Valentinianism

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Valentinianism was a prominent 2nd-century Christian Gnostic movement, founded by Valentinus, that taught a complex cosmology of emanations and salvation through esoteric knowledge.

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Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Christian theological school
Gnostic movement
religious doctrine
consideredHeresyBy proto-orthodox Christianity NERFINISHED
coreConcept Demiurge as ignorant creator of the material world
Pleroma as fullness of divine aeons
Sophia as a key aeon in the myth
aeons as emanations from the ultimate God
three types of humans: pneumatic, psychic, hylic
countryOfOrigin Roman Empire NERFINISHED
follows teachings of Valentinus
foundedBy Valentinus NERFINISHED
hasMainTenet Christ as revealer of hidden knowledge
allegorical interpretation of Christian scriptures
complex cosmology of emanations
distinction between the spiritual and material worlds
doctrine of the Demiurge
doctrine of the Pleroma
emphasis on inner spiritual knowledge (gnosis)
myth of a fallen aeon
redemption of the spiritual seed within humans
salvation through esoteric knowledge
secret or esoteric teaching for the spiritually mature
tripartite anthropology (spiritual, psychic, material)
hasVariant Eastern Valentinian school NERFINISHED
Western Valentinian school NERFINISHED
historicalStatus no longer an active organized movement
influenced later Christian mysticism
modern scholarship on Gnosticism
influencedBy Hellenistic philosophy NERFINISHED
Middle Platonism NERFINISHED
earlier Christian Gnosticism
notableFigure Heracleon NERFINISHED
Ptolemy the Valentinian NERFINISHED
Theodotus the Valentinian NERFINISHED
opposedBy Hippolytus of Rome NERFINISHED
Irenaeus of Lyon NERFINISHED
Tertullian NERFINISHED
religiousBranch Gnosticism NERFINISHED
religiousTradition Christianity
startTime 2nd century
textualSources Excerpts of Theodotus
Nag Hammadi writings related to Valentinian circles
reports in Irenaeus’s Adversus Haereses
reports in Tertullian’s Adversus Valentinianos
viewOnScripture reinterprets New Testament texts esoterically
uses Pauline epistles extensively

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Irenaeus of Lyons opposed Valentinianism