Christianity

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Gnosticism

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Catholicism

>>18151225
>>18151477
Why not both?

>>18151212
I'm really into the early and Western aspects of Esoteric Christianity:

Primitive Religion
Torah
Plationism
Jesus and Paul
Gnosticism
Neo-Platonism
Qabalah
St. Augustine
Martin Luther
John Milton
Carl Jung
Joseph Campbell

Gnosticism
Rosicrucianism
Martinism
Anthroposophy
Ouspeskian 4th Way
Mormonism

Anyone wanna discuss?

What about Erisian Christianity?

>>18151499
You sound like a dilletante.

>>18151499
I'm a Calvinist.

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>>18151499
>Ouspensky
Please. For the love of Christ.

>>18151509
I definitely try to understand a large section of Christian Myth, Thought, and History especially as related to Esotericism. I have tons to learn though, but i believe I know more than the average individual on thr subject.

Besides all of it is auxiliary to thr Light of Christ within

>>18151518
I've not read much of the Early Protestants, but i consider myself a Protestant.
I like the idea of salvation by Grace and a hard determinism, but also have love for works gospels.

What do you like about Calvin?

>>18151537
You disapprove?
He did a good job applying the 4th Way to the Christian narrative. Like Steiner to Blavatsky.

>>18151505
And the fnord was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Mother of Madness,) full of chaos and transcendental signifiers.

>>18151225
Pretty much the root of Esoteric Christianity. We are so unbelievably lucky to still have records of their beliefs.

Personally I disagree and agree at the same time. Sure, this earth is of the devil and the formulaic world is of God. But i see this life as a part of Gods plan, so we are not trapped but purified.

An alchemical monist Gnosticism seems most accurate to life experiences.

>>18151505
What kind of chaos magic, postmodern, blasphemy of the universal narrative is this?

Seriously though, the aesthetic of Eris and Chaos anf what not, is just kind of lame. But whatever, also it reduces your common semiotical communication ability

>>18151482
yeah that weird bastard Michael Bertiaux did a mix of Old Catholic, Gnostic, and Vodou to create his balls-to-the-wall magic system.

>>18151477
Augustine > Aquinas

>>18151212
Esoteric Protestant checking in

>>18151598
>universal narrative
No such thing.
>also it reduces your common semiotical communication ability
I'm not sure how it does that.

>>18151632
I believe in a universal narrative, im a Platonists and a Jungian at heart. That's a matter if belief though, so no worries.

As far as reducing your communicative scope, is that when I read Chaos Magic and Eris type stuff, it's just a shifting of signifiers for new signified concepts. You and an individual are talking the same language (christianity) but then your meanings are different.

Like, if you ask a chaoist of the believe in magic, its a lot of times a puke of quantum physics, belief/intention, and postmodern posturing of unreality. Most people using Chirstianity are utilizing it for a source of meaning not a deliberate running away from.

>>18151652
Not all seek anamnesis and belief in a universal narrative can close one off from engaging in new forms of communication as much as those new forms can prevent discussion with the old. Or is that Tu Quoque? No worries, I am a Jungian Platonist too. Read any good books lately?

>>18151652
I tend to think of magic as semiotic in nature to begin with. I don't actually fully follow the "chaos magic" idea of magic.

As far as shifting signifiers, I agree partly (chaos being basically the Tao, for instance) but the idea of "primordial chaos in which order and disorder have not yet been distinguished" is a pretty common one in lots of religions.

However, I'm not a Discordian out of some attempt to posture, or some hipster version of atheism. I think Eris is a living embodiment of the Chao (Tao), and that teaching people to lighten up is genuinely an important thing that can bring them to see beauty in themselves and others. The Book of Eris literally moved me to tears several times, and not (always) from laughing.

As far as "Erisian Christianity," I was fixing for a joke about it just being Discordianism but where I'm always willing to "love" my neighbors as long as they consent, but I felt in this case it was more important to explain my views on the matter.

>>18151694
Sure cutie!
Eiphas Levi was a great occultists and a huge Catholic. He is often referenced by Gnostics even though he isn't too Gnostic. But he did draw the Baphomet which is sometimes seen as the demiurgr. There you go, Gnostic and Catholic in a granddaddy of occultism.

>>18151678
No doubt, I get their focus, it just doesn't seem appealing to me. Judge not though ;)

Im reading Paradise Lost, Mere Christianity, and a Text Book on Critical Theory.

Paradise Lost is difficult.
Mere Christianity is an amazing Apologetics work, really remindes me of the Kybalion.
Children of Lucifer was an awesome scholarly book by Oxford that is about the modern history of Satanism.

>>18151624
>Esoteric Protestant

How does that work? Some sort of proto-Rosicrucian or what?

>>18151679
Fair enough babe. I thought you were being ironic. If thats how you find meaning in life, awesome.

Lightening up does sound great, especoally with all the heavy theology books everyone says you gotta read in Christianity ;)

>>18151679
Discordianism is Zen for roundeyes and Zen is Tao ism for Japanese.

>>18151722
Rosicrucianism is cool, I love hermetic Christianity.

I dont believe in Catholicism and see the Gnostic practices of modern protestant Christians as closer to the primitive religion given word through Christ than the Behemoth.

Also KJV bible for life. And Sola Scriptura jibes with my divinatory and semiotic hermenutics leanings.

Plus snake handlers are cool too

>>18151725
lol, West is the Best

>>18151679
I think the funny thing about signifiers is their duality. Very dialectical. It's natural to gravitate toward a chaos=good transvaluation. Nietzsche can be thought to do this in a sense with his Dionysian / Appolonian divide. And I think the very fact that you can append christianity to your discordianism speaks volumes about how it's more than some edgy nihilism to you so bravo!
>>18151720
Children of Lucifer sounds interesting.
Paradise Lost was interesting but not my favorite.
Read CS Lewis during childhood but have not revisited. My mom is lending me his book on grieving once she finishes tho (dad passed unexpectedly recently).

I'm reading Spheres, The New Testament, Philosophy and Theurgy in Late Antiquity and The Corpus Hermeticum at the moment. I feel sad tho cause my mom thinks Gnosticism is evil :/

>>18151707
I deleted that post with the intention of adding some more to it but your reply kind of preceded that.

In any case, I'm familiar with Eliphas Levi and in the alternate universe where I become Pope, he is a canonised saint alongside Hypatia and Giordano Bruno.

I'm a complicated Catholic.

>>18151732
Vulgate is best Bible (he says cause he only knows Latin and not Greek)

>>18151745
Another complicated Catholic here. I'm canonizing Ficino, Porete and Eckhart.

>>18151739
Children of Lucifer is my third favorite book ever. After Kybalion and Western Esoteric Traditions.

Corpus Hermeticum is cool, i read the Copenhaver translation. I especially loved the Asclepius.

That's cool babe, sounds like youre reading all types of good heavy Christian and Occult stuff.

I'm not a huge Gnostic fan cause I love life. They kinda get negative about existence. Neo-Platonism is more my style. Sees life as flawed but still beautiful.

But Gnosticism is so cool! Don't get me wrong.

Id suck a reptilian dick ;)

>>18151746
VULGATE gave us "lucifer", so all love here babe.

I think thats hot you know latin

>>18151745
Id cannonize Plato, Jung, Campbell, and Atkinson.

>>18151739
Lol, makes you wonder when the dialectic become present in the human mind. When did there become polar opposites as opposed to undifferentiated experience.

I wonder if the sexual initiation of eve by Satan in the Garden gave Eve the ability of Semiotic Modality whereshe could expand her mind aking linguistic lines to see the edges of experience forever shattering the monad into a duality. Then she said that light was good and fucked Adam into human conciousness.

.:P

>>18151212
What about kinky Christian Self-Hating Gnostic Sex Magick?

>>18151753
I hate life. I'm highly disabled and wish my soul could be freed from this fleshy prison. But I guess I kinda understand and appreciate maybe even love my experience regardless. It goes back and forth with my mood swings. Insofar as metaphysical beliefs are concerned I am more of an emanationist than one who imagines complicated drama in heaven between Sophia and the pleroma so no demiurge hate. Maybe the texts are too degraded to truly understand the metaphors. I think some of the "life-denial" claims come from Christian defamation as well.

Ya, I'm reading a somewhat gnostic english version of the new testament (imo, just well-researched and poetic [Barnstone if you're curious]) and my mom told me not to read "evil Bibles" :(

Reptilians are a weird subject for me. Too tied to LSD and schizophrenia for me to discuss meaningfully sober and stable.
>>18151757
I learned it so I could create my own magical system for an RPG. Then I realized life was an RPG.

>>18151796
I'm sorry babe, life's rough sometimes. Yeh emanationism is pretty much the whole of my view. Just the perfect forms descending down the vibratory scale until human consciousness becomes encased in material being.

>>18151551
The theology of Christ's supremacy over everything. I don't deserve His Grace, but He chose to and delights in giving it to me. I don't like the thought that God is bound by His foreknowledge. It makes more sense to me, that He has preordained every event in the universe.

I was raised Arminian, but since I've been introduced to Calvinism, when I read God's word, I find more and more evidence to support it.

>>18151806
Me and my friend were discussing Eris as Sophia last night and the introduction of primordial chaos as self-unfolding wisdom (introduction of new rules of play) within the decreasing vibratory scales with chaotic matter ordering into emergence in 4D. Something something singularity too. It all fit in with our grand plans for the Great Work in the future...

>>18151834
I totally dig the saved by grace bit. Doesn't the parable of the Ten Talents show that works are important to Christ though? Doesn't Paul say man is daved by works too?

I do lean antinomian sometimes so I'm not trying to fight. Different beliefs help me accomplish different things.

>>18151841
Yup, all part of the plan! :)

>>18151866
>antinomian
my favorite :)
>>18151878
God grant me serenity

>>18151866
I getcha senpai. Discussion breeds thought.

The ten talents does show that works influence eternity. But Calvinism says it was God's Devine Will that decided the servants decision to either obey or disobey. So we have an illusion of free Will, but in truth, we decide what God has determined we decide.
>The Lord has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble. - Proverbs 16:4

Cont.

>>18151950
And Paul does say this, but again, Calvinism says that we sin because God has ordained that we sin. He says who will sin, who will repent, and who will live and who will die. Romans chapter 9, Paul refers to this as men being vessels made by a potter. Some vessles Made for honor, and some for destruction, and all for His Glory.

I'm not saying that I am better, or Calvinists are better, than everyone else. According to John Calvin (and the Bible) we are all totally deprived and destined to Hell, but God chose a few for life. How does He choose? I have no idea, and probably never will.

I have a friend who's a profound atheist. If he dies an atheist, I believe it is because he isn't one of the elect. But He chose me. I think my friend would make a much better Christian than me. Is God wrong? No. Paul said in Romans "can the clay say to the potter, why have you made me thus?".

Orthodox Christians here anyone? Actually I will be entering an Orthodox Monastery soon practicing hesychasm and learning of the most ancient spiritual rituals and theology of the Orthodox Church. I was on Mt. Athos before but came back to my home country and now will enter shortly.

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>>18152036
That's super cool, Anon.
I have worked up for myself an incredibly romanticized view of monasticism from reading dusty old hagiographies and monastic rules. I often think about what it might be like to forfeit my life here in the world to live the contemplative life. I don't know if I'll ever manage to make that fantasy manifest itself anytime soon. God only knows. Maybe it will years and years from now.

>>18152036
what if you change your mind?

how long did you have to wait to get into Mt. Athos?

>>18152036
The grace and peace of the lord be upon you, my name is Ken.

I’m a 27 year old American Orthodox (the really real christians for all you heretics). I make prayer ropes out of boot laces, and spend my days perfecting my hesychastic breathing techniques and reading the Cappodocian Fathers. (Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory of Nazianzus)

I train in heschastic prayer and breathing with my prayer rope daily, this superior method of prayer can cut clean through imagination and prelest because it was developed over thousands of years by the apostolic church, and is vastly superior to any other method of prayer, especially those derived from Thomism. I earned my icon painting license two years ago, and I have been getting better every day.

I speak Greek fluently, both Dimotiki and Old Church Slavonic, and I write fluently as well. I know everything about Byzantine history and their imperial code, which I follow 100%

When I get my Greek visa, I am moving to Ouranoupoli to attend a prestigious Monastery to learn more about their magnificent religious practices. I hope I can become a monk of the great schema, or even patriarch of constantinople!

I own several monastic habits, which I wear around town. I want to get used to wearing them before I move to Greece, so I can fit in easier. I say Κύριε, ελέησον and speak Russian as often as I can, but rarely does anyone manage to respond.

Wish me luck in Greece!

>>18151584
I agree. Gnosticism always appealed for the reason that "the world" isn't "good" but how can it be "bad" if we are here existing and learning of the Godhead and how to unite?

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>>18152256
>hyperdox

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The ORDER OF THE PARACLETE is "Christian", but since it admits (potentially) any form of Christianity it is infinitely flexible and expansive. The Paraclete, the One Who Is To Come, has been identified with Mohammad, and also with the "Holy Spirit" in the Millennialism of Joachim of Fiore, who saw an Age of the Father (Law) and an Age of the Son (Church) succeeded by an Age of the Spirit -- the utopian millennium, perfect freedom. As another millennium approaches, the O.P. will function to give an esoteric interpretation and an outward manifestation to this ideal. Beside the "Aquarian Jesus" of the Cirle Seven Koran, the following Christian themes play roles in the form of the O.P. -- the Brethren of the Free Spirit, the Adamites, the Beghards and Beguines; the Christian Cabalists, alchemists, and hermeticists; Renaissance Neo-platonism and Magic; the Celtic Church and its links with paganism; certain forms of Gnosticism (the link to "Egypt"!); radical Protestantism, e.g. the Anabaptists, the Family of Love, the Ranters, the Antinomians, the Diggers, William Blake (Christian Druidism); the revolutionary churches of Spence and Weddeburn, the religious cult of Charles Fourier, the New Catholic Pantarchy of Stephen Pearl Andrews, etc.; aslo, the Wandering Bishops and the autocephalous churches movement, which played a major role in the original formation of the M.O.C. (hence the term "orthodox" and our title of "Metropolitan", for example) -- the emphasis on liturgy as magic defines O.P. praxis. Another major source of inspiration is the "Spiritist" tradition, the syncretism of Christianity and "HooDoo", African and Native ritual, iconography, magic, etc. -- the single most creative source of spiritual strength in America today.

>>18151770
You are sick in the head

>>18151770
>makes you wonder when the dialectic become present in the human mind. When did there become polar opposites as opposed to undifferentiated experience.

Sometime between Heraclitus and Socrates