[Steve_Seattle]

The peculiar thing about this trendy, liberal fascination with Gnosticism as that the Gnostics entertained beliefs utterly foreign to modern liberalism: they were contemptuous of the body, of sex, and of life in general, which they regarded as the misbegotten product of an inferior god. They entertained a bizarre mythology completely alien to the kind of scientific rationalism that liberals normally promote. I think that liberals are responding to a sanitized IDEA of Gnosticism, rather than to the real thing.

[Kokojmudd]

Another peculiar thing is the reaction of the churches. Calvary chapel and others are having incessant meetings and seminars to debunk this stupid book. Do the church leaders think Christians are such idiots or is it another example of American Christiandom's fascination with pop culture? I wonder.

[frogjerk]

The peculiar thing about this trendy, liberal fascination with Gnosticism as that the Gnostics entertained beliefs utterly foreign to modern liberalism: they were contemptuous of the body, of sex, and of life in general, which they regarded as the misbegotten product of an inferior god. They entertained a bizarre mythology completely alien to the kind of scientific rationalism that liberals normally promote. I think that liberals are responding to a sanitized IDEA of Gnosticism, rather than to the real thing.

Any idea, excuse or possible leeway that prevents Liberals from looking at their screwed up ideas and behavior is welcomed.

[Grendel9]

IMO, most people think of
Gnosticism as being just
this side of Atheism.
You're right. They haven't
the vaguest idea what true
Gnostics believe at all.
And I'm not even sure
Dr. Hoeller, a professed
Gnostic, is entirely sure
of the entire dogma that he
prates about.

http://www.gnosis.org/welcome.html

[JGT]

Have you read Eric Voegelin's "Science, Politics, and Gnosticism"? He makes some interesting, though controversial, comparisons between Gnosticism and modern secular mass movements.

[CGVet58]

hey steve,

you give the leftist/libs way too much credit; they don't care what the historical foundations/premise is of anything... as it long is it fits in with their "let's deconstruct the hell out of everything NOW!" mentality.

Dostoefsky: "Anything is permissable if there is no God"

when people stop believing in God, they start believing in anything.

Mark Steyn is a treasure, one of our three Giants of the West (VDH & Thomas Sowell). God Bless & Keep him.

CGVet58

[RobbyS]

Some gnostics weren'r necessarily against sex, just pro-creation. To make a baby was to imprison a soul in coarse flesh.

[khnyny]

"The peculiar thing about this trendy, liberal fascination with Gnosticism as that the Gnostics entertained beliefs utterly foreign to modern liberalism: they were contemptuous of the body, of sex, and of life in general, which they regarded as the misbegotten product of an inferior god. They entertained a bizarre mythology completely alien to the kind of scientific rationalism that liberals normally promote. I think that liberals are responding to a sanitized IDEA of Gnosticism, rather than to the real thing."

BINGO.

Maybe they are creating a "new" form of "spirituality" which is compatible with modern "values"./sarc.

[Sabatier]

I also don't think the feminists understand how gnostic disgust with the physical life invariably hurts women, anymore than they comprehend the beliefs of Islam and what they mean to women.

[PLK]

liberal fascination with Gnosticism

Their only fascination is using it to poke Bible-believing Christians in the eye.

[Timmy]

they were contemptuous of the body, of sex, and of life in general

The Gnostics loved sex. They blamed it on their sinful bodies, therefore they weren't responsible for their deviancy.

[okie01]

I think that liberals are responding to a sanitized IDEA of Gnosticism, rather than to the real thing.

Well put. Though, in the interest of accuracy, you might refine the thought to read:

I think that liberals are responding to a sanitized IDEA FEELING of Gnosticism, rather than to the real thing.