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The Prescription Against Heretics
Chapter VI.--Heretics are Self-Condemned. Heresy is Self-Will, Whilst Faith is Submission of Our Will to the Divine Authority. The Heresy of Apelles.
On this point, however, we dwell no longer, since it is the same Paul who, in his Epistle to the Galatians, counts "heresies" among "the sins of the flesh," 1 who also intimates to Titus, that "a man who is a heretic" must be "rejected after the first admonition," on the ground that "he that is such is perverted, and committeth sin, as a self-condemned man." 2 Indeed, in almost every epistle, when enjoining on us (the duty) of avoiding false doctrines, he sharply condemns 3 heresies. Of these the practical effects 4 are false doctrines, called in Greek heresies, 5 a word used in the sense of that choice which a man makes when he either teaches them (to others) 6 or takes up with them (for himself). 7 For this reason it is that he calls the heretic self-condemned, 8 because he has himself chosen that for which he is condemned. We, however, are not permitted to cherish any object 9 after our own will, nor yet to make choice of that which another has introduced of his private fancy. In the Lord's apostles we possess our authority; for even they did not of themselves choose to introduce anything, but faithfully delivered to the nations (of mankind) the doctrine 10 which they had received from Christ. If, therefore, even "an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel" (than theirs), he would be called accursed 11 by us. The Holy Ghost had even then foreseen that there would be in a certain virgin (called) Philumene 12 an angel of deceit, "transformed into an angel of light," 13 by whose miracles and illusions 14 Apelles was led (when) he introduced his new heresy.
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Gal. v. 20. ↩
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Tit. iii. 10, 11. ↩
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Taxat. ↩
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Opera. ↩
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Haireseis . ↩
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Instituendas. ↩
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Suscipiendas. ↩
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[A remarkable word is subjoined by the Apostle (exestraptai) which signifies turned inside out, and so self-condemned, as exhibiting his inward contentiousness and pravity. ↩
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Nihil, any doctrine. ↩
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Disciplinam, including both the principles and practice of the Christian religion. ↩
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Anathema. See Gal. i. 8. ↩
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Concerning Philumene, see below, chap. xxv.; Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. v. 13; Augustine, de Haeres, chap. xlii. ; Jerome, Epist. adv. Ctesiph. (Works, ed. Ben.) iv. 477, and in his Commentary on Galatians, ii. See also Tertullian, Against Marcion, p. 139, Edinb. Edition. ↩
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2 Cor. xi. 14. ↩
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Praestigiis. ↩
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De Praescriptione Haereticorum
VI.
[1] Nec diutius de isto si idem est Paulus qui et alibi haereses inter carnalia crimina enumerat scribens ad Galatas et qui Tito suggerit hominem haereticum post primam correptionem recusandum quod peruersus sit eiusmodi et delinquat ut a semetipso damnatus. [2] Sed et in omni paene epistula de adulterinis doctrinis fugiendis inculcans haereses taxat quarum opera sunt adulterae doctrinae : haereses dictae graeca uoce ex interpretatione electionis qua quis maxime siue ad instituendas siue ad suscipiendas eas utitur. [3] Ideo et sibi damnatum dixit haereticum quia et in quo damnatur sibi elegit. Nobis uero nihil ex nostro arbitrio inducere licet sed nec eligere quod aliquis de arbitrio suo induxerit. [4] Apostolos Domini habemus auctores qui nec ipsi quicquam ex suo arbitrio quod inducerent, elegerunt, sed acceptam a Christo disciplinam fideliter nationibus adsignauerunt. [5] Itaque etiamsi angelus de caelis aliter euangelizaret, anathema diceretur a nobis. [6] Prouiderat iam tunc Spiritus sanctus futurum in uirgine quadam Philumene angelum seductionis transfigurantem se in angelum lucis, cuius signis et praestigiis Apelles inductus nouam haeresin induxit.