is there a link between Gnosticism and new age heresy?
New Age thinking has its roots, then, in Eastern mysticism which bypasses the mind. There is a new organ of perception?the third eye?which gives spiritual light. One needs to get to the ?psychic self? by training one?s self to ignore the messages from the mind. Really it is throwing the mind in neutral.
It is monism. The belief that all is one and one is all. History is not the story of humanity?s fall into sin and its restoration by God?s saving grace. Rather, it is humanity?s fall into ignorance and the gradual ascent into enlightenment.
The New Age movement is a counterfeit movement that appeals to the minds of individuals leading them to think that that they are God and can enhance their lives through their own person.
it's beginning to sound a lot like new age and witchcraft mixed in for good measure.
heresy: an opinion, doctrine, or practice contrary to the truth or to generally accepted beliefs or standards
In Titus 3:10 a "heretical person" is one who follows his own self-willed "questions," and who is to be avoided. Heresies thus came to signify self-chosen doctrines not emanating from God (2 Pet. 2:1).
I would say the gnostic and new age movements would be heresy according to the definitions.
I think for me you would first have to define 'new age heresy'. Until then, I would have to decline to answer in the likeliness of being reported as being offensive.
Gnosticism is the truest form of Christianity. It is the oldest church and is based exclusively on the teachings of Jesus. It is the religion of most of Jesus' apostles. In contrast, Catholicism, Orthodox and Protestantism are all based on a religion that formed around the legend of Jesus after his death. Catholicism, Orthodox and Protestantism all reject the teachings of Jesus, but Gnosticism (and Coptic Christianity) follows the teachings of the mortal man known to history as Jesus of Nazareth.
I think there are a number of things here I disagree with. Firstly, Gnosis is not the same as enlightenment in my understanding. Gnosis is an awareness of inherent divinity (possibly tarnished or chained by the world of flesh and materiality). Whereas enlightenment is the perception of things as they are. Untainted by preconception or desire. So no, not much of a link I'd say.
As for the rest of what you say, well I neither agree that I can't enhance my life through my own person (my experience and simple logic would suggest that to be possible) nor consider there to be such a thing as sin and a requirement for redemptive grace. So you can guess what my view on the terms 'counterfeit' and 'heresy' will be, can't you?
Though thank you for your question. Life is about asking questions as much as finding answers IMO.
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Gnosticism is a general term describing various mystically-oriented groups and their teachings, which were most prominent in the first few centuries of the Common Era. It is also applied to later and modern revivals of these teachings. The term gnosticism comes from the Greek word for knowledge, nosies (S's), referring to esoteric consciousness, which is claimed by Gnostic's to be the key to unlocking transcendent understanding, self-realization, and/or unity with God.
The origins of gnosticism are not clearly known, but there is general agreement that threads of the teachings must have arisen somewhere in what is today known as the Middle East and Asia Minor?areas in which several cultures could converge and synthesize. Many scholars find the roots of gnosticism in Neoplatonism, which similarly devalues matter and regards the spirit as the true reality. A minority of scholars believe it to be of eastern origin because of its similarities to Buddhist ideas of enlightenment, while others believe it has Mesopotamian or Jewish roots. Gnostic groups became popular around the same time and often in the same places that Christianity did.
Gnosticism was widespread within the early Christian church until the Gnostic's were expelled in the second and third centuries C.E. Gnosticism was one of the first doctrines to be specifically declared a heresy and gnostic movements were often persecuted as a result. Gnostic groups also suffered under Islamic regimes. The response of orthodoxy to gnosticism significantly defined the evolution of Christian doctrine and church order. After gnostic and orthodox Christianity parted, gnostic Christianity continued as a separate movement in some areas for centuries. However some modern theologians think that several gnostic doctrines were absorbed by Christianity. Gnosticism has reappeared in various forms throughout history and into the contemporary era.
Central to many gnostic beliefs is a dualistic view of the universe, in which matter was seen as essentially illusory while spirit is the only true reality. Thus Christian Gnostic's emphasized spiritual knowledge and experience, rather than faith and the sacraments of the church, as the key to salvation or unity with God. Jesus, whom Gnostic's believe came as pure spirit, is set in stark contrast to the Old Testament Creator-God, who as the "Demiurge," the source of the material world, is not the true God. Another pillar of gnostic belief is that salvation lies in attaining nosies, esoteric knowledge kept secret to all but the initiated. Other ideas, believed by all or some gnostic groups, include: the spiritual (not physical) nature of Jesus' resurrection; that Jesus did not possess a physical body; the femininity of the Holy Spirit (and/or other affirmation of male-female essentials); and that gnostic enlightenment liberates a person from moral constraints.
Probably no single gnostic person or school of thought has believed all of these diverse ideas. Furthermore, a number of heterodox groups and beliefs have been labeled "gnostic" yet have only slender resemblance to the main currents of gnostic thought.
Despite the centuries of historical submersion, gnosticism raises issues that are still important today. Amongst the gnostic ideas, some, no doubt, are believed and actively discussed among the widely divergent schools of thought within contemporary Christianity, while others of the ideas would be uniformly rejected. Some of the ideas are quite resonant with aspects of New Age thought and with aspects of some eastern religions.
Many view gnosticism as being a mystery wrapped in an enigma and hid in a secret. The cornerstone of gnostic thought is that the "divine' dwells in each of us. We have a "Devine" origin, Yet we are not the "Devine". We could not exist without the spark of the Dervine within us. Our hope is to remember the place from which we came. New age thought may or may not teach that we are indeed GOD, this depending on the teacher and the moment.
At any rate the term "heresy" might be incorrect. Many have been called as such. Unless we accept that "heresy" simply means that one "thinks differently" than the "norm", we might be adding a judge mental meaning to our wording.
Gnosticism & Christianity
Gnosticism is an esoteric religious movement that flourished during the 2ND and 3rd centuries AD and presented a major challenge to orthodox Christianity. Most Gnostic sects professed Christianity, but their beliefs sharply diverged from those of the majority of Christians in the early church. The term Gnosticism is derived from the Greek word nosies ("revealed knowledge"). To its adherents, Gnosticism promised a secret knowledge of the divine realm. Sparks or seeds of the Divine Being fell from this transcendent realm into the material universe, which is wholly evil, and were imprisoned in human bodies. Reawakened by knowledge, the divine element in humanity can return to its proper home in the transcendent spiritual realm.
Rites
Some Gnostic sects rejected all sacraments; others observed baptism and the Eucharist, interpreting them as signs of the awakening of nosies. Other Gnostic rites were intended to facilitate the ascent of the divine element of the human soul to the spiritual realm. Hymns and magic formulas were recited to help achieve a vision of God; other formulas were recited at death to ward off the demons who might capture the ascending spirit and imprison it again in a body. In the Valentinian sect (followers of Valentinus, a Gnostic teacher of the early 2ND century AD), a special rite, called the bridal chamber, celebrated the reunion of the lost spirit with its heavenly counterpart.
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This is only a taste of what I found, but I would say yes to your question.
is there a link between Gnosticism and new age heresy?
