What Is Gnosticism

Gnosticism is a philosophical and religious movement which
started in pre-Christian times. The term is derived from the

earliest Gnostics He was skilled in the arts of magic. He
interpreted the Garden of Eden, exodus from Egypt and the

Greek word gnosis which means "knowledge". It is pronounced
with a silent "G" (NO-sis). Gnostics claimed to have secret

crossing of the Red Sea as allegories.
Marcion: (85-160 ce) he organized a series of Gnostic

knowledge about God, humanity and the rest of the universe
of which the general population was unaware. It became one

congregations in the eastern Mediterranean which survived
into the 3rd century CE. He wrote a book called Antitheses

of the three main belief systems within 1st century
Christianity, and was noted for its: novel beliefs about

which earned him excommunication by the Christian leaders of
Rome. He rejected the institution of marriage. He believed

Gods, the Bible and the world which differed from those of
other Christian groups tolerance of different religious

that the Demiurge arranged Jesus' persecution and
crucifixion. But the death of Christ on the cross was only a

beliefs within and outside of Gnosticism lack of
discrimination against women. The movement and its

hallucination, since Jesus did not have a physical body.
Valentinus: He was born in Egypt, traveled to Rome about 140

literature were essentially wiped out by the end of the 5th
century CE by heresy hunters from mainline Christianity. Its

CE and then moved to Cyprus. He was the founder of perhaps
the largest and most influential school of Gnosticism which

beliefs are currently experiencing a rebirth throughout the
world. The counter-cult movement and some other Christian

lasted until it was suppressed in the 4th century CE. He
taught that groups of Aeons made up the "pleroma (fullness)

ministries disseminate a great deal of misinformation about
the movement (10,11,12)

of the High God. One group, the Ogoad are called: Depth,
Silence, Mind, Truth, Word, Life, Man and Church. Another

Gnosticism consisted of many syncretistic belief systems

group was the Decad (10) and Dodecad (12). The last of the
Docecad was Wisdom, also called Sophia.

which combined elements taken from Asian, Babylonian,
Egyptian, Greek and Syrian pagan religions, from astrology,

Carpocrates: (circa 140 ce); he taught reincarnation. An
individual had to live many lives and adsorb a full range of

and from Judaism and Christianity. They constituted one of
the three main branches of early Christianity: the other two

experiences before being able to return to God. They
practiced free sexuality. They believed that Jesus was the

being:

son of Joseph.

the remnants of the Jewish Christian sect which was created
by Jesus' disciples, and the churches started by St. Paul,

Interaction of Gnosticism and Early Mainline Christianity

that were eventually to grow and develop into "mainline"
Christianity by the end of the third century.

Some Gnostic beliefs and leaders may have infiltrated
mainline Christianity and influenced the authors of the

By the second century CE, many very different

Christian Scriptures (New Testament)

Christian-Gnostic sects had formed within the Roman Empire
at the eastern end of the Mediterranean. Some Gnostics

Some theologians believe that the Carpocratian Gnostics were
the target of Jude's attack about "...certain men" who "

have secretly slipped in among you,". The book of Jude,
Verses 4 to 19, deals mainly with these infiltrators.

Others formed separate communities. Still others were
solitary practitioners.

Simon Magus, an early Gnostic, may have been the Simon

As mainline Christianity grew in strength and organization,

mentioned in Acts 8:9-24. simon believed in Jesus and was
baptized with a group of other believers. But none had

Gnostic sects came under increasing pressure and
persecution. They almost disappeared by the 6th century. The

received the Holy Spirit until Peter and John placed their
hands on the new converts. Simon asked for the laying on of

only group to have survived into modern times is the
Mandaean sect of Iraq and Iran. This group has about 15,000

the apostles' hands and even offered money. Peter refused,
because Simon's heart was not right with God.

members (one source says 1,500), and can trace their history
continuously back to the original Gnostic movement.

Matthew 4:8-9 describes how Satan took Jesus to a very high

Many new emerging religions in the West have adopted ancient

mountain and offered him all of the kingdoms of the world if
Jesus would only bow down and worship him. This passage has

Gnostic beliefs and practices.

always been difficult to understand, because it implies that
the world belonged to the Devil and was his to give away to