In Gnosticism and other Western mystical traditions, the divine spark is the portion of God that resides within each human being.[1]
In these theologies, the purpose of life is to enable the Divine Spark to be released from its captivity in matter and reestablish its connection with or simply return to God, who is perceived as being the source of the Divine Light. In the Gnostic Christian tradition, Christ is seen as a wholly divine being which has taken human form in order to lead humanity back to the Light.[2]
The Cathars of medieval Europe also shared the belief in the divine spark.[3] They saw this idea expressed most powerfully in the opening words of the Gospel of St John.
See also
- Cathars
- Gnosticism
- The Vitalist idea of the divine spark as cause of life
References
- ^ Søren Giversen, Tage Petersen, Jørgen Podemann Sørensen (2002). The Nag Hammadi Texts in the History of Religions. p. 157. ISBN 8778762839.
- ^ Jerome Friedman (1978). Michael Servetus: A Case Study in Total Heresy. p. 142. ISBN 2600030751.
- ^ Dan Burton, David Grandy (2004). Magic, Mystery, and Science: The Occult in Western Civilization. ISBN 0253343720.