Gnosticism (from the Greek word gnosis which means ‘knowledge’) was a false religious worldview that seems to have placed special importance on ‘secret’ knowledge as a way to become a more ‘spiritual’ being. It was not an organised religion but rather various people and movements who held similar beliefs. This kind of belief structure existed from around the 2nd Century AD, after the New Testament Scriptures were written, although there were some early ‘gnostic-like’ beliefs during that time. They essentially believed that physical matter, including the universe and the human body, was evil and that the spiritual dimension to life was good. Thus, the goal of life was to gain greater and greater ‘secret’ knowledge in order that you might exit the physical world and exist only in the spiritual realm. The apostle Paul warns his readers against these false beliefs (Colossians 2:8-12, 1 Corinthians 1:18-25).
