Ptolemy the Valentinian

E441615

Ptolemy the Valentinian was a prominent 2nd-century Gnostic Christian teacher and theologian associated with the Valentinian school, known for his complex cosmology and reinterpretation of Christian doctrine.

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Label Occurrences
Ptolemy the Valentinian canonical 1

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Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf 2nd-century Christian
Christian theologian
Gnostic theologian
Valentinian Gnostic
associatedWith Valentinus
linked to: Valentinianism
associatedWithSchool Valentinian school
linked to: Valentinianism
authoredWork Letter to Flora
centuryActive 2nd century
cosmologicalConcept Demiurge as creator
Pleroma of Aeons
distinction between spiritual and material realms
doctrinalElement graded understanding of the Law
tripartite distinction of humans (spiritual, psychic, material)
floruit mid-2nd century
geographicContext Roman Empire
historicalStatus early Christian heresiological figure
influencedTradition later Valentinian Gnosticism
knownFrom Epiphanius of Salamis
Irenaeus of Lyons
Letter to Flora
Pseudo-Tertullian
linked to: Tertullian

writings preserved by opponents
languageContext Greek-speaking Christian milieu
legacy important witness to Valentinian theology
key figure in the history of Christian Gnosticism
notableFor Valentinian exegesis of Paul’s letters
complex Gnostic cosmology
reinterpretation of Christian doctrine
opposedBy Irenaeus of Lyons
proto-orthodox Christian writers
religiousTradition Christianity
Gnosticism
Valentinianism
role Christian exegete
teacher
theologian
scripturalInterpretationOf Gospel traditions
Old Testament Law
linked to: Mosaic Law

Pauline epistles
linked to: Pauline Epistles
sourceType known primarily through hostile sources
theologicalFocus Christology within Valentinian Gnosticism
distinction between the supreme God and the creator
hierarchy of divine Aeons
interpretation of Mosaic Law
viewedBy Irenaeus as a heretic

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Valentinianism notableFigure Ptolemy the Valentinian