Andrew Phillip Smith was born and grew up in Penarth in South Wales in the United Kingdom and took his degree in computer science at the University College of Wales, Swansea. From 1987, Andrew worked in computing in London, including a two-year stint providing technical support for the publishers Harcourt Brace. From 1997-2007 Andrew lived in Northern California near the Sierra Nevada mountain range, where he began his writing career. In his time he busked on the streets of London playing a small harp, delivering leaflets, working as a security guard, as a letterpress printer, and as a librarian to a private library. He now lives in Dublin, Ireland, with his wife Tessa Finn and his son Dylan. In addition to writing, Andrew edits The Gnostic, a small press magazine devoted to Gnosticism in all its forms and runs Bardic Press, a small publishing company publishing reprints and niche works in the areas of Gnosticism and early Christianity, Celtic interest, Gurdjieff/Fourth Way and Sufi poetry. His interests include early Christianity and Gnosticism, esoterica, Welsh and other Celtic mythology, the Fourth Way, graphic novels, and poetry. He is learning to play the uilleann pipes, the irish bagpipes.
A Dictionary of Gnosticism is a valuable resource for any student
of Gnosis. If you need a helpful translator of the language, or a
sympathetic guide to the beliefs of these extraordinary women and
men who lived a long time ago, in a world far, far away, then this
is the book for you. Think of it as the 'Lonely Cosmos Guide to
Gnosis', and always pack a copy when you are setting out for that
strange and exciting country. Have a great trip!
--Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, authors of The Jesus Mysteries and
The Gospel of the Second Coming
-- "Reviews"
A long-awaited and indispensable grammar of classical Gnosticism -
essential for any serious student, and a practical gem for the
curious.
--Jordan Stratford, author of Living Gnosticism
-- "Reviews"
More than a dictionary for reference and research, this book is an
index of ideas and suggestions. Readers interested in Gnosticism
and related alternative religions of earlier times will find a
whole host of new ideas and leads and directions for further
inquiry. Think of the book as a thousand starting points for your
explorations into spiritual unknowns --Stevan Davies, Professor of
Religious Studies, Misericordia University-- "Reviews"
Not only is this an excellent aid for anyone trying to make sense
out of the complicated cosmologies and scriptures of the ancient
Gnostics, but it also provides an overview of gnostic movements and
mystics down through the centuries.
--Jay Kinney, author of The Masonic Myth and The Inner West
-- "Reviews"
This book is the answer to the prayers of students and
practitioners of Gnosticism from far and wide. Andrew Phillip Smith
has given us a readable, informative and accurate compendium of
words, names and concepts of Gnostic interest that will be welcomed
and used abundantly.
--Dr. Stephan A. Hoeller, Bishop of the Ecclesia Gnostica and
author of Gnosticism: New Light on the Ancient Tradition of Inner
Knowing-- "Reviews"
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