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From Pagels to Perfume

At first I thought this was a joke, but it’s not. PaleoJudaica informs us that “Thunder, Perfect Mind,” a Gnostic text found in the Nag Hammadi cache some decades ago, is now being used as the script for a Prada perfume advertisement. See for yourself on YouTube.

R.R. Reno may be right about The Return of the Fathers. But apparently their archnemeses are coming back with them. I live for the day when Arius is hawking Doritos.

7 thoughts on “From Pagels to Perfume

  1. Gnosticism = all about me. I was struck at just how narcissistic the text sounded.

  2. If it means we’ll get to see the likes of Tertullian or Irenaeus as brand names in some context – action figures, for preference – I think we should just clam up and live with it. A series of animated shorts about the Monstrous Glory of Athanasius would also be appreciated, though I’ve no idea who should be called upon to produce them.

  3. I see an anime. Yeah, that’s it.

    Actually, Athanasius would be a great anime hero. The kind with big short springy hair and a fiery temper, who is constantly champing at the bit. Arius would be all blond and languid, with long hair. Their bishop would be wise and whitehaired, but a little passive. And Athanasius could keep escaping and planning and arguing and getting exiled, just like in real life, and yet fit an anime plotline perfectly!

  4. And to think I would have settled for a Doritos commercial. You guys have holy ambition.

  5. Btw — of course Prada. Gnosticism was always a religion for elitists with lots of spare cash.

  6. You’re right, Maureen, and Arius always went for the big numbers, big crowds. He would do a Doritos ad.

  7. It’s quite the snappy title, though, isn’t it? Thunder, the Perfect Mind. The content is utter codswallop, of course, but it’s much better titled than, say, the Trimorphic Protennoia. And that’s something to keep in mind. Just as Arius spread his corruption through having his blasphemies set to catchy tunes, modern gnostic putrefaction works through, shock of shocks, its own slick advertising. What can possibly be more anti-eternity and anti-Eternal than the fashion industry? Gnosticism finds its perfect spouse at long last!

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