Gnosticism refers to a variety of religio-philosophical traditions going back to the times of the Egyptians and the Babylonians. All forms of Gnosticism involved the idea that the world is made up of matter and mind or spirit, with matter considered negative or even evil, and mind or spirit positive. Gnostics believe that we can progress towards an ultimate or pure form of spirit (God) by attaining secret knowledge -- “the way” as announced by a savior sent by God.

The details of the various gnostic sects depended on the mythological metaphors used -- Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek, Jewish, Christian... Gnosticism overall was heavily influenced by Persian religions (Zoroastrianism, Mithraism) and by Platonic philosophy.

There was a strong dependence on astrology (which they inherited from the Babylonians). Especially significant are the seven planets, which represent the seven spheres the soul must pass through to reach God. Magical incantations and formulas, often of Semitic origins, were also important.

When Christianity hit the stage, gnosticism adapted to it quickly, and began to promote itself as a higher, truer form of Christianity. The theology looked like this:

At first, there was just God (a kind of absolute). Then there were emanations from God called his sons or aions. The youngest of these aions was Sophia, wisdom and the first female “son.” Sophia had a flaw, which was pride, which then infected the rest of the universe. We need to undo this flaw (original sin) but we cannot do it on our own. We need a savior aion, who could release Sophia from the bonds of error and restore her to her status as an emanation of God.

Worship among the gnostics included baptism, confirmation, and the eucharist. In fact, it is likely that several of the non-canonical gospels were written by Christian gnostics, and some say that John was a gnostic.

Gnosticism was strongly refuted by the early Christian Church in the 100’s and 200’s, as well as by the neo-Platonists, like Plotinus, who saw it as a corruption of Plato’s thought. In fact, of course, the reason for the animosity was more a matter of how similar gnosticism was to Christianity and neo-Platonism!