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Severian Encratites
The Severians were a sect of gnostic Encratites. Epiphanius supposes their leader Severus to have preceded Tatian (founder of Encratites) but Eusebius, Theodoret, and Jerome make him Tatian's successor. These latter authorities are followed by most ecclesiastical historians, and the silence of Irenaeus and Hippolytus regarding Severus renders the later date most probable. Ephiphanius ascribes to the Severians a belief in the well known Gnostic power Ialdaboth (Yaldabaoth) who appears in the Ophite system as the first offspring of Bythus and Ennoia. The Severians held that Ialdaboth was a great ruler of the powers, that from him sprung the Devil: that the Devil being cast down to the earth in the form of the serpent produced the vine, whose snake-like tendrils indicate its origin: that the Devil also created woman and the lower half of man.Dictionary of Sects, Heresies, Ecclesiastical Parties, John Henry Blunt See also *Gnosticism Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Encratites
The Encratites ("self-controlled") were an ascetic 2nd-century sect of Christians who forbade marriage and counselled abstinence from meat. Eusebius says that Tatian was the author of this heresy. It has been supposed that it was these Gnostic Encratites who were chastised in the epistle of 1 Timothy (4:1-4). Early history The first mention of a Christian sect of this name occurs in Irenæus. They are mentioned more than once by Clement of Alexandria, who says that they are named from "Temperance". Hippolytus of Rome refers to them as "acknowledging what concerns God and Christ in like manner with the Church; in respect, however, of their mode of life, passing their days inflated with pride"; "abstaining from animal food, being water-drinkers and forbidding to marry"; "estimated Cynics rather than Christians". On the strength of this passage it is supposed that some Encratites were perfectly orthodox in doctrine, and erred only in practice. Origen says they did not acknowledge St ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epiphanius Of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis ( grc-gre, Ἐπιφάνιος; c. 310–320 – 403) was the bishop of Salamis, Cyprus, at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gained a reputation as a strong defender of orthodoxy. He is best known for composing the ''Panarion'', a very large compendium of the heresies up to his own time, full of quotations that are often the only surviving fragments of suppressed texts. According to Ernst Kitzinger, he "seems to have been the first cleric to have taken up the matter of Christian religious images as a major issue", and there has been much controversy over how many of the quotations attributed to him by the Byzantine Iconoclasts were actually by him. Regardless of this he was clearly strongly against some contemporary uses of images in the church. Life Epiphanius was either born into a Romaniote Christian family or became a Christian in his youth. Either way, he w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Severus (Encratite)
Severus is the name of various historical and fictional figures, including: ;Emperors of the Roman empire *Septimius Severus (145–211), Roman emperor from 193 to 211 (rarely known as ''Severus I.'') *Severus Caracalla (188–217), Roman emperor from 198 to 217 *Severus Alexander (208–235), Roman emperor from 222 to 235 *Valerius Severus, Roman emperor in the tetrarchy from 306 to 307 (rarely known as ''Severus II.'') *Libius Severus, Roman emperor from 461 to 465 (rarely known as ''Severus III.'') ;Other individuals *Quintus Varius Severus, Roman politician from the late Republic * Aulus Caecina Severus, Roman general and politician *Claudius Severus, leader of the Helvetii in 69 *Cornelius Severus, Roman epic poet in Augustan age *Sextus Julius Severus, 2nd-century Roman general *Severus (Encratite), founder of the gnostic sect Severian Encratites *Gaius Claudius Severus, Roman senator and consul in 112 **Gnaeus Claudius Severus Arabianus, Roman philosopher, senator and consul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tatian
Tatian of Adiabene, or Tatian the Syrian or Tatian the Assyrian, (; la, Tatianus; grc, Τατιανός; syc, ܛܛܝܢܘܣ; c. 120 – c. 180 AD) was an Assyrian Christian writer and theologian of the 2nd century. Tatian's most influential work is the Diatessaron, a Biblical paraphrase, or "harmony", of the four gospels that became the standard text of the four gospels in the Syriac-speaking churches until the 5th-century, after which it gave way to the four separate gospels in the Peshitta version. Life Concerning the date and place of his birth, little is known beyond what Tatian tells about himself in his ''Oratio ad Graecos'', chap. xlii (''Ante-Nicene Fathers'', ii. 81–82): that he was born in "the land of the Assyrians", scholarly consensus is that he died c. AD 185, perhaps in Adiabene. He travelled to Rome, where he first encountered Christianity. During his prolonged stay in Rome, according to his own representation, his abhorrence of the pagan cults sparked deep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian polemicist. In about AD 314 he became the bishop of Caesarea Maritima in the Roman province of Syria Palaestina. Together with Pamphilus, he was a scholar of the biblical canon and is regarded as one of the most learned Christians during late antiquity. He wrote ''Demonstrations of the Gospel'', '' Preparations for the Gospel'' and ''On Discrepancies between the Gospels'', studies of the biblical text. As "Father of Church History" (not to be confused with the title of Church Father), he produced the ''Ecclesiastical History'', ''On the Life of Pamphilus'', the ''Chronicle'' and ''On the Martyrs''. He also produced a biographical work on Constantine the Great, the first Christian Roman emperor, who was ''augustus'' between AD 306 and A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theodoret
Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus ( grc-gre, Θεοδώρητος Κύρρου; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivotal role in several 5th-century Byzantine Church controversies that led to various ecumenical acts and schisms. He wrote against Cyril of Alexandria's ''12 Anathemas'' which were sent to Nestorius and did not personally condemn Nestorius until the Council of Chalcedon. His writings against Cyril were included in the Three Chapters Controversy and were condemned at the Second Council of Constantinople. Some Chalcedonian and East Syriac Christians regard him as a "full" saint. Biography According to Tillemont, he was born at Antioch in 393, and died either at Cyrrhus ("about a two-days' journey east of Antioch" or eighty Roman miles), or at the monastery near Apamea (fifty-four miles south-east of Antioch) about 457. The following facts ab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. Jerome was born at Stridon, a village near Emona on the border of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia and Pannonia. He is best known for his translation of the Bible into Latin (the translation that became known as the Vulgate) and his commentaries on the whole Bible. Jerome attempted to create a translation of the Old Testament based on a Hebrew version, rather than the Septuagint, as Vetus Latina, Latin Bible translations used to be performed before him. His list of writings is extensive, and beside his biblical works, he wrote polemical and historical essays, always from a theologian's perspective. Jerome was known for his teachings on Christian moral life, especially to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Irenaeus
Irenaeus (; grc-gre, Εἰρηναῖος ''Eirēnaios''; c. 130 – c. 202 AD) was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the development of Christian theology by combating heterodox or Gnostic interpretations of Scripture as heresy and defining the Catholic and Orthodox doctrines of the Apostolic Churches. Originating from Smyrna, he had seen and heard the preaching of Polycarp, who in turn was said to have heard John the Evangelist, and thus was the last-known living connection with the Apostles. Chosen as bishop of Lugdunum, now Lyon, his best-known work is '' Against Heresies'', often cited as ''Adversus Haereses'', a refutation of gnosticism, in particular that of Valentinus. To counter the doctrines of the gnostic sects claiming secret wisdom, he offered three pillars of orthodoxy: the scriptures, the tradition handed down from the apostles, and the tea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hippolytus Of Rome
Hippolytus of Rome (, ; c. 170 – c. 235 AD) was one of the most important second-third century Christian theologians, whose provenance, identity and corpus remain elusive to scholars and historians. Suggested communities include Rome, Palestine, Egypt, Anatolia and other regions of the Middle East. The best historians of literature in the ancient church, including Eusebius of Caesarea and Jerome, openly confess they cannot name where Hippolytus the biblical commentator and theologian served in leadership. They had read his works but did not possess evidence of his community. Photios I of Constantinople describes him in his '' Bibliotheca'' (cod. 121) as a disciple of Irenaeus, who was said to be a disciple of Polycarp, and from the context of this passage it is supposed that he suggested that Hippolytus so styled himself. This assertion is doubtful. One older theory asserts he came into conflict with the popes of his time and seems to have headed a schismatic group as a rival ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Demiurge
In the Platonic, Neopythagorean, Middle Platonic, and Neoplatonic schools of philosophy, the demiurge () is an artisan-like figure responsible for fashioning and maintaining the physical universe. The Gnostics adopted the term ''demiurge''. Although a fashioner, the demiurge is not necessarily the same as the Creator figure in the monotheistic sense, because the demiurge itself and the material from which the demiurge fashions the universe are both considered consequences of something else. Depending on the system, they may be considered either uncreated and eternal or the product of some other entity. The word ''demiurge'' is an English word derived from ''demiurgus'', a Latinised form of the Greek or . It was originally a common noun meaning "craftsman" or "artisan", but gradually came to mean "producer", and eventually "creator". The philosophical usage and the proper noun derive from Plato's ''Timaeus'', written 360 BC, where the demiurge is presented as the crea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ophites
The Ophites, also called Ophians (Greek Ὀφιανοί ''Ophianoi'', from ὄφις ''ophis'' "snake"), were a Christian Gnostic sect depicted by Hippolytus of Rome (170–235) in a lost work, the ''Syntagma'' ("arrangement"). It is now thought that later accounts of these "Ophites" by Pseudo-Tertullian, Philastrius and Epiphanius of Salamis are all dependent on the lost ''Syntagma'' of Hippolytus. It is possible rather than an actual sectarian name Hippolytus may have invented "Ophite" as a generic term for what he considered heretical speculations concerning the serpent of Genesis or Moses. Apart from the sources directly dependent on Hippolytus (Pseudo-Tertullian, Philastrius and Epiphanius), Origen and Clement of Alexandria also mention the group. The group is mentioned by Irenaeus in ''Adversus Haereses''1:30. Pseudo-Tertullian Pseudo-Tertullian (probably the Latin translation of Hippolytus's lost '' Syntagma'', written c. 220) is the earliest source to mention Ophites, an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bythus
The Monad in Gnosticism is an adaptation of concepts of the Monad in Greek philosophy to Christian gnostic belief systems. Overview The term ''monad'' comes from the Greek feminine noun ''monas'' (nominative singular, μονάς), "one unit," where the ending ''-s'' in the nominative form resolves to the ending ''-d'' in declension. In some gnostic systems, the Supreme Being is known as the Monad, the One, the Absolute, Aiōn Teleos (the Perfect Aeon, ), Bythos (Depth or Profundity, ), Proarchē (Before the Beginning, ), Hē Archē (The Beginning, ), the Ineffable Parent, and/or the primal Father. Prominent early Christian gnostics like Valentinus taught that the Monad is the high source of the Pleroma, the region of light constituting "the fullness of the Godhead." Through a process of emanation, various divine entities and realms emerge from the One. Arranged hierarchically, they become progressively degraded due to their remoteness from the Father. The various emanations of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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