Hi Folks,<br><br>Sister Trish facilitated last week's discussion about The Hymn of the Pearl while I was off in New Zealand running a retreat. I've attached her account of what she discovered in the conversation.<br>
<br>This Sunday, we'll meet to begin our reading of Father Jordan Stratford's "Living Gnosticism". This reading group which will continue up to Christmas, take a brief pause and then continue in January will be a golden opportunity to engage directly with a modern gnostic theology and with the key ideas our church think are important in your spiritual journey.<br>
<br>Each week we'll have a set reading and meet on Sunday evening to discuss the week's assignment. We will join with other groups in the church network who are reading the book via online discussion as the programme rolls on.<br>
<br>Come along and join in. Copies of the book will be available in person for $25.<br><br>6pm, Sun 7 Dec (and weekly from then)<br>Unitarian Centre<br>15 Francis St<br>Darlinghurst<br><blockquote style="margin: 1.5em 0pt;">
Reverend Father Tim Mansfield<br>
Rector, <a href="http://www.saint-uriels.org">Parish of Saint Uriel the Archangel</a>, Sydney, Australia<br>
<a href="http://www.johannite.org">Apostolic Johannite Church</a></blockquote><br><br><div class="gmail_quote">---------- Forwarded message ----------<br>From: <b class="gmail_sendername">Trisha Nowland</b> <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:nowlandtr@gmail.com">nowlandtr@gmail.com</a>></span><br>
Date: 2008/12/3<br><br><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-family: trebuchet ms,sans-serif;">Blessings at Advent to all,</p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in; font-family: trebuchet ms,sans-serif;">Last Sunday we had the second of our reading group meetings dedicated to exploring the soul. This time we sampled a hero's journey in 'The Hymn of the Pearl'. The
Hymn comes from the Acts of Thomas (ch 108-113).</p><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"></font></font><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">In
the poem we see the hero(or 'soul') as a young child living with his Father in Parthia,
from whence as an adult he is sent, leaving behind his glorious robe
'which in their love they had wrought me'. He is given a
load of precious stones and instructions to fetch home the Pearl,
which is guarded by a drakon, or serpent in the sea, in Egypt. Upon arriving in Egypt, he clothes
himself in the somewhat grungy dress of the Egyptians, partakes of their heavy and
intoxicating victuals, falls into a deep sleep, and consequently forgets
about his mission. A letter is sent to him from home, on the wings of
an eagle, which he both hears and reads, reminding him of his task. He
successfully charms the serpent that guards the pearl, and returns with the pearl to his
father, receiving, in return, the robe 'of his real nature'.</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Different
versions of this same story come to us in the parable of the Prodigal
Son in the Bible, Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat in the story
of Genesis, and in several other places:</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Version
of this parable is in the Gospel of Thomas (1:76):</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">"<font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">The
Kingdom of the Father is like the man, a merchant, who possessed
merchandise and discovered a pearl. The merchant was prudent. He sold
the merchandise and bought 'the one pearl' for himself.</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">Version
of this parable from Syrian mystic Makarios:</font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">The
man receives again the garment of glory that he had lost when the
soul fell from it's height and became the slave of the true
Pharaoh. Scripture is a letter written by a King, and the Christians
are sons whom a father sent to foreign countries with drugs to soothe
the dragons that attack them.</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Version
of this parable in Gospel of Phillip (12):</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;">'<font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">One
single Name they do not utter in the world, the single Name which the
Father gave to the Son, which is above all things, which is the Name
of the Father. For the son would not become the Father except he
clothe himself with the name of the Father.</font></font></font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2"><br></font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Version
of this parable from the Odes of Solomon</font></font><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2"> (39:8)</font></font></font><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">:</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">Put
on, therefore, the Name of the Most High and know Him,</font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">And
you shall cross without danger,</font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">While
the rivers shall be subject to you.</font></font></font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2"><br></font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Version
of this parable from the Old Testament</font></font><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2"> (Judges 6:34)</font></font></font><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">:</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">The
Spirit of God 'invests' man, so that he is clad with the
Spirit.<br></font></font></font></p><br><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Version
of this parable in a Samaritan Moses hymn:</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif"><font size="2"><font size="2">Mighty
is the great prophet who clad himself in the name of the Godhead.</font></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">So
the soul, born in heavenly paradise, must be reminded of it's
task in the body, so it can return to paradise and receive the
original garment of Spirit. There is a split in this hymn, but it is
not between the forces of good and evil, it is the split between fallen Man incarnate
and his remembrance of his divinity. Gnosticism itself seems to me to be in many
ways structured around the phenomenological remembrance of 'what
we are, where we come from and whither we go'. Our sense of soul then includes both an inner awareness of the light of the </font></font><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">absolute </font></font><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">pearl of Spirit that we already always are, and also the relative inner engagement with the colourful 'gems' of the different personas and characters that we fleetingly robe ourselves in as we make our way through the everyday world. Collecting sparks, or dare I say pearls, of wisdom on the way.</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">It was an inordinate amount of fun on Sunday, and I'm looking forward to seeing all who can come along this week for our first peek at Fr. Jordan Stratford's+ 'Living Gnosticism'.</font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Peace be with you,</font></font></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><font size="2"><font face="Trebuchet MS, sans-serif">Trish<br></font></font></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br></p>
<p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br>
</p>
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