The Gnostic Origins of Roman Catholicism Paperback – November 1, 2013

Very well done research. Helped me to understand the RCC’s history outside of the official Church position.

All of this authors books are smaller than your average book but that's only because I find this author cuts to the chase and is a real page turner. Nothing but facts, most (if not all) of his facts are historically cited which is a must for such claims within books like this. I ordered about 6 of his books after reading just one and all of them share the same intrigue and interest. I think this is my favorite one so far. Although I disagree with the authors understanding of who the antichrist religion is, that's not to take anything away from his historical research and facts on the Catholic church. I personally conclude the antichrist religion is Islam, and not Roman Catholicism - but again, this is up for theological debate that has no bearing of my love for this author.

This book is not a deep theological work; however, it does lay out a historical continuum that puts into focus some of the divisions that exist in the church today. Dr. Ken's book provides an excellent, brief overview of what happened and how it has impacted Biblical Christianity today. It is an excellent starter book for the non-theologically inclined. Rome became the dominant church in the 3rd century AD because of its geographical location. Bishops from around the Mediterranean Sea met yearly and the objective was to keep to a minimum of travel time to gather as a body of church bishops. As such, Rome was the most central for gathering together to discuss church and faith issues. Sadly because power has a tendency to corrupt, Rome gained power through being the host city for the bishops. However, not all the bishops liked what was occurring in the growing Roman church. As history has shown us when people get power, they don't want to lose it, and go to great lengths to keep power and strengthen their holds on that power. "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely!"Rome's practice was not to exalt truth, but to adapt by merging pagan customs and ideas, into the doctrines of the faith. Rome incorporated so many of the Babylonian Mystery Religious beliefs into the church and shouted down dissent over the centuries that followed. Dr. Ken's book can be appreciated because he has synthesized nearly 2,000 years of Roman Catholicism. In the larger frame of understanding, you gain insights as to why Rome has not changed, whether it be the Council of Trent or Vatican II. Rome has not changed and as they say, all roads lead to Rome.Rome set the theological course of history by its "Allegorical" interpretation of Scripture, and its teachings that the Church "Replaced" Israel in God's plan of history. Neither of which is proper in the first point, and second because it is not Biblical. It chose the "Allegorical" interpretation of Scripture because the book of Revelation was just a bit too much looking like Rome. As to the Church "replacing" Israel, known as "supersessionism" is Biblical heresy. The Apostle Paul made a clear explanation of Israel and its future in the Epistle of Romans, especially chapters 9-12. Rome is the responsible party for "anti-Semitism". Doubt it, read the words of Martin Luther concerning the Jews. They [Luther's comments] became the grist of Adolf Hitler's "Final Solution" for the Jews.Dr. Ken's book comes along at a time when the Ecumenical movement has given the impression that the Roman Catholic Church has changed. This little book corrects the big picture.Rev. Robert H. Reid

The information brought together in this book is revealing and should be a warning to those in power as well as those individuals under the influence of those in power.... the Roman Catholic Church. The author of this book has organized the information in a manor that is easy to read with each chapter building upon the last. In this book Ken Johnson collects the early church father's doctrinal foundations and warnings made to the Roman Church and shows how those doctrines and warning have been ignored to this day! There are tons of references and notes to allow the reader to follow up and verify Ken's research. I highly recommend this book for all people but especially for individuals seeking to better understand God's Word.

This book is a great tool to study especially if you know Catholics in order to be able to weights to them as most Catholics do not even know what they believe and so they actually serve

An easy read, fascinating information backed up by historical data and writings by the early Church Fathers. Clearly shows where the Roman Church went astray. A must Read for those who question the virtues of Catholic Church !

I was amazed at the scholarship, that actual heresy started in Rome with the leadership in the first century...The apostle John's disciples are listed and quoted as having successfully rebuked the out of control church in Rome, making up their own doctrine contradictory to scripture until......excellent historical read for those coming out of Roman Catholicism or wanting to better understand the scriptural divide between Catholicism and Protestantism.

I own and have read a decent amount of the Ante-Nicene Fathers. I also have read a large portion of David Bercot’s works, and with that said, I found agreement with much of what the author examined. But, the few times I had questions and sought directions to the author’s sources, I found troubling and questionable practices for documenting his research as presented in the attached photo. Why the author would avoid citing the source and elect to list his prior published works in the bibliography leads me to question his research.