Lance Jenott, “Emissaries of Truth and Justice: The Seed of Seth as Agents of Divine Providence”

In contrast to worn-out clichés about world-rejection, hatred of the body, and withdrawal from society, Jenott examines a trend in Sethian Christian texts that encourages their readers to see themselves as a holy people, "the seed of Seth," sent into the world with a sense of mission and purpose to save others, heal, teach ethical values, and work toward the gradual improvement of society. Attention is given to mythological representations of Seth's progeny in their own literature, and to what Plotinus says about their actual activities and ideals in the social reality of the late Roman Empire.