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Do not fill this in! == Major movements == === Judean–Israelite Gnosticism=== Although Elkesaites and Mandaeans were found mainly in [[Mesopotamia]] in the first few centuries of the common era, their origins appear to be Judean–Israelite in the [[Jordan valley]].<ref name=ElkJI/><ref name=lightfoot1875/>{{sfn|Buckley|2010|p=109}} ====Elkesaites==== {{Main|Elcesaites}} The Elkesaites were a Judeo-Christian baptismal sect that originated in the Transjordan and were active between 100 and 400 AD.<ref name=ElkJI>{{cite web|last1=Kohler|first1=Kaufmann|last2=Ginzberg|first2=Louis|title=Elcesaites|url=https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/5513-elcesaites|website=Jewish Encyclopedia|access-date=14 February 2022}}</ref> The members of this sect performed frequent baptisms for purification and had a Gnostic disposition.<ref name=ElkJI/><ref name="auto2"/>{{rp|123}} The sect is named after its leader ''Elkesai''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Elkesaites|website=Britannica|access-date=14 February 2022|title=Elkesaite | Jewish sect}}</ref> According to [[Joseph Lightfoot]], the Church Father [[Epiphanius of Salamis|Epiphanius]] (writing in the 4th century AD) seems to make a distinction between two main groups within the [[Essenes]]:<ref name=lightfoot1875>{{Cite book|first=Joseph Barber |last=Lightfoot |author-link=Joseph Barber Lightfoot |chapter=On Some Points Connected with the Essenes |title=St. Paul's epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon: a revised text with introductions, notes, and dissertations |year=1875 |url=https://archive.org/details/stpaulsepistles00lighgoog |publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers]] |location=London |oclc=6150927 }}</ref> "Of those that came before his [Elxai (Elkesai), an Ossaean prophet] time and during it, the Ossaeans and the [[Nazarene (sect)#Nasoraean Mandaeans|Nasaraeans]]."<ref name="panarion1-19">{{Cite web |date=2015-09-06 |title=Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis, Book 1 |url=http://www.masseiana.org/panarion_bk1.htm#18 |access-date=2023-09-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906041916/http://www.masseiana.org/panarion_bk1.htm#18 |archive-date=2015-09-06 }}</ref> ==== Mandaeism ==== {{Main|Mandaeism}} [[File:Mandaeans 03.jpg|thumb|Mandaeans in prayer during [[Baptism#Mandaean baptism|baptism]]]] {{Mandaeism}} Mandaeism is a Gnostic, [[Monotheism|monotheistic]] and [[ethnic religion]].<ref name="Mandaens">{{cite book |last=Buckley |first=Jorunn Jacobsen |author-link= |year=2002 |chapter=Part I: Beginnings – Introduction: The Mandaean World |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I9G-zLZRMLQC&pg=PA3 |title=The Mandaeans: Ancient Texts and Modern People |location=[[New York City|New York]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] on behalf of the [[American Academy of Religion]] |doi=10.1093/0195153855.003.0001 |pages=1–20 |isbn=9780195153859 |oclc=57385973}}</ref>{{rp|4}}<ref>{{cite book|page=1 |title=[[Ginza Rabba]]|translator1-last=Al-Saadi |translator1-first=Qais |translator2-last=Al-Saadi |translator2-first=Hamed |edition=2nd |place=Germany |year=2019 |publisher=Drabsha}}</ref> The Mandaeans are an [[ethnoreligious group]] that speak a dialect of [[Eastern Aramaic languages|Eastern Aramaic]] known as [[Mandaic language|Mandaic]]. They are the only surviving Gnostics from antiquity.<ref name="DEUTSCH2"/> Their religion has been practiced primarily around the lower [[Karun]], [[Euphrates]] and [[Tigris]] and the rivers that surround the [[Shatt-al-Arab]] waterway, part of southern Iraq and [[Khuzestan Province]] in Iran. Mandaeism is still practiced in small numbers, in parts of southern Iraq and the Iranian province of [[Khuzestan]], and there are thought to be between 60,000 and 70,000 Mandaeans worldwide.<ref name="yaledailynews">[http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/20341 Iraqi minority group needs U.S. attention] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071025053439/http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/20341 |date=2007-10-25 }}, Kai Thaler, ''Yale Daily News'', March 9, 2007.</ref> The name 'Mandaean' comes from the Aramaic ''[[Manda (Mandaeism)|manda]]'' meaning knowledge.<ref name=Rudolph>{{cite book|last1=Rudolph|first1=Kurt|title=Mandaeism|date=1978|publisher=BRILL|isbn=9789004052529|page=15|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M1kWzSxecUQC&q=kurt%20rudolph%20mandaeism&pg=PA15}}</ref> [[John the Baptist#Mandaeism|John the Baptist]] is a key figure in the religion, as an emphasis on [[Baptism#Mandaean Baptism|baptism]] is part of their core beliefs. According to [[Nathaniel Deutsch]], "Mandaean anthropogony echoes both rabbinic and gnostic accounts."<ref>Deutsch, Nathaniel. (2003) Mandaean Literature. In ''The Gnostic Bible'' (pp. 527–561). New Seeds Books</ref> [[Mandaeans]] revere [[Adam#In Mandaeism|Adam]], [[Abel#Mandaean interpretation|Abel]], [[Seth#Mandaeism|Seth]], [[Enos (biblical figure)#In Mandaeism|Enos]], [[Noah#Gnosticism|Noah]], [[Shem#In Mandaeism|Shem]], [[Aram, son of Shem|Aram]], and especially John the Baptist. Significant amounts of original Mandaean Scripture, written in [[Mandaean Aramaic]], survive in the modern era. The most important holy scripture is known as the [[Ginza Rabba]] and has portions identified by some scholars as being copied as early as the 2nd–3rd centuries,<ref name="auto2"/> while others such as S. F. Dunlap place it in the 1st century.<ref>"Sod, The Son of the Man" Page iii, S. F. Dunlap, Williams and Norgate – 1861</ref> There is also the [[Qolusta|Qolastā]], or Canonical Book of Prayer and the [[Mandaean Book of John]] (Sidra ḏ'Yahia) and other [[List of Mandaean scriptures|scriptures]]. Mandaeans believe that there is a constant battle or conflict between the forces of good and evil. The forces of good are represented by ''Nhura'' (Light) and ''Maia Hayyi'' ([[Living Water#In Gnosticism|Living Water]]) and those of evil are represented by ''Hshuka'' (Darkness) and ''Maia Tahmi'' (dead or rancid water). The two waters are mixed in all things in order to achieve a balance. Mandaeans also believe in an afterlife or heaven called ''Alma d-Nhura'' ([[World of Light]]).<ref name=Nashmi>{{cite web |last=Nashmi |first=Yuhana|title=Contemporary Issues for the Mandaean Faith|website=Mandaean Associations Union|date=24 April 2013|url=http://www.mandaeanunion.com/history-english/item/488-mandaean-faith |access-date=3 October 2021}}</ref> In Mandaeism, the World of Light is ruled by a Supreme God, known as [[Hayyi Rabbi]] ('The Great Life' or 'The Great Living God').<ref name=Nashmi/><ref name="auto2">Drower, Ethel Stefana. ''The Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran''. Oxford At The Clarendon Press, 1937.</ref><ref name=Rudolph/> God is so great, vast, and incomprehensible that no words can fully depict how immense God is. It is believed that an innumerable number of [[Uthra]]s (angels or guardians),<ref name="Buckley 2002">{{cite book |last=Buckley |first=Jorunn Jacobsen |title=The Mandaeans: ancient texts and modern people |year=2002 |location=[[Oxford]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=9780195153859 |url=http://mandaeannetwork.com/Mandaean/books/english/2The_Mandaeans_Ancient_Texts_and_Modern_People_American_Academy_of_Religion_Books_Jorunn_Jacobsen_Buckley.pdf?bcsi_scan_955b0cd764557e80=0&bcsi_scan_filename=2The_Mandaeans_Ancient_Texts_and_Modern_People_American_Academy_of_Religion_Books_Jorunn_Jacobsen_Buckley.pdf}}</ref>{{rp|8}} manifested from the light, surround and perform acts of worship to praise and honor God. They inhabit worlds separate from the lightworld and some are commonly referred to as emanations and are subservient beings to the Supreme God who is also known as 'The First Life'. Their names include Second, Third, and Fourth Life (i.e. [[Yushamin|Yōšamin]], [[Abathur]], and [[Ptahil]]).{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}}<ref name="Buckley 2002"/>{{rp|8}} The Lord of Darkness ([[Krun]]) is the ruler of the [[World of Darkness (Mandaeism)|World of Darkness]] formed from dark waters representing chaos.{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}}<ref name="auto2"/> A main defender of the darkworld is a giant monster, or dragon, with the name [[Ur (Mandaeism)|Ur]], and an evil, female ruler also inhabits the darkworld, known as [[Ruha]].{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} The Mandaeans believe these malevolent rulers created demonic offspring who consider themselves the owners of the [[seven planets]] and [[zodiac|twelve zodiac constellations]].{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} According to Mandaean beliefs, the material world is a mixture of light and dark created by [[Ptahil]], who fills the role of the [[demiurge]], with help from dark powers, such as [[Ruha]] the Seven, and the Twelve.{{sfn|Rudolph|1987|pp=343–366}} Adam's body (believed to be the first human created by God in Abrahamic tradition) was fashioned by these dark beings, however his soul (or mind) was a direct creation from the Light. Therefore, Mandaeans believe the human soul is capable of salvation because it originates from the World of Light. The soul, sometimes referred to as the 'inner Adam' or [[Adam kasia]], is in dire need of being rescued from the dark, so it may ascend into the heavenly realm of the World of Light.{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} [[masbuta|Baptisms]] are a central theme in Mandaeism, believed to be necessary for the redemption of the soul. Mandaeans do not perform a single baptism, as in religions such as Christianity; rather, they view baptisms as a ritual act capable of bringing the soul closer to salvation.<ref name="McGrath">{{cite web |last=McGrath|first=James|title=The First Baptists, The Last Gnostics: The Mandaeans|website=YouTube-A lunchtime talk about the Mandaeans by Dr. James F. McGrath at Butler University|date=23 January 2015|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvv6I02MNlc |access-date=3 November 2021}}</ref> Therefore, Mandaeans are baptized repeatedly during their lives.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://minorityrights.org/minorities/sabian-mandaeans/|date=November 2017|title = Sabian Mandaeans|website = Minority Rights Group International|access-date=3 November 2021}}</ref> Mandaeans consider John the Baptist to have been a [[Nazarene (sect)#Nasoraean Mandaeans|Nasoraean Mandaean]].<ref name="auto2" />{{rp|3}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mandaeanism|title=Mandaeanism | religion|website=Britannica|access-date=3 November 2021}}</ref><ref name="manaus">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-21/meet-the-mandaeans-sydneys-followers-of-john-the-baptist/8727720|title=Meet the Mandaeans: Australian followers of John the Baptist celebrate new year|last=Hegarty|first=Siobhan|publisher=ABC|date=21 July 2017|access-date=22 July 2017}}</ref> John is referred to as their greatest and final teacher.<ref name="Buckley 2002" /><ref name="auto2" /> [[Jorunn J. Buckley]] and other scholars specializing in Mandaeism believe that the Mandaeans originated about two thousand years ago in the Palestine-Israel region and moved east due to persecution.<ref name=Buckley2021>{{cite web|last=Porter|first=Tom|title=Religion Scholar Jorunn Buckley Honored by Library of Congress|url=https://www.bowdoin.edu/news/2021/12/religion-scholar-jorunn-buckley-honored-by-library-of-congress.html|website=Bowdoin|date=22 December 2021|access-date=10 January 2022}}</ref>{{sfn|Buckley|2010|p=109}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Lupieri|first=Edmondo F.|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/mandaeans-1|title=MANDAEANS i. HISTORY |access-date=12 January 2022|website=Encyclopaedia Iranica|date=7 April 2008}}</ref> Others claim a southwestern Mesopotamia origin.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mandaeanism|title=Mandaeanism | religion|website=Britannica|access-date=4 November 2021}}</ref> However, some scholars take the view that Mandaeism is older and dates from pre-Christian times.<ref>Etudes mithriaques 1978, p. 545, Jacques Duchesne-Guillemin</ref> Mandaeans assert that their religion predates Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as a monotheistic faith.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.ushmm.org/genocide-prevention/countries/iraq/case-study/background/people-of-the-book|title = The People of the Book and the Hierarchy of Discrimination| website=United States Holocaust Memorial Museum|access-date=1 November 2021}}</ref> Mandaeans believe that they descend directly from Shem, Noah's son,<ref name="auto2"/>{{rp|182}} and also from John the Baptist's original disciples.<ref name = DrowerHaranGawaita>{{cite book|last=Drower|first=Ethel Stefana|title=The Haran Gawaita and the Baptism of Hibil-Ziwa|publisher=Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana|location=Vatican City|date=1953}}</ref> Due to paraphrases and word-for-word translations from the Mandaean originals found in the ''[[Psalms of Thomas]]'', it is now believed that the pre-Manichaean presence of the Mandaean religion is more than likely.<ref name="DrowerHaranGawaita"/>{{rp|IX}}<ref>{{Cite web|author=Mandaean Society in America|title=The Mandaeans: Their History, Religion and Mythology|url=http://www.mandaeanunion.com/history-english/item/170-brief-history-on-the-mandaeans|date=27 March 2013|website=Mandaean Associations Union|access-date=23 November 2021}}</ref> The Valentinians embraced a Mandaean baptismal formula in their rituals in the 2nd century CE.{{sfn|Buckley|2010|p=109}} [[Birger A. Pearson]] compares the ''[[Five Seals]]'' of Sethianism, which he believes is a reference to quintuple ritual immersion in water, to Mandaean ''[[masbuta]]''.<ref name="Pearson">{{cite book|last=Pearson|first=Birger A.|author-link=Birger A. Pearson|title=Ablution, Initiation, and Baptism|chapter=Baptism in Sethian Gnostic Texts|publisher=De Gruyter|date=2011-07-14|doi=10.1515/9783110247534.119|pages=119–144|isbn=978-3-11-024751-0 }}</ref> According to [[Jorunn J. Buckley]], "Sethian Gnostic literature ... is related, perhaps as a younger sibling, to Mandaean baptism ideology."<ref>Buckley, Jorunn J. (2010). [https://poj.peeters-leuven.be/secure/POJ/downloadpdf.php?ticket_id=6087af77a3c18 Mandaean-Sethian connections]. ''ARAM'', 22 (2010) 495–507. {{doi|10.2143/ARAM.22.0.2131051}}</ref> In addition to accepting Mandaeism's Israelite or Judean origins, Buckley adds: {{blockquote|[T]he Mandaeans may well have become the inventors of – or at least contributors to the development of – Gnosticism ... and they produced the most voluminous Gnostic literature we know, in one language... influenc[ing] the development of Gnostic and other religious groups in late antiquity [e.g. Manichaeism, Valentianism].{{sfn|Buckley|2010|p=109}} }} ==== Samaritan Baptist sects ==== According to Magris, Samaritan Baptist sects were an offshoot of [[John the Baptist]].{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3515}} One offshoot was in turn headed by [[Dositheos (Samaritan)|Dositheus]], [[Simon Magus]], and [[Menander (gnostic)|Menander]]. It was in this milieu that the idea emerged that the world was created by ignorant angels. Their baptismal ritual removed the consequences of sin, and led to a regeneration by which natural death, which was caused by these angels, was overcome.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3515}} The Samaritan leaders were viewed as "the embodiment of God's power, spirit, or wisdom, and as the redeemer and revealer of 'true knowledge{{' "}}.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3515}} The [[Simonians]] were centered on Simon Magus, the magician baptised by Philip and rebuked by Peter in Acts 8, who became in early Christianity the archetypal false teacher. The ascription by Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and others of a connection between schools in their time and the individual in Acts 8 may be as legendary as the stories attached to him in various apocryphal books. Justin Martyr identifies Menander of Antioch as Simon Magus' pupil. According to Hippolytus, Simonianism is an earlier form of the [[Valentinianism|Valentinian doctrine]].<ref>Hippolytus, ''[[Philosophumena]]'', iv. 51, vi. 20.</ref> The [[Quqites]] were a group who followed a [[Samaritan]], [[Iranian religions|Iranian]] type of Gnosticism in 2nd-century AD [[Erbil]] and in the vicinity of what is today northern [[Iraq]]. The sect was named after their founder Quq, known as "the potter". The Quqite ideology arose in [[Edessa]], [[Syria]], in the 2nd century. The Quqites stressed the [[Hebrew Bible]], made changes in the New Testament, associated twelve prophets with twelve apostles, and held that the latter corresponded to the same number of [[gospels]]. Their beliefs seem to have been eclectic, with elements of Judaism, Christianity, paganism, astrology, and Gnosticism. === Syrian-Egyptian Gnosticism === Syrian-Egyptian Gnosticism includes [[Sethianism]], [[Valentinianism]], [[Basilideans]], [[Acts of Thomas|Thomasine]] traditions, and [[Ophites|Serpent Gnostics]], as well as a number of other minor groups and writers.{{sfn|Magris|2005|pp=3517–3519}} Hermeticism is also a western Gnostic tradition,{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3519}} though it differs in some respects from these other groups.<ref name="Hoeller"/> The Syrian–Egyptian school derives much of its outlook from Platonist influences. It depicts creation in a series of [[Emanationism|emanations]] from a primal monadic source, finally resulting in the creation of the material universe. These schools tend to view evil in terms of matter that is markedly inferior to goodness and lacking spiritual insight and goodness rather than as an equal force. Many of these movements used texts related to Christianity, with some identifying themselves as specifically Christian, though quite different from the [[Eastern Christianity|Orthodox]] or [[Roman Catholic]] forms. [[Jesus]] and several of his apostles, such as [[Thomas the Apostle]], claimed as the founder of the Thomasine form of Gnosticism, figure in many Gnostic texts. [[Mary Magdalene]] is respected as a Gnostic leader, and is considered superior to the [[twelve apostles]] by some gnostic texts, such as the [[Gospel of Mary]]. [[John the Evangelist]] is claimed as a Gnostic by some Gnostic interpreters,<ref>[[Elaine Pagels]], ''The Johannine Gospel'' in Gnostic Exegesis. Heracleon's Commentary on John. Nashville, Tennessee: SBL Monograph Series 17, 1973</ref> as is even [[Paul of Tarsus|St. Paul]].{{sfn|Pagels|1975}} Most of the literature from this category is known to us through the Nag Hammadi Library. ==== Sethite-Barbeloite ==== {{Main|Sethianism}} Sethianism was one of the main currents of Gnosticism during the 2nd to 3rd centuries, and the prototype of Gnosticism as condemned by Irenaeus.{{sfn|Quispel|2005|p=3510}} Sethianism attributed its ''gnosis'' to [[Seth]], third son of [[Adam and Eve]] and ''[[Norea]]'', wife of [[Noah]], who also plays a role in [[Mandeanism]] and [[Manicheanism]]. Their main text is the ''Apocryphon of John'', which does not contain Christian elements,{{sfn|Quispel|2005|p=3510}} and is an amalgam of two earlier myths.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3517}} Earlier texts such as [[Apocalypse of Adam]] show signs of being pre-Christian and focus on Seth, third son of Adam and Eve.{{sfn|Temporini|Vogt|Haase|1983}} Later Sethian texts continue to interact with Platonism. Sethian texts such as [[Zostrianos]] and [[Allogenes]] draw on the imagery of older Sethian texts, but use "a large fund of philosophical conceptuality derived from contemporary Platonism, (that is, late middle Platonism) with no traces of Christian content."{{sfn|Turner|1986|p=59}}{{refn|group=note|The doctrine of the "triple-powered one" found in the text Allogenes, as discovered in the Nag Hammadi Library, is "the same doctrine as found in the anonymous [[Parmenides]] commentary (Fragment XIV) ascribed by Hadot to Porphyry [...] and is also found in [[Plotinus]]' [[Ennead]] 6.7, 17, 13–26."{{sfn|Turner|1986|p=59}}}} According to [[John D. Turner]], German and American scholarship views Sethianism as "a distinctly inner-Jewish, albeit syncretistic and heterodox, phenomenon", while British and French scholarship tends to see Sethianism as "a form of heterodox Christian speculation".{{sfn|Turner|2001|p=257}} Roelof van{{nbsp}}den{{nbsp}}Broek notes that "Sethianism" may never have been a separate religious movement, and that the term refers rather to a set of mythological themes which occur in various texts.{{sfn|Broek|2013|p=28}} According to Smith, Sethianism may have begun as a pre-Christian tradition, possibly a [[syncretic]] cult that incorporated elements of Christianity and Platonism as it grew.{{sfn|Smith|2004}} According to [[Hildegard Temporini-Gräfin Vitzthum|Temporini]], Vogt, and Haase, early Sethians may be identical to or related to the [[Nazarenes (sect)|Nazarenes]], the [[Ophites]], or the sectarian group called [[Heresy|heretics]] by [[Philo]].{{sfn|Temporini|Vogt|Haase|1983}} According to Turner, Sethianism was influenced by [[Christianity]] and [[Middle Platonism]], and originated in the second century as a fusion of a Jewish baptizing group of possibly priestly lineage, the so-called ''Barbeloites'',{{sfn|Turner|2001|pp=257–258}} named after [[Barbelo]], the first emanation of the Highest God, and a group of Biblical exegetes, the ''Sethites'', the "seed of [[Seth]]".{{sfn|Turner|2001|p=258}} At the end of the second century, Sethianism grew apart from the developing Christian orthodoxy, which rejected the [[Docetism|Docetic]] view of the Sethians on Christ.{{sfn|Turner|2001|p=259}} In the early third century, Sethianism was fully rejected by Christian heresiologists, as Sethianism shifted toward the contemplative practices of Platonism while losing interest in their primal origins.{{sfn|Turner|2001|pp=259–260}} In the late third century, Sethianism was attacked by neo-Platonists like [[Plotinus]], and Sethianism became alienated from Platonism. In the early to mid-fourth century, Sethianism fragmented into various sectarian Gnostic groups such as the [[Archontics]], Audians, [[Borborites]], and Phibionites, and perhaps [[Stratiotici]], and Secundians.{{sfn|Turner|2001|p=260}}{{sfn|Turner|1986|p=59}} Some of these groups existed into the Middle Ages.{{sfn|Turner|2001|p=260}} ==== Valentinianism ==== {{Main|Valentinianism}} Valentinianism was named after its founder [[Valentinus (Gnostic)|Valentinus]] ({{Circa|100|180}}), who was a candidate for [[bishop]] of Rome but started his own group when another was chosen.<ref>''Adversus Valentinianos'' 4.</ref> Valentinianism flourished after mid-second century. The school was popular, spreading to Northwest Africa and Egypt, and through to Asia Minor and Syria in the east,{{sfn|Green|1985|p=244}} and Valentinus is specifically named as ''gnostikos'' by Irenaeus. It was an intellectually vibrant tradition,{{sfn|Markschies|2003|p=94}} with an elaborate and philosophically "dense" form of Gnosticism. Valentinus' students elaborated on his teachings and materials, and several varieties of their central myth are known. Valentinian Gnosticism may have been monistic rather than dualistic.{{refn|group=note|Quotes:<br>* Elaine Pagels: "Valentinian gnosticism [...] differs essentially from dualism";{{sfn|Pagels|1979|p={{page needed|date=January 2024}}}}<br>* Schoedel: "a standard element in the interpretation of Valentinianism and similar forms of Gnosticism is the recognition that they are fundamentally monistic".<ref name="schoedel">{{cite book | last =Schoedel | first=William | title= "Gnostic Monism and the Gospel of Truth" in ''The Rediscovery of Gnosticism, Vol.1: The School of Valentinus'', (ed.) Bentley Layton | publisher=E.J. Brill | location=Leiden | year=1980}}</ref>}} In the Valentinian myths, the creation of a flawed materiality is not due to any moral failing on the part of the Demiurge, but due to the fact that he is less perfect than the superior entities from which he emanated.<ref name="val_mon">{{cite web | title = Valentinian Monism | publisher = The Gnostic Society Library | url = http://www.gnosis.org/library/valentinus/Valentinian_Monism.htm | access-date = 2009-02-12}}</ref> Valentinians treat physical reality with less contempt than other Gnostic groups, and conceive of materiality not as a separate substance from the divine, but as attributable to an ''error of perception'' which becomes symbolized mythopoetically as the act of material creation.<ref name="val_mon" /> The followers of Valentinus attempted to systematically decode the Epistles, claiming that most Christians made the mistake of reading the Epistles literally rather than allegorically. Valentinians understood the conflict between ''Jews'' and ''Gentiles'' in [[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] to be a coded reference to the differences between ''Psychics'' (people who are partly spiritual but have not yet achieved separation from carnality) and ''[[Pneumatic (Gnosticism)|Pneumatics]]'' (totally spiritual people). The Valentinians argued that such codes were intrinsic in gnosticism, secrecy being important to ensuring proper progression to true inner understanding.{{refn|group=note|Irenaeus describes how the [[Valentinians]] claim to find evidence in [[Ephesians]] for their characteristic belief in the existence of the [[Aeon (Gnosticism)|Æons]] as supernatural beings: "Paul also, they affirm, very clearly and frequently names these Æons, and even goes so far as to preserve their order, when he says, "To all the generations of the Æons of the Æon." (Ephesians 3:21) Nay, we ourselves, when at the giving of thanks we pronounce the words, 'To Æons of Æons' (for ever and ever), do set forth these Æons. And, in fine, wherever the words Æon or Æons occur, they at once refer them to these beings." ''[[On the Detection and Overthrow of Knowledge Falsely So Called]]'' Book 1. Ch.3}} According to [[Bentley Layton]] "Classical Gnosticism" and "The School of Thomas" antedated and influenced the development of Valentinus, whom Layton called "the great [Gnostic] reformer" and "the focal point" of Gnostic development. While in Alexandria, where he was born, Valentinus probably would have had contact with the Gnostic teacher [[Basilides]], and may have been influenced by him.{{sfn|Layton|1987}} Simone Petrement, while arguing for a Christian origin of Gnosticism, places Valentinus after Basilides, but before the Sethians. According to Petrement, Valentinus represented a moderation of the anti-Judaism of the earlier Hellenized teachers; the demiurge, widely regarded as a mythological depiction of the Old Testament God of the Hebrews (i.e. [[Jehova]]), is depicted as more ignorant than evil.<ref>Simone Petrement, ''A Separate God''</ref> ==== Basilideans ==== {{Main|Basilideans}} The Basilidians or Basilideans were founded by [[Basilides]] of [[Alexandria]] in the second century. Basilides claimed to have been taught his doctrines by Glaucus, a disciple of [[Saint Peter|St. Peter]], but could also have been a pupil of Menander.<ref name="Eusebius4-7">{{Cite book |last=Schaff |first=Philip |url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Nicene_and_Post-Nicene_Fathers:_Series_II/Volume_I/Church_History_of_Eusebius/Book_IV/Chapter_7 |title=Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: Series II/Volume I/Church History of Eusebius/Book IV |display-authors=et al}}</ref> Basilidianism survived until the end of the 4th{{nbsp}}century as [[Epiphanius of Salamis|Epiphanius]] knew of Basilidians living in the [[Nile]] Delta. It was, however, almost exclusively limited to [[Egypt]], though according to [[Sulpicius Severus]] it seems to have found an entrance into [[Spain]] through a certain Mark from [[Memphis, Egypt|Memphis]]. [[St. Jerome]] states that the [[Priscillianists]] were infected with it. ==== Thomasine traditions ==== The ''Thomasine Traditions'' refers to a group of texts which are attributed to the apostle Thomas.<ref>Jon Ma. Asgeirsson, April D. DeConick and Risto Uro (editors), [http://www.brill.com/thomasine-traditions-antiquity ''Thomasine Traditions in Antiquity. The Social and Cultural World of the Gospel of Thomas''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170306035254/http://www.brill.com/thomasine-traditions-antiquity |date=2017-03-06 }}, Brill.</ref>{{refn|group=note|The texts commonly attributed to the Thomasine Traditions are: * ''[[The Hymn of the Pearl]]'', or, the ''[[Hymn of the Pearl|Hymn of Jude Thomas the Apostle in the Country of Indians]]'' * ''The [[Gospel of Thomas]]'' * ''The [[Infancy Gospel of Thomas]]'' * ''The [[Acts of Thomas]]'' * ''[[Book of Thomas the Contender|The Book of Thomas: The Contender Writing to the Perfect]]'' * ''The [[Psalms of Thomas]]'' * ''The [[Apocalypse of Thomas]]''}} Karen L. King notes that "Thomasine Gnosticism" as a separate category is being criticised, and may "not stand the test of scholarly scrutiny".{{sfn|King|2003|p=162}} ==== Marcion ==== [[Marcion of Sinope|Marcion]] was a Church leader from [[Sinop, Turkey|Sinope]] (a city on the south shore of the Black Sea in present-day Turkey), who preached in Rome around 150{{nbsp}}CE,{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3518}} but was expelled and started his own congregation, which spread throughout the Mediterranean. He rejected the Old Testament, and followed a limited Christian canon, which included only a redacted version of Luke, and ten edited letters of Paul.{{sfn|Perkins|2005|p=3530}} Some scholars do not consider him to be a gnostic,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://gnosis.org/library/marcion/Harnack.html|title=Adolf Von Harnack: Marcion|website=gnosis.org}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|name="EB"|[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]: "In Marcion's own view, therefore, the founding of his church{{snd}}to which he was first driven by opposition – amounts to a reformation of [[Christendom]] through a return to the gospel of Christ and to Paul; nothing was to be accepted beyond that. This of itself shows that it is a mistake to reckon Marcion among the Gnostics. A [[Dualistic cosmology|dualist]] he certainly was, but he was not a Gnostic".}} but his teachings clearly resemble some Gnostic teachings.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3518}} He preached a radical difference between the God of the Old Testament, the [[Demiurge]], the "evil creator of the material universe", and the highest God, the "loving, spiritual God who is the father of Jesus", who had sent Jesus to the earth to free mankind from the tyranny of the Jewish Law.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3518}}{{sfn|Valantasis|2006|p={{page needed|date=January 2024}}}} Like the Gnostics, Marcion argued that Jesus was essentially a divine spirit appearing to men in the shape of a human form, and not someone in a true physical body.<ref name="Harnack">{{Cite book |last=Harnack |first=Adolf |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aL3BSQAACAAJ |title=Marcion: The Gospel of the Alien God |date=2007-12-01 |publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn=978-1-55635-703-9 |language=en |translator-last=Steely |translator-first=John E. |translator-last2=Bierma |translator-first2=Lyle D.}}</ref> Marcion held that the heavenly Father (the father of Jesus Christ) was an utterly alien god; he had no part in making the world, nor any connection with it.<ref name="Harnack"/> ==== Hermeticism ==== [[Hermeticism]] is closely related to Gnosticism, but its orientation is more positive.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3519}}<ref name="Hoeller">Stephan A. Hoeller, [http://www.gnosis.org/hermes.htm ''On the Trail of the Winged God. Hermes and Hermeticism Throughout the Ages''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126020349/http://www.gnosis.org/hermes.htm |date=2009-11-26 }}</ref>{{Clarify|date=June 2022}} ==== Other Gnostic groups ==== * Serpent Gnostics. The [[Naassenes]], [[Ophites]] and the Serpentarians gave prominence to snake symbolism, and snake handling played a role in their ceremonies.{{sfn|Magris|2005|p=3518}} * [[Cerinthus]] (c. 100), the founder of a school with gnostic elements. Like a Gnostic, Cerinthus depicted Christ as a heavenly spirit separate from the man Jesus, and he cited the demiurge as creating the material world. Unlike the Gnostics, Cerinthus taught Christians to observe the Jewish law; his demiurge was holy, not lowly; and he taught the Second Coming. His gnosis was a secret teaching attributed to an apostle. Some scholars believe that the First Epistle of John was written as a response to Cerinthus.<ref name="gonzález">González, Justo L. (1970). ''A History of Christian Thought, Vol. I''. Abingdon. pp. 132–133</ref> * The [[Cainites]] are so-named since Hippolytus of Rome claims that they worshiped [[Cain]], as well as [[Esau]], [[Korah]], and the [[Sodom and Gomorrah|Sodomites]]. There is little evidence concerning the nature of this group. Hippolytus claims that they believed that indulgence in sin was the key to salvation because since the body is evil, one must defile it through immoral activity (see [[libertinism]]). The name Cainite is used as the name of a religious movement, and not in the usual Biblical sense of people descended from Cain.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cainite {{!}} Gnostic sect {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Cainites |website=www.britannica.com |access-date=21 February 2023 |language=en}}</ref> * The [[Carpocratians]], a [[libertine]] sect following only the [[Gospel of the Hebrews|Gospel according to the Hebrews]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Benko |first1=Stephen |title=The Libertine Gnostic Sect of the Phibionites According to Epiphanius |journal=Vigiliae Christianae |date=1967 |volume=21 |issue=2 |pages=103–119 |doi=10.2307/1582042|jstor=1582042 }}</ref> * The school of [[Justin (gnostic)|Justin]], which combined gnostic elements with the [[ancient Greek religion]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=van den Broek |first1=Roelof |title=Gospel Tradition and Salvation in Justin the Gnostic |journal=Vigiliae Christianae |date=2003 |volume=57 |issue=4 |pages=363–388 |doi=10.1163/157007203772064568 |jstor=1584560}}</ref> * The [[Borborites]], a libertine Gnostic [[sect]], said to be descended from the [[Nicolaism|Nicolaitans]]<ref>{{cite book|last1=Van Den Broek|first1=Roelof|title=Dictionary of Gnosis & Western Esotericism|date=2006|publisher=Brill|location=Boston|isbn=978-90-04-15231-1|page=194}}</ref> === Persian Gnosticism === The Persian schools, which appeared in the western Persian [[Sasanian Empire|Sasanian provice]] of [[Asoristan]], and whose writings were originally produced in the [[Eastern Aramaic]] dialects spoken in [[Mesopotamia]] at the time, are representative of what is believed to be among the oldest of the Gnostic thought forms. These movements are considered by most to be religions in their own right and are not emanations from Christianity or [[Judaism]].{{citation needed|date=August 2020}} ==== Manichaeism ==== {{Main|Manichaeism}} [[File:Manicheans.jpg|thumb|Manichean priests writing at their desks, with panel inscription in [[Sogdian language|Sogdian]]. Manuscript from [[Gaochang|Qocho]], [[Tarim Basin]].]] Manichaeism was founded by [[Mani (prophet)|Mani]] (216–276). Mani's father was a member of the [[Jewish Christian]] sect of the [[Elcesaites]], a subgroup of the [[Gnostic Ebionites]]. At ages 12 and 24, Mani had visionary experiences of a "heavenly twin" of his, calling him to leave his father's sect and preach the true message of Christ. In 240–241, Mani travelled to the [[Indo-Greek Kingdom]] of the [[Saka]]s in what is now [[Afghanistan]], where he studied [[Hinduism]] and its various extant philosophies. Returning in 242, he joined the court of [[Shapur I]], to whom he dedicated his only work written in Persian, known as the ''[[Shabuhragan]]''. The original writings were written in [[Syriac language|Syriac]], an Eastern Aramaic language, in a unique [[Manichaean script]]. Manichaeism conceives of two coexistent realms of light and darkness that become embroiled in conflict. Certain elements of the light became entrapped within darkness, and the purpose of material creation is to engage in the slow process of extraction of these individual elements. In the end, the kingdom of light will prevail over darkness. Manicheanism inherits this dualistic mythology from [[Zurvanism|Zurvanist Zoroastrianism]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Zaehner|first=Richard Charles|title=The Dawn and Twilight of Zoroastrianism|year=1961|publisher=Putnam|location=New York|isbn=978-1-84212-165-8}}</ref> in which the eternal spirit [[Ahura Mazda]] is opposed by his antithesis, [[Angra Mainyu]]. This dualistic teaching embodied an elaborate cosmological myth that included the defeat of a primal man by the powers of darkness that devoured and imprisoned the particles of light.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.themystica.org/mystica/articles/d/dualism.html |title = Dualism Religion – Definition – Dualistic Cosmology – Christianity|date = 2018-03-16}}</ref> According to Kurt Rudolph, the decline of [[Manichaeism]] that occurred in Persia in the 5th century was too late to prevent the spread of the movement into the east and the west.{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} In the west, the teachings of the school moved into Syria, Northern Arabia, Egypt and North Africa.{{refn|group=note|Where Augustine was a member of the school from 373–382.<ref name="Oxford:Platonism">{{cite book |editor1-last=Cross |editor1-first=Frank L. |editor2-last=Livingstone |editor2-first=Elizabeth |chapter=Platonism |title=The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-19-280290-3}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Augustine the Theologian |last=TeSelle |first=Eugene |year=1970 |location=London |publisher=Burns & Oates |pages=[https://archive.org/details/augustinetheolog0000tese/page/347 347–349] |isbn=978-0-223-97728-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/augustinetheolog0000tese/page/347 }} March 2002 edition: {{ISBN|1-57910-918-7}}.</ref>}} There is evidence for Manicheans in Rome and [[Dalmatia]] in the 4th century, and also in Gaul and Spain. From Syria, it progressed further into [[Syria Palestina]], [[Anatolia]], and [[Byzantine Armenia|Byzantine]] and [[Persian Armenia]]. The influence of Manicheanism was attacked by imperial elects and polemical writings, but the religion remained prevalent until the [[6th century]], and still exerted influence in the emergence of [[Paulicianism]], [[Bogomilism]], and [[Catharism]] in the Middle Ages, until it was ultimately stamped out by the [[Catholic Church]].{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} In the east, Rudolph relates, Manicheanism was able to bloom, because the religious monopoly position previously held by Christianity and Zoroastrianism had been broken by nascent Islam. In the early years of the Arab conquest, Manicheanism again found followers in Persia (mostly amongst educated circles), but flourished most in Central Asia, to which it had spread through Iran. There, in 762, Manicheanism became the state religion of the [[Uyghur Khaganate]].{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} === Middle Ages === After its decline in the Mediterranean world, Gnosticism lived on in the periphery of the Byzantine Empire, and resurfaced in the western world. The [[Paulicianism|Paulicians]], an [[Adoptionist]] group which flourished between 650 and 872 in Armenia and the Eastern Themes of the [[Byzantine Empire]], were accused by orthodox medieval sources of being Gnostic and quasi [[Manichaeism|Manichaean]] Christian. The [[Bogomils]], emerged in [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgaria]] between 927 and 970 and spread throughout Europe. It was as [[Syncretism#Religious syncretism|synthesis]] of Armenian [[Paulicianism]] and the [[Bulgarian Orthodox Church]] reform movement. The [[Catharism|Cathars]] (Cathari, Albigenses or Albigensians) were also accused by their enemies of the traits of Gnosticism; though whether or not the Cathari possessed direct historical influence from ancient Gnosticism is disputed. If their critics are reliable the basic conceptions of Gnostic cosmology are to be found in Cathar beliefs (most distinctly in their notion of a lesser, Satanic, creator god), though they did not apparently place any special relevance upon knowledge (''gnosis'') as an effective salvific force.{{Verify source|date=November 2010}} ==== Islam ==== [[File:Adam and the Angels watched by Iblis.jpg|thumb|Some [[Sufism|Sufistic interpretations]] depict [[Iblis]] as ruling the material desires in a manner that resembles the [[Demiurge#Gnosticism|Gnostic Demiurge]].]] The Quran, like Gnostic cosmology, makes a sharp distinction between this world and the [[afterlife]]. God is commonly thought of as being beyond human comprehension. In some Islamic schools of thought, God is identifiable with the [[Monad (philosophy)|Monad]].<ref>Winston E. Waugh, ''Sufism,'' Xulon Press, 2005. {{ISBN|978-1-597-81703-5}}, p. 17</ref>{{sfn|Nagel|1994|p=222}} However, according to Islam and unlike most Gnostic sects, not rejection of this world but performing good deeds leads to [[Jannah|Paradise]]. According to the Islamic belief in [[tawhid]] ("unification of God"), there was no room for a lower deity such as the demiurge.<ref>Andrew Philip Smith, ''The Secret History of the Gnostics: Their Scriptures, Beliefs and Traditions,'' Duncan Baird Publishers, 2015. {{ISBN|978-1-780-28883-3}}</ref> According to Islam, both good and evil come from one God, a position especially opposed by the Manichaeans. [[Ibn al-Muqaffa']], a Manichaean apologist who later converted to Islam, depicted the [[Abrahamic God]] as a demonic entity who "fights with humans and boasts about His victories" and "sitting on a throne, from which He can descend". It would be impossible that both light and darkness were created from one source since they were regarded as two different eternal principles.{{sfn|Nagel|1994|p=215}} Muslim theologists countered with the example of a repeating sinner, who says: "I laid, and I repent";{{sfn|Nagel|1994|p=216}} this would prove that good can also result out of evil. Islam also integrated traces of an entity given authority over the lower world in some early writings: [[Iblis]] is regarded by some [[Sufism|Sufis]] as the owner of this world and humans must avoid the treasures of this world since they would belong to him.<ref>Peter J. Awn, ''Satan's Tragedy and Redemption: Iblis in Sufi Psychology,'' Brill, 1983. {{ISBN|978-90-04-06906-0}}</ref> In the [[Ismailism|Isma'ili Shi'i]] work ''[[Umm al-Kitab (Ismaili book)|Umm al-Kitab]]'', [[Azazil]]'s role resembles whose of the demiurge.{{sfn|Barnstone|Meyer|2009|p=803}} Like the demiurge, he is endowed with the ability to create a world and seeks to imprison humans in the material world, but here, his power is limited and depends on the higher God.{{sfn|Barnstone|Meyer|2009|p=707}} Such [[anthropogeny|anthropogenic]]{{clarify|date=October 2021}} can be found frequently among [[Isma'ili]] traditions.<ref>Corbin, ''Cyclical Time & Ismaili Gnosis,'' Routledge, 2013. {{ISBN|978-1-136-13754-9}}, p. 154</ref> In fact, Isma'ilism has been often [[takfir|criticised as non-Islamic]].{{Citation needed|date=February 2022}} [[Al-Ghazali]] characterized them as a group who are outwardly [[Shia]] but were adherents of a dualistic and philosophical religion. Further traces of Gnostic ideas can be found in Sufi anthropogeny.{{clarify|date=October 2021}}<ref>Max Gorman, ''Stairway to the Stars: Sufism, Gurdjieff and the Inner Tradition of Mankind,'' Karnac Books, 2010. {{ISBN|978-1-904-65832-0}}, p. 51</ref> Like the gnostic conception of human beings imprisoned in matter, Sufi traditions acknowledge that the human soul is an accomplice of the material world and subject to bodily desires similar to the way [[archon]]tic spheres envelop the pneuma.<ref>Tobias Churton, ''Gnostic Philosophy: From Ancient Persia to Modern Times,'' Simon and Schuster, 2005. {{ISBN|978-1-594-77767-7}}</ref> The [[ruh]] (pneuma, spirit) must therefore gain victory over the lower and material-bound [[nafs]] (psyche, soul, or anima) to overcome its animal nature. A human being captured by its animal desires, mistakenly claims autonomy and independence from the "higher God", thus resembling the lower deity in classical gnostic traditions. However, since the goal is not to abandon the created world, but just to free oneself from lower desires, it can be disputed whether this can still be Gnostic, but rather a completion of the message of Muhammad.{{sfn|Nagel|1994|p=215}} It seems that Gnostic ideas were an influential part of early Islamic development but later lost its influence. However light metaphors and the idea of [[Sufi metaphysics|unity of existence]] ({{lang-ar|وحدة الوجود|waḥdat al-wujūd}}) still prevailed in later Islamic thought, such as that of [[ibn Sina]].{{sfn|Nagel|1994|p=222}} ==== Kabbalah ==== Gershom Scholem, a historian of [[Jewish philosophy]], wrote that several core Gnostic ideas reappear in medieval [[Kabbalah]], where they are used to reinterpret earlier Jewish sources. In these cases, according to Scholem, texts such as the [[Zohar]] adapted Gnostic precepts for the interpretation of the [[Torah]], while not using the language of Gnosticism.<ref>[[Gershom Scholem|Scholem, Gershom]]. ''Origins of the Kabbalah'', 1987. Pp. 21–22.</ref> Scholem further proposed that there was a Jewish Gnosticism which influenced the early origins of Christian Gnosticism.<ref name="Scholem Jewish Gnosticism">[[Gershom Scholem|Scholem, Gershom]]. ''Jewish Gnosticism, Merkabah Mysticism, and the Talmudic Tradition'', 1965.</ref> Given that some of the earliest dated Kabbalistic texts emerged in medieval [[Provence]], at which time [[Cathar]] movements were also supposed to have been active, Scholem and other mid-20th century scholars argued that there was mutual influence between the two groups. According to Dan Joseph, this hypothesis has not been substantiated by any extant texts.<ref>[[Joseph Dan|Dan, Joseph]]. ''Kabbalah: a Very Short Introduction'', Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 24.</ref> === Modern times === {{Main|Gnosticism in modern times}} Found today in Iraq, Iran and diaspora communities, the [[Mandaeans]] are an ancient Gnostic [[ethnoreligious group]] that follow [[John the Baptist]] and have survived from antiquity.{{sfn|Rudolph|1987|p=343}} Their name comes from the Aramaic ''[[Manda (Mandaeism)|manda]]'' meaning knowledge or [[gnosis]].<ref name=Rudolph/> There are thought to be 60,000 to 70,000 Mandaeans worldwide.<ref name="yaledailynews"/>{{sfn|Rudolph|1987}} A number of modern gnostic ecclesiastical bodies have been set up or re-founded since the discovery of the [[Nag Hammadi library]], including the [[Ecclesia Gnostica]], [[Johannite Church#Apostolic Johannite Church|Apostolic Johannite Church]], [[Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica]], the [[Gnostic Church of France]], the [[Saint Thomas Christians|Thomasine Church]], the Alexandrian Gnostic Church, and the North American College of Gnostic Bishops.<ref name="Taussig2013">{{cite book|last=Taussig|first=Hal|title=A New New Testament: A Reinvented Bible for the Twenty-first Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts|year=2013|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt|isbn=978-0-547-79210-1|page=532}}</ref> A number of 19th-century thinkers such as [[Arthur Schopenhauer]],<ref>[[Schopenhauer]], ''[[The World as Will and Representation]]'', Vol. II, Ch. XLVIII</ref> [[Albert Pike]] and [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Madame Blavatsky]] studied Gnostic thought extensively and were influenced by it, and even figures like [[Herman Melville]] and [[W. B. Yeats]] were more tangentially influenced.<ref name="smith">Smith, Richard. "The Modern Relevance of Gnosticism" in The Nag Hammadi Library, 1990 {{ISBN|0-06-066935-7}}</ref> [[Jules Doinel]] "re-established" a [[Gnostic Church of France|Gnostic church in France]] in 1890, which altered its form as it passed through various direct successors (Fabre des Essarts as ''Tau Synésius'' and Joanny Bricaud as ''Tau Jean II'' most notably), and, though small, is still active today.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}} Early 20th-century thinkers who heavily studied and were influenced by Gnosticism include [[Carl Jung]] (who supported Gnosticism), [[Eric Voegelin]] (who opposed it), [[Jorge Luis Borges]] (who included it in many of his short stories), and [[Aleister Crowley]], with figures such as [[Hermann Hesse]] being more moderately influenced. [[René Guénon]] founded the gnostic review, ''La Gnose'' in 1909, before moving to a more [[Perennial philosophy|Perennialist]] position, and founding his [[Traditionalist School]]. Gnostic [[Thelema|Thelemite]] organizations, such as Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica and [[Ordo Templi Orientis]], trace themselves to Crowley's thought. The discovery and translation of the Nag Hammadi library after 1945 has had a huge effect on Gnosticism since World War II. Intellectuals who were heavily influenced by Gnosticism in this period include [[Lawrence Durrell]], [[Hans Jonas]], [[Philip K. Dick]] and [[Harold Bloom]], with [[Albert Camus]] and [[Allen Ginsberg]] being more moderately influenced.<ref name="smith" /> [[Celia Green]] has written on Gnostic Christianity in relation to her own philosophy.<ref name="Green">Green, Celia (1981, 2006). ''Advice to Clever Children''. Oxford: Oxford Forum. pp. xxxv–xxxvii.</ref> [[Alfred North Whitehead]] was aware of the existence of the newly discovered Gnostic scrolls. Accordingly, [[Michel Weber]] has proposed a Gnostic interpretation of his late metaphysics.<ref>Michael Weber. [https://www.academia.edu/869320/_Contact_Made_Vision_The_Apocryphal_Whitehead_2008_ Contact Made Vision: The Apocryphal Whitehead] Pub. in Michel Weber and William Desmond, Jr. (eds.), ''Handbook of Whiteheadian Process Thought'', Frankfurt / Lancaster, Ontos Verlag, Process Thought X1 & X2, 2008, I, pp. 573–599.</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page