Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com

Going to take the opportunity to ask here, but in NHC, Thomas is labeled "contender," athletes. The year in which this is relevant enough to preserve by writing it down is 325+, so what exactly is the contest? "Remember me also , my brethren, in your prayers: Peace to the saints and those who are sp...

But that's just it, while the gnostics described from history do indeed sound divided, the NHC texts, after looking past their superficial differences (example: never is the "sethian myth of creation" the same twice) - are all about the same thing in the end. Here's the theosophian "Gnostic Key": it...

Geocalix, please don't disturb our discussion. I don't know what are "levels of spirituality", here, but even if I was able to know them, I would be ready to see more "spirituality" in an anti-YHWH text than in a OT text. While your plea is pressuring me to not respond... discussion does not work t...

Are you guys seriously referencing a NHC book that is literally a self-admitted ecumenical summary with multiple sources, some of which are even referenced by name, as if it were some sort of ... source text? Is that's what's happening here? Because you might want to note that this stuff isn't exact...

Theosophists & Crowley et al are the worst lot. But I'd rather say I see no distinctive word in English between "knowing something" and "knowing someone", which ends up in lots of confusion when dealing with this. The knowledge 'gnosis' described does not appear to be static, towards Infinity it's m...

Sorry for bumping a second page topic, I still kind of have my hands full. Geocalyx i think fundamentally this myth seeks to explain the origin of Christian orthodoxy from a 'gnostic' perspective, given these folks really did think they were the 'real church', that is what they thought. They did thi...

So further on the identity of Ialdabaoth, there was apparently also a Meroitic war god named Apedemak. ... The most important centres in this area were the ancient cities of naqa and Musawwarat es Sufra. naqa is located 50km east of the nile, along the wadi awateib, which has flowing water during go...

"Early in the fifth century C.E. Shenoute, Abbot of the White Monas­ tery at the same Panopolis where Pachomius had founded monasteries and from which the “ philosopher” had come, attacked a group at the nearby temple of Pneueit that called itself “ kingless,” worshipped the “ demiurge,” and would ...

also if monks wrote them then they were just as likely to be making money by copying heretical works and selling them, that might explain the odd slightly more orthodox text in unexpected places. that's the monks conscience deciding that this will 'make it ok' Copying? From who? Some guys who expec...

Just one more thought, tangentially related. So then I remember doing some work with Theban Magical Papyri and those fake Sybilline Oracles a long time ago ... I saw Nero Redivivus, saw some spells and references to Nero as a benevolent deity ... and thought, why would anyone want to do supernatural...