Valentinianism

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Valentinianism was a religious doctrine named after Valentinius, a Roman theologian who lived circa 2nd century. This doctrine spread rather quickly after Valentinius' death.

Valentinianism was one of the major gnostic movements. It enjoyed a widespread following throughout the Roman world and provoked volume upon volume of writings by Catholic heresiologists.

Early Christianity is viewed by many scholars as a constantly changing idea, which contained many contradictory movements and core beliefs; Christianity in modern times is a synthesis of some of these beliefs.

Though the Valentinians were considered heretics, they saw themselves foremost as Christians, albeit spiritually advanced ones. It was not uncommon, therefore, for them to attend services with Christians at-large, suplementing these with meetings reserved for initiates. This disturbed greatly writers such as Irenaeus and Tertullian, who considered the Valentinians "wolves in sheep's clothing."

Notable Valentinians included Heracleon, Ptolemy, Florinus, and Axionicus.

[edit] External links

• Valentinus and the Valentinian Tradition - an extremely comprehensive collection of material on Valentinian mythology, theology and tradition (from the Gnosis Archive website).
• Valentinus - A Gnostic for All Seasons Excellent introductory essay by Stephan A. Hoeller (from the Gnosis Archive website).

[edit] Further Reading

• Wilson, R. McL. "Valentianism and the Gospel of Truth" in Layton, B., (ed.) The Rediscovery of Gnosticism, (Leiden 1980): 133-45.

• Thomassen, Einar. The Spiritual Seed: The Church of the Valentinians (Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies) (Brill Academic Publishers 2005)