02756cam a22003373u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003704000110007804100170008905000070010610000310011324500430014426400510018730000470023833600260028533700260031133800360033750000310037350502450040450801910064952013450084053400610218565300370224665300140228385600590229785600430235699900190239971647UtSlPG20260610134645.0mcr n260607r20231915utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aBR1 aLegge, Francis,d1853-192210aForerunners and rivals of Christianity 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2023  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier  aRelease date is 2023-09-140 aPost-Christian Gnostics -- Post-Christian Gnostics: the Ophites -- Post-Christian Gnostics: Valentinus -- The system of the Pistis Sophia and its related texts -- Marcion -- The worship of Mithras -- Manes and the Manichaeism -- Conclusion.  aWouter Franssen, David King, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net. (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive.)  a"Forerunners and Rivals of Christianity: Being Studies in Religious History" by F. Legge is a historical account written in the early 20th century. This work examines the various religious movements and sects that existed in the centuries leading up to the rise of Christianity, focusing especially on Gnosticism and its interaction with early Christian thought. The text delves into the merging ideas and beliefs that influenced early Christianity, providing context for the emergence of what would become orthodox Christian doctrine.  The opening of the book sets the stage for a comprehensive exploration of post-Christian Gnostic sects, establishing that many early Christians were preoccupied with their faith during the Apostolic age, believing in an imminent divine intervention. Legge discusses how a shift in beliefs occurred by the end of the first century, as the sense of urgency diminished, prompting some converts to seek a blend between Christian tenets and existing Hellenistic religions. He details the evolution of various Gnostic sects, such as the Ophites and others, and emphasizes their complex relationships with both Judaism and early Christianity, illustrating how these heretical sects were influenced by and contributed to the broader religious landscape of the time. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  pOriginally published:cCambridge: University Press, 1915  aChristianity and other religions  aReligions4 uhttps://archive.org/details/forerunnersrival02legguoft40uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/71647  c112373d112373