Discuss MikeC's answer to: Best Religion

Gnostic beliefs:

Their Role: They believe that they alone truly understand Christ's message, and that other streams of thought within Christianity had misinterpreted Jesus' mission and sayings.

 Gnosis: Knowledge to them has a redeeming and liberating function that helped the individual break free of bondage to the world.

 Deity: The Supreme Father God or Supreme God of Truth is remote from human affairs; he is unknowable and undetectable by human senses. She/he created a series of supernatural but finite beings called Aeons. One of these was Sophia, a virgin, who in turn gave birth to an defective, inferior Creator-God, also known as the Demiurge. (Demiurge means "public craftsman" in Greek.) This lower God is sometimes called Yaldabaoth or Ialdabaoth Jaldabaoth -- from Aramaic words meaning "begetter of the Heavens." This is Jehovah, the God of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). He is portrayed as the creator of the earth and its life forms. He is viewed by Gnostics as fundamentally evil, jealous, rigid, lacking in compassion, and prone to genocide. The Demiurge "thinks that he is supreme. His pride and incompetence have resulted in the sorry state of the world as we know it, and in the blind and ignorant condition of most of mankind."


 Duality of spirit and body: Spirit is of divine origin and good; the body is inherently earthly and evil. Gnostics are hostile to the physical world, to matter and the human body. But they believed that trapped within some people's bodies were the sparks of divinity or seeds of light that were supplied to humanity by Sophia.

 Salvation: A person attains salvation by learning secret knowledge of their spiritual essence: a divine spark of light or spirit. They then have the opportunity to escape from the prison of their bodies at death. Their soul can ascend to be reunited with the Supreme God at the time of their death. Gnostics divided humanity into three groups:

The spiritual, who would be saved irrespective of their behavior while on earth.

The Soulish, who could be saved if they followed the Gnostic path.

The carnal who are hopelessly lost.

 Evil: They did not look upon the world as having been created perfectly and then having degenerated as a result of the sin of Adam and Eve. Rather the world was seen as being evil at the time of its origin, because it had been created by an inferior God.


Snake:  Gnostic sects honor  the snake. They do not view the snake as a seducer who led the first couple into sinful behavior. Rather, they see him/it as a liberator who brought knowledge to Adam and Eve by convincing them to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and thus to become fully human.


Snake Symbol -- the Ouroboros: (a.k.a. Ourorboros, Oroborus, Uroboros or Uroborus) This is:

        "... an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon swallowing its own tail and forming a circle. It has been used to represent many things over the ages, but it most generally symbolizes ideas of cyclicality, unity, or infinity. ... In Gnosticism, this serpent symbolized eternity and the soul of the world.



Christ: The role of the redeemer in Gnostic belief is, they look upon Christ as a revealer or liberator, rather than a savior or judge. His purpose was to spread knowledge which would free individuals from the Demiurge's control and allow them to return to their spiritual home with the Supreme God at death. Gnostic groups promoted Docetism, the belief that Christ was pure spirit and only had a phantom body; Jesus just appeared to be human to his followers. They reasoned that a true emissary from the Supreme God could not have been overcome by the evil of the world, and to have suffered and died.


The Universe: This is divided into three kingdoms:

   1. The "Earthly Cosmos": The earth is the center of the universe, and is composed of the world that we know of and an underworld. It is surrounded by air and by 7 concentric heavenly spheres: one for each of the Moon, Venus, Mercury, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. (Although the planet Uranus is visible to the naked eye, it was not recognized as a planet in ancient times.) Within these spheres live demonic, tyrannical entities called Archons. Beyond them lies Paradise which contains the "Tree of Life", the "Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil", and the flaming, turning sword of Genesis 3:24. Beyond Paradise was the sphere of the fixed stars, divided into the 12 signs of the zodiac.
  

2. The "Intermediate Kingdom is composed of an inner blue circle of darkness and an outer yellow ring of light. Within these rings is a sphere which is the realm of Sophia.
  

3. The "Kingdom of God" consists of two spheres: an outer one of the unknowable Supreme God, and inner ring of the Son.

Gnosticism is based upon a radically different view of Creation than is found in Scripture. According to this heresy, Adam was originally created as a “light body,” a “spark” of the “divine essence,” a pure spirit. In his original, perfect state, he was called Adam-Kadmon, the Heavenly Adam. Adam-Kadmon was not male, but male-female, or androgynous. In the course of time, this “first Adam” became attracted to materiality and incarnated into matter. As Adam-Kadmon descended into matter, this “divine androgyne” was divided into two sexes which took on material bodies, becoming Adam and Eve. As a result of Adam-Kadmon’s “fall” into the material realm, humanity is now trapped in matter.

 

After the first Adam’s descent into matter, Lucifer, who was co-creator of the world with God, offered the fallen Adam and Eve a means of release from their bondage in matter. They needed only to eat of the tree of the “knowledge of good and evil” which God had forbidden them to do. The forbidden fruit was “spiritual enlightenment” with the power to become “gods,” having the ability to transcend matter and to be reabsorbed into the “divine principle” from which they originated.  However, the other creator-God, rudely intervened in Lucifer’s plan in order to keep man trapped in matter and subject to Himself. To prevent Adam from taking of the tree of life, that he might achieve immortality, “The Lord God sent him forth from the Garden of Eden. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” (Gen. 3:24) 

 

In Gnostic thought, this God is an “evil Demiurge” and “Satan,” whereas Lucifer is the true God who is in a continuing battle with the evil Demiurge for possession of planet Earth. And so, Lucifer’s offer still stands for those who will receive “spiritual enlightenment”— the delusion that they can become “gods” and escape the control of the “evil Demiurge.”

 

Lucifer has many prophets who preach this false gospel, under various disguises. To protect future generations from Lucifer’s delusion, God has placed in the hands of His people the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. (Eph.6:17) Like the “flaming sword” at the east of the garden, “the word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing under of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb.4:12). In other words, sanctification, not deification, is the portion of the Christian.

 

Lucifer’s emissaries on earth use the Word of God deceitfully to peddle his false gospel. Their books and sermons are replete with Bible verses, and a fair amount of truth is thrown in for good measure. But among the kernels of truth, false teachers stealthily sow heresies which take root in the hearer’s mind, become established and eventually overtake the truth. A little leaven eventually leavens the whole lump. If isolated and examined, the heresies will be seen to form a coherent system of Gnostic doctrine.

 

Love, the Law of the Angels quotes liberally from the Word of God, and even contains some truth, however, strategically placed throughout its pages are damnable heresies, doctrines of devils that will yield a crop of evil fruit in due time. This report will examine some of these heresies.

http://watch.pair.com/eth-s.html#gnostic

The "Secret" Nag Hammadi Texts Discovered

This distortion derives its basis from a discovery of ancient texts and so-called "gospels" which took place in 1945, in the desert sands of Egypt.  A person by the name of Muhammad Ali (not the fighter) was digging in a gave when he stumbled across an earthen jar.  As was the case with the Dead Sea Scrolls, the discovery took place quite by accident.

A collection of ancient texts were uncovered with this discovery, many with intriguing titles such as the Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Philip, Gospel of Mary, Gospel of Truth, Acts of John, and others.  The Nag Hammadi Library, published in 1977, consisted of 45 titles - only a few of which were titled "gospels".  In fact, only five are listed as gospels - Truth, Thomas, Philip, Egyptians, and Mary.  A far cry from the 80 The Da Vinci Code claims!  In fact, most of the Gnostic texts were poems, wisdom literature, and supposed historical narratives.  That 80 "gospels" ever existed is a fabrication.


The important thing to remember is that these documents are dated to the 2nd and 3rd centuries -- generations AFTER the New Testament gospels were written, adopted and the early church formed (the earliest of the Gnostic Gospels is supposedly the "Gospel of Thomas", dated by experts to 150 AD).  That the Council of Nicea in 325 AD reviewed some 80 gospels and decided to adopt only is nonsense.  The gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John had long since been adopted by the church as authoritative.

The few writings in the collection that have been labeled as "gospels" stand in stark contrast to the style, content and teachings of the new Testament gospels. The Gnostic texts read like jumbled collections of sayings, without reference to dates, times or place3.  Contrast this with the style and content of the gospels of the New Testament - Matthew, Mark Luke and John.  These books are structured chronologically, refer to dates, times and place, historical references and people, and read like actual historical narratives.

The next thing to note is that it is in no way certain who wrote many of these so-called gospel documents (in contrast to the New Testament gospels and letters, which according to scholars were all written by the apostles of Jesus or His disciples).


 These so-called gospels and associated texts have a set of common ideas or themes that run through them, which is why they have been labeled "Gnostic" texts.  Far from texts that describe "another Christianity", Gnostic teachings sought to subvert the very core teachings of the Christian faith - which is why many of the early church fathers (several of whom were disciples of the apostles) wrote about them, and preach to their congregations of their errors.

    * Irenaeus (c 130-200) - noted in the preface to his Against Heresies that he writes against
      those who draw away many under a pretense of knowledge.
      
    * Epiphanius (c 310-403) - speaks of "practicing Gnostics" (which is how we received the
      name given to these spurious teachings)

Other early church fathers writing and speaking out against Gnostic teachings included Hippolytus (c170-236) and Tertullian (c 160-220).  These early Church leaders made it clear to their congregations that these texts were in direct opposition to the teachings of Jesus, His Apostles, and the Church.  No, there is nothing "secret" about these teachings -- the early Church fathers new about these over 1,500 years ago, and were exposing these false and twisted teachings for precisely what they were




The Gnostic Gospels

http://www.evidencetobelieve.net/gnostic_gospels.htm

So...AC...you worship at the feet of Paul Dooley....give me a break!   You dare to refer me to him!  He reads Hal Lindsey's books!  I suppose you do as well.

I do not read Hal Lindsey or Dan Brown.  I read the Bible and excellent literature such as Pascal Boyer's Religion Explained, which I just finished and recommended to MikeC.

You are more "lost" than I am, if you recommend people like Paul Dooley and Hal Lindsey.  Thanks for letting me know where your heart truly lies.  Honestly...AC...  Stop judging others, for your own sake, and for pity's sake stay out of my world.

Njoy“There is a time when it is right to explore many religions. One often has to do this in order to find what grasps one at a level deep enough to permit at least initial commitments to be made.  But those who stay merely students of religion into middle age become dreary. They know facts and doctrines, and laws and rites, but they know nothing of Mystery.”   April 12, 2012  Pub Theology Bryan Berghof

<><IN THE BEGINNING... The Creator and Created were ONE. This endless realm of perfection is the Cause of ALL Causes.

      It only stands to reason that all religions, being in the Spiritual Realm, would sound alike and actually be alike in their main aspects.

     We started as ONE and we were scattered by something, no one knows for sure what, but we are all still a part of the Whole. We are a Sacred Hologram. We are all made of the same stardust, and one day we will all be ONE again.

     Our supreme goal is to re-gain that Oneness with our Creator


   I am advocating going where Jesus went in his thinking. I am not saying I am going to become God Almighty who is MY Heavenly Father, but I am attempting to more fully understand the lessons taught by Jesus THE CHRIST. 

      I am sorry if you see my thoughts as confusing, but I am not as able to explain myself as FaithR or Jameslee can. They are both able to understand my thinking. When you have been programmed by strict and fundamentalist church and Sunday school teachings, AND ARE AFRAID to venture forth out of that prison of thought, BECAUSE you are unable to trust your own Lord and Savior....when you are in that position in your thinking....you will think and say things like you have said to me.

       I used to believe like that too. But, Thank God ...I have moved on...and closer to the Heart of God...not to become God...Heavens NO...God is far far more complex and mysterious than that...I only want to encourage that little spark of God which is within me to grow...past this "book knowledge" to the very SPIRIT of the word.

    The HOLY WORD, "Christ."

     Have you researched it thoroughly?

 I have. And I am so thankful that I had the courage to step out from under the shadows of fundamentalist preaching and badgering to be truly Saved.

    Yes, Re-born! A New Birth...an entirely new attitude toward God the Divine Spirit who guides me. You can think that I am not "doing it right" or by prescription, that's okay.

I know you think that way  because you have been fearful of venturing out of the safety net of those ancient words of scripture. That is truly okay with me, because I am willing to allow God to speak to you in the language you personally need to feel "saved."

      It is far better to do as you are doing, than to deny the existence of God, so it is fine with me, and I will not call you names and tell you that you are doomed not to think the way God is leading me...but there is a lot more to the spirit of Divine LOVE behind the stories and the words...and that's where I am now dwelling. Thank God.

        May I ask why the Elect should assume that satan doesn't have a plan to deceive them?  I mean satan has a plan to deceive all peoples of the earth, why should the Elect put their guard down? They wouldn't  dream of worshiping multiple gods and goddesses as do the Eastern Religions.  So what is the Achilles heel of the Elect?  What gate should the Elect guard most closely?  Where is the place that satan would have the best chance of compromising one of the Elect if it were possible?


 The answer is in the very thing that sets the Elect apart from others - knowledge.  The Elect have an inborn desire to seek out the deeper things in God's Word.  Satan knows this.  Therein the danger is found.


        The Elect constantly seek to dive deeper and deeper into God's Word.  This is good, this is what they are supposed to do, however, if they are not careful they begin to skim over the 'basics,' always looking for some greater deeper hidden thing in the Word of God, they can drift away from the foundation and be caught in the winds of the pursuit of esoteric knowledge (hidden/forbidden knowledge).



        There is wisdom and there is knowledge, and it is good, however there is also forbidden knowledge, evil knowledge which is not of God but rather of the wicked one.  Cain possessed a certain advanced knowledge, but it was evil.  Someone had to teach him and his offspring how to build cities, found the art of music, and master the science of Metallurgy; I contend that it was his father satan that gave him that higher knowledge after Cain was cast out of God's 'sight.'


        And the Fallen Angels brought with them grand knowledge and wisdom, but it was corrupt and evil, for these Fallen Angels led the world down into the flood of Noah.  Even Apostle Paul stated that he learned certain things in Heaven that man is not to know on the earth:

    2 Cor 12:4
    4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. (KJV)

        No doubt that Paul learned true and good things that simply were not to be spoken at that time, but satan possesses great knowledge and wisdom that is evil, corrupt, and a lie.  Satan, as the serpent, used the promise of 'enlightenment' to destroy Eve, then he used the fallen and beguiled Eve to destroy Adam.  That is how satan operates, he leads one person astray and then uses that person to lead others astray that he could not easily himself reach personally.  Don't let satan use you like that.  For we know Adam was in the Garden before Eve, but he didn't 'eat' of the 'tree' until Eve first led him there into the sin.  This also is how satan spreads false doctrines

    Gen 3:4-6
    4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
    5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
    6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (KJV)


My point is that you must be careful where you seek this deeper knowledge and wisdom, and you better know from whom it is ultimately coming.   For satan will lie and twist, corrupt and alter the truth and the wisdom of God, he will turn the holy into the profane.


Ever here about: "New-Age" religion;  But what exactly is New-Age religion?  And this is important,"New-Age" religion are nothing more than a cheap rip-off of the age old Gnosticism, the spirituality movement, Theosophy, Humanism, New Age, this type of false doctrine, the one-world religion a New-Age spirituality based, all inclusive anti-religion (an instead-of religion, and impostor religion, an apostate religion)  the one-world New-Age Luciferian religion with satan (in disguise) as it's head as the anti-savior, the anti-god, the antichrist.


New-Age religious teachings that so closely parrot so many of Christianity's words and terms that is hard to distinguish by those not forewarned, with catch-phrases that a Christian can easily identify with and be put off guard by; Such as  The Christ,  The Spirit,  The Creator, Spirit,  Son of God,  The Almighty..., these are referred  to as 'deity neutral' names, meaning any deity from any religion will fit in, depending on the religion of the speaker. There is also a heavy play to the 'Elect of God'  for it is only the Elect, they say, that can comprehend. It could be said that they are geared to appeal to and beguile the Elect specifically.


While at face value a Christian would see those above 'deity neutral' words in some doctrine or some new study series and believe them to be the earmarks of a truly Christian system. But wait, not so fast, those terms given above would also be easily identified and accepted by the Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist.


Tell me what religion can not identify with "The Creator?" Or "God," or "The Almighty," or even "a son of God." And then let's take it one step further. While all religions cannot and will not accept Jesus Christ, they can easily accept "The Christ," or "Christ," which to them simply means the anointed or even the anointing (as an act, bestowal, or a level to be attained).


        Or even the term "Spirit," or "The Spirit," can be approved by all religions, for they all believe in spirits and a Creator and an anointing or blessing from the One who Created everything. That is another big New-Age universal catchphrase: "The One" (capitalized). What religion on the planet cannot accept that there is a supernatural "The One?"


       I think you get what I am saying, what the New-Age religion does is to use generic terms for Deity that offend no one religion and can be assumed by all.  Even the word "Jesus," capitalized and standing alone can be universally accepted by the worlds religions.  For when you write "Jesus" without the word "Christ" following, it's the same thing as saying "Tom," or "Mary."  Now please understand, that as Christians we revere the name of "Jesus" as the Son of God Savior, but in the global religious neighborhood, "Jesus" is not The Son of God but simply a son of God.


The name "Jesus" without "Christ" is already recognized in many world religions.  For instance, in Hindu, Jesus is the son and Krishna is the Father.  In Islam, Jesus (Isa) is a prophet, a nabis or 'messenger of god'.  In the Cults, such as Jehovah Witnesses, Jesus is the Archangel Michael;  In Mormon, Jesus is the brother of Lucifer!; In the Occult, Edgar Cayce, premier occultist, states that Jesus is the reincarnation of Adam;  And the Unification Church states that 'Jesus' appeared to Rev. Moon telling him to start his Unification Church.  So when you just use the name "Jesus" you are saying a lot less to the global 'religious' world that a Christian sees.  This of course is by design but the wise can use them to identify false doctrine and cult.


But what of the New-Age religious beliefs?  Well they are many and diverse but ever the gaps are closing.  Briefly stated, New-Ager's believe that all is spirit, we all are spiritual.  To them, The Christ is an anointing of enlightenment, a state of being rather than an entity proper.  New-Ager's believe that we can all reach this level, called among other things, a 'Christ consciousness', becoming 'Christ-like', or having a 'Christ mind'.  It is enlightenment they seek not salvation, for to them enlightenment raises them to a level where death has no power, thus salvation useless, they will save themselves, they will become immortal.  They believe that once they reach this Christ like state that they can then shape and help the world, even saving, and possessing the traits of a higher evolved spiritual being, a god so to speak, though they shy away from that term for obvious reasons.   But it is fundamentally what they think they shall become, a person with the very nature of God, becoming one with The One (God).


        They believe that we are all here on this earth to evolve ourselves spiritually into our higher selves, our eternal spiritual being.  And they feel that the unique Constellation alignment in this age (age of Aquarius) is shedding powers upon the earth which if assimilated and harnessed shall raise them to spiritual levels unattainable since thousands of years past, perhaps even back at the time of Jesus Christ.  They believe that the time is now and they must act.  To them, Jesus Christ may well have evolved into that state of pure spiritual man because of his good deed-full pure life on earth, but they do not believe that Jesus Christ came forth from God in that manner as the only begotten Son of God, Savior; and they certainly have trouble accepting Him as God in the flesh.  But what little of that which they do understand, they corrupt by thinking that they can also become that, as Christ, a christ person, a spiritually evolved supernatural entity.  It's their destiny, they would say.


        So when they say that they seek to attain 'Christ-like-ness,' in reality they have perverted the true meaning in Scripture and feel that they can actually literally become as the Christ, as a supernatural eternal spirit being on the level of the One who created all people with the inborn ability to become even as He.  They believe that it is their birthright as a son of God so to speak.


        Their doctrines rely heavily upon works as opposed to Grace, they think they can earn immortality by what they themselves accomplish in both the physical and the spiritual realm, they think that they can learn or become aware of 'secrets' and 'hidden mysteries' that will raise them to a higher level of consciousness or awareness, they evolve into all-knowing.  They believe that if enough of them world-wide join spiritually that they can usher in a new age, an age of eternal spirit and love; in short, they are removing The Almighty Lord God and His Savior Jesus Christ from the equation - fools!  You notice the heavy usage of 'deity neutral' terms, always look for this within the occultic New-Age movement, it is always present.  Also look for the capitalization of 'deity neutral' pronouns, i.e., He, It, One....  But the uninitiated (us) are ignorant to this.  This is by design once again.


        So when the New-Ager, or Luciferian otherwise called, says that they exalt "The One," or, "The Spirit," "It" or "He," they mean something very different than when the true Christian exalts "The Lord God," or, "The Holy Spirit," or, "Jesus Christ." And do not think that this is a small thing or that we are 'splitting hairs' here, for as we know that there are two Christs coming, but only one of them is Jesus Christ, we know the other one is the antichrist, but will they not also call him "Christ"?!?


        The New-Ager will think that their god is Lucifer for his brightness and wisdom, his angels being the masters of wisdom, but in reality their god will be satan (as antichrist) and his angels are the Fallen Angels.  You will notice that in all the newer Bible versions Lucifer is removed.  The entity in Isaiah 14:12, which is called Lucifer in the King James Bible (KJV), is called in the:

        * NIV - morning star.
        * NAU - son of the dawn.
        * RSV - Day Star.
        * TLB - Son of the morning.
        * NAS - son of the dawn.

        So thus we see that in all the modern Bibles, which, since the late 1970's, most Seminarian Universities have taught new clergy with, and which most people have been buying as their home Bibles because they feel they can better understand the wording, Lucifer is removed from Isaiah 14:12 and is no longer identified as the devil to them.  And by placing Jesus Christ's name (Morning Star, as in Rev 2:28, 22:16) in Lucifer's place in Isaiah 14:12 as the damned, they are profaning the name of the Son of God, Savior, Jesus Christ!  This also all was done by design and was accomplished by corrupt Bible translators (Scribes) "Beware of the scribes" (Mk 12:38, Lk 20:46).



Once again, My point is that you must be careful where you seek this deeper knowledge and wisdom, and you better know from whom it is ultimately coming.   For satan will lie and twist, corrupt and alter the truth and the wisdom of God, he will turn the holy into the profane.

AC, thanks for this excellent advice and for taking the time to post it.  I sense that you honestly do care and that is impressive.  Much of what you have stated here, I have not been exposed to...I don't know why...perhaps unconsciously I have avoided reading that type of material?   I don't know, but I take your point and I thank you again for your kind reply.