Re "Sorry, I'm just not finding any evidence that Kabbalistic teaching is 
"heavily influenced by Greek Neoplatonic and Gnostic influences."": 

 Here you go: 

 From Wiki:
 

 Sefer Yetzirah is the title of the earliest extant book on Jewish esotericism. 
The Sefer Yetzirah is similar to various Gnostic systems. As the Sefer Yetzirah 
divides the Hebrew alphabet into three groups, so the Gnostic Marcus divided 
the Greek letters into three classes, regarded by him as the symbolic 
emanations of the three powers which include the whole number of the upper 
elements. 
 

 From a Jewish studies journal:
 Both the early Jewish philosophers and the medieval Kabbalists were acquainted 
with and influenced by Platonic and Neoplatonic sources. However, while the 
medieval philosophers were much more systematic in their borrowing from 
Neoplatonic sources, especially via their transformations and transmissions 
from Arabic sources and also but more rarely from Christian sources, the 
Kabbalists were more sporadic and fragmentary in their appropriation of 
Neoplatonism. Though the emergence of Kabbalah has often been described by 
scholars as the synthesis of Neoplatonism and Gnosticism, I wonder not only 
about the role attributed to Gnosticism in the formation of early Kabbalah, but 
also about the possibly exaggerated role assigned to Neoplatonism. Not that I 
doubt the impact of Neoplatonism, but I tend to regard the Neoplatonic elements 
as somewhat less formative for the early Kabbalah than what is accepted by 
scholars. We may, however, assume a gradual accumulation of Neoplatonic. 
elements in some Kabbalistic circles over time, an accumulation that is 
dramatically increased during the Renaissance era by a renewed interest in 
Plato, Plotinus and Neoplatonism in general.

 

 From Wiki:
 Gershom Scholem (the leading scholar of the Kabbalah) was convinced that 
Kabbala is a medieval phenomenon. That is, while there are important works of 
Jewish mysticism composed before the Middle Ages, the metaphysics and cosmology 
we know as Kabbala emerges as a reaction against the rationalism of medieval 
Jewish philosophy that posits a distant and unapproachable God in line with the 
Aristotelian and Platonic (and Neoplatonic) schools. These kabbalists, while 
protesting such rationalism, were themselves very influenced by two dominant 
trends: Gnosticism and Neo-Platonism. In his Origins, Scholem traces both 
Gnostic and Neoplatonic influences on these early kabbalistic thinkers, viewing 
them as deeply embedded in their medieval context. 

 

---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <punditster@...> wrote :

 

 "Kabbalah originally developed entirely within the realm of Jewish thought":
 >
 On 12/6/2014 8:21 PM, s3raphita wrote:
 >
 Sorry but that is total bollocks. Kabbalistic teaching is heavily influenced 
by Greek Neoplatonic - and Gnostic - teaching (both philosophical and magical). 
The Jews' contribution is twofold: firstly they added Hebrew prophecy and 
poetry into the mix (which makes their writings seem less "dry" for those who 
find philosophy hard work but have been brought up in a Christian culture) and 
secondly the Jews preserved a lot of the speculation of the Late Antique Greek 
spirit when it was regarded with suspicion by the Church in its war against 
heresy and schismatics.


 >
 Sorry, I'm just not finding any evidence that Kabbalistic teaching is "heavily 
influenced by Greek Neoplatonic and Gnostic influences." Apparently the 
esoteric Kabbalah preceded by centuries any Western esoteric tradition, dating 
back to the 5th century BCE. Can you site any scholarly references for your 
information? Thanks. 
 
 Joseph Dan thinks the "Kabbalah originally developed entirely within the realm 
of Jewish thought, and Kabbalists often use classical Jewish sources to explain 
and demonstrate its esoteric teachings." These teachings are held by followers 
in Judaism to define the inner meaning of both the Hebrew Bible and traditional 
Rabbinic literature and their formerly concealed transmitted dimension, as well 
as to explain the significance of Jewish religious observances.
 
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabbalah http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabbalah
 
 "It is the underlying philosophy and framework for magical societies such as 
the Golden Dawn, Thelemic orders, mystical societies such as the Builders of 
the Adytum  and the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross, and is a precursor to the 
Neopagan, Wiccan and New Age movements."
 
 http://www.nanettemediumtarotreading.com/qabalah.html 
http://www.nanettemediumtarotreading.com/qabalah.html
 
 Work cited:
 
 Dan, Joseph. Kabbalah: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 
Chapter 1 "The term and its uses."
 


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