A Basic Gnostic Reading List

Christan Amundsen

Illumination: A Gnostic Handbook for the Post Modern World, ISBN 1-887472-53-3 (Sunstar Publishing, Ltd., Fairfield Iowa, 1998.)

An introduction to Post-Modern Gnosticism, not meant to be an exhaustive study. A starting place to offer an explanation of Gnosticism in an accessible manner.

Insights from the Secret Teachings of Jesus: The Gospel of Thomas, ISBN 1-887472-57-6 (Sunstar Publishing, Ltd., Fairfield Iowa, 1998.)

This commentary by Christan Amundsen is a remarkable one: It offers insights from the heart and mind of a man who has dared accept this gospel’s difficult challenge – to renounce what the world believes it can offer of power, authority, wealth, and happiness, to embrace the arduous and often solitary path of spiritual inquiry.

Elaine Pagels, Author "The Gnostic Gospels"

Stuart Holroyd

The Elements of Gnosticism, ISBN 1-862041-46-6 (Element Books Ltd., Dorset, England & Element Inc., Rockport, MA, 1994)

An excellent, brief introduction to the teachings, history and literature of Gnosticism. The approach is sympathetic with emphasis on the relevance of Gnosticism today.

Marvin Myer

The Gospel of Thomas: Hidden Sayings of Jesus, ISBN 0-060655-81-X (Harper San Francisco, 1992)

This is the latest translation of the most accessible of Gnostic scriptures. The translator’s introduction and the interpretive essay by Harold Bloom serve as very useful entry points both for the study of this gospel and for Gnosticism in general.

Elaine Pagels

The Gnostic Gospels, ISBN 0-679-72453-2 (Random House New York, 1978)

The popular classic, introducing the Nag Hammadi scriptures and Gnosticism within a useful historical context. Perhaps the first major book to be free of the anti-Gnostic heresiological bias.

James M. Robinson

The Nag Hammadi Library, ISBN 0-06-066935-7 (HarperCollins, San Francisco 1990)

The authoritative translation of the Nag Hammadi scrolls. Robinson has compiled the work of the major academics who have rendered the texts that are considered the basis of gnosticism into English.

Martin Seymore-Smith

Gnosticism: The Path of Inner Knowledge, (Harper San Francisco, 1996)

A small "Coffee Table" book, attractively illustrated in color, with a mildly sympathetic treatment of the subject. Brief but informative.

[ Home | Reading List | History | Gnostic Links | E-Mail Us ]