The Gnostics: Myth, Ritual, and Diversity in Early Christianity

Who were the Gnostics And how did the Gnostic movement influence the development of Christianity in antiquity Is it true that the Church rejected Gnosticism This book offers an illuminating discussion of recent scholarly debates over the concept of Gnosticism and the nature of early Christian diversity Acknowledging that the category Gnosticism is flawed and must be reformed, David Brakke argues for a careful approach to gathering evidence for the ancient Christian movement known as the Gnostic school of thought He shows how Gnostic myth and ritual addressed basic human concerns about alienation and meaning, offered a message of salvation in Jesus, and provided a way for people to regain knowledge of God, the ultimate source of their being.Rather than depicting the Gnostics as heretics or as the losers in the fight to define Christianity, Brakke argues that the Gnostics participated in an ongoing reinvention of Christianity, in which other Christians not only rejected their ideas but also adapted and transformed them This book will challenge scholars to think in news ways, but it also provides an accessible introduction to the Gnostics and their fellow early Christians. Read The Gnostics: Myth, Ritual, and Diversity in Early Christianity By David Brakke – kino-fada.fr Brakke provides a well balanced introduction to the Gnostic tradition of early Christianity This short book gives a good overview of what we know of the Gnostics and their beliefs as well as tracing the history of scholarship on the topic Brakke then proceeds to give his own thoughts on the broad contours of the Gnostics and how they related to other Christian groups For instance, he shows the problematic nature of large monolithic terms like Gnosticism and Proto Orthodoxy He further Brakke provides a well balanced introduction to the Gnostic tradition...Valuable for its treatment of the plurality of early Christian communities Brakke goes to great lengths to show that proto orthodoxy is a post hoc description of a muchfluid situation, where various schools of thought and groups interacted in a shifting arrangement of communion and fracture Among these many groups were the Gnostics Brakke gives a narrow definition of Gnosticism, and then dances around a variety of other thinkers who clearly share a mental framework with his defined Valuable for its treatment of the plurality of early Christian communities Brakke goes to great lengths to show that proto orthodoxy is a post hoc description of a muchfluid situation, where various schools of thought and groups interacted in a shifting arrangement of communion and fracture Among these many groups were the Gnostics Brakke gives a narrow definition of Gnosticism, and then dances around a variety of other thinkers who clearly share a mental framework with his defined group but for various technical reasons don ...A well written, well researched discussion of the role of the Gnostic movement s in the first centuries of the common era Dr Brakke has a unique approach to who and what these early christian sects were, and their re...Good overview that provides anuanced account of Gnosticism and related beliefs than I got in my theology degree 30 years ago.In The Gnostics, Brakke argues for the rethinking of the category Gnosticism in academia Some scholars, such as Michael Williams with his famous book Rethinking Gnosticism, argue that the term Gnostic does not indicate an actual social entity that existed in the first few centuries of Christianity, but rather categorized groups which were not proto orthodox into an other category Other scholars treat Gnosticism as its own religion outside of Christianity, which persisted well into the In The Gnostics, Brakke argues for the rethinking of the category Gnosticism in academia Some scholars, such as Michael Williams with his famous book Rethinking Gnosticism, argue that the term Gnostic does not indicate an actual social entity that existed in the first few centuries of Christianity, but rather categorized groups which were not proto orthodox into an other category Other scholars treat Gnosticism as its own religion outside of Christianity, which persisted well into the fourth century Brakke argues for a middle ground understanding of the Gnostics Brakke disagrees with those who think that there were no Gnostics As evidence, he cites Irenaeus of Lyons, who claims that there were Christians calling themselves Gnostics, despite being falsely so called Brakke makes the point that to call one a gnostic was a compliment, since it indicated one ...Do not be fooled by the slimness of this book, it is intellectually heavy My guess is that Brakke wrote The Gnostics as a doctoral thesis and later decided to get it published for general audiences I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Gnostic tradition, because it will give you an idea of how complex the study is Someone without much interest in this subject will probably trip over the words it is hard reading.From the beginning, Brakke sets out to dispel the myth that Do not be fooled by the slimness of this book, it is intellectually heavy My guess is that Brakke wrote The Gnostics as a doctoral thesis and later decided to get it published for general audiences I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Gnostic tradition, because it will give you an idea of how complex the study is Someone without much interest in this subject will probably trip over the words it is hard reading.From the beginning, Brakke sets out to dispel the myth that Jesus left one officially sanctioned doctrine on this earth He even refutes thescholarly position that the first through third centur...I read this book because I wanted to learnabout what early Gnostics believed and it provided me with some insight It is a well written book, but it is definitely academic and written for a college level The author spends the first chapter going over various arguments about what the term gnostic means and even whether or not it can be used to describe a religious movement of the first centuries AD In the second chapter he discusses what early gnostics believed and how he specifically I read this book because I wanted to learnabout what early Gnostics believed and it provided me with some insight It is a well written book, but it is definitely academic and written for a college level The author spends the first chapter going over various arguments about what the term gnostic means and even whether or not it can be used to describe a religious movement of the first centuries AD In the second chapter he discusses what early gnostics believed and how he specifically defines them The rest of the book is adetailed discussion of some early gnostic leaders and their critics While I m not sure I will read it again, I found it quite interesting and I am glad my library had a copy As an aside I don t agree with gnosticism so don t take my opinion of the book as the same as agreement or disagreement with what is written in it In a side note on some of the semantics there was a section where the author referred to an average Roman around the year...Maybe a little too sophisticated for an introduction, but Brakke is an able guide to the multiple schools that have come to be known as the Gnostics Further reflections may be found here Sects and Violence in the Ancient World.Clearly and concisely the author argues that Gnosticism started out as a school of thought embedded within early Christian communities and only later, when doctrinal issues became a source of conflict, did Gnostics assume separate and heretical identities.

• English
• 25 November 2018
David Brakke
• Hardcover
• 164 pages
• 0674046846
• David Brakke
• The Gnostics: Myth, Ritual, and Diversity in Early Christianity