There is a tremendous thirst today for finding the hidden truths of Christianity - truths that may have been lost or buried by institutional religion over the last two millennia. Many people are now are seeking out these lost traditions, hoping to find an alternative to stale dogmas and blind beliefs. Forbidden Faith addresses one of the most interesting of these lost traditions, Gnosticism. The Gnostics were a school of spiritual seekers who flourished in the late Roman Empire between the first and fourth centuries C.E. They often competed with the nascent Church until Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire and suppressed its rivals by force. But the quest for gnosis did not die. It has survived in many forms, influencing medieval mystics, Crusaders, Kabbalists, Freemasons, the Enlightenment, and even films like the "Matrix" trilogy.

Richard Smoley is one of the world's leading authorities on the mystical and esoteric teachings of Western civilization. Educated at Harvard and Oxford, he worked at a wide range of journalistic positions before becoming editor of Gnosis from 1990 to 1999. He is the coauthor (with Jay Kinney) of Hidden Wisdom: A Guide to the Western Inner Traditions (Penguin Arkana, 1999), and is the author of Inner Christianity: A Guide to the Esoteric Tradition (Shambhala, 2002). "Richard Smoley's survey of Gnosticism is replete with fascinating conceptual reflection and historical detail. Erudite and lively, this enlightening text on the breadth and influence of Gnosticism is essential." - Willis Barnstone, author of The Gnostic Bible and The Other Bible.