Based on my studies and research on the christian belief system, i remain convinced that most churches have strayed away from the true gospel / teachings of Jesus christ either deliberately, by ommission or for lack of knowledge. I also know that a lot of politics went into the establishment of the first Instituitionalized church[catholic] who then decided which books they wanted to cannonize as scripture. Most christian denominations today especially in the western world and their former colonies derive their roots in the catholic church of which i believe the foundation is faulty. But then there were other churches that evolved parrallely with the catholic church this are mainly the ethopian church, coptic church, syrian church, Armenian church, greek orthodox church e.t.c Amongst these denominations, we have those who subscribe to the gnostic beleif system which essentially preaches you can attain salvation through knowledge and spiritual development. They also have a few other cannonized scripture rejected by the catholic church[for what ever reason] such books as the "gospel of Thomas" which i find very inspirational was rejected by the catholic church.

As a christian i have come to understand that we know very little and the quest for knowledge is a never ending one, unfortunately most christians believe that every thing there is to know is already contained in the catholic cannonized bible even when scripture makes it clear that a lot of information is left out[John 21:25] I subscrbe to the gnostic belief system that knowledge is essential for our spiritual development however i know very little about gnostism a such i would like to interview a gnostic christian wo might be able to shed more light on their belief system.

Gnosticism itself is very wide and varied. I think you might be repulsed by some of the Gnostic traditions, as you are attracted by others.

A interesting scholar to start with is Elaine pagels.

http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/book-sum/gnostic.html

It might also interest you to check out Neo-Platonism.

Pastor AIO:

Gnosticism itself is very wide and varied. I think you might be repulsed by some of the Gnostic traditions, as you are attracted by others.

A interesting scholar to start with is Elaine pagels.

http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/book-sum/gnostic.html

It might also interest you to check out Neo-Platonism.

Thanx for the link very eye opening, still thirsty for more knowledge though.

peace unto you, I am Gnostic too! But I mix some African traditional practices with my Christianity---- There is also a book of Mary Magdalene---- I think.

OBVIOUS:

peace unto you, I am Gnostic too! But I mix some African traditional practices with my Christianity---- There is also a book of Mary Magdalene---- I think.

That is nice to know, can you educate me on your essential beliefs as a gnostic christian as opposed to the orthodox variation. Also to what extent do you mix African traditional beliefs with your christianity and what is the basis for the mix. As in are they scripturally compatible?

I also know that a lot of politics went into the establishment of the first Instituitionalized church[catholic]

please elaborate are you saying that the Apostles played politics in the formation of the church.

Most christian denominations today especially in the western world and their former colonies derive their roots in the catholic church of which i believe the foundation is[b] faulty[/b].

what made u think the church foundation is faulty,the scriptures explicitly declared in1 Tim 3:15 that the church is the pillar and foundation of truth.JESUS himself declares in matt 18 that the gates of hell shall never prevail against his church ,are u trying to say that the scriptures did not get it right there.

But then there were other churches that evolved parrallely with the catholic church this are mainly the ethopian church, coptic church, syrian church, Armenian church, greek orthodox church

sorry to disapoint you,these churches did not exist parallelly with the roman catholic church rather they broke away from the cathjolic church,the oriental orthox churches like ethiopian ,armenian and coptic orthodox churches broke away after the council of chalcedon in 451 CE,The greek orthodox church with the rest of the other orthodox churches left the church in 1054 CE.

SEE THE LINKS BELOW

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Orthodoxy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East-West_Schism

As a christian i have come to understand that we know very little and the quest for knowledge is a never ending one, unfortunately most christians believe that every thing there is to know is already contained in the catholic cannonized bible even when scripture makes it clear that a lot of information is left out[John 21:25] I subscrbe to the gnostic belief system that knowledge is essential for our spiritual development however i know very little about gnostism a such i would like to interview a gnostic christian wo might be able to shed more light on their belief system.

kUNLE!! KUNLE!! KUNLE !!!

How many times did I call u,you are gradually moving towards heresy,gnosticism was a second century heretical belief that was condenmed by the early church fathers most notably St Ireneaus of Lyons in his work Against the heretics written in 175 CE,

The roman catholic,eastern orthodox,oriental orthodox and indeed all branches of Apostolic christianity do not subscribe to gnosticism

kunle is moving closer and closer. hmmm

bawomolo:

kunle is moving closer and closer. hmmm

closer to where ?

na which one be gnostic christian again?abi na gigolo you mean?abeg me i no know book o

bawomolo:

kunle is moving closer and closer. hmmm

I concur.

Hi Noe----

Hello obvious . . . .howdy?

Im obviosuly obvious---- hope u know---


Im fine ---

BADLEE:

closer to where ?

he seems to be getting disgruntled with Christianity. You know where that is going.

chukwudi44:

please elaborate are you saying that the Apostles played politics in the formation of the church.

what made u think the church foundation is faulty,the scriptures explicitly declared in1 Tim 3:15 that the church is the pillar and foundation of truth.JESUS himself declares in matt 18 that the gates of hell shall never prevail against his church ,are u trying to say that the scriptures did not get it right there.

sorry to disapoint you,these churches did not exist parallelly with the roman catholic church rather they broke away from the cathjolic church,the oriental orthox churches like ethiopian ,armenian and coptic orthodox churches broke away after the council of chalcedon in 451 CE,The greek orthodox church with the rest of the other orthodox churches left the church in 1054 CE.

SEE THE LINKS BELOW

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oriental_Orthodoxy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East-West_Schism

kUNLE!! KUNLE!! KUNLE !!!

How many times did I call u,you are gradually moving towards heresy,gnosticism was a second century heretical belief that was condenmed by the early church fathers most notably St Ireneaus of Lyons in his work Against the heretics written in 175 CE,

The roman catholic,eastern orthodox,oriental orthodox and indeed all branches of Apostolic christianity do not subscribe to gnosticism

My brother you don't seem to be able to distinguish between the church as a body of christ and the instituitionalized roman catholic church that was established under the political influence of emperor constantine of Rome. It is very wrong to suggest that the apostles established the roman catholic church. We also know from biblical records that the roman catholic church is NOT the first church as the pualine letters depict. We have the Galatian church, ephesian church, colossian church, corithian church e.t.c all operating under the supervision of he apostles long before the roman catholic church was instituitionalized and politics brought in to the church. Early pointers to the establishment of the Ethopian church is even recorded in the Acts of the Apostles this is long before the establishment of the catholic church in the fourth century AD.

bawomolo:

kunle is moving closer and closer. hmmm

If i am moving closer, it must be in the direction of the true gospel of our lord and saviour Jesus christ. However most people just like to stereotype christianity and put everyone in a straight Jacket. Let me make this clear my christian faith remains resolute and is based strictly on the gospel of our lord Jesus christ. As a christian i do not accept 100% of the contents of the bible as doctrine becos it was mere men that decided which books they want to cannonize and they might have by ommission or commission ommited or included what they should't have. I have based my beliefs on the core teachings of Jesus christ which is basically Love for God, love for fellow men and doing unto others as you would want them to do unto you. That apart we were called to live an exemplary life. Any thing i find not compatible with the teachings of christ i reject wether it is in the bible or not and that is the same attitude i would use to scrutinize Gnostic teachings which is claimed to be derived from christ. I am quite certain that the catholic church witheld a lot of sacred / inspired writings from the bible and kept it for their own use for reasons best known to them. I might be mis-understood but i am on a journey to know and understand the teachings of christ better irrespective of what the early catholic church decided to cannonize oin the bible and as such mould the christian religion. Today it is quite obvious that a lot of practises contrary to the teachings of christ are now being practised in our churches and christianity as standard practises.

↑ Pastor AIO/  m-nwankwo/ easylogic/  Justcool/ Viaro/ Prizm/ KunleOshob↑


                                                                                                       ↑Krayola/ Jesoul/ Dususpace/ KAG↑

                                                                                               
                                                                                                          Noetic


The Seeker

                                                                                                           
                                                                                                         Mantraa / Toneyb     

                                                                                                         
                                                                                                         Tudor/ Bawomolo
                                                           

                                                                                                         Wirinet   

                                                                                                     
                                                                                          Manmustwac 


Shakerz
                                                                                         

                                                                             Mazaje  /Chrisbenegor                                                                         

                                                            Olabowale

                                         Olaadegbu/ Huxley

                            Maykelly

Ogaga4Luv


↓

↓

↓

↓

↓

↓

Davidylan / Abuzola

For those of you who have no understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, watch it presented in a nutshell in the video below.

[flash=400,300]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAS81NIg8Vw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1[/flash]

KunleOshob:

If i am moving closer, it must be in the direction of the true gospel of our lord and saviour Jesus christ. However most people just like to stereotype christianity and put everyone in a straight Jacket. Let me make this clear my christian faith remains resolute and is based strictly on the gospel of our lord Jesus christ. As a christian i do not accept 100% of the contents of the bible as doctrine becos it was mere men that decided which books they want to cannonize and they might have by ommission or commission ommited or included what they should't have. I have based my beliefs on the core teachings of Jesus christ which is basically Love for God, love for fellow men and doing unto others as you would want them to do unto you. That apart we were called to live an exemplary life. Any thing i find not compatible with the teachings of christ i reject wether it is in the bible or not and that is the same attitude i would use to scrutinize Gnostic teachings which is claimed to be derived from christ. I am quite certain that the catholic church witheld a lot of sacred / inspired writings from the bible and kept it for their own use for reasons best known to them. I might be mis-understood but i am on a journey to know and understand the teachings of christ better irrespective of what the early catholic church decided to cannonize oin the bible and as such mould the christian religion. Today it is quite obvious that a lot of practises contrary to the teachings of christ are now being practised in our churches and christianity as standard practises.

I am tempted to ask: . . . .

Since u think that the bible is a watershed of what it ought to be, by omission or commission. how and where did u deduce the teaching of Jesus Christ as love?

@ Deep sight

ur diagram is not self-explanatory . . . . .how about some additional notes/analyses?

noetic15:


your diagram is not self-explanatory . . . . .how about some additional notes/analyses?

Hint: Open-Mindedness, Quality of Thoughts and Posts. . .

noetic15:

I am tempted to ask: . . . .

Since u think that the bible is a watershed of what it ought to be, by omission or commission. how and where did u deduce the teaching of Jesus Christ as love?

What most people fail to realize is that the bible is not one book and can not be treated rightly as such. Firstly you have to realize that it is a collection of books put together by fourth century christians in their understanding of what they considered as scripture. Also you have to realize that prior to this compilation christianity had existed for at least 300 years and they never used the bible as we have it today, even then they practised a much purer form of christianity than the diluted version handed down to us today by our mordern day church fathers. The teachings of christ also appear in at least 30 other gospels[gospel of thomas, mary magdalene, of truth, of Judas, of barnabas e.t.c] not cannonized in the bible by the catholic church and several other historical records of the first century roman empire so limiting your knowledge of christ to just the cannonized books is allowing your self to be put in the box the early church fathers designed. As i told you in a previous thread you have to scrutinize and critisize your faith before you can truly describe yourself as a believer, if you just believe for beleiving sake or for the fear of hell or the prospects of heaven then you have missed he road. You have to understand this true gospel, appreciate and believe the teachings by practicalizing it before you can say you are of christ. It is not about the bible but about the spirit of christ. The bible merely keeps a record of it.

@Noetic
Within the context of your belief in the inerrancy of the bible as a whole how do you reconcile the following verses?

Jeremiah 8:8:

8 “‘How can you say, “We are wise because we have the word of the Lord,”
when your teachers have twisted it by writing lies?
New Living Translation (NLT)

Jeremiah 8:8:
8How can you say, We are wise, and we have the written law of the Lord [and are learned in its language and teachings]? Behold, the truth is, the lying pen of the scribes has made of the law a falsehood (a mere code of ceremonial observances).
Amplified Bible (AMP)

You might need to read the chapter from the beginning for clearer understanding.

^^^ ANSWER HIM NOW, NOETIC!

And also explain why the words in KJV 1 Jn 5 v 7 have been expunged from all modern versions of the Bible!

Explain!

Gnostic christians?Have they not been extinct since the notorious Albigensian Crusade in the mid century area of Languedoc where the last pocket of gnostic christians were wiped out?Or perhaps they have been regrouping secretly?Are we in for the resurgence of the gnostic christianity?The age that we are in now will definitely allow it.

Kunle, see if you can get this man's DVDs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mdd32_Y8_Wg

KunleOshob:

@Noetic
Within the context of your belief in the inerrancy of the bible as a whole how do you reconcile the following verses?

Jeremiah 8:8:

8 “‘How can you say, “We are wise because we have the word of the Lord,”
when your teachers have twisted it by writing lies?
New Living Translation (NLT)

Jeremiah 8:8:
8How can you say, We are wise, and we have the written law of the Lord [and are learned in its language and teachings]? Behold, the truth is, the lying pen of the scribes has made of the law a falsehood (a mere code of ceremonial observances).
Amplified Bible (AMP)

You might need to read the chapter from the beginning for clearer understanding.

"How do you say, We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain" (Jeremiah 8:.

The Jews here prided themselves on being the wisest nation on earth because they had the law, but from God's perspective this was all vain, and the multiplication of copies by the pen of the scribes was also in vain if they would not obey it or profit by it.

If you read it in context (verses 1-12) you will find out that the key to consume the Word of God is to meditate on it, digest it and let it become part of us.  The Bible is a supernatural book.  It can give us supernatural energy to do the will of God (see Nehemiah 8:1-12).  Too many so called Christians fail to read the Bible every day.  They find time to feed their stomach each day, but refuse to make time to read God's Word.  Don't let your belly take precedence over reading the Bible.  Forget your food rather than forget the Word of God (see Exodus 34:28).  Have the policy of No Bible No Breakfast (NBNB); or No Scripture No Supper (NSNS) and by so doing you will find out that the Bible contains all that you need and that all other ground is sinking sand.

jagunlabi:

Gnostic christians?Have they not been extinct since the notorious Albigensian Crusade in the mid century area of Languedoc where the last pocket of gnostic christians were wiped out?Or perhaps they have been regrouping secretly?Are we in for the resurgence of the gnostic christianity?The age that we are in now will definitely allow it.

they had a resurgence in the last 100 years especially after the "lost" books were found in israel



People tend to forget that for close to a century the bible was passed by word of mouth and christianity was viewed as a cult religion and had to be done in private.  Later the texts were copied by hand untill the gutenberg bible came out in the 1450’s (first machine printed bible).  The bible has been translated from hebrew to latin then to english.  Even the eglish languaged has evolved and changed over the centuries (example today govern means to rule over while in english of the 15th century it ment to watchover and protect). The romans used the bible as a political instrament and over the centuries the emperors would have books and acts removed and readded.  There are multiple versions of the bible floating around, which is correct?  The bible today is not what it was in the beginning, there is no way it could be.

Deep Sight:

^^^ ANSWER HIM NOW, NOETIC!

And also explain why the words in KJV 1 Jn 5 v 7 have been expunged from all modern versions of the Bible!

Explain!

Check your Bible versions and you will find out that 1 John 5:7 has not been expunged from all modern versions of the Bible.  Most versions say that there are three that bear witness about Jesus while a few others went on to specify those that bear this witness in heaven as the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit; These versions apart from the KJV are modern ones such as the New King James version, the Amplified Bible, Young's Literal Translation, the Wycliffe New Testament, the 21st Century King James Version.

Even though you may not find the word Trinity in the KJV neither can you find the word Grandfather in it, does that imply that there are no grandfathers in the Bible?  Read the Bible with an open mind and don't allow outside influences do your interpretation for you.

I wonder . . .

   is the measure by which some christians ascribe authority to the bible based on available historical evidence (archeological, anecdotal and otherwise) that correlate and hence validate biblical narratives confirming them to be indeed factual accounts?

or

   is the measure by which some christians ascribe authority to the bible simply based on the fact that the words of the bible are life and power, bursting at the seams with a soul-transforming message of love, death, sacrifice and redemption?

---

  I'm wary of christians of the former persuation, they have missed the point entirely while convinced they be on some sort of justified, laudable search for greater spiritual enlightenment. However intellectually profitable extra-biblical materials may be - and oftentimes they are - but for the christian they must never become the foundation upon which you stand or even a pillar upon which your faith leans. I'm reminded of 2 Tim 3:7 "always learning but never able to acknowledge the truth"

but please ignore me, I was just wondering out loud . . .

Deep Sight:

↑ Pastor AIO/ m-nwankwo/ easylogic/ Justcool/ Viaro/ Prizm/ KunleOshob↑


↑Krayola/ Jesoul/ Dususpace/ KAG↑


Noetic


The Seeker


Mantraa / Toneyb


Tudor/ Bawomolo


Wirinet


Manmustwac


Shakerz


Mazaje /Chrisbenegor

Olabowale

Olaadegbu/ Huxley

Maykelly

Ogaga4Luv


↓

↓

↓

↓

↓

↓

Davidylan / Abuzola

Lol . . . this is too funny.