Both the Gnostic Christian concepts and the Cayce readings emphasize an experiential approach to spiritual growth. During this week together, we will look to experience God in Nature and each other. Cayce and the Gnostics also acknowledged the important role of women. We will explore the role gender played in the church, the Cayce readings and in our spiritual approach today. The controversies of the first four centuries of Christianity concerning the different attitudes of Orthodox and Gnostic Christians will be explored as will Edgar Cayce’s story of Jesus and the early Christian church. By the end of the week, we will all have a broader perspective that will affect our approach to spiritual growth, to our churches and communities, and to the people we interact with each day.

In a reading for There is a River, author Thomas Sugrue asked: “Is Gnosticism the closest type of Christianity to that which was given through this source? (A) This is a parallel, and was the commonly accepted one until there began to be set rules in which there were the attempts to take short cuts. And there are none in Christianity!” Edgar Cayce Reading 5749-14

Hal Costley has been an A.R.E. member since 1969 and an avid supporter of A.R.E. Camp for many years. He is a past member of the A.R.E. Board of Trustees and an active member of the United Methodist Church. Hal lives in Richmond, Virginia with his wife Doris where they raised two children who each attended camp. Their daughter, Kathryn Bertoni, met her husband Michael at Camp and their two sons, Eli and Luca, attend each summer. A long time student of the readings, Hal’s special interest has been Cayce’s perspective of Jesus’ life and how it relates to the early history of the Christian church.