The Gospel of Truth
Gilles Quispel
Routledge eBooks October 24, 2018 DOI: 10.4324/9781315010717-7 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that the Gospel of Truth's passage depicting the world as a bad dream is unique in ancient literature and reflects Valentinus's poetic genius, portraying life in ignorance as a dream of illusion and absurdity. Contends that, from a Christian viewpoint, true Gnosis treats encounter with the neighbour as religious experience, and that Christian faith is personal encounter with Christ rather than credulous acceptance of Church or Bible. |
Abstract
The Gospel of Truth contains a wonderful passage about the world as a bad dream. It is unique in ancient literature and can have been written only by a poetical genius, as Valentinus was. It describes the state of ignorance, inconsistent illusion and absurdity, to which man in this world is condemned. Valentinus expresses, what so many poets before and after him have stated, that life in ignorance is a dream. The Gospel of Truth contains a wonderful passage about the appeal to man by Christ, which makes him aware of his transcendent origin and ultimate destiny. From the Christian point of view, true Gnosis considers the encounter with the neighbour as a religious experience. The Christian faith, however, is not a credulous acceptance of what the Church says or the Bible says, but is the personal encounter with Christ.