Jesus Christ, Sun of God (David Fideler)
Ancient Cosmology and Gnostic Symbolism
[My 5-star Amazon review (NDA) of “Jesus Christ, Son of God: Ancient Cosmology and early Christian Symbolism” by David Fideler.]
This text is a fascinating and enlightening read on ancient cosmology, gnostic symbolism, Pythagorean number theory, and Hellenistic gematria. And though it is an uber-scholarly work (with nearly 400 sources cited in the Bibliography), it’s also an immensely readable one that non-specialists will enjoy and appreciate.
The author, David Fideler, who holds a PhD in philosophy and the history of science, takes us on an enchanting and educative journey through the ancient world that spawned Pythagoras and Jesus. Although Fideler discourses on subjects that include Hermes, Mithraism, Gnosticism, Kabbalah, and more, his fundamental orientation is a Pythagorean one that emphasizes Kosmos, the One and the Many viewed as as an integral whole. As such, he champions an emanational cosmology that views creation as a single harmonious theophany stemming from the One. Per Fideler, the Logos is alway everywhere, and it is the Logos (a term that defies a simple definition) that links Pythagoras to Jesus, the “Sun of God” in ancient cosmology.
If you happen to think that universals are just abstractions, you might begin to think otherwise after reading this text. You might begin to contemplate the possibility that individual existents in the time-bound Sensible world reflect universal principles in the timeless Intelligible world. But regardless of your epistemological orientation, after you read this book you’ll likely be contemplating the plethora of metaphysical esoterica in it for a long time to come.
[My 5-star Amazon review (NDA) of “Jesus Christ, Son of God: Ancient Cosmology and early Christian Symbolism” by David Fideler.]
This text is a fascinating and enlightening read on ancient cosmology, gnostic symbolism, Pythagorean number theory, and Hellenistic gematria. And though it is an uber-scholarly work (with nearly 400 sources cited in the Bibliography), it’s also an immensely readable one that non-specialists will enjoy and appreciate.
The author, David Fideler, who holds a PhD in philosophy and the history of science, takes us on an enchanting and educative journey through the ancient world that spawned Pythagoras and Jesus. Although Fideler discourses on subjects that include Hermes, Mithraism, Gnosticism, Kabbalah, and more, his fundamental orientation is a Pythagorean one that emphasizes Kosmos, the One and the Many viewed as as an integral whole. As such, he champions an emanational cosmology that views creation as a single harmonious theophany stemming from the One. Per Fideler, the Logos is alway everywhere, and it is the Logos (a term that defies a simple definition) that links Pythagoras to Jesus, the “Sun of God” in ancient cosmology.
If you happen to think that universals are just abstractions, you might begin to think otherwise after reading this text. You might begin to contemplate the possibility that individual existents in the time-bound Sensible world reflect universal principles in the timeless Intelligible world. But regardless of your epistemological orientation, after you read this book you’ll likely be contemplating the plethora of metaphysical esoterica in it for a long time to come.
