Fathers of Christian Gnosticism

The Church Fathers or Fathers of the Church is a term used in Catholic and Orthodox forms of Christianity to refer to the early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church. The study of the Fathers is known as Patristics. There is no evidence that ancient Gnostic Christians used this term for their leaders. Nonetheless modern people sometimes refer to the early teachers of Gnosticism as Fathers of Gnosticism, by analogy to the orthodox use. The term is generally not meant to include the apostles or New Testament authors. The very earliest Church Fathers, of the first two generations after the apostles of Christ, are usually called the Apostolic Fathers. Since the Gnostics are considered heretics by the orthodox churches, Gnostics are not considered fathers of the church by the orthodox churches.

Several figures are mentioned as founding figures of ancient Christian Gnosticism. The term Gnosticism is used by scholars with a wide variety of meanings and levels of specificity. Sometimes the term refers only to those Sethians who used the term "gnostikoi" to describe themselves. Sometimes it is used more broadly to include Valentinians, followers of Basilides, and others. Likewise, one scholar may consider Simon Magus a gnostic, where another considers him a proto-gnostic. Some early Church fathers, such as Irenaeus, seemed to think that all heresies were Gnosticism at root, and thus that any heretic was in a sense a Gnostic. Modern scholar Michael Williams has argued that the whole category of "Gnosticism" is more trouble than it is worth. Here we will try to list any fathers who might plausibly be considered Gnostic.

Important early Gnostics include Simon Magus, Cerinthus, Carpocrates, and Basilides. Early figures such as Marcion, Theudas, and Nicolas of Antioch are more debatable. By the second century several major schools are separating out, such as the Sethians (with no clear leaders), and the Valentinians following the teachings of Valentinus. By the 3rd century, Bardaisan and then Mani forge Manicheanism, a kind of Gnosticism which is debatably Christian.

Early leaders of Gnosticism

Gnostics often considered pre-Christian figures to be among their important early teachers and leaders. Adam and his son Seth were especially important. Several figures appear in Gnostic versions of old testament stories who do not appear in canonical versions, such as Norea, who saves the Gnostics from the flood in the time of Noah. The three companions of Daniel are called by many names in Gnostic texts, and often invoked. Eugnostos is a proto-Sethian writer of the Nag Hammadi text of the same name, and may have lived as early as the 1st Century BCE. John the Baptist is sometimes claimed as an early Gnostic leader — for example, by the Mandaeans. Other figures are more difficult to locate in time, such as the Prophets Barcoph and Barkabbas, mentioned by Basilides and Epiphanius.

Likewise, it may not have been unusual for even Christian Gnostics to consider a variety of important pre-Christian figures as among their early leaders. Irenaeus claims that followers of Carpocrates honored images of Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle along with images of Jesus Christ. Philo of Alexandria, Zoroaster, and Hermes Trismegistus may have occupied similar roles among other early Christian gnostics.

Jesus Christ is usually claimed as a gnostic leader by gnostics, as are several of his apostles, such as Thomas the Apostle, often thought of as the founder of the Thomasine form of Gnosticism. Indeed, Mary Magdelene is respected as a Gnostic leader, and is considered superior to the twelve apostles by some gnostic texts, such as the Gospel of Mary. John the Evangelist is claimed as a Gnostic by some Gnostic interpreters. [ Elaine Pagels, "The Johannine Gospel" in Gnostic Exegesis. Heracleon's Commentary on John. Nashville: SBL Monograph Series 17, 1973 ] As is even St Paul. [ Elaine Pagels, "The Gnostic Paul". Philadelphia 1975.]

Simon Magus and his consort Helena of Tyre were leaders of the early Gnostics by all accounts. In fact, in his second-century work "Against All Heresies" Irenaeus said that Simon Magus, who was mentioned in the canonical Acts of the Apostles, was the progenitor of all the later Gnostic sects. Menander of Antioch was a disciple of Simon Magus, active in the late 1st century.

A student of Valentinius claims that Theudas was a student of St. Paul, and in turn taught Valentinius, which would put Theudas in the late 1st century if true.

Nicolas of Antioch and Jezebel of Thyatira are sometimes claimed as leaders of the "Nicolaitans" described in the Book of Revelation. They were late 1st century figures. It's unclear just how Gnostic these figures were, but Epiphanius believes that the Archontic Gnostics are descendents of the Nicolatians.

Gnostic Schools of thought

In the late first century or early second century Cerinthus founds a Gnostic offshoot of the Ebionites, teaching a Supreme God distinct from the creator of this world. By the early 2nd century Carpocrates has founded the Carpocratians. His students include Marcellina the Carpocratian and his son Epiphanes (not Epiphanes of Salamis). Another early 2nd century theologian was Basilides. His son Isidore succeeds him around 150. A Gnostic teacher named Cerdo AKA Kerdon is teaching in Rome sometime in 136-142. Marcion is a 2nd century theologian whose links to Gnosticism have been hotly disputed, although his disciple Apelles the Marcionite seems to have interacted with the Alexandrian Gnostics later on. Apelles was also friends with Philumene, an Alexandrian prophetess.

Little is known of founders of Sethian Gnosticism, which may have existed in a pre-Christian form, and which also flourished in the second century AD. Early Sethian leaders might include:

*Barkabbas - a prophet mentioned by Basilides and linked to the Gnostics by Epiphanius;
*Zostrianos, the supposed writer of a Nag Hammadi text, believed in antiquity to be a follower of Zoroaster;
*Satornius (Satornilos, Satorninos) who may have been an early 2nd century Sethian teacher
*Marsanes (Marsianos), the supposed author of a Nag Hammadi text, who is also mentioned by Epiphanius of Salamis as a prophet revered by the Archontic Gnostics.

Porphyry also mentions several of these, as well as Nikotheos and Messos, Gnostic revelation writers whose works don't survive (Nikotheos is mentioned in the Bruce Codex too, as a "perfect man" who had seen visions of the "triple powered one"), and Adelphios and Aquilinus (mentioned as leaders of the Gnostice by Porphyry. Eutaktos of Armenia is founder of the Archontic Gnostics, according to Epiphanius. Peter the Gnostic or Peter of Kapharbarikha is a Palestian Archontic described by Epiphanius. Martiades is a prophet of Archontics mentioned by Epiphanius, along with Marsanes.

Valentinus, who may have been a student of Basilides, and Theudas was a prominent Gnostic teacher of another major form of Gnosticism in the second century AD. He taught many other Gnostic fathers whose names we know, and his school survived for centuries.

His school was later divided into Eastern and Western branches based on a Christological dispute. Western Valentinians include: Ptolemy the Valentinian, whose letter to Flora survives, and who seems to have been martryed in 152; Flora a female Valentinian who corresponded with Ptolemy; Heracleon who has several surviving excerpts; Hermogenes (the painter) a late 2nd century painter, Monoimus the Arab, and Prodicus the Gnostic, Secundus, Florinus (a presbyter), Alexander, and Theotimus. Eastern Valentinians include: Marcus the Valentinian, a magician interested in using Gematria with Valentinianism; Axionicus of Antioch, who was alive in time of Tertullian; and Theodotus who also has several surviving excerpts in Clement of Alexandria's Excerpta; Ambrose and Candidus (in the 3rd century).

Later Gnostic fathers

The 3rd century also sees Bardaisan or Bardansanes, an immediate forerunner of Mani. He was a Valentianian at one point but later rejected them. The prophet Mani founded a religion called Manicheanism but also described himself as "the apostle of Jesus Christ". His religion borrowed heavily from Gnosticism and may well be thought of a form of gnosticism, so it might be fair to think of Mani as a father of Christian Gnosticism, although clearly many would dispute this.

By the early 4th century, gnostics are kicked out the church and officially forbidden to meet, by the mid 4th century their books are widely banned and by the late 4th century Gnosticism carries a death penalty in the Roman empire. The Sethian Gnostics, Archontic Gnostics, Basilidean Gnostics, Valentinian Gnostics, and Manicheans seem to be the only schools of Christian Gnostics to survive into the 4th century. St. Augustine of Hippo claimed to be a Manichean early in life, but later to have rejected it, and thus was a Church Father who was at one point a gnostic. Likewise, the late 3rd-early 4th century theologian Lactantius has sometimes been thought of as being influenced enough by Gnosticism to be a Gnostic father, but this is by no means clear.

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