The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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Greatest I am
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The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

A nutshell view of Gnostic Christianity is expressed in the first two links. The third shows the attitude and result of Christian and Gnostic Christian interaction. I should point out that Gnostic Christianity does not hold to any supernatural belief, although I know that the literature, mostly written by those who won the God wars, wants to show that we do. Our myths have a lot of supernatural entities but they are myths, not reality.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alRNbesfXXw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR02ciandvg&t=3s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ptNcSYo7k4&t=338s

I heard the saying in the title of this O. P. some time ago and after looking at the moral aspects of both ideologies/ theologies; --- I think that statement to be true from a moral point of view.

Do you?

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DL
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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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Greetings:
I'm not engaged with youtube at this time, so this is a response just to your post here at the forum. Apologies if your links respond to my observations.

It's not clear to me if you are referring to historical Gnosticism (roughly 150 to 500 AD) or to contemporary Gnosticism that has emerged since the uncovering of some Gnostic manuscripts at Nag Hammadi and other sources. Historical Gnosticism does seem to have believed in deities and other entities, particularly the Demiurge. Looking at the historical remains, I'm not aware of a type of Gnosticism that viewed their beliefs only as myths; I'm not sure that spiritual traditions at that time would have understood the distinction between 'myth and reality' in the way moderns make this distinction. It is true that there was a long tradition that interpreted the Odyssey as an allegory; but I think they regarded the allegory as 'true' at a 'higher level' of analysis. That is how Augustine and Philo understood how allegory worked.

To get at historical Gnosticism I think it is helpful to read the essay by Plotinus called 'Against the Gnostics'. Most criticism of Gnosticism, as you point out, was written by Christian who were engaged in a theological debate and were interested parties; their critiques are, therefore, suspect (though I think they are not necessarily valueless). But Plotinus was a Pagan, not a Christian, and this means that his critique of Gnosticism is not motivated by sectarianism.

I am curious if you see any connection between Gnosticism and diet, or veganism specifically? There is such a connection in Platonism. It would be interesting to see if there was such an understanding outside of the Platonic tradition.

Best wishes.
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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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False.

Any Christian who observes their faith yet doesn't demonize those who don't hold the same faith is a good Christian. or even if they do privately believe that the non-Christians are hell bound, they treat them with good will and acceptance.
Alcohol may have been a factor.

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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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Porphyry wrote: Fri Apr 06, 2018 7:45 pm Greetings:
I'm not engaged with youtube at this time, so this is a response just to your post here at the forum. Apologies if your links respond to my observations.

It's not clear to me if you are referring to historical Gnosticism (roughly 150 to 500 AD) or to contemporary Gnosticism that has emerged since the uncovering of some Gnostic manuscripts at Nag Hammadi and other sources. Historical Gnosticism does seem to have believed in deities and other entities, particularly the Demiurge. Looking at the historical remains, I'm not aware of a type of Gnosticism that viewed their beliefs only as myths; I'm not sure that spiritual traditions at that time would have understood the distinction between 'myth and reality' in the way moderns make this distinction. It is true that there was a long tradition that interpreted the Odyssey as an allegory; but I think they regarded the allegory as 'true' at a 'higher level' of analysis. That is how Augustine and Philo understood how allegory worked.

To get at historical Gnosticism I think it is helpful to read the essay by Plotinus called 'Against the Gnostics'. Most criticism of Gnosticism, as you point out, was written by Christian who were engaged in a theological debate and were interested parties; their critiques are, therefore, suspect (though I think they are not necessarily valueless). But Plotinus was a Pagan, not a Christian, and this means that his critique of Gnosticism is not motivated by sectarianism.

I am curious if you see any connection between Gnosticism and diet, or veganism specifically? There is such a connection in Platonism. It would be interesting to see if there was such an understanding outside of the Platonic tradition.

Best wishes.
They are all worth the read but Gnostic Christianity is a perpetually evolving religion and we take the good bits out of whatever we read, add them to our ideology and file the rest.

Given that the root of Christianity was pure Jewish, and Jews were shepherds, murderers to Joseph Campbell in their early years, before they began farming, I doubt that many vegans in the old world.

Since they did not have the vitamin supplements that I think most vegans use today, they, if they existed, would not have been the healthiest.

What almost all the old traditions taught was that fasting and meditation was the way to activate our pineal gland and thus engage our right brain into our thinking.

Finding our Gnostic Christian roots is a bit tougher thanks to Christian plagiarism of our Chrestian text that I believe pre-dated Christianity.

Regards
DL
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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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PsYcHo wrote: Fri Apr 06, 2018 11:12 pm False.

Any Christian who observes their faith yet doesn't demonize those who don't hold the same faith is a good Christian. or even if they do privately believe that the non-Christians are hell bound, they treat them with good will and acceptance.
Really!

Is good will and acceptance what you see in the third link of the O.P.?

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DL
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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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Greatest I am wrote: Sat Apr 07, 2018 10:37 am Is good will and acceptance what you see in the third link of the O.P.?
Thus why I said those that do treat others with good will and acceptance.

An extremely small segment of animal rights activist believe in using (and have used) violence.

Should we group them in with the non-violent ones because they share a common belief?
Alcohol may have been a factor.

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Re: The only good Christian is a Gnostic Christian. True or false?

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PsYcHo wrote: Sat Apr 07, 2018 9:39 pm
Greatest I am wrote: Sat Apr 07, 2018 10:37 am Is good will and acceptance what you see in the third link of the O.P.?
Thus why I said those that do treat others with good will and acceptance.

An extremely small segment of animal rights activist believe in using (and have used) violence.

Should we group them in with the non-violent ones because they share a common belief?
They all eat at the same troth and follow the same God, so yes.

All who fly the cross support their vile religion.

Regards
DL
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