Gnosticism is a countercultural spirituality that forever changed Christianity. Before it arose, humanity was subservient to the gods of this world and their representatives in temples and palaces. Gnosticism proposed that human beings were manifestations of the divine, disrupting the hierarchical foundations of the ancient world. Subversive and revolutionary, the Gnostics taught that prayer and meditation could bring human beings into an ecstatic spiritual union with a transcendent deity. This mystical strain affected not just Christianity but many other religions; and it represents our understanding of the purpose and meaning of religion today. Beyond this new paradigm change on Gnosticism—which eerily parallels the countercultural movements of the late 20th century—we delve into the latest in Gnostic scholarship: the mysterious woman known as Miriam who founded Mandaeism; the hitherto unknown Jeuians behind the Pistis Sophia; how Paul was more Gnostic than ever believed; and much more.

Astral Guest—April DeConick, author of The Gnostic New Age, as well as Professor of Biblical Studies at Rice University and chair of the Department of Religion.

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More information on April: http://aprildeconick.com/

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