Pistis Sophia

Pistis Sophia — G. R. S. Mead — Section 34

as we see from the title of his work, to be written by the hand of Valentinus ; but Petermann is of the opinion that it is the work of an Ophite, and promises to set forth his reasons at length in a treatise, which has unfortunately never seen the light. Kcistlin and Schmidt also hold this view, and as far as the Extracts from the Books of the Saviour are concerned, I see no reason why there should not be some truth in the idea. For we may connect these Books closely with the Books of leou, and the latter connect us at once with the Enochian literature. The Ophites were pre-Valentinian and mostly Syrian. They were the first to take the distinct name of Gnostics. Some of their books were translated into Greek. This fits in with the hypothesis put forth above that Valentinus compiled the Books of the Saviour from a prior set of Gnostic writings. The Melchisedecian ideas would also come through the Syrian Gnosis, and be cognate to the Enochian tradition. A review of Schwartze's work appeared in the Journal des Savants of 1852 (p. 333). j. 1852. Bunsen (C. C. J.). Hippolytus und seine Zeit, Anfange und Aussichten des Christenthums uud der Mensch- heit (Leipzig), i. 47, 48. Hipijolytus and his Age (London, 1852), i. 61, 62. "Great, therefore, were my hopes in 1842, that the ancient Coptic manuscript of the British Museum, inscribed Sophia, might be a translation, or at least an extract, from that lost text-book of Gnosticism [the work quoted by Hippolytus, sub Valent.] : but unfortunately the accurate and trustworthy labours of that patient and conscientious Coptic scholar, Dr. Schwartze, so early taken away from us, have proved to me (for 1 have seen and perused his manuscript, which I hope will soon appear), that this Coptic treatise is a most worthless (I trust, purely Coptic) oftshoot of the Marcosian heresy, of the latest and stupidest mysticism about letters, sounds, and words." Bunsen stands absolutely alone in this opinion, and we doubt whether he could have read Schwartze's MS, with any care. xl INTRODUCTION.