Thought of Norea
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The Thought of Norea is a Sethian Gnostic text. It is the second of three treatises in Codex IX of the Nag Hammadi library texts, taking up pages 27–29 of the codex's 74 pages.[1] The text consists of only 52 lines,[2] making it one of the shortest treatises in the entire library.[3] The work is untitled; editor Birger A. Pearson created the title from the phrase "the thought of Norea" (Sahidic Coptic: ⲦⲚⲞⲎⲤⲒⲤ Ⲛ̅ⲚⲞⲢⲈⲀ) that appears in the final sentence of the text.[4] The text expands Norea's plea for deliverance from the archons in Hypostasis of the Archons.[4] It is divided into four parts: an invocation, Norea's cry and deliverance, her activity in the Pleroma, and salvation.
The text was discovered in Nag Hammadi, Egypt in 1945[5] as one of the 51 total treatises transcribed into the 13 codices that make up the Nag Hammadi library.[6] The codices had been buried around 400 AD.[7] The authorship of the original text is estimated to the late second century [3] or early third century.[8] The text gives no indication of its author. [8]
The writing is a Coptic translation of a Greek original. The Coptic manuscript contains grammatical mistakes such as incorrectly conjugated verbs, [9] and at one point misspells Norea's name as ⲛⲟⲣⲉⲁ instead of ⲛⲱⲣⲉⲁ.[10][11] The text is only 52 lines long, and appears to be self contained rather than an excerpt of a longer work. The manuscript is untitled, although the phrase "thought of Norea" appears in the body of the text.[2] Birger Pearson describes its genre as a "prose hymn".[9]
Along with the rest of the works in the Nag Hammadi library, the text was translated into English and published in The Nag Hammadi Library in English in 1977.[12] The publication was part of the work of the Coptic Gnostic Library Project, which began in 1966 at Claremont Graduate University.[5]
Summary
The brief text consists of four sections: An invocation of the Father of All, Norea's cry for help and subsequent rescue, a description of her in the Pleroma, and a prophecy of salvation for Norea and her children. [9]
Norea calls out to Father of All, Ennoia of the Light, who dwells in the heights. Her cry is heard and she is welcomed eternally. She is given a place in the Father of Nous, Adamas, and the voice of the Holy Ones. She rests in the indescribable Epinoia and inherits the first mind she received. She rests in the divine Autogenes and generates herself. She possesses the living Logos and joins the Imperishable Ones, speaking with the mind of the Father. She speaks words of Life and stays in the presence of the Exalted One, having what she received before the world existed. She has the great mind of the Invisible One, glorifying her Father, dwelling within those in the Pleroma, and she beholds the Pleroma. There will be days when she sees the Pleroma completely, supported by the four holy helpers who intercede for her with the Father of the All, Adamas. Adamas possesses Norea's thought, is within all Adams, and talks about the two names that create a single name.[13]
