Q. 1. What is the gnostic heresy of "Manichaeism?"

A. 1. The gnostic heresy of "Manichaeism" was founded in 210-276 by Mani, an Iranian, who was viewed as a prophet.

It is a major dualistic religion that states good and evil are equally powerful, and that material things are evil. Emperor Theodosius I condemned this heresy by decree in 382.

This religion thrived between the 3rd and 7th centuries and appears to have died out before the 16th century in southern China.