The World of Esotericism
The University of Amsterdam has one of just a few graduate programs in the study of Western Esotericism, which is often contrasted with Christianity as follows (from a lecture handout based on work of Antoine Faivre).
Christianity
Esotericism
Personal deity
Impersonal deity
Creation of the world by fiat
Emanation of world in stages
Material and evil are real
Material and evil ultimately unreal
Humans as creatures
Humans as divine sparks
Incarnation
Entrapped souls
Sin
Ignorance, forgetfulness
Salvation
Enlightenment
church
school
devotion
spiritual disciplines/exercises
Afterlife in heaven or hell
Afterlife in new learning situation
(Note, I do not consider Paganism and esotericism to be identical, although many esoteric elements show up in contemporary Paganisms.)
All of this is a lead up to a fascinating web page put by the esotericism program at the University of Amsterdam, showing relationships between esoteric thought, music, art, and philosophy.
Christianity
Esotericism
Personal deity
Impersonal deity
Creation of the world by fiat
Emanation of world in stages
Material and evil are real
Material and evil ultimately unreal
Humans as creatures
Humans as divine sparks
Incarnation
Entrapped souls
Sin
Ignorance, forgetfulness
Salvation
Enlightenment
church
school
devotion
spiritual disciplines/exercises
Afterlife in heaven or hell
Afterlife in new learning situation
(Note, I do not consider Paganism and esotericism to be identical, although many esoteric elements show up in contemporary Paganisms.)
All of this is a lead up to a fascinating web page put by the esotericism program at the University of Amsterdam, showing relationships between esoteric thought, music, art, and philosophy.
Labels: Christianity, esotericism, scholarship
posted by Chas S. Clifton at 4:54 PM Permalink
2 Comments:
"Esotericism" seems an odd term. I would probably use "neo-Platonism", although this set of ideas also turns up in much of Hinduism, much of Mahayana, mystical Judaism, gnosticism, New Age, etc.
Neo-Platonism (in my sense) is usually more tolerant than monotheism, but I don't see that it's more pagan, in any sense that I would favour.
I'll probably get shouted at here, but I think I'm even further from neo-Platonism than from Christianity. I believe matter to be real. I believe humans to be real individuals, rather than sparks from some all-soul. I believe human moral choices to be genuine, rather than solely the product of ignorance.
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