RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA
Gnosticism
revelation as manifested in Christ. Now the surest ;rgn that this gnosis was a matter of religion and lot of philosophy was the fact that its advocates nade efforts to form associations; although it was not always clear where the school stopped and the church began, nor were Gnostics like Valentinus to i»<? classed with the Oriental sectaries included under the designation of Ophites (q.v.), with whom organization on a mystic basis can be shown most distinctly. Still, not among these alone, but rather tlmost everywhere in Gnostic communities, mystic consecrations and symbolic rites of the utmost variety were customary alike at the beginning and .aid of religious services: such as induction into „he bridal chamber, branding the right ear, baptism with water, fire, and spirit, anoift&ftgT""' Cele^ oration of communion, unction of the dying, and ;o on. Nor is it to be overlooked, that the religious way to salvation is also accompanied by the moral vvay. The spiritual man either strives to suppress Hid annihilate that which still fetters him to the naterial, by weakening and mortifying his body; ir, thanks to his exalted state of mind in the possession of salvation, he believes himself exempt roiri accountability in respect to the deeds of his :>ody, thus giving free course to the sensual desires, since . Iiey can not stain the spirit. In short, both isr-etieism and libertinism were prevalent among ?ii ■■( ^tic sects.
It is, finally, of particular significance that the jereical gnosis too was founded upon revelation authorities, and so emulated or- 5. Re1 ance thodox Christendom. The founders upon of sects and the foremost oracles of the Authority. Spirit drew power and instruction from direct converse with deity; irophecy stood in high esteem; great value was laid on tradition: whereby, just as the Church did, they contrived to link themselves to primitive Christianity. Basilides named Glaukias, supposedly an interpreter of Peter, as his teacher; Valentinus professed to have heard Theodas, a disciple of Paul; the Naasseni referred to James, brother of the Lord, and in like manner they esteemed Scripture tradition highly, although most of the Christian Gnostics saw the enemy of their gnosis in the God of the Jews, and consequently rejected his book, the Old Testament. Nevertheless the documents of primitive Christianity, in so far as they could trace them back to the Apostles, ranked with them as Holy Scripture; even though they tried first to render them orally acceptable by means of dogmatic interpretation. Above all, however, they enriched sacred literature with their own productions (cf. 3, above).
Tl-3n the radical Gnostic tendency that gave
special offense to the orthodox mode of thinking
was its dualism which was strongly
6. Its opposed to orthodox Christianity,
Dualism, based on monism. This dualism was plain in every way, and may be treated under the following heads: (1) Dualism in theology and cosmology: for the Gnostics separated the supreme God and the creator of the world. So, too, m the elaborated forms of gnosis, the supreme God was considered as the God of the new covenant, the
creator of the world as the God of the old covenant; but in seeking to show the highest honor to Christianity by separating its God from the God of Judaism, they thereby uprooted Christianity from the very soil in which it had been planted as a historic religion. (2) Dualism in Christology: the divine eon, sent from on high to redeem the spiritual that is in the material, was Christ, but a sharp distinction was drawn between this supermundane_ Christ and the historical Jesus. With the latter the eon either merely contracted a temporary union (joined him in baptism, but forsook him before death); or the Jewish Jesus was only the manifestation of the heavenly redeemer, who was obliged to assume ___a.body in order to become visible; or, lastly, the entire visible apparition of the redeemer, his birth, life, and death, was in semblance only. (3) Dualism in anthropology: men were distinguished as spiritual men, in whom the divine portion to be redeemed lived bound to the material portion; and as material men, who, having deteriorated into matter, were not an object of redemption. There were besides, in certain cases, the men " of soul," who were destined to a certain degree of blessedness, and for whose understanding the verities of salvation had to be clothed in their historic dress. (4) Dualism in soteriology: redemption was separation of spirit from matter: a. beginning even at present; hence there was either mortification and contempt of the material, by way of asceticism, or else libertinism, b. The process became complete in the future: hence there was rejection of the primitive Christian hopes as to a future life: especially the belief in the resurrection of the body. The Church did right in opposing this dualism with all possible vigor. The crisis evoked by the assaults of Gnosticism was the greatest 7. The and most momentous in its conse- Church and quences of all the convulsions to which Gnosticism. Christianity was exposed in the course of its growth in the soil of antique civilization. Had Gnosticism not been overcome, then Christianity had forfeited its peculiar genius; torn loose from its historic foundation, it would have been drawn into the general vortex, thus perishing like the religions of collapsing paganism. The danger was especially serious in so far as the still immature organization of the congregations, only partly formed and insecurely established as they were then, was easily accessible to perversions, and offered the enemy various points for attack. Men of might then strove to strengthen this organization, by creating the standards the acknowledgment of which was absolutely required of every one who would be a Christian; such as the Apostles' Creed, the collection of Apostolic writings, the Apostolic office. Like shrewd physicians, too, they did not scruple to inject into the sick body some of the poison that threatened to destroy its life, and in fact, both in faith and in manners and customs, the ancient catholic Church distinctly showed the influence exerted by the vanquished syncretism on its successful conqueror.
Gnosticism was indeed the bastard offspring of genuine, real gnosis; yet injustice would be done if it were forgotten that amid the well-nigh inex-
Gnosticism
Goa, Archbishopric of