http://gnostics.tribe.net/thread/4644d240-b947-4242-8dbd-4a0a5986b0b8?format=rss Tribe.net. Local Connections http://gnostics.tribe.net/thread/4644d240-b947-4242-8dbd-4a0a5986b0b8#fa0b4abb-bebd-47cc-a54b-bd47215d1a78 Though difficulties have arisen in offering a definition of Gnosticism; the model offered is adapted from Christoph Markschies' version, as described in 'Gnosis: An Introduction'. Gnostic systems are typically marked by: 1. The notion of a remote, supreme and incomprehensible monadic divinity - this figure is known under a variety of names, including 'Pleroma' and 'Bythos' (Greek 'deep') 2. The introduction by emanation of further divine beings, which are nevertheless identifiable as aspects of the God from which they proceeded; the progressive emanations are often conceived metaphorically as a gradual and progressive distancing from the ultimate source, which brings about an instability in the fabric of the divine nature; 3. The subsequent identification of the Fall of Man as an occurrence with its ultimate foundations within divinity itself, rather than as occurring either entirely or indeed partially through human agency; this stage in the divine emanation is usually enacted through the recurrent Gnostic figure of Sophia (Greek 'Wisdom'), whose presence in a wide variety of Gnostic texts is indicative of her central importance; 4. The introduction of a distinct creator god, who is named as in the Platonist tradition demiurgos. Evidence exists that the conception of the demiurge has derivation from figures in Plato's Timaeus and Republic. In the former, the demiurge is the benevolent creator of the universe from pre-existent matter, to whose limitations he is enthralled in creating the cosmos; in the latter, the description of the leontomorphic 'desire' in Socrates' model of the psyche bears a strong resemblance to descriptions of the demiurge as being in the shape of the lion. Elsewhere this figure is called 'Ialdabaoth', 'Samael' (Aramaic sæmʕa-ʔel, 'blind god') or 'Saklas' (Syriac sækla, 'the foolish one'), who is sometimes ignorant of the superior God, and sometimes opposed to it; thus in the latter case he is correspondingly malevolent. The demiurge typically creates a group of coactors named 'Archons', who preside over the material realm and, in some cases, present obstacles to the soul seeking ascent from it; 5. The estimation of the world, owing to the above, as flawed or a production of 'error' but nevertheless as good as its constituent material might allow. This world is typically an inferior simulacrum of a higher-level reality or consciousness. The inferiority may be compared to the technical inferiority of a painting, sculpture, or other handicraft to the thing(s) those crafts are supposed to be a representation of. In certain other cases it is also perceived as evil and constrictive, a deliberate prison for its inhabitants; 6. The explanation of this state through the use of a complex mythological-cosmological drama in which a divine element 'falls' into the material realm and lodges itself within certain human beings; from here, it may be returned to the divine realm through a process of awakening. It may be noted that the salvation of the individual thus mirrors a concurrent restoration of the divine nature; a central Gnostic innovation was to elevate individual redemption to the level of a cosmically significant event; 7. Knowledge of a specific kind as a central factor in this process of restoration, achieved through the mediation of a redeemer figure (Christ, or, in other cases, Seth or Sophia). Sun, 24 Dec 2006 19:54:57 GMT http://gnostics.tribe.net/thread/4644d240-b947-4242-8dbd-4a0a5986b0b8#fa0b4abb-bebd-47cc-a54b-bd47215d1a78 Phoenix 2006-12-24T19:54:57Z