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Elaine Pagels

85quotes

Elaine Pagels


Full Name and Common Aliases


Elaine Hedges Pagels is a prominent American scholar of early Christian history and the New Testament.

Birth and Death Dates


Born on September 12, 1943, there is no public information on her date of death.

Nationality and Profession(s)


American; Professor of Religion at Princeton University

Early Life and Background


Elaine Pagels grew up in a devout Christian family. Her early life was marked by an intense interest in spirituality and theology. She earned her BA from Barnard College, followed by an MA and Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Harvard Divinity School.

Major Accomplishments


Pagels is recognized for her groundbreaking work on the history of Christianity, particularly in relation to the Gnostic movement. Her research has focused on understanding the early Christian texts that were excluded from the New Testament canon. She has shed light on these texts' significance and their role in shaping modern Christian theology.

Notable Works or Actions


Some notable works by Elaine Pagels include:

_The Gnostic Gospels_ (1989), a comprehensive exploration of Gnostic texts and their implications for understanding early Christianity.
 _Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas_ (2003), an in-depth analysis of the Gospel of Thomas, which offers insights into Jesus' teachings and the nature of early Christian communities.
* _The Origin of Satan_ (2010), a study on the evolution of Satan as a concept within Judaism and Christianity.

Pagels has also been involved in various academic and public initiatives to promote critical thinking about religion and its role in society.

Impact and Legacy


Elaine Pagels' work has had a significant impact on the field of early Christian studies. Her scholarship has influenced how scholars, theologians, and lay readers approach the study of Christianity's complex history. By shedding light on previously marginalized texts, she has encouraged a more nuanced understanding of the diverse perspectives within early Christianity.

Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered


Elaine Pagels' contributions to the field have earned her recognition as one of the leading scholars in early Christian studies. Her ability to make complex theological concepts accessible and engaging has made her work appealing to both academic and general audiences. As a result, she is widely quoted and remembered for her thought-provoking insights on the nature of faith and its historical development.

Quotes by Elaine Pagels

Elaine Pagels's insights on:

The story of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas gave a moral and religious rationale to anti-Jewish sentiment, and that’s what made it persistent and vicious.
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The story of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas gave a moral and religious rationale to anti-Jewish sentiment, and that’s what made it persistent and vicious.
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He’s an intimate betrayer. That’s what’s so troubling. Judas turned in his own teacher.
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He’s an intimate betrayer. That’s what’s so troubling. Judas turned in his own teacher.
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The efforts of the majority to destroy every trace of heretical ‘blasphemy’ proved so successful that, until the discoveries at Nag Hammadi, nearly all our information concerning alternative forms of early Christianity came from the massive orthodox attacks upon them.
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The efforts of the majority to destroy every trace of heretical ‘blasphemy’ proved so successful that, until the discoveries at Nag Hammadi, nearly all our information concerning alternative forms of early Christianity came from the massive orthodox attacks upon them.
EP
The Book of Revelation is the strangest book in the Bible, and the most controversial. Instead of stories and moral teaching, it offers only visions – dreams and nightmares, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, earthquakes, plagues and war.
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The Book of Revelation is the strangest book in the Bible, and the most controversial. Instead of stories and moral teaching, it offers only visions – dreams and nightmares, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, earthquakes, plagues and war.
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It is the winners who write history – their way.
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It is the winners who write history – their way.
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Although the gospels of the New Testament-- like those discovered at Nag Hammadi-- are attributed to Jesus' followers, no one knows who actually wrote any of them.
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Although the gospels of the New Testament-- like those discovered at Nag Hammadi-- are attributed to Jesus' followers, no one knows who actually wrote any of them.
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#new-testament
Christians have ... identified their opponents, whether Jews, pagans, or heretics, with forces of evil, and so with Satan... Nor have things improved since. The blood-soaked history of persecution, torture, murder, and destruction perpetrated in the name of religion is difficult to grasp, let alohne summarize, from the slaughter of Christians to the Crusades to the Inquisitiion to the Reformation to the European witchcraze to colonialization to today's bitter coflict in the Middle East.
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Christians have ... identified their opponents, whether Jews, pagans, or heretics, with forces of evil, and so with Satan... Nor have things improved since. The blood-soaked history of persecution, torture, murder, and destruction perpetrated in the name of religion is difficult to grasp, let alohne summarize, from the slaughter of Christians to the Crusades to the Inquisitiion to the Reformation to the European witchcraze to colonialization to today's bitter coflict in the Middle East.
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#names
There is a light within each person, and it lights up the whole universe. If it does not shine, there is darkness.
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There is a light within each person, and it lights up the whole universe. If it does not shine, there is darkness.
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#shining
The efforts of the majority to destroy every trace of heretical 'blasphemy' proved so successful that, until the discoveries at Nag Hammadi, nearly all our information concerning alternative forms of early Christianity came from the massive orthodox attacks upon them.
"
The efforts of the majority to destroy every trace of heretical 'blasphemy' proved so successful that, until the discoveries at Nag Hammadi, nearly all our information concerning alternative forms of early Christianity came from the massive orthodox attacks upon them.
EP
#discovery
The idea that each individual has intrinsic, God-given value and is of infinite worth quite apart from any social contribution - an idea most pagans would have rejected as absurd - persists today as the ethical basis of western law and politics. Our secularized western idea of democratic society owes much to that early Christian vision of a new society - a society no longer formed by the natural bonds of family, tribe, or nation but by the voluntary choice of its members.
"
The idea that each individual has intrinsic, God-given value and is of infinite worth quite apart from any social contribution - an idea most pagans would have rejected as absurd - persists today as the ethical basis of western law and politics. Our secularized western idea of democratic society owes much to that early Christian vision of a new society - a society no longer formed by the natural bonds of family, tribe, or nation but by the voluntary choice of its members.
EP
#ideas
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