Principles of the Order of Allogenes

As an independent collective of Gnostics, the Order of Allogenes (OA) has been established according to the following Principles:

1. That the discovery of the manuscripts at Nag Hammadi in 1945 (the NHL)– and more importantly their publication in translation– changed the state of Modern Gnosticism. Until the publication of these manuscripts, Gnosticism was a subject for individuals involved in extant Gnostic traditions and scholars of Coptic and church history. The living information contained in the NHL text, as unwittingly prophecied by Philip Dick, was borne into the “information age.”

2. That with the publication of the NHL, this living information was released into the general public, when previously it had not been available. It also had a deeper effect, in that it made Gnostic concepts available to anyone who had the interest.

3. That the Christos/Sophia tend to manifest within each age depending upon the Zeitgeist of that age. In other words, we can expect the power of the Pleroma to expand to fill its greatest possible potential within any given age. It will always go as far as it is able, as far as necessity has planned for it.

4. That, given the information-rich nature of our era, the Pleroma is breaking into the World of Forms in many, many ways. As such, the Apostolic spirit is extending outside of the boundaries of traditional Apostolic Succession.

5. That so many individuals are learning about Gnosticism, so many people are interested in seeking gnosis, and that event though extant Gnostic organizations are growing, alternative forms are also growing. Our individualistic society which so values personal freedom is producing individual seekers who look to Gnosticism and to Sophia and the Christos outside of the Ecclesiastical model.

6. That the Order of Allogenes will seek to meet the needs of those individuals who either have no access to Ecclesiastical Gnostic organizations but wish to participate in the Gnostic tradition, or who choose to approach Gnosticism in its post-modern, post-NHL context as “independent” practitioners. The Order will allow those who need individual expression during spirituality a chance to nurture this expression through the development of personal, individual sacrament.

7. That the OA will very much be a product of the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries. It will be something new; it will be a modern form of Gnosticism, as much the product of our age as the Valentinians were a product of cosmopolitan Alexandria, or the Albigensians a product of the 11th Century Languedoc. In many ways it will not resemble traditional Gnosticism whatsoever, but it will remain true to the core and essential facets of the Gnosticism of our forefathers.