Gnosticism Archives

Theologian praises Francis’s ‘upside-down theology’ on two ancient heresies

Vatican
Mar 13, 2019

Two ancient heresies, which Pope Francis has often pointed to as “enemies of holiness,” were at the center of a Roman conference on Tuesday, which attempted to explain the Argentinian pontiff’s “upside-down theology.”

Two events explain ‘Why now?’ on Pope’s sainthood document

News Analysis
Apr 9, 2018

Pope Francis issued a new document on sainthood now because he believes it’s time for a new emphasis on God’s grace.

Vatican revives fine art of smacking down heresy, this time in modern guise

Vatican
Mar 1, 2018

A document published March 1 by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith expands on Pope Francis’s criticism of modern forms of two ancient heresies.

The papal obsession with getting close and concrete

Analysis
Jan 23, 2017

The Pope’s “El Pais” interview was about many things yet mainly about one: the need for the Church to be close to people, and concrete. Francis is convinced that the greatest threat to the contemporary age is gnosticism, which shows itself in the Church as fundamentalism and legalism.

Latest Jesus movie has promise, but it goes unfulfilled

Church
May 24, 2016

The Jesus of “Last Days in the Desert” is a wandering ascetic, not unlike the Essenes or some of John’s disciples, seeking God in solitude and self-denial, but its promise goes unfulfilled.

Pope Francis says Catholics must be open to change

Church
Nov 10, 2015

Pope Francis offered a sweeping summary of his vision for the Catholic Church on Tuesday, telling a gathering of Italian Catholics in Florence that the Church must be open to change while rejecting a “controlling, hard, and prescriptive” style. “… It is not useful to search for solutions in conservatism