Mar 23, 2022
Many have heard that there were these Gnostic Christians who wrote some other scriptures long ago. So what else do we know about them, their goals, hopes and dreams, spiritual practices, their way of entering into the experience of the Divine Realms of the Heavens? And also today... the world of podcasting, websites, and television has been fairly good about reporting on a few recent discoveries such as Nag Hammadi and the Gospel of Judas, but these very same sources typically have not been reliable at all about writings that were unearthed several decades ago or more, long before the age of the Internet and cable TV! If some of those texts, such as the Mandaean Ginza Rabba, Pistis Sophia, or the Book of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, were unearthed last Tuesday, it would be really big news. But rather, if they've been sitting on the shelves of libraries for decades, maybe even centuries, there's no news at all and they are almost completely ignored. For those who take the time to dig deeper, there are far more Gnostic Gospels and other sacred texts available and already translated into English than most realize. After the exploration of the Ascension of the Soul process of Gnostic spirituality, we'll delve into some of the forgotten gospels of early Christianity, including from various sects associated with Gnosticism.
"He who possesses the Five Seals of these particular Names has stripped off the garments of ignorance [the material body and subtle bodies: astral, causal, etc...] and put on a shining Light." (Trimorphic Protennoia)
"Blessed is he who has crucified the world and who has not allowed the world to crucify him." (from an unrecognized dialogues gospel embedded in the Bruce Codex)
"What wonders has Your love effected! When someone is still alive he has left this world: though his bodily condition remains with the world’s bodily condition, yet his spirit has been raised up towards You, so that for a period of time he is where he knows not, being totally raptured and drawn towards You." (John of Apamea)