Posted on 09/22/2012 12:41:56 PM PDT by rhema
Along with the indispensable <rimshot>.
<rimshot>
Gnosticism that attempted to distort and discredit Christianity (lied in other words) was very active during the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th century A.D..
The belief that the material world is evil is very much in tune with modern "spirituality," particularly if ritual sexual practice replaces celibacy in the ascetic. The rationale for that approach is that sex is a transcendent spiritual act which, correctly used, is integral to overcoming the material.
This is the essence of the heresy propounded in Holy Blood, Holy Grail and stolen so shamelessly by Dan Brown. Its appeal is clearly demonstrated by the publishing success of the original, and of the plagiarist DaVinci Code. It's no sillier than the belief that anything created by God could be intrinsically evil, or that God would allow the material world to be created by an evil demiurge (among many Gnostic variations.)
If you want to object that this is not "original" Gnosticism, I would say that historically I'm not sure that's true; there are, as you observe, many variations of this heresy. But even if I stipulate to the hypothetical that it isn't originalist Gnosticism, it is very much in keeping with the modern, buffet approach to "spirituality," maintaining that materialism is evil -- except for the fun parts.
"You kiddin' me? He's the Son of God, he's got a Jewish Mother. You really think any girl he brought home was good enough? Please."
I was always taught the the Bride of Christ was the Church.
I have no doubt that a lot of moderns are attracted to what they think the Gnostics believed.
I just sincerely doubt many of those who do have much of any idea of what the Gnostics really did believe. They project modern viewpoints into the past and think, “They were just like me!”
This is much like modern “indigenous peoples” who romanticize their ancestors. I suspect any modern Indian or Hawaiian who actually got to meet his Iroquois, Comanche or Polynesian forebears would be appalled.
Just as I would be by my Viking and Irish ancestors.
Anyway, I stand by my assertion that upper-class twits living a 21st century life of luxury and sexual indulgence that only kings enjoyed in the 3rd century have little in common with Gnostics who believed the path to salvation was absolute poverty and celibacy.
These moderns may talk a good game about living a simpler life, but with perhaps rare exceptions they always want someone else to live that life.
The hilarity of this is that claiming a random 4th century manuscript, fragmentary or not, has inherent Gospel-level authority is like claiming something must be true because you read it on the Internet.
They had real good eyesight back then, huh? It can be read with a magnifying glass? How'd someone write it?
Yeah, ALL of the Apostles simply forgot to mention that minor detail/sarc off
About a year ago I subscribed to the Smithsonian magazine, and rather quickly became uneasy about its content and general tone.
The only way to conclude with certainty that Jesus was married, using your kind of reasoning, is to accept the premise that in those days all men were married.
Among the list...Coptic studies.
Who'd have thunk it?
Maybe they will turn her into a orthodox Christian.
Along with a partially decipherable attribution to one H-n-y -oun-ma-
Good point. Also, if Jesus had a wife and family they would have been revered and perhaps worshiped as deities themselves. The Catholics already do that with his mother; can you imagine if he had a wife and kids, grandkids, great grandkids...?
...”How can I believe the story of Jesus when it was written decades after his death?”
...”Ooooh, look! A centuries-old scrap of paper that contradicts the Gospels—it must be true!!”
Can some artist here come up with a picture of activists putting a gun to Cathy’s head demanding he support them? That is what it seems like they want to do.
Precicely. And the more one studies the Bible, the clearer and more blatant it becomes.
An urban legend perpetuated by the ignorant.
One more time:
If it's just a generic repost, then we follow the four hour guideline.
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