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36 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gnosticism in a Different Light, December 1, 2004
This review is from: Gnostic Secrets of the Naassenes: The Initiatory Teachings of the Last Supper (Paperback)
What was it about Gnostic Christian sects which so obsessed the early church fathers? That a three hundred year reign of persecution eventually drove the Gnostics out of existence is beyond doubt. The sentiments of the early fathers are recorded in such voluminous tracts as the ten-volume "Refutation of all Heresies" by Bishop Hippolytus. But what did the Gnostics really teach? Here Mark Gaffney supplies us with a partial answer. Gaffney takes a close look at one Gnostic sect in particular, the Naassenes, and comes up with the conclusion that they had full knowledge of spiritual practices now normally associated only with eastern religions. Sadly, all we know about the Naassenes comes to us from one of their chief persecutors-the aforementioned heretic hunter, Bishop Hippolytus. But amazingly the latter devotes a full five chapters to the group, even going so far as to quote extensively from a now-lost Naassene text which modern scholars have come to denote as "The Naassene Sermon." Gaffney calls the bishop's achievement in preserving the text "remarkable." Yet he adds with irony, "his acerbic attempts to discredit Naassene belief are plainly refuted by the very material he compiled and recorded." While the book includes the sermon in its entirety in an appendix, Gaffney's analysis of it in the preceding fourteen chapters provides invaluable insights. Among these are that the Naassenes were aware of such Hindu concepts as the chakra centers of the body, and may have even practiced a form of Kundalini yoga, even if they didn't call it by that name.
The fascinating question, which Gaffney explores, is: did the Naassenes receive these teachings directly from Jesus, or at any rate from James the Just, the brother of Jesus? That at any rate is what the Naassenes claimed, and Gaffney seems willing to grant that the claim may be bonafide. The book indeed presents "powerful evidence that the Gnostic element was present in Christianity from the beginning", and did not originate in the second century as scholarship has previously supposed. Clues of this abound-even in the Bible itself. This is not to say that all Gnostic sects thought alike. Gnosticism was varied. Some Gnostic groups held beliefs which could be described as dubious at best. But Gaffney asserts that the Naassenes had a "direct knowledge of sacred anatomy." This knowledge, or "gnosis," lay in stark contrast to orthodox Christianity, which "created an overly rigid mentality" among its adherents. Gaffney posits that what has been passed down to us as a result of the persecution of groups like the Naassenes is a soul-less, spiritually dead form of Christianity. This, he says, has led to a tragic "spiritual decline of the West"-tragic not only for the West, it may be added, but for the world as a whole. Indeed it could perhaps fairly be said that the legacy of Bishop Hippolytus lives on in the legions of so-called "values voters" who returned George Bush to a second term in office despite the unleashing of cataclysmic destruction in a country and against a people who had never done us any harm.
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23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
In the true spirit of gnosticism, August 29, 2004
This review is from: Gnostic Secrets of the Naassenes: The Initiatory Teachings of the Last Supper (Paperback)
This book is about a gnostic sermon from early Christianity. The sermon was totally preserved, ironically, by a heresiologist name Hippolytus seeking to refute gnostic heresy.
The author attempts to interpret the symbology of the sermon by drawing from Old Testament scripture, pagan literature, gnostic writings and even Eastern religion. What the reader ends up getting is a very broad view of humankind's effort to "know" the Divine. Such "gnosis" is available to every person as taught by Jesus (and many other mystics both East and West) at the Last Supper. Anyone can have a direct experience of the Divine Mystery and do so without a mediator such as the church or priest/bishop. This is in keeping with the spirit of gnosticism.
Any discussion of the Last Supper always involves a discussion of the Grail. The Grail represents the Divine Presence in matter. This is the teaching of immanence. If indeed Divinity is present in matter, then the Divine is accessible for all. Rather than emphasizing the great gulf between humans and God (which is what orthodoxy teaches), gnosticism emphasizes the closeness of God. The kingdom of heaven is within you. The message and mission of Jesus is to make us conscious of the Divine within each of us. And the cup as receptacle reminds us that we are receptacles of the Divine.
I wouldn't recommend this book as a first book on gnosticism. I would recommend reading first "Jesus and the Lost Goddess" by Freke and Gandy, as well as "The Gnostic Gospels" by Pagels and "Gnosticism" by Hoeller.
I give it four stars instead of five because the author had several opportunities to delve into the meaning of immanence and its implications for us, but left it a bit short. If indeed the Divine is present in matter there are enormous implications for us as individuals, and for the organized church. An extended commentary on this would have been a great addition to this book. Nevertheless, I recommend this book as a great addition to your gnostic library.
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24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just plain good scholarly work., November 21, 2004
This review is from: Gnostic Secrets of the Naassenes: The Initiatory Teachings of the Last Supper (Paperback)
I was hesitant at first to start reading through the book. I often start out reading books on good topics with wonderful titles and a rivetting back cover only to find that was all the book had going for it. I am happy to say that was not the case this time out. Mr. Gaffney did a great job researching and writing this book on a subject the Church would rather people not know of.
The sheer amount of history you will learn about early Christianity is astonishing, and it is all (repeat, all) well more than adequately footnoted, indexed and appendixed. Also, the comparisons and contrasts between early Christianity and other of its contemporary religions and its predecessors is very nicely handled. This is a must-read for those who genuinely want to get to the nitty-gritty of their Church and how it has evolved over the past few thousand years.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
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