Gnosticism

=== 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 &#124; 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 &#124; 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 &#124; 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.
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