Cosmology and Fate in Gnosticism and Graeco-Roman Antiquity: Under Pitiless Skies

Cosmology and Fate in Gnosticism and Graeco-Roman Antiquity: Under Pitiless Skies......Page 4
Contents......Page 8
Acknowledgements......Page 10
Abbreviations......Page 12
Introduction......Page 16
1. Hans Jonas and the Construction of Gnosticism’s Character......Page 28
2. Cosmic Pessimism: The Genesis of an Idea......Page 30
3. Cosmic Pessimism and the History of Religions School in Germany......Page 36
4. Astrology and Cosmic Pessimism......Page 37
5. Freeing Gnosticism from the Burden of ‘Cosmic Enslavement’......Page 39
6. A New Direction......Page 41
1. Hans Jonas and the Starry Sky......Page 44
2. The Philosophical Background: A Brief Outline......Page 46
3. Pronoia in Some Second-Century Christian Texts......Page 50
4. Pronoia in Some Nag Hammadi Texts: On the Origin of the World (Orig.Wld), and the Apocryphon of John (ApJn)......Page 52
4.1. On the Origin of the World (Orig.Wld)......Page 54
4.2. Apocryphon of John (ApJn)......Page 58
5. Conclusions: Complicating the Starry Skies......Page 66
3. ‘This Body of Death’: Cosmic Malevolence and Enslavement to Sin in Pauline Exegesis......Page 68
1. The Demonic Intermediaries of Paul’s Cosmos......Page 70
2. Pauline Cosmology and the Question of Astral Fatalism......Page 73
3. Baptism and the Cosmos in the Pauline and Deutero-Pauline Letters......Page 83
3.1. ‘Law’ versus ‘Faith’......Page 84
3.2. ‘Flesh’ versus ‘Spirit’......Page 88
3.3. “Slavery” versus “Redemption”......Page 91
4. Baptism and Freedom in Paul’s Letters......Page 93
5. The Deutero-Pauline Tradition......Page 96
1. Introduction: Approaching Ancient Constructions of Fate......Page 100
2. Heimarmene: A Brief History of the Term......Page 101
3. Heimarmene in the Apocryphon of John......Page 108
4. Heimarmene in On the Origin of the World......Page 112
5. Conclusions: Reevaluating and Rethinking Heimarmene......Page 113
1. The Hermetica......Page 118
2. Middle Platonic ‘Dualism’ and the Devaluation of Heimarmene......Page 124
2.1. Cosmic Pessimism?......Page 125
2.2. Demonology in Middle Platonism......Page 127
3.1. Poimandres (CH 1)......Page 128
3.2. Asclepius......Page 132
3.3. Corpus Hermeticum 12......Page 133
4. Dividing Fate......Page 134
5. Astral and Planetary Heimarmene in the Hermetica......Page 136
6. Conclusions......Page 140
6. Ways Out I: Interventions of the Savior God......Page 142
1. Setting Right the Cosmos as Chaos......Page 144
2. Trimorphic Protennoia......Page 147
3. On the Origin of the World (Orig.Wld)......Page 148
4. Pistis Sophia......Page 149
5. Jesus Christ as a Star-God......Page 151
5.1. Isis and Egyptian Religions......Page 153
5.2. Mithras......Page 155
5.3. Other Non-Christian Evidence......Page 156
5.4. Christian Iterations......Page 157
6. Conclusions......Page 159
7. Ways Out II: Baptism and Cosmic Freedom: A New Genesis......Page 160
1. Justin Martyr and the ‘Proto-Orthodox’ Christian Baptismal Tradition......Page 163
2. Theodotus and the Valentinian Context......Page 167
3. A Third Voice: Tatian......Page 171
4. Collocating Baptism and Salvation: Two Discourses of Cosmic Freedom......Page 175
5. Conclusions......Page 176
8. Astral ‘Determinism’ in the Gospel of Judas......Page 180
1. Stars in the Gospel of Judas......Page 181
2. The Cosmology of the GosJud......Page 185
3. Visions of the Temple: Jewish Cosmological Elements in GosJud......Page 190
4. Some Conclusions......Page 194
9. Conclusions, and a New Way Forward......Page 196
1. An Old Paradigm …......Page 199
2. … And a New Paradigm......Page 202
1. Primary Sources......Page 208
2. Secondary Studies......Page 211
Subject Index......Page 218