An introduction to Gnosticism, particularly as an important second century religious movement which intersected and at times overlapped with various forms of Christianity. We will explore its nature and history, emphasizing close reading of the primary sources. I am hoping that those entering the course with little or no knowledge of Gnosticism will gain an understanding of the classical forms of that religious tradition and the leading modern academic points of discussion.

This will be a seminar course in which each person is expected to come to class ready to discuss the readings and the weekly agenda. Some sessions will be student-led and generated; others will be facilitated more directly by the instructor.

Bentley Layton, The Gnostic Scriptures. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1987. (available at the WLU bookstore, and on 3-hr/overnight reserve at the library)

Kurt Rudolph, Gnosis: The Nature and History of Gnosticism. NY: Harper and Row, 1983. (available at the WLU bookstore, and on 3-hr/overnight reserve at the library)

Elaine Pagels, The Gnostic Gospels. New York: Random House, 1979. (available at the WLU bookstore, and on 3-hr/overnight reserve at the library)

Philip K. Dick, Valis. New York: Vintage Bks., 1991 (1981). (available at the WLU bookstore)

The course requirements emerge out of five concerns:

* My first concern is with primary sources. The course outline which follows shows that we will cover several primary gnostic texts in class (hopefully you will read more on your own). Four of these will form the basis of individual classes (selections from Irenaeus's Against Heresies, The Secret Book According to John, The Gospel of Thomas, The Gospel of Truth). This focus on primary sources is grounded in the view that all theorizing about ancient religion begins with the primary data, and in the case of Gnosticism that material is textual in nature. So I would like you to engage several primary sources.

* My second concern is with contemporary academic approaches to the study of religion. "Religion," in this case "Gnosticism," is not an objective category perceived identically by all people at all times; rather, it comes to be what it is through the way people approach it. Scholars study Gnosticism through certain lenses, and the study of Gnosticism includes an examination of those lenses. So I would like you to become sensitive to the perspectives from which academics study the gnostic material.

* My third concern is with having you take more direct responsibility for some of the learning. So I would like you to have the experience of (jointly) leading one of the classes.

* My fourth concern is with encouraging you to consider the relevance which gnostic sources might have for you. We are not dealing (Sophia has told me so) with ancient texts prepared by aliens. People wrote these texts, and their concerns are sometimes ours, sometimes not. So I would like you also to consider ways in which these texts speak to you.

* My fifth concern is with the appeal that Gnosticism continues to have with people in our own day. There are gnostic churches in California, Toronto and Waterloo, gnostic teachers and magazines, and writers and film-makers who try to incorporate a gnostic perspective into their art. One of these individuals is Philip Dick. So I would like you to explore a work from this self-professed contemporary gnostic artist in order to consider one modern interpretation of Gnosticism.

What I propose as course requirements is the following:

1. That you prepare a 1500-2000 word book review of Elaine Pagels s The Gnostic Gospels. Write it as though you were submitting it to the journal Method and Theory in the Study of Religion, i.e., focus on Pagels's approach to the material (I'll provide you with one of my own reviews as an example). This review is due at the beginning of the fourth class (January 26) and is worth 20% of your final grade.
2. That you bring to a series of primary texts two questions (keep them separate): (a) What is being said in this text, e.g., what are the main points, images, messages? You want to be as "objective" as possible here, aware of nuances, rhetorical concerns, and authorial biases. (b) What do you find fascinating about this text and why ("fascinating" does not mean that you necessarily agree with the perspective)? Your concern with the second question should be with exploring your personal reaction to the text.

   a) That you bring these questions to TWO of the shorter primary texts which will supplement some of our weekly meetings (Ptolemy s Epistle to Flora; The Gospel of Mary) and prepare 1000 word (absolutely no more!) summaries of your views. These summaries are due the day these texts are discussed in class (January 12; March 23) and are worth 10% each (no extensions please).

   b) That you bring these questions to ONE of the four primary texts which will form the basis of individual classes (i.e., selections from Irenaeus's Against Heresies; The Secret Book According to John; The Gospel of Thomas; The Gospel of Truth), and prepare a 2000 word (maximum) analysis of this text. Your analysis should be presented in proper essay form (consult the Stylesheet and Guidelines in the departmental Blue Book), is due the day this text is discussed in class (again, no extensions please), and is worth 30% of the final grade. Please choose your text by January 26.

3. That you join with others who are preparing papers on the same major primary text and lead the class discussion that day (Against Heresies, February 9; The Secret Book According to John, February 23; The Gospel of Thomas, March 9; or The Gospel of Truth, March 23). Plan on co-facilitating two hours of discussion. Your efforts here will make up 10% of the final grade.
4. That you prepare a 2000-2500 word (maximum) analysis of Philip Dick's Valis. I am looking for a summary of the book, and an exploration of how it relates to the classical gnostic world views. Your study should be presented in essay form, is worth 20% of your final grade, and is due April 13.

[Senior undergraduates: choose either 1 or 4 above, omit 3 (unless you choose to participate in this exercise), and redistribute grades to 30% for 1 or 4, 15% each for 2a, and 40% for 2b.]

Course Outline

1. January 5 Introduction to the Course and to the Academic Study of Gnosticism
2. January 12 Overview of the Primary Sources 1: Those Available Before 1945

   * READING: Gnosis, 9-52; The Hymn of the Pearl (Layton, 371-75); Ptolemy s Epistle to Flora (Layton, 308-15)

   * Your brief analysis of Ptolemy s Epistle to Flora is due today

3. January 19 Overview of the Primary Sources 2: The Nag Hammadi Library

   * READING: R. Smith, "The Modern Relevance of Gnosticism" (handout); J. M. Robinson, "The Discovery of the Nag Hammadi Codices" and "Getting the Nag Hammadi Library into English," from Biblical Archaeologist 1979 (handout)

4. January 26 The Nature and Structure of Gnosticism 1: Dualism; Cosmology and Cosmogony; Anthropology and Anthropogony

   * READING: Gnosis, 53-113

   * Your Pagels book review is due today

5. February 2 The Nature and Structure of Gnosticism 2: Redemption and the Redeemer; Ascent of the Soul and End of the World; Community Cult and Social Practice

   * READING: Gnosis, 113-272; The Thunder Perfect Intellect (Layton, 80-85)

6. February 9 Selected Primary Sources 1: Irenaeus's Against Heresies

   * READING: "Ptolemy's Version of the Gnostic Myth" from Irenaeus's Against Heresies (Layton, 276-302)

   * Your analysis of this section of Against Heresies is due today (if you've chosen this text)

7. February 16 No class: READING WEEK
8. February 23 Selected Primary Sources 2: The Secret Book According to John

   * READING: The Secret Book According to John (Layton, 28-51)

   * Your analysis of The Secret Book According to John is due today (if you've chosen this text)

9. March 2 History 1: The Valentinians

   * READING: Gnosis, 275-326; the "Fragments" of Valentinus (Layton, 229-49)

10. March 9 Selected Primary Sources 3: The Gospel of Thomas

    * READING: The Gospel of Thomas (Layton, 380-99)

    * Your analysis of The Gospel of Thomas is due today (if you ve chosen this text)

11. March 16 History 2: Mandaeans and Manichaeans

    * READING: Gnosis, 326-366; The Cologne Mani Codex (handout)

12. March 23 Selected Primary Sources 4: The Gospel of Truth

    * READING: The Gospel of Truth (Layton, 253-64)

    * Your analysis of The Gospel of Truth is due today (if you've chosen this text)

13. March 30 History 3: Gnosticism Throughout the Centuries

    * READING: J. M. Robinson, "Introduction" to The Nag Hammadi Library in English

    (handout); The Gospel of Mary (handout)

    * Your brief analysis of The Gospel of Mary is due today

14. April 6 Course Wrap-up; Screening and Discussion of "Bladerunner"
15. April 10 * Your VALIS paper is due today

I try to bring students close to a wide array of primary sources in this course, encouraging them to struggle with how to define "Gnosticism" and whether that construct works in any significant way. The new sources and the allure of the term "gnosticism" have both worked well to keep students fascinated. As I come to the end of this year's course (I have taught it four times) I wonder whether a "Gnosticism" course is the best way to go with the material. Almost all the extant sources are Christian and the students would perhaps be better served by exploring this material under an "Early Christianity" category, allowing them to recognize that early Christianity was as remarkably diverse as it is today.

http://www.wlu.ca/~wwwaar/syllabi/gnosticism-desjardins.html

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