Bad Advertisement?
Are you a Christian?
Online Store:Visit Our Store
| The Heresy of Prepon; Follows Empedocles; Marcion Rejects the Generation of the Saviour.
PREVIOUS SECTION - NEXT SECTION - HELP 
Chapter XIX.—The
Heresy of Prepon; Follows Empedocles; Marcion Rejects the Generation of
the Saviour.
The principal heresy of Marcion, and (the one of
his) which is most free from admixture (with other heresies), is that
which has its system formed out of the theory concerning the good and
bad (God). Now this, it has been manifested by us, belongs to
Empedocles. But since at present, in our times, a certain
follower of Marcion, (namely) Prepon, an Assyrian,875
| 875
What Hippolytus communicates concerning Prepon is quite
new. The only writer who mentions him is Theodoret (Hær.
Fab., i. 25), in his article on Apelles. | has endeavoured to introduce something
more novel, and has given an account of his heresy in a work inscribed
to Bardesanes, an Armenian, neither of this will I be silent. In
alleging that what is just constitutes a third principle, and that it
is placed intermediate between what is good and bad, Prepon of course
is not able to avoid (the imputation of inculcating) the opinion of
Empedocles. For Empedocles asserts that the world is managed by
wicked Discord, and that the other (world) which (is managed) by Friendship, is
cognisable by intellect. And (he asserts) that these are the two
different principles of good and evil, and that intermediate between
these diverse principles is impartial reason, in accordance with which
are united the things that have been separated by Discord, (and which,)
in accordance with the influence of Friendship, are accommodated to
unity. The impartial reason itself, that which is an auxiliary to
Friendship, Empedocles denominates “Musa.” And he
himself likewise entreats her to assist him, and expresses himself
somehow thus:—
“For if on fleeting mortals, deathless Muse,
Thy care it be that thoughts our mind engross,
Calliope, again befriend my present prayer,
As I disclose a pure account of happy
gods.”876
| 876
Schneidewin gives a restored version of these lines. They
are found (at lines 338–341) in Stein’s edition of the
Empedoclean Verses. |
Marcion, adopting these sentiments, rejected altogether the
generation of our Saviour. He considered it to be absurd that
under the (category of a) creature fashioned by destructive Discord
should have been the Logos that was an auxiliary to
Friendship—that is, the Good Deity. (His doctrine,)
however, was that, independent of birth, (the Logos) Himself descended
from above in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Cæsar,
and that, as being intermediate between the good and bad Deity, He
proceeded to give instruction in the synagogues. For if
He877
| 877
Tertullian combats these heretical notions in his De Carne
Christi [vol. viii. p. 521, this series]. | is a Mediator,
He has been, he says, liberated from the entire nature of the Evil
Deity. Now, as he affirms, the Demiurge is evil, and his
works. For this reason, he affirms, Jesus came down unbegotten,
in order that He might be liberated from all (admixture of) evil.
And He has, he says, been liberated from the nature of the Good One
likewise, in order that He may be a Mediator, as Paul states,878
and as Himself acknowledges:
“Why call ye me good? there is one good.”879
| 879
Matt. xix. 17; Mark x. 18;
Luke xviii. 19. | These, then, are the opinions of
Marcion, by means of which he made many his dupes, employing the
conclusions of Empedocles. And he transferred the philosophy
invented by that (ancient speculator) into his own system of thought,
and (out of Empedocles) constructed his (own) impious heresy. But
I consider that this has been sufficiently refuted by us, and that I
have not omitted any opinion of those who purloin their opinions from
the Greeks, and act despitefully towards the disciples of Christ, as if
they had become teachers to them of these (tenets). But since it
seems that we have sufficiently explained the doctrines of this
(heretic), let us see what Carpocrates says.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
|
