Hans Blumenberg is often considered an intellectual solitaire, an "invisible philosopher" and a modern hieronym in the hermitage. But for Blumenberg's scientific work of the 1960s, the picture is very different. Julia Amslinger introduces Hans Blumenberg's interdisciplinary engagement within the research group Poetics and Hermeneutics that was founded in 1963.
Na sklonku 19. století se na Univerzitu Karlovu v Praze přihlásilo několik slovinských studentů, a to zejména díky významu profesora T. G. Masaryka. První doktorské disertační práce předložené slovinskými kandidáty patřily společenským vědám, např. disertační práce věnovaná slovinskému školskému systému v reformačním období vznikla v roce 1910, pod vedením filozofa Františka Drtiny ji připravil publicista Ivan Lah. Volba tématu byla částečně ovlivněna Masarykovým pozitivním pohledem na husitství. Na počátku 20. století byli slovinští studenti druhou největší etnickou komunitou na pražské Právnické fakultě, kterou převyšovali pouze domácí Češi. K význačným právníkům se zařazují dále Anton Leskovec a Anton Novačan (ten získal doktorát v roce 1915). Slovinci pokračovali ve studiu až do dvacátých let v Praze, zejména jako studenti jejich krajana Matiji Murka. Pod Murkovým vedením Ferdo Kozak, další významný autor, vytvořil svou disertační práci Illyrismus a Slovinci (Ilirizem in Slovenci) v roce 1922. and The close of the 19th century saw the enrolment of several Slovene students at the Charles-Ferdinand University in Prague, mostly owing to the fame of Professor Tomáš Masaryk. The earliest doctoral dissertations submitted by Slovene candidates belonged to social Sciences, but a dissertation on the Slovene school system during the Reformation was produced in 1910, prepared by Ivan Lah, a budding man of letters, and supervised by František Drtina. The choice of the theme was partly influenced by Masaryk's positive views of Hussitism. In early 20th century, Slovene students were the second largest ethnic community at the Prague Faculty of Law, outnumbered only by the Czech. Two outstanding lawyer-writers were Anton Leskovec and Anton Novačan (the latter obtained his PhD in 1915). Slovenes continued to study in Prague well into the 1920s, particularly as students of their fellow countryman Matija Murko. It was under Murko's supervision that Ferdo Kozak, another eminent author, produced his dissertation on Illyrism and Slovenes (Ilirizem in Slovenci) in 1922.
This essay argues that scholarship on gnostic texts could strongly benefit from taking into greater account elements of autochthonous ancient Egyptian religious concepts when interpreting gnostic intellectual and ritual systems. The central argument focuses on conspicuously similar roles and characteristics of female characters in both gnostic and ancient Egyptian symbolism, as witnessed especially within the Egyptian theological and ritual traditions of the so-called Great Goddesses (Isis, Neith, and Hathor). As these immensely popular cults were contemporaneous with the presumed development of various gnostic systems, this essay argues for a direct Egyptian – gnostic influence. The textual analysis focuses on a comparison of Chapter 30 of the Adversus haereses of Irenaeus of Lyon (with appropriate references to original gnostic concepts and texts) with an Egyptian cosmogonic myth located in the temple of Khonsu in Karnak, proceeding then to the analysis of select passages of NHC VI,2 (The Thunder: Perfect Mind). The essay argues that in both ancient Egyptian and gnostic sources, female characters are described as: (1) primordial deities, creators of elementary principles governing creation; (2) being in a mutual relationship of createdness with a divine male creative principle/the world; (3) androgynous/gynandrous, begetting through some type of autoerotic activity; (4) taking on primordial serpentine forms; (5) rulers of the created world; (6) mediators with the ability to connect opposing principles; (7) ambivalent and – from the androcentric optics of these symbolic systems – as possessing deeply troubling, creative/destructive abilities. These ancient Egyptian concepts would have been disseminated among Gnostics living in Egypt – for example, during the massively popular public festivals of the various Great Goddess cults at their ritual centres at Phylae, Dendera, Edfu, and Saïs.
The author comments on Leonardo Ambasciano's book An Unnatural History of Religions: Academia, Post-truth and the Quest for Scientific Knowledge (2019) and develops the line of its argument that a fideistic, sui generis, confessional History of Religions tradition continues due to the tacit support from scholars, institutions and organisations. Gnosticism is presented as a case study, showing how it exemplifies core critiques of HoR, and is supported by the same scholars and institutions, particularly the IAHR. The author then considers the recent British Academy report into Theology and Religious Studies in the UK to argue that the HoR tradition in contemporary Religious Studies is not a "problem to be solved", but rather something at the very basis of the discipline. The argument is therefore made that there cannot be a truly scientific academic study of religion while RS exists.