Sophian Gnosticism is a tradition and a group of beliefs.  It is also, first and foremost, a path to enlightenment.  This being said, we recognize that there are other paths and other traditions.  We do not see our path as the path for everyone.  Quite the contrary, our way is certainly helpful for many, but there are other traditions that may be of more help to some.  We value true spirituality and faith.

We also value all beings no matter what their creed, color, gender, sexual-orientation, political persuasion, age, etc.  Our tradition is not one of judgment, but one of tikkune (Hebrew for healing).  We believe in what ever is best for the individual and their path of reunification.

The heart of our tradition is living and practicing a spiritual life.   This entails following the way of Yeshua and Mary Magdalene.  Living a life of compassion while we live out our spirituality.

Yeshua

At the heart of Gnostic Christianity is the view of Yeshua as a human being who became Self-realized or Enlightened.  We believe he was not born Christ, but became Christed by engaging in spiritual practice and spiritual living.  It is said that Yeshua was the incarnation of a Great Soul and that he had accomplished Self-realization in previous lives. Nevertheless, he had to travel the Path to Enlightenment as any other human being does. In so doing he became a living example of the Path to Self-realization or Enlightenment and was empowered to teach others how to attain Christ Consciousness.

This teaching of Yeshua as a human being who became Self-realized or Enlightened is most important because it means that Yeshua is not separate or apart from everyone but rather represents the Divine Potential that is within every one of us.  Anyone who is willing to apply him or herself to spiritual practice and spiritual living can attain Supernal or Messianic Consciousness. Essentially, what is revealed in Master Yeshua is the true purpose and meaning of human incarnation – the Enlightenment and Liberation of the soul.

Christos

Yeshua was not the only one to embody the Holy Shekinah (Divine Presence & Power).  He revealed the Path to his disciples through which they also might attain Messianic Consciousness. While traditional Christianity teaches that the Soul of the Messiah was exclusive to Yeshua, Gnostic Christianity teaches that others also embodied Supernal Consciousness. We believe that Mary Magdalene and other disciples of the First Circle also embodied these higher levels of consciousness.

In Gnostic Teachings the Christos is a Divine being. Christ the Logos is the Consciousness of Supernal Being and Christ the Sophia is the Energy of Supernal Being. We believe that both Yeshua and Magdalene embody the Christos: he embodies Christ the Logos (the Bridegroom) and she embodies Christ the Sophia (the Holy Bride). Thus, in union, the Divine Fullness of the Christos is embodied.
 
Scripture

 

The Scriptures of the Judaic-Christian Tradition are primarily allegorical and yet, they are also historical. They are a Living Myth that reveals the Divine in Creation and the Path of a Conscious Evolution to enlightenment.  There are also historical elements within the Scriptures, shedding light on the culture and times they represent.

Because Kabbalah is such an important part of our beliefs, the Hebrew alef-bet is also an important part of our study.  Hebrew letters are important for various reasons.  The first is that each Hebrew letter has a meaning.  This is much different then English where each letter is simply a sound.  When looking at a Hebrew word not only can understanding come from the meaning of the word, but also from the meaning of each letter that compose it.  In addition, each letter is also a number.  In ancient Hebrew there was no separate way of writing numbers.  The letters were the numbers.  There is a practice called Gematria that can be used on Hebrew, Greek, Sanskrit, Aramaic, or any other language where the letters can also represent numbers.  This practice is a way of finding yet more meaning in a word.  The calculated sum of the letters gives a number that has spiritual meaning.  Lastly, the Hebrew letters represent the paths (or Netivah) between the nodes (or Sefirah) in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life.

Kabbalah, an ancient form of Hebrew mysticism, is based on the Torah (the Hebrew Scriptures - part of the Christian "Old Testament") and its inner meanings by analyzing each individual letter.   Kabbalah was undoubtedly originally an oral teaching, but there are two major Hebrew source works.  The first is The Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Formation) and the second is The Zohar (The Book of Splendor).  Both of these works have been translated into English and can be found at major booksellers or at Amazon.com.

The center of Kabbalistic study is the Tree of Life.  This diagram is a way of looking at God, creation, your consciousness, and much more.  The Tree glyph is used to help the student picture the correspondences and relationships within the teachings.  Kabbalah is truly an amazing study.

Because many believe that Yeshua was adept at Kabbalah and because so many of the Gnostic and traditional Scriptures seem to have Kabbalistic themes through-out them, many Gnostics have incorporated Kabbalah into their traditions.  Sophian Gnosticism practices a form of Christian Kabbalah.  This is a merging of Jewish Kabbalah and Gnostic Christian ideas. 

© All rights reserved. Magdalene Circle. 2008