1. If Gnosticism had succeeded in implanting its own distinctive ideas into Christian thought, Christian theology would be different in many fundamental ways. Because Christian theology has a strong foundation insofar as its teachings are concerned, the very structure and nature of Christian theology would be radically altered if Gnosticism had been influential. For instance, Christianity holds true the idea that Jesus Christ was in fact human. It is believed that Jesus was born a human, died a human and was resurrected human. This in turn gave support to the notion that there exists an afterlife for those who die. Gnostics do not share this belief. In fact, Gnostics claim that Jesus could not have been human but instead took on a human appearance to free human from evil that was caused by the material world. Therefore, if Christian thought had taken Gnostic overtones, the whole concept of Jesus and resurrection would be invalid.
             Insofar as the concept of good and evil are concerned, Gnosticism also held a differing view from Christians. Although Gnostics borrowed from Christianity to form many of their beliefs, there remain several discrepancies in many areas. One of those areas is how good and evil are viewed. To Gnostics, the material world is evil and since our world is indeed material, then the creator of our world must not be good, since good would only come from something perfect. Therefore, God is not seen as a good being. Gnostics thus claims that in order to be freed from the evil from our material world, we must also be freed from our material body, but this can only be accomplished through secret knowledge. Christianity claims that we can be freed from evil through faith in Jesus Christ and the material world is not viewed as inherently evil. In fact, anyone who chooses to follow the fundamental teachings of Christianity is free to do so provided they adhere to its message. Therefor!
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