|
Copyright © By Dr. Adel Elsaie, Book Title: "Please Revise the Bible, Again" |
3.3
Gnosticism
The term Gnosticism is derived from the Greek word
gnosis (“revealed knowledge”). Gnosticism competed with orthodox Christianity
for the first 350 years of Christian history, and affected tremendously its
doctrine. They promised salvation through secret knowledge that they claimed
was revealed to them alone. Scholars trace their origin back to such various
sources as Jewish mysticism, Hellenistic mystery and Iranian cults, and
Babylonian and Egyptian mythology. Most Gnostic sects adhered to Christianity,
but their beliefs sharply differed from those of the majority of Christians.
Christian ideas were quickly incorporated into the Gnosticism sect. The most
prominent Christian Gnostics were Valentinus and his
disciple Ptolemaeus, who during the second century
were influential in the Roman church. Valentinus
accepted not only the four Gospels but also many additional traditions that
included the Gospel of Thomas. Christian Gnostics showed that the traditional
God of Judaism did not satisfy many of the new converts to Christianity. They
did not experience the world as good world created by a merciful god. Until the
discovery at Nag Hammadi in
By the third century Gnosticism began to
yield to orthodox Christian opposition and persecution. Partly in reaction to
the Gnostic heresy, the church strengthened its organization by centralizing
authority in the office of bishop, which made its effort to suppress the poorly
organized Gnostics movement. Furthermore, as “orthodox” Christian theology and
philosophy developed, the primarily mythological Gnostic teachings began to
appear weird and crude. Christians defended their identification of the God of
the New Testament with the God of Judaism and their belief that the New
Testament is the only true “revealed knowledge.” By the end of the third
century many Gnostics were converted to orthodox beliefs. Gnosticism as a
separate movement vanished.