Neander was one of the greatest religious historians to have ever lived. In this abbreviated version of a larger work, he covers the current of Gnostic ideas during the formation of Christianity. This topic is important because it outlines all of the competitive beliefs that were at work at the time and how they affected the Christian struggle in both good and bad ways. This rare book may cause one to never look at Christianity in quite the same way again, due to its immense scholarship and interesting array of facts.