THE ESSENCE OF THE GNOSTICS

Greetings my friends,

Tonight begins a three part series on Gnosticism and just who and what the Gnostics are.  Tonight I want to talk about the cosmology of the Gnostics, and how that has evolved into the modern day Gnostic worshipers.  Next Sunday I will talk more about the three men who set forth the laws and rules that govern Gnostic sects all over the world (Mani, Marcion, and Valentinus.)  In week three I will discuss the Nag Hamadi library, and how it has forged a rebirth of Gnostic thinking.  Finally, in week four, I will discuss modern day Gnosticism and how worshipers apply it to their everyday lives. 
Let me start off by letting you know that I am Gnostic by faith, and have been so for almost 30 years.  I meet with a handful of friends who are fellow Gnostics, and we discuss our faith, what we have learned from it, and share ideas for reaching the ultimate goal of finding Gnosis.  Though there are some Gnostic churches across the globe, congregational worship is not desirable to most Gnostics, as it is known that ones salvation is the sole task and responsibility of themselves.   That means no Priest to guide you, and no Bishops to chide you.  No Missionaries to beseech you, and no Nuns to teach you.  You, and only you can save yourself.  I know that may sound confusing now, but by the end of this month, I am hoping that all of you reading this series will understand it, and know why this must be so. 
There has always been the Pleroma, which one should not think of in spatial terms.  The Pleroma is the center of divine life, or heaven if you will.  Think of all the planes of existence that could be, and the Pleroma would be the plane in the middle, where all other planes converge.  In this Pleroma exists two ruling Gods, both the father and mother of all beings.  The male half is called the Monad,  and the female half called the Ennoia.  It was through their union that the Archetypes were created, Mind being the male part, and Truth being the female part.  The Archetypes, through their union, created thirty more paired beings, and these were called the Aeons.  It was only the Mind that could speak with and comprehend the great gods Monad and Ennoia.  One of the great commands was that no Aeon was to create or do anything without the partnership of their other half. 
The youngest of all the Aeons was called Sophia (wisdom).  She had a burning desire to create, and without the help of her other half she gave birth to a flawed being called the Demiurge.  This enraged the Monad and the Ennoia, and as a punishment the Demiurge was cast out of the Pleroma.  To amuse himself, the Demiurge began to create his own universe and kingdom, of which one of those places was our Earth.  Because the Demiurge is a flawed being, everything he creates will be flawed.  We, as human beings, are flawed because the one who made us is flawed. 
The Monad and the Ennoia saw what was done, and out of pity, they instilled into each and every one of us a soul.  As long as we could find our way to the Pleroma, we could be a part of the diving light.  The Demiurge was not going to let us go so easily, as he considered us his creation.  He created his own Angles and Demons to keep watch over us, and to blind us with the trappings of the Earth.  As long as he could keep a person from finding the Pleroma, they would be doomed to be reincarnated and continue to live and die until they achieved Gnosis and found their way to the Pleroma. 
The Monad and Ennoia have sent prophets along the way, to try and teach us how to find and achieve Gnosis.  One of these prophets was the man called Jesus.  This is the cosmology and creation theory of the Gnostics.
Almost all Gnostics believe that the Gods of the Old and New Testaments are not the same.  I go along with the belief that the God of the Old Testament is the Demiurge or the Flawed God.  The Old Testament God kills women and children, destroys every living thing, inflicts diseases, and would kill young boys just for lighting the wrong incense in the holy tent.  In stark contrast, the New Testament God demands civility towards one another, would never kill women and children, wants to save everyone,  not destroy them, and is big on forgiving mistakes.  Some Gnostics believe that the New Testament God is Sophia, and others believe it to be the Monad.  I do not know who I believe the New Testament God to be, but I know in my heart that it is not the God of the Old Testament. 
That is it for this week.  Next week we will talk about the three men who gave Gnosticism its doctrines. 

My continued prayers to my friends  Mia, Chas, and Shell

To my friends and watchers I wish you a wonderful and prosperous week ahead...