Does anyone else on here follow Christian Gnosticism?

[jenny1972]

Of course not. Gnosticism was a widespread heretical religious philosophy prevalent in the early centuries of the Christian era. The apostles, orthodox patristic writers, etc.. condemned and refuted the gnostic heresies which were being propagated by a large number of pseudo-Christian teachers and sects.

Gnostic thinking is heretical. Its mythological setting of redemption leads to a depreciation of the historical events of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Its view of man’s relationship to God leads to a denial of the importance of the person and work of Christ, while, in a Gnostic context, "salvation" is not understood in terms of deliverance from sin, but as a form of existential self-realization.

But salvation is not by revelation per se, but is rather by God’s promise enacted in Christ’s justifying death and resurrection. God’s work in Christ saves, not revelation, though understanding is essential to the mediation of God’s redemptive work (Rom. 10:17).

The Pastoral Epistles denounce explicitly "what is falsely called gnōsis" (1 Tim. 6:20), and 1 John likewise speaks against a gnostic background. The new testament writers themselves condemn the ideas inherent in Gnosticism and though they often use Gnostic terminology in doing so, make it clear that they do not accept its Gnostic connotations.

These strains of Gnostic fabrication and syncretion were soundly condemned and refuted in antiquity. Furthermore, Christian was never dependent on paganism whatsoever see here). Of course, the answer is NO.

the concept of the trinity is pagan inspired paganism has definately influenced Christianity http://www.antipas.org/books/trinity/trinity1.html

Tertullian was a man who was raised as a pagan and converted in late adulthood to Christianity and although conservative, he did originate and advance new theology to the early Church which never existed before most importantly the concept of the Trinity

Scripture contains neither the word Trinity, nor an expressly formulated doctrine of the Trinity. Rather, according to the Christian theology, it "bears witness to" the activity of a God who can only be understood in trinitarian terms. The doctrine did not take its definitive shape until late in the fourth century. During the intervening period, various tentative solutions, some more and some less satisfactory were proposed. the trinity concept that we have now is much different than what was originally developed 150+ years after Jesus death

 

[x141]

its hard to believe there are so many people who actually think they have it all figured out and are so sure everything is exactly how they think it is both atheists and theists both .

It is the same pit.

 

[Jack of Spades]

An excerpt:

"Gnosis" did not mean secret knowledge as
opponents charged; new gospels (without
belittling or replacing biblical gospels) teach it
meant "knowing" Christ and God as one knows
a friend.-

Yeah, in modern terms, gnostics were saying "it's not religion, it's relationship", whereas the catholics (or proto-orthodox or whatever) were trying to establish more organized religion.

 

[MaxR1996]

I may be incorrect but as far as I recall Gnosticism has everything backwards.

It tries to say to serpent was GOOD for trying to give them knowledge and it is God who is evil.

 

[Jack of Spades]

I may be incorrect but as far as I recall Gnosticism has everything backwards.

It tries to say to serpent was GOOD for trying to give them knowledge and it is God who is evil.

That's a bit of a simplification. They didn't say God (as in, the allmighty God who is father of Jesus) is evil, rather they thought that the God of old testament and the God of new testament aren't the same, and the one in OT is not actually real god, but something of a semi-god who's evil.

But Gnosticism wasn't one theology, there were a lot of different branches, some closer to orthodox Christianity than others.

 

[Gregory the NonTheologian]

Gnosticism was a widespread heretical religious philosophy prevalent in the early centuries of the Christian era. The apostles, orthodox patristic writers, etc.. condemned and refuted the gnostic heresies which were being propagated by a large number of pseudo-Christian teachers and sects.

Thanks, I'll check it out!

For what it's worth, here is a brief summary from a popular text on Orthodox Christian Dogmatic Theology:

Gnosticism

The foundation of the Gnostic systems is the idea of the creation of a higher religio-philosophical knowledge (gnosis) by uniting Greek philosophy and the philosophy of the learned Alexandrian Jew Philo with the Eastern religions, especially the religion of Zoroaster. In this way the Gnostics worked out diverse systems which set forth an absolute resolution of all questions of existence. To the metaphysical constructions made on this foundation were added fantasy-like symbolical forms. Having become acquainted with Christianity and even having accepted Christianity, the Gnostics did not abandon their fantastic constructions, but strove to unite them with Christianity. Thus arose the numerous Gnostic heresies in the midst of Christianity.


Gnostics of Apostolic Times

Simon Magus (the Sorcerer). Using the devices of sorcery, he gave himself out as “some great one” (Acts 8: 9), a “higher Eon” in the Gnostic sense. He is considered the first ancestor of all heretics.

Cerinthus the Alexandrian. His teaching is a mixture of Gnosticism and Ebionitism. He lived for some time in Ephesus when the Apostle John the Theologian was there.

The Docetists. They considered the human nature in Christ to be only a phantom, since they considered flesh and matter in general to be evil. St. John the Theologian directed accusations against them in his epistles (for example, I John 4: 2– 3).

The Nicolaitans (Apoc. 2: 5– 16). Starting from the Gnostic demands for the mortification of the flesh, they ended by allowing immorality.



In Post-Apostolic Times

The Alexandrian Gnostics (the Syrian Basilides and the Jew Valentinus and their followers). Starting from dualism, or the acknowledgment of two fundamental principles of existence, they considered matter to be an inactive, inert, dead, negative principle, while—

The Syrian Gnostics, accepting the same dualism, acknowledged matter as the active principle of evil (in the religion of Zoroaster, “Ahriman”). To this current, among others belonged Tatian, who had been a disciple of St. Justin the Philosopher and who preached a strict asceticism. The Antinomians were an offshoot of the Syrian Gnostics; they permitted immorality for the purpose of weakening and mortifying the principle of evil — the flesh, matter.

The Marcionites (from Marcion, the son of a Syrian bishop who excommunicated his son for Gnosticism). The founder of the heresy, Marcion, taught that the world was governed on the one hand by a good God, the spiritual principle, and on the other hand by a demiurge, the creator of and sovereign over matter. In Jesus Christ, according to the teaching of Marcion, the good God Himself came down to earth and assumed a phantom body. The Marcionites taught the impossibility of the knowledge of God. This heresy survived until the 6th century.

Carpocrates and his followers lessened the Divinity of Jesus Christ. His sect is one of the numerous “antinomian” sects (deniers of the moral law — in Greek, nomos, “law” — as limiting the free spirit).

Pomazansky, Fr. Michael (2014-11-24). Orthodox Dogmatic Theology (Kindle Locations 5292-5318). St. Herman Press. Kindle Edition. ​

 

[Steven Wood]

There's been a lot of different meanings sects of gnostics. From some believing that JESUS told his disciples some "secret teachings" that only they knew, to Lucifer freeing Adam and Eve from the garden then JESUS dying to seal the deal, even (and this one's my fav) God being an arrogant, donkey headed deity excreted into this realm from a female deity (pretty insulting, enough to bring up my righteous indignation). Either way these secret teachings are all based on one thing, HUMAN REASONING. That's the flaw and it all points back to the original sin of self.

 

[Jaxxi]

I just want find other members of my faith, even if its one person, I would like to know that I'm not the only one here

I read some of it but doesn't it contradict the teachings of Jesus? I've heard it did..