We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
from Part II - Early Christian Teachers and Movements in Alexandria
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 December 2023
This chapter investigates ascetic movements in Alexandria with a focus on one of the few named ascetic Christian theologians, Julius Cassianus. Cassianus is the only named user of the Gospel According to the Egyptians and he used it to encourage celibacy and spiritual castration (the cutting off of sexual desire). Cassianus had a creation myth in which the human spirit was androgynous but “feminized” when it focused on material things. Similarly gendered theories of creation appear in the Gospel of Thomas (NHC II,2) and the Exegesis of the Soul (NHC II,6). Nevertheless, the closest parallel to Cassianus comes from the Testimony of Truth (NHC IX,3). The chapter argues that all three works circulated in Alexandria, in addition to the ascetic set of maxims called the Sentences of Sextus (NHC XII,1). All these texts shed light on the developing ascetical subculture of second-century Alexandria.
To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.
Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.
Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.
To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.
To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.
