Gnostic and Docetic literary and ritual traditions (jan 1, 50 – dec 31, 399)

Description:

Gnostic theology posits that the material realm is the corrupted creation of an ignorant lower deity, and that the only way to escape it and return to a higher realm of an all-good Father God is to tap into secret, esoteric knowledge. Jesus (or the Christ), in this framework, was an illuminating being who came down from the realm above (or was chosen/adopted from among men) to unveil the salvic knowledge, thereafter enabling a certain “race” of inherently spiritual people to be able to obtain it. Many works of gnostic theology were composed in this timeframe. A few of the earlier works contain veiled or vague attacks on what could be the proto-orthodox sect of Christians, while by the mid-second century this became open polemic. By mid- to late-second century, there is evidence of a catechismal/liturgical literature in use among Valentinian churches; their rituals include anointing, baptism, and the Eucharist.

Docetism was the idea that Jesus did not have a physical form or personhood; his material body was instead a divine illusion. This probably derived from a general Greco-Roman attitude that the divine would have nothing to do physical matter (as Celsus put it, “nothing matter is immortal”). But it had the knock-on effect that Jesus could not possibly have truly suffered and died on the cross; he merely appeared to have done so (Note how only different by degree this is from the founding Christian claim that Jesus hadn’t actually been put to an ignominious final death, all appearances to the contrary). The name derives from the Koine Greek term “to seem”: dokeĩn. Some gnostic groups held a docetic viewpoint, whereas others did not. As with gnosticism, the origins of this theology within early Christian history are obscure, but from our early accounts it appears to have been a particularly popular or persuasive flavor of belief within the movement, as it provokes a near-histrionic siege mentality from proto-orthodox writers, and it seems to have been the impetus behind multiple edits to the gospel of Luke. By the time of Ignatius, docetics were drawing off proto-orthodox adherents and refusing the Eucharist, all the while grounding their arguments in their own understanding of the same scriptures used by their opponents.

Gnostic affinity:
Gospel of Thomas? (50-140 CE)
Apocalypse of Adam (50-150 CE)
Eugnostos the Blessed (50-150 CE)
Sophia of Jesus Christ (50-200 CE)
Gospel of John (original)? (90-120 CE)
1 John? (90-120 CE)
Gospel of Eve (100-200 CE)
The Thunder, Perfect Mind (100-230 CE)
Gospel of Matthias (110-160 CE)
The works of Basilides (120-140 CE?)
The Naassene Fragment (120-140 CE)
The works of Valentinus (120-160 CE?)
Apocryphon of John (120-170 CE)
Dialogue of the Savior (120-180 CE)
Gospel of the Savior (120-180 CE)
Second Apocalypse of James (120-180 CE)
Trimorphic Protennoia (120-180 CE)
Gospel of Perfection (120-180 CE)
Descent of Mary (120-200 CE)
The works of Epiphanes? (130-160 CE)
Ophite Diagrams (130-160 CE)
Gospel of Judas (130-170 CE)
Gospel of Truth (140-180 CE)
The Interpretation of Knowledge (150-200 CE)
The Testimony of Truth (150-200 CE)
Book of Thomas the Contender (150-225 CE)
Acts of Peter and the Twelve (150-225 CE)
Paraphrase of Shem (150-250 CE)
Authoritative Teaching (150-255 CE)
Coptic Apocalypse of Paul (150-300 CE)
Prayer of the Apostle Paul (150-300 CE)
Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth? (150-300 CE)
Melchizedek (150-300 CE)
Allogenes, the Stranger (150-350 CE)
Hypsiphrone (150-350 CE)
Valentinian Exposition (150-350 CE)
Questions of Mary (150-350 CE)
Concept of Our Great Power (150-360 CE)
Fragments of a Dialogue Between John and Jesus? (150-400 CE)
Treatise on the Resurrection (170-200 CE)
Letter of Peter to Philip (170-220 CE)
Thought of Norea (170-230 CE)
The works of Bardasian (180-220 CE)
First Apocalypse of James (180-250 CE)
Gospel of Philip (180-250 CE)
Second Treatise of the Great Seth (193-230 CE)
Zostrianos (200-230 CE)
Three Steles of Seth (200-230 CE)
Exegesis on the Soul? (200-230 CE)
Books of Jeu (200-250 CE)
Coptic Apocalypse of Peter (200-300 CE)
Hypostasis of the Archons (200-300 CE)
Pistis Sophia (200-300 CE)
Tripartite Tractate (200-300 CE)
The Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit (200-350 CE)

Docetic affinity:
Apocalypse of Adam (50-150 CE)
Gospel of Peter (70-160 CE)
Trimorphic Protennoia (120-180 CE)
The works of Marcion (130-145 CE)
Acts of John (150-200 CE)
First Apocalypse of James (180-250 CE)
Second Treatise of the Great Seth (193-230 CE)
Acts of Thomas? (200-225 CE)
Coptic Apocalypse of Peter (200-300 CE)

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