-link = Stephan A. Hoeller
| title = Gnosticism: New light on the ancient tradition of inner knowing
| publisher = Quest Books
}}</cite>
* Jonas, Hans (1966). “Gnosticism, Existentialism, and Nihilism.” In ''The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology,'' University of Chicago Press.
*<cite id=refJungCW>{{cite book
| last = Jung
| first = Carl Gustav
| author-link = Carl Jung
| title = The Collected Works of C.G. Jung
| publisher = Bollingen (Princeton University)
| year = 1977
| location = Princeton, NJ
| isbn = 0-7100-8291-6}}</cite>
*{{cite book | last = Keizer | first = Lewis | title = The Wandering Bishops: Apostles of a New Spirituality | publisher = St. Thomas Press | year = 2000 | url = http://www.hometemple.org/WanBishWeb%20Complete.pdf }}
* Lasch, Christopher. "Gnosticism, Ancient and Modern: The Religion of the Future?," ''Salmagundi,'' No. 96, Fall 1992.
*<cite id=refMeadFrag>{{cite book
| last = Mead
| first = GRS
| author-link = GRS Mead
| title = Fragments of a Faith Forgotten
| publisher = Theosophical Society
| year = 1906|edition=2nd
}}</cite>
* O’Reagan, Cyril (2001). ''Gnostic Return in Modernity,'' SUNY Press.
*<cite id=refPearsAnc>{{cite book
| last = Pearson
| first = Birger
| author-link = Birger A. Pearson
| title = Ancient Gnosticism: Traditions and Literature
| publisher = Fortress Press
| year = 2007
| location = Minneapolis
| isbn = 978-0-8006-3258-8}}</cite>
*<cite id=refPearsWicca>{{cite book
| last = Pearson
| first = Joanne
| title = Wicca and the Christian Heritage
| publisher = Routledge
| year = 2007
| location = New York
| isbn = 978-0-415-25414-4}}</cite>
*<cite id=refPellicani>{{cite book
| last = Pellicani
| first = Luciano
| title = Revolutionary Apocalypse. Ideological Roots of Terrorism
| publisher = Praeger
| year = 2003
| location = Westport
| isbn = 0-275-98145-2}}</cite>
* Rossbach, Stefan (2000). ''Gnostic Wars,'' Edinburgh University Press.
*{{cite journal|last=Sariel|first= Aviram|title=Jonasian Gnosticism|journal=Harvard Theological Review |volume=116|issue=1 |date=2023|pages=91–122}}
*<cite id=refSegalJung>{{cite book
| last = Segal
| first = Robert
| editor-last = Segal
| editor-first = Robert
| title = The Allure of Gnosticism: the Gnostic experience in Jungian psychology and contemporary culture
| publisher = Open Court
| contribution = Jung's Fascination with Gnosticism
| year = 1995
| pages = 26–38
| isbn = 0-8126-9278-0}}</cite>
*<cite id=refSmithRevival>{{cite book
| last = Smith
| first = Richard
| editor-last = Segal
| editor-first = Robert
| title = The Allure of Gnosticism: the Gnostic experience in Jungian psychology and contemporary culture
| publisher = Open Court
| contribution = The revival of ancient Gnosis
| year = 1995
| pages = 206
| isbn = 0-8126-9278-0}}</cite>
*<cite id=refUrbanMagia>{{cite book
| last = Urban
| first = Hugh B.
| title = Magia Sexualis: Sex, Magic, and Liberation in modern Western esotericism
| publisher = University of California
| year = 2006
| isbn = 0-520-24776-0}}</cite>
*{{cite book|last=Taussig|first=Hal|title=A New New Testament: A Reinvented Bible for the Twenty-first Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts|year=2013|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|isbn=9780547792101}}
* Versluis, Arthur (2006). "Eric Voegelin, Anti-Gnosticism, and the Totalitarian Emphasis on Order." In ''The New Inquisitions: Heretic-Hunting and the Intellectual Origins of Modern Totalitarianism,'' Oxford University Press.
* Voegelin, Eric (1956). ''Order and History,'' Louisiana State University Press.
* Voegelin, Eric (1968). ''Science, Politics, and Gnosticism: Two Essays,'' Regnery Gateway.
* Voegelin, Eric (1987). ''],'' University Of Chicago Press.
*<cite id=refWeissVoeg>{{cite journal
| last = Weiss
| first = Gilbert
| title = Between gnosis and anamnesis--European perspectives on Eric Voegelin
| journal = The Review of Politics
| volume = 62
| issue = 4
| pages = 753–776
| year = 2000
| doi = 10.1017/S003467050004273X
| s2cid = 144643743
| id = 65964268 }}</cite>
*<cite id=ref>{{cite book
| last = Wasserstrom
| first = Steven M.
| title = Religion after religion: Gershom Scholem, Mircea Eliade, and Henry Corbin at Eranos
| publisher = Princeton University
| year = 1999
| location = Princeton, NJ
| isbn = 0-691-00540-0}}</cite>
{{refend}}


==Further reading==
Other developments might be said to include relation of Gnostic mysticism to ] and ], such as in writings about ''TechGnosticism'' (]), ''Infomysticism'' (], ), and possibly ]'s ] of ].
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Styfhals |first=Willem |year=2019 |title=No Spiritual Investment in the World: Gnosticism and Postwar German Philosophy |location=Ithaca, New York |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=978-1-5017-3099-3 }}
{{refend}}


==External links== ==External links==
<!--========================({{No More Links}})============================
All external links are given in alphabetical order by page title or, where available, by author. If you wish to add to the lists, please maintain this layout.
| PLEASE BE CAUTIOUS IN ADDING MORE LINKS TO THIS ARTICLE. WIKIPEDIA |
| IS NOT A COLLECTION OF LINKS NOR SHOULD IT BE USED FOR ADVERTISING. |
| |
| Excessive or inappropriate links WILL BE DELETED. |
| See ] & ] for details. |
| |
| If there are already plentiful links, please propose additions or |
| replacements on this article's discussion page, or submit your link |
| to the relevant category at the Open Directory Project (dmoz.org) |
| and link back to that category using the {{dmoz}} template. |
=======================({{No More Links}})=============================-->
* - online text of the book
*
*


{{Gnosticism topics|state=expanded}}
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*


{{DEFAULTSORT:Gnosticism In Modern Times}}
] ]

Latest revision as of 18:15, 15 December 2024

Contemporary religious movements with origins in the Judeo-Christian milieux
  Part of a series on
Gnosticism
Gnostic concepts
Gnostic sects and founders
Proto-Gnosticism
Judean / Israelite
Christian Gnosticism
Syrian-Egyptian
Alexandrian
Roman
Persian Gnosticism
Chinese Gnosticism
Islamic Gnosticism
Modern
Scriptures
Texts
Codices
Influenced by
Influence on

Gnosticism in modern times (or Neo-Gnosticism) includes a variety of contemporary religious movements, stemming from Gnostic ideas and systems from ancient Roman society. Gnosticism is an ancient name for a variety of religious ideas and systems, originating in Jewish-Christian milieux in the first and second century CE.

The Mandaeans are an ancient Gnostic ethnoreligious group that have survived and are found today in Iran, Iraq and diaspora communities in North America, Western Europe and Australia.

The late 19th century saw the publication of popular sympathetic studies making use of recently rediscovered source materials. In this period there was also the revival of a Gnostic religious movement in France. The emergence of the Nag Hammadi library in 1945 greatly increased the amount of source material available. Its translation into English and other modern languages in 1977 resulted in a wide dissemination, and as a result had observable influence on several modern figures, and upon modern Western culture in general. This article attempts to summarize those modern figures and movements that have been influenced by Gnosticism, both prior and subsequent to the Nag Hammadi discovery.

A number of ecclesiastical bodies that identify as Gnostic have set up or re-founded since World War II as well, including the Ecclesia Gnostica, Johannite Church, Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica, the Ecclesia Gnostica Mysterioum, the Thomasine Church (not to be confused with the St. Thomas Christians of India), the Alexandrian Gnostic Church, the Ecclesia Gnostica Apostolica, the Gnostic Catholic Union, Ecclesia Valentinaris Antiqua, the Cathari Church of Wales, and the North American College of Gnostic Bishops.

Late 19th century

Source materials were discovered in the 18th century. In 1769, the Bruce Codex was brought to England from Upper Egypt by the Scottish traveller James Bruce, and subsequently bequeathed to the care of the Bodleian Library, Oxford. Sometime prior to 1785, The Askew Codex (a.k.a. Pistis Sophia) was bought by the British Museum from the heirs of Dr. Askew. The Pistis Sophia text and Latin translation of the Askew Codex by M. G. Schwartze were published in 1851. Although discovered in 1896, the Coptic Berlin Codex (a.k.a. the Akhmim Codex) was not 'rediscovered' until the 20th century.

Charles William King

Charles William King was a British writer and collector of ancient gemstones with magical inscriptions. His collection was sold because of his failing eyesight, and was presented in 1881 to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. King was recognized as one of the greatest authorities on gems at the time.

In The Gnostics and their Remains (1864, 1887 2nd ed.) King sets out to show that rather than being a Western heresy, the origins of Gnosticism are to be found in the East, specifically in Buddhism. This theory was embraced by Blavatsky, who argued that it was plausible, but rejected by G. R. S. Mead. According to Mead, King's work "lacks the thoroughness of the specialist."

Madame Blavatsky

Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, co-founder of the Theosophical Society, wrote extensively on Gnostic ideas. A compilation of her writings on Gnosticism is over 270 pages long. The first edition of King's The Gnostics and Their Remains was repeatedly cited as a source and quoted in Isis Unveiled.

G. R. S. Mead

G. R. S. Mead became a member of Blavatsky's Theosophical Society in 1884. He left the teaching profession in 1889 to become Blavatsky's private secretary, which he was until her death in 1891. Mead's interest in Gnosticism was likely awakened by Blavatsky who discussed it at length in Isis Unveiled.

In 1890–1891 Mead published a serial article on Pistis Sophia in Lucifer magazine, the first English translation of that work. In an article in 1891, Mead argues for the recovery of the literature and thought of the West at a time when Theosophy was largely directed to the East, saying that this recovery of Western antique traditions is a work of interpretation and "the rendering of tardy justice to pagans and heretics, the reviled and rejected pioneers of progress..." This was the direction his own work was to take.

The first edition of his translation of Pistis Sophia appeared in 1896. From 1896 to 1898 Mead published another serial article in the same periodical, "Among the Gnostics of the First Two Centuries", that laid the foundation for his monumental compendium Fragments of a Faith Forgotten in 1900. Mead serially published translations from the Corpus Hermeticum from 1900 to 1905. The next year he published Thrice-Greatest Hermes, a massive, comprehensive three volume treatise. His series Echoes of the Gnosis was published in 12 booklets in 1908. By the time he left the Theosophical Society in 1909, he had published many influential translations, commentaries, and studies of ancient Gnostic texts. "Mead made Gnosticism accessible to the intelligent public outside of academia". Mead's work has had and continues to have widespread influence.

The Gnostic Church revival in France

After a series of visions and archival finds of Cathar-related documents, a librarian named Jules-Benoît Stanislas Doinel du Val-Michel (a.k.a. Jules Doinel) established the Église Gnostique (French: Gnostic Church). Founded on extant Cathar documents with the Gospel of John and strong influence of Simonian and Valentinian cosmology, the church was officially established in the autumn of 1890 in Paris. Doinel declared it "the era of Gnosis restored." Liturgical services were based on Cathar rituals. Clergy was both male and female, having male bishops and female "sophias."

Doinel resigned and converted to Roman Catholicism in 1895, one of many duped by Léo Taxil's anti-masonic hoax. Taxil unveiled the hoax in 1897. Doinel was readmitted to the Gnostic church as a bishop in 1900.

Early to mid-20th century

Carl Jung

Carl Gustav Jung evinced a special interest in Gnosticism from at least 1912, when he wrote enthusiastically about the topic in a letter to Freud. After what he called his own 'encounter with the unconscious,' Jung sought for external evidence of this kind of experience. He found such evidence in Gnosticism, and also in alchemy, which he saw as a continuation of Gnostic thought, and of which more source material was available. In his study of the Gnostics, Jung made extensive use of the work of GRS Mead. Jung visited Mead in London to thank him for the Pistis Sophia, the two corresponded, and Mead visited Jung in Zürich.

Jung saw the Gnostics not as syncretic schools of mixed theological doctrines, but as genuine visionaries, and saw their imagery not as myths but as records of inner experience. He wrote that "The explanation of Gnostic ideas 'in terms of themselves,' i.e., in terms of their historical foundations, is futile, for in that way they are reduced only to their less developed forestages but not understood in their actual significance." Instead, he worked to understand and explain Gnosticism from a psychological standpoint. While providing something of an ancient mirror of his work, Jung saw "his psychology not as a contemporary version of Gnosticism, but as a contemporary counterpart to it."

Jung reported a series of experiences in the winter of 1916-17 that inspired him to write Septem Sermones ad Mortuos (Latin: Seven Sermons to the Dead).

The Jung Codex

Through the efforts of Gilles Quispel, the Jung Codex was the first codex brought to light from the Nag Hammadi Library. It was purchased by the Jung Institute and ceremonially presented to Jung in 1953 because of his great interest in the ancient Gnostics. The first publication of translations of Nag Hammadi texts occurred in 1955 with the Jung Codex by H. Puech, Gilles Quispel, and W. Van Unnik.

French Gnostic Church split, reintegration, and continuation

Jean Bricaud had been involved with the Eliate Church of Carmel of Eugène Vintras [fr], the remnants of Fabré-Palaprat's Église Johannite des Chrétiens Primitifs (Johannite Church of Primitive Christians), and the Martinist Order before being consecrated a bishop of the Église Gnostique in 1901. In 1907 Bricaud established a church body that combined all of these, becoming patriarch under the name Tau Jean II. The impetus for this was to use the Western Rite. Briefly called the Église Catholique Gnostique (Gnostic Catholic Church), it was renamed the Église Gnostique Universelle (Universal Gnostic Church, EGU) in 1908. The close ties between the church and Martinism were formalized in 1911. Bricaud received consecration in the Villate line of apostolic succession in 1919.

The original church body founded by Doinel continued under the name Église Gnostique de France (Gnostic Church of France) until it was disbanded in favor of the EGU in 1926. The EGU continued until 1960 when it was disbanded by Robert Amberlain (Tau Jean III) in favor of the Église Gnostique Apostolique that he had founded in 1958. It is active in France (including Martinique), Ivory Coast, and the Midwestern United States.

Modern sex magic associated with Gnosticism

The use of the term 'gnostic' by sexual magic groups is a modern phenomenon. Hugh Urban concludes that, "despite the very common use of sexual symbolism throughout Gnostic texts, there is little evidence (apart from the accusations of the early church) that the Gnostics engaged in any actual performance of sexual rituals, and certainly not anything resembling modern sexual magic." Modern sexual magic began with Paschal Beverly Randolph. The connection to Gnosticism came by way of the French Gnostic Church with its close ties to the strong esoteric current in France, being part of the same highly interconnected milieu of esoteric societies and orders from which the most influential of sexual magic orders arose, Ordo Templi Orientis (Order of Oriental Templars, O.T.O.).

Theodor Reuss founded O.T.O. as an umbrella occult organization with sexual magic at its core. After Reuss came into contact with French Gnostic Church leaders at a Masonic and Spiritualist conference in 1908, he founded Die Gnostische Katholische Kirche (the Gnostic Catholic Church), under the auspices of O.T.O. Reuss subsequently dedicated O.T.O. to the promulgation of Crowley's philosophy of Thelema. It is for this church body, called in Latin the Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (EGC), that Aleister Crowley wrote the Ecclesiæ Gnosticæ Catholicæ Canon Missæ ("Canon of the Mass of the Gnostic Catholic Church"), the central ritual of O.T.O. that is now commonly called the Gnostic Mass.

The Gnostic Society

Main article: Gnostic Society

The Gnostic Society, was founded for the study of Gnosticism in 1928 and incorporated in 1939 by Theosophists James Morgan Pryse and his brother John Pryse in Los Angeles. Since 1963 it has been under the direction of Stephan Hoeller and operates in association with the Ecclesia Gnostica. Initially begun as an archive for a usenet newsgroup in 1993, the Gnosis Archive became the first web site to offer historic and source materials on Gnosticism.

Mid-20th century

The Gospel of Thomas, held to be the most complete of the Nag Hammadi texts, is the subject of the book The Mustard Seed by Indian mystic Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, also known as Osho.

Ecclesia Gnostica

Established in 1953 by Richard Duc de Palatine in England under the name 'the Pre-nicene Gnostic Catholic Church', the Ecclesia Gnostica (Latin: "Church of Gnosis" or "Gnostic Church") is said to represent 'the English Gnostic tradition', although it has ties to, and has been influenced by, the French Gnostic church tradition. It is affiliated with the Gnostic Society, an organization dedicated to the study of Gnosticism. The presiding bishop is the Rt. Rev. Stephan A. Hoeller, who has written extensively on Gnosticism.

Centered in Los Angeles, the Ecclesia Gnostica has parishes and educational programs of the Gnostic Society spanning the Western US and also in the Kingdom of Norway. The lectionary and liturgical calendar of the Ecclesia Gnostica have been widely adopted by subsequent Gnostic churches, as have the liturgical services in use by the church, though in somewhat modified forms.

Ecclesia Gnostica Mysteriorum

The Ecclesia Gnostica Mysteriorum (EGM), commonly known as "the Church of Gnosis" or "the Gnostic Sanctuary," was initially established in Palo Alto by bishop Rosamonde Miller as a parish of the Ecclesia Gnostica, but soon became an independent body with emphasis on the experience of gnosis and the balance of the divine masculine and feminine principles. The Gnostic Sanctuary is now located in Redwood City, California. The EGM also claims a distinct lineage of Mary Magdalene from a surviving tradition in France.

Samael Aun Weor in South America

Samael Aun Weor had been a member of an occult order called the Fraternitas Rosicruciana Antiqua, but left after the death of Arnold Krumm-Heller. He reported an experience of being called to his new mission by the venerable White Lodge (associated with Theosophy). Samael Aun Weor taught a "New Gnosis," consisting of sexual union between man and woman, without the ejaculation of the sexual liquid. He called this the Arcanum AZF. For him it is "the synthesis of all religions, schools and sects."

Moving through Latin America, he finally settled in Mexico where he founded the Movimiento Gnostico Cristiano Universal (MGCU) (Universal Gnostic Christian Movement), then subsequently founded the Iglesia Gnostica Cristiana Universal (Universal Gnostic Christian Church) and the Associacion Gnostica de Estudios Antropologicos Culturales y Cientificos (AGEAC) (Gnostic Association of Scientific, Cultural and Anthropological Studies) to spread his teachings.

The MGCU became defunct by the time of Samael Aun Weor's death in December 1977. However, his disciples subsequently formed new organizations to spread his teachings, under the umbrella term 'the International Gnostic Movement'. These organizations are currently very active via the Internet and have centers established in Latin America, the US, Australia, Canada and Europe.

Hans Jonas

The philosopher Hans Jonas wrote extensively on Gnosticism, interpreting it from an existentialist viewpoint. For some time, his study The Gnostic Religion: The message of the alien God and the beginnings of Christianity published in 1958, was widely held to be a pivotal work, and it is as a result of his efforts that the Syrian-Egyptian/Persian division of Gnosticism came to be widely used within the field. The second edition, published in 1963, included the essay "Gnosticism, Existentialism, and Nihilism," where Jonas claimed that attitude previously manifest as ancient Gnosticism was transformed into Nihilism (largely identified as Nazism) by the secular-atheist approach typical of Sartre and Heidegger.

Eric Voegelin's anti-modernist 'gnostic thesis'

In the 1950s, Eric Voegelin brought a German academic debate concerning the classification of modernity to the attention of English-language readers. He responded to Karl Löwith's 1949 Meaning in History: the Theological Implications of the Philosophy of History and Jacob Taubes's 1947 Occidental Eschatology. Voegelin put forward his version of a "gnosticism thesis": criticizing modernity by identifying an "immanentist eschatology" as the "gnostic nature" of modernity. Differing with Löwith, he did not criticize eschatology as such, but rather the immanentization which he described as a "pneumopathological" deformation. Voegelin's gnosticism thesis became popular in American neo-conservative and cold war political thought. The category of gnosticism has been adopted by other scholars to frame several revolutionary phenomena (such as Bolshevism and Nazism, Puritanism, radical Anabaptism, Jacobinism, and lastly Salafi-Jihadism).

Gershom Scholem's Kabbalah as Jewish Gnosticism

Gershom Scholem (5 December 1897 – 21 February 1982), was a German-born Israeli philosopher and historian. Widely regarded as the founder of modern academic study of the Kabbalah, Scholem produced the hypothesis that the source of the 13th century Kabbalah (such as the Zohar) was Jewish gnosticism that preceded Christian gnosticism. For example, in the title of his 1960's Jewish Gnosticism, Merkabah Mysticism, and the Talmudic Tradition.

Late-20th century and 21st century

Neo-Gnostic movement in Finland

Pekka Siitoin founded the Turku Society for the Spiritual Sciences (Turun Hengentieteen Seura) on September 1, 1971. Siitoin believed in neo-Gnosticism and Theosophy and combined these with antisemitism and satanism. To him, Lucifer, Satan and Jesus were subordinate to the Monad, and could be worshiped together. Lucifer was a Promethean figure who created the original humanity and granted them wisdom so that they would evolve to be equal to Gods in time, while Jehova-Demiurge created the Jewish race to usurp Lucifer's power and lord over humanity. Siitoin was also influenced by Christian apocrypha, like Gospel of Judas and to him Jesus was an agent of the Monad and Lucifer against the Demiurge. Several of the perpetrators of the Kursiivi printing house arson in November 1977 were members of the society.

The neo-Nazis arrested in the 2021 Kankaanpää terrorism arrests were also inspired by the neo-Gnostic movement and had built a shrine with gnostic symbols and literature.

Gnosticism in popular culture

Gnosticism has seen something of a resurgence in popular culture in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. This may be related, certainly, to the sudden availability of Gnostic texts to the reading public, following the emergence of the Nag Hammadi library.

See also

Notes

  1. Taussig 2013, p. 532.
  2. 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica
  3. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) p. 8-9
  4. Hoeller (2002) p. 167
  5. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) p. 8
  6. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) pp. 56–57
  7. Hoeller (2002) p. 170
  8. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) pp. 31–32
  9. ^ Pearson, J. (2007) p. 47
  10. ^ Hoeller (2002) p. 176-8
  11. Segal (1995) p. 26
  12. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) p. 1, 30-1
  13. Goodrick-Clarke (2005) p. 30
  14. Jung (1977) p. 652
  15. Segal (1995) p. 30
  16. ^ Goodrick-Clarke (2005) p. 31
  17. Hoeller (1989) p. 7
  18. Jung (1977) p. 671
  19. Pearson, J. (2007) p. 131
  20. Urban (2006) p. 36 note 68
  21. Urban (2006) p. 36
  22. Greer (2003) p. 221-2
  23. The Equinox III:1 (1929) p. 247
  24. ^ Pearson, B. (2007) p. 240
  25. ^ Smith (1995) p. 206
  26. Osho (1974). The Mustard Seed – Commentaries on the Fifth Gospel of Saint Thomas. Switzerland: OSHO International Foundation.
  27. Keizer 2000, p. 48.
  28. Dawson (2007) p. 54-60
  29. Dawson (2007) p. 60-65
  30. ^ Sariel 2023, pp. 91–122.
  31. Weiss (2000)
  32. Pellicani (2003)
  33. Arrigo (2021)
  34. Western Esotericism in Scandinavia, 2016, p. 326-328. Edited by Henrik Bogdan and Olav Hammer.
  35. Granholm, Kennet. “‘Worshipping the Devil in the Name of God’: Anti-Semitism, Teosophy and Christianity in the Occult Doctrines of Pekka Siitoin.” Journal for the Academic Study of Magic, no. 5 (2009): 256–286.
  36. Pasanen, T. (2021). Christus verus Luciferus, Demon est Deus Inversus: Pekka Siitoin’s Spiritism Board. Temenos - Nordic Journal for the Study of Religion, 57(2), 181–207. https://doi.org/10.33356/temenos.107763
  37. Keronen, Jiri: Pekka Siitoin teoriassa ja käytännössä. Helsinki: Kiuas Kustannus, 2020. ISBN 978-952-7197-21-9
  38. "Pekka Siitoin Was the New Face of Neo-Fascism in Finland [in Finnish]". Finnish Broadcasting Company. 4 May 2015. Archived from the original on 6 May 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  39. "Terrorismirikoksista syytetyt kertovat, miten nimien julkitulo vaikutti työpaikkojen menettämiseen – varat jäädytettiin ja talo meni asumiskelvottomaksi". Kankaanpään Seutu. 5 December 2024.
  40. "Granica, która oddziela od światła. Obraz(y) czasu w twórczości Olgi Tokarczuk - Krzysztof Brenskott | Nowy Napis". nowynapis.eu (in Polish). 2019-10-10. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  41. Daugherty, Leo. "Gravers False and True: Blood Meridian as Gnostic Tragedy," Southern Quarterly, 30, No. 4, Summer 1992, pp. 122–133.
  42. Owens, Barcley. Cormac McCarthy's Western Novels. University of Arizona Press, 2000. ISBN 0-8165-1928-5.
  43. "Behind the Classics: Amy Hennig Talks Soul Reaver Secrets". blog.playstation.com. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  44. Lynskey, Dorian (6 November 2014). "Psycho lizards from Saturn: The godlike genius of David Icke!". NewStatesman. Retrieved 2021-08-17.
  45. Aguilar, Father Alfonso (6–12 April 2003). "Gnosticism and the Struggle for the World's Soul". Catholic Education Resource Center. Archived from the original on 6 November 2016. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  46. Flannery-Dailey, Frances, and Rachel Wagner. "Wake up! Gnosticism and Buddhism in the Matrix." Journal of Religion and Film 5.2 (2001).

References

  • Arrigo, Giacomo Maria (2021). Gnostic Jihadism. A Philosophical Inquiry into Radical Politics. Milan: Mimesis International. ISBN 978-8-86977-304-4.
  • Crowley, Aleister (2007). The Equinox vol. III no. 1. San Francisco: Weiser. ISBN 978-1-57863-353-1.
  • Dawson, Andrew (2007). New era, new religions: religious transformation in contemporary Brazil. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7546-5433-9.
  • Goodrick-Clarke, Clare (2005). G. R. S. Mead and the Gnostic Quest. Berkeley: North Atlantic Books. ISBN 1-55643-572-X.
  • Greer, John Michael (2003). The New Encyclopedia of the Occult. St. Paul: Llewellyn. ISBN 1-56718-336-0.
  • Hoeller, Stephan (1989). The Gnostic Jung and the Seven Sermons to the Dead. Quest Books. ISBN 0-8356-0568-X.
  • Hoeller, Stephan. Gnosticism: New light on the ancient tradition of inner knowing. Quest Books.
  • Jonas, Hans (1966). “Gnosticism, Existentialism, and Nihilism.” In The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology, University of Chicago Press.
  • Jung, Carl Gustav (1977). The Collected Works of C.G. Jung. Princeton, NJ: Bollingen (Princeton University). ISBN 0-7100-8291-6.
  • Keizer, Lewis (2000). The Wandering Bishops: Apostles of a New Spirituality (PDF). St. Thomas Press.
  • Lasch, Christopher. "Gnosticism, Ancient and Modern: The Religion of the Future?," Salmagundi, No. 96, Fall 1992.
  • Mead, GRS (1906). Fragments of a Faith Forgotten (2nd ed.). Theosophical Society.
  • O’Reagan, Cyril (2001). Gnostic Return in Modernity, SUNY Press.
  • Pearson, Birger (2007). Ancient Gnosticism: Traditions and Literature. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. ISBN 978-0-8006-3258-8.
  • Pearson, Joanne (2007). Wicca and the Christian Heritage. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-25414-4.
  • Pellicani, Luciano (2003). Revolutionary Apocalypse. Ideological Roots of Terrorism. Westport: Praeger. ISBN 0-275-98145-2.
  • Rossbach, Stefan (2000). Gnostic Wars, Edinburgh University Press.
  • Sariel, Aviram (2023). "Jonasian Gnosticism". Harvard Theological Review. 116 (1): 91–122.
  • Segal, Robert (1995). "Jung's Fascination with Gnosticism". In Segal, Robert (ed.). The Allure of Gnosticism: the Gnostic experience in Jungian psychology and contemporary culture. Open Court. pp. 26–38. ISBN 0-8126-9278-0.
  • Smith, Richard (1995). "The revival of ancient Gnosis". In Segal, Robert (ed.). The Allure of Gnosticism: the Gnostic experience in Jungian psychology and contemporary culture. Open Court. p. 206. ISBN 0-8126-9278-0.
  • Urban, Hugh B. (2006). Magia Sexualis: Sex, Magic, and Liberation in modern Western esotericism. University of California. ISBN 0-520-24776-0.
  • Taussig, Hal (2013). A New New Testament: A Reinvented Bible for the Twenty-first Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780547792101.
  • Versluis, Arthur (2006). "Eric Voegelin, Anti-Gnosticism, and the Totalitarian Emphasis on Order." In The New Inquisitions: Heretic-Hunting and the Intellectual Origins of Modern Totalitarianism, Oxford University Press.
  • Voegelin, Eric (1956). Order and History, Louisiana State University Press.
  • Voegelin, Eric (1968). Science, Politics, and Gnosticism: Two Essays, Regnery Gateway.
  • Voegelin, Eric (1987). The New Science of Politics, University Of Chicago Press.
  • Weiss, Gilbert (2000). "Between gnosis and anamnesis--European perspectives on Eric Voegelin". The Review of Politics. 62 (4): 753–776. doi:10.1017/S003467050004273X. S2CID 144643743. 65964268.
  • Wasserstrom, Steven M. (1999). Religion after religion: Gershom Scholem, Mircea Eliade, and Henry Corbin at Eranos. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University. ISBN 0-691-00540-0.

Further reading

  • Styfhals, Willem (2019). No Spiritual Investment in the World: Gnosticism and Postwar German Philosophy. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-1-5017-3099-3.

External links

Gnosticism topics
Concepts
Proto-Gnostics
Gnostic sects
Early sects
Syrian-Egyptian
Persian
Medieval
Gnostic texts
Gnostic Gospels
Other
In modern times
 Organisations
People
Related articles
Category: