Outline Lecture Four—Orthodoxy vs. Heterodoxy-The Suppression of the Gnostic Tradition PDF

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Notes from lecture taken in class added to the lecture outline of main topics provided by the professor. ...

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Outline Lecture Four—Orthodoxy vs. Heterodoxy: The Suppression of the Gnostic Tradition Key Questions: 1) What threats did heterodox sects like Gnosticism pose to Church orthodoxy? 2) How did the fates of Gnosticism and women in the history of Christianity intersect? I) Suppression of Heresy a) The Role of Dissension in Early Christianity i) Strife over leadership and doctrine after the death of Jesus ii) Question of apostolic authority (1) Whose version of Jesus more credible? b) Radical social agenda embedded in teachings and conduct i) Included women in his following ii) Appealed to those on the fringes of society c) Gnosticism i) Greek word for “knowledge” or “recognition” epi-gnosis ii) Tradition centered around the “secret teachings” of Jesus iii) “Blessed are the solitary and elect” iv) Gnosticism vs. orthodox, patriarchal branch in 2nd and 4th centuries C.E. and lost (1) Formation of the “Canon” (2) 1945 discovery at Nag Hammadi II) The Gnostic Texts a) Gospel of Thomas i) Attributed to Didymos Judas Thomas or “Judas the Twin” ii) Figure of Jesus is much more subversive than one found in synoptic gospels (1) More strident anti-establishment tendency (2) Advocating a transient approach to life iii) Anti-worldly, anti-social message b) Non-patriarchal view of creation i) Primary Creator as “Mother Wisdom/Silence” ii) God of Israel as a “derivative” creator (1) Gnostic critique of patriarchal chauvinism of Judaic faith and later church fathers c) Gnostic reexamination of gender relations later cast out as heresy by the Church III) Gender and Heresy a) The Central Role of Mary Magdalene in “The Gospel of Mary” i) Key spiritual leader immediately after the death of Jesus ii) Superior spiritual understanding (1) Root of sin lies in the mind’s intent, not in the body’s action (2) Salvation lies in extinguishing ignorance and desire (a) “For where the mind is, there is the treasure” (#7, 363) iii) Peter and Andrew’s dismissal of these esoteric teachings b) Women in the early Church

i) Pagels’ thesis: the suppression of Gnosticism as heresy by the orthodox church went hand in hand with its exclusion of women ii) Gender trends in the Mediterranean world circa 1st century iii) Early Christian congregational practices (1) “In Christ, there is neither male or female” c) Patriarchal backlash starting from the mid-2nd century i) Return to old synagogue tradition of segregation ii) Why this backlash? (1) Influx of more conservative Hellenized Jews? (a) Ideology of the “pseudo” Pauline Injunction (2) Christianity’s move from the fringes of society to the center… iii) Impact of Caesaropapism IV)Role of Women in the Catholic Church Today a) Exclusion of women from the Church hierarchy today i) Women not represented at all among the Vatican hierarchy b) Church as an anachronistic “Old Boys’ Club”? i) Out of touch men less sensitive to the welfare of women and children ii) Lisa Miller: “If the stories of the women and girls of the Bible aren’t told, then mothers and daughters will stop seeing themselves as part of the Body of Christ. They’ll walk away. And they’ll take their children with them.”...