عنوان

The Apocalypse of Paul (nhc v,2):

LA110833

انگلیسی

The Apocalypse of Paul (nhc v,2):

[Article]

Cosmology, Anthropology, and Ethics

Lautaro Roig Lanzillotta

Leiden

Brill

The cosmology behind the Apocalypse of Paul is interesting in many respects. To begin with it shows a peculiar ten-heaven structure instead of eight heavens as one might normally expect in a Gnostic text; it structures the cosmos into three clear, separate regions; and it omits any reference to the first two heavens. At the same time, Apocalypse of Paul's cosmology is especially fascinating, on the one hand for the close connection with the text's anthropology, which conceives of man in the light of the cosmological framework, and, on the other, for its description of Paul's ascension as an ethical progress. Most interesting for the present context, however, is that this description includes rather transgressive elements, such as the presentation of the Biblical god as the Demiurge and a polemical view of the apostles. The latter are not only said to be stationed in the archontic region together with the Demiurge, but also to be surpassed by Paul, who is the only individual entitled to enter the divine region. After providing a thorough analysis of Apocalypse of Paul's cosmology, the present paper provides an overview of the anthropological, theological, and ethical implications of its worldview.

2016

110-131

Gnosis: Journal of Gnostic Studies

1/1-2

2451-859X

Apocalypse of Paul

apocalyptic text

ascent literature

Biblical Studies

ethics

Gnosticism & Manichaeism

Valentinian

Lautaro Roig Lanzillotta

10.1163/2451859X-12340007

p

[Article]

275578

a

Y