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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Alternative belief systems > Syncretist & eclectic religions & belief systems > Gnosticism
All Religion Is Inter-Religion analyses the ways inter-religious
relations have contributed both historically and philosophically to
the constructions of the category of "religion" as a distinct
subject of study. Regarded as contemporary classics, Steven M.
Wasserstrom's Religion after Religion (1999) and Between Muslim and
Jew (1995) provided a theoretical reorientation for the study of
religion away from hierophanies and ultimacy, and toward lived
history and deep pluralism. This book distills and systematizes
this reorientation into nine theses on the study of religion.
Drawing on these theses--and Wasserstrom's opus more generally--a
distinguished group of his colleagues and former students
demonstrate that religions can, and must, be understood through
encounters in real time and space, through the complex relations
they create and maintain between people, and between people and
their pasts. The book also features an afterword by Wasserstrom
himself, which poses nine riddles to students of religion based on
his personal experiences working on religion at the turn of the
twenty-first century.
"Gnosticism" has become a problematic category in the study of
early Christianity. It obscures diversity, invites essentialist
generalisations, and is a legacy of ancient heresiology. However,
simply to conclude with "diversity" is unsatisfying, and new
efforts to discern coherence and to synthesise need to be made. The
present work seeks to make a fresh start by concentrating on
Irenaeus' report on a specific group called the "Gnostics" and on
his claim that Valentinus and his followers were inspired by their
ideas. Following this lead, an attempt is made to trace the
continuity of ideas from this group to Valentinianism. The study
concludes that there is more continuity than has previously been
recognised. Irenaeus' "Gnostics" emerge as the predecessors not
only of Valentinianism, but also of Sethianism. They represent an
early, philosophically inspired form of Christ religion that arose
independently of the New Testament canon. Christology is essential
and provides the basis for the myth of Sophia. The book is relevant
for all students of Christian origins and the early history of the
Church.
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