Review by Choice Review
Earlier collections of Gnostic texts have focused on the discoveries at Nag Hammadi or texts from other particular Gnostic movements. The Gnostic Bible valuably incorporates these texts into a larger collection spanning nearly 1,500 years. The book provides Gnostic texts from their Jewish origins, into early Christianities, on into the medieval world. Though it concentrates on the early Jewish-Christian matrix of early Gnosticism, the collection helpfully manifests the breadth and depth of Gnostic variations in neo-Platonist, Manichean, Mandean, Islam, and Cathar movements. The format is simple, clear, and usable. The collection translates 47 primary texts from various languages into poetic, readable English. Each text has a brief historical and thematic introduction. Editorial notes clarify the translations and refer to other texts, both more "mainline" and Gnostic. The editors' introduction and conclusion frame the whole book. These beginning and ending summaries provide an almost evangelical zeal in embracing such Gnostic texts in contrast to their disdain for the Gnostics' more "orthodox" kin. The collection subtly argues for a reading of Gnosticism in the tradition of Hans Jonas and Kurt Rudolph. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. General readers; undergraduate and graduate students. J. W. Wright Point Loma Nazarene University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This book may well be the most comprehensive collection of Gnostic materials ever gathered in one volume. After a dry introduction to current debates about gnosticism (by Meyer) and a luminous, marvelously literary introduction to issues of translation (by Barnstone), the bulk of the text is taken up with primary sources, which are drawn from three continents and span an astonishing 13 centuries. These are helpfully organized into various schools of Gnostic tradition: Sethian, Valentinian, Syrian, Hermetic, Mandaean, Manichaean, and--in an unusual move--relatively late Islamic and Cathar texts. Each grouping of texts is preceded by a brief introduction to that particular section's brand of Gnosticism. What is clear from this sourcebook is the tremendous diversity of thought that exists under the "Gnostic" umbrella, including Christian, Jewish, Muslim, pagan, Zoroastrian and Greco-Roman themes. Many of the texts are being published here in English for the first time, making this a valuable resource for students and scholars. (Dec.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Review by Library Journal Review
Poet and translator Barnstone and Meyer (Bible & Christian studies, Chapman Univ.) have joined forces to present a large collection of gnostic source literature. The nature and beliefs of gnosticism are hotly debated. Michael Williams (Rethinking Gnosticism) and Karen L. King (What Is Gnosticism?) have argued for the abandonment of the label as something artificially applied by Christian orthodoxy to heretical movements with widely varying beliefs. Others, including the editors of this volume, argue that certain specific ideas distinguish beliefs of the gnostic religions: salvation through knowledge and enlightened living, wisdom personified as a character in a cosmic drama, and dualistic creation stories positing a higher God of the spirit and a lower demiurge who created the physical world. Meyer's introduction presents highlights of this debate. The selection of texts that follows (most elegantly translated by Barnstone) ranges across two millennia and various cultures. Each work, some translated into English for the first time, is accompanied by a clear introduction and synopsis. This is an important sampler of relatively unknown spiritual literature. The publication by Shambhala gives an underlying sense of credence to the contents as, in Meyer's words, a "sacred literature attractive to free spirits." Recommended for all libraries with an audience interested in religions, alternative spirituality, and early Christianity.-William P. Collins, Library of Congress (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
