It opens with a bad day. John, son of Zebedee, is walking up to the temple after the crucifixion when a Pharisee needles him about it. Your teacher deceived you, the man says, and filled your ears with lies, and John has no answer. He turns away from the temple and walks into the desert grieving, asking all the questions faith asks on its worst afternoon. How was the savior chosen, why was he sent, what is this world, and where are we going? ...
Before there was a world, there was a mistake. It was a divine one, made by Wisdom herself. The ancient Gnostics told a story that explains why the world contains both beauty and suffering, why we feel homesick for a place we’ve never been, and why the path to awakening is also the path of return. It’s the story of Sophia. And it might be your story too. The Fullness Before the Fall In the beginning, according to Gnostic teaching, there was the ineffable One. Beyond description, beyond conception, beyond any name we could give. ...