Against Heresies: Book I

1. But there is another among these heretics named Marcus, who boasts that he has improved upon his master. He is highly skilled in magical deceptions, and by these means, he draws away a great number of men and many women, convincing them to join him, believing he possesses the greatest knowledge and perfection, and claiming he has received the highest power from the invisible and indescribable regions above. Thus, it seems as if he truly is the precursor of Antichrist. For, combining the antics of Anaxilaus with the craftiness of the so-called magi, he is regarded by his foolish and unbalanced followers as performing miracles through these means.

BY PRETENDING TO CONSECRATE CUPS MIXED WITH WINE AND PROLONGING THE INVOCATION: he creates a purple and reddish color in the cups, making it seem like Charis, who is above everything, is putting her own blood into the cup through his invocation. As a result, those present are encouraged to taste from the cup, believing that by doing so, the Charis represented by this magician will flow into them. He also gives mixed cups to women and instructs them to consecrate the cups in his presence. After this is done, he produces a much larger cup than the one the deceived woman has consecrated. He pours from the smaller, woman-consecrated cup into his larger cup while saying, "May that Charis who is above all things and transcends all knowledge and speech fill your inner self and multiply her knowledge in you, planting the mustard seed in you as in good soil." By repeating similar words and driving the unfortunate woman into madness, he seems to perform miracles when the large cup appears to overflow from the small one. He accomplishes several other similar tricks, successfully deceiving many and leading them astray.

IT SEEMS QUITE LIKELY THAT THIS MAN HAS A DEMON AS HIS FAMILIAR SPIRIT: through which he appears able to prophesy, and he enables those he counts worthy to share in his Charis to prophesy as well. He focuses especially on women, particularly those who are well-bred, elegantly dressed, and wealthy, whom he often tries to entice by speaking to them with seductive words like these: “I am eager to make you a partaker of my Charis, since the Father of all continually sees your angel before His face.

Now your angel's place is among us: it is fitting for us to become one. Receive first from me and through me [the gift of] Charis. Adorn yourself as a bride awaiting her bridegroom, so that you may become what I am, and I what you are. Establish the seed of light in your bridal chamber. Receive from me a spouse, and be receptive to him, while you are received by him. See, Charis has descended upon you; open your mouth and prophesy.” When the woman replies, “I have never prophesied, nor do I know how to prophesy,” then he, for the second time, performs certain invocations to astonish his deceived victim, telling her, “Open your mouth, speak whatever comes to you, and you shall prophesy.” She then, vainly puffed up and excited by these words, and greatly stirred in spirit by the expectation that she is to prophesy, with her heart beating fiercely [from emotion], reaches the necessary level of audacity, and thoughtlessly as well as boldly utters some nonsense as it randomly comes to her, such as might be expected from one filled with an empty spirit. (Referring to this, someone superior to me has remarked that the soul is both audacious and impudent when charged with empty air.) From then on, she considers herself a prophetess and thanks Marcus for sharing his Charis with her.

She then seeks to reward him, not only by giving him her possessions (through which he has amassed a considerable fortune), but also by offering him her person, desiring in every way to be united with him, to become completely one with him.

HOWEVER: some of the most faithful women, who possess the fear of God and are not deceived, have already withdrawn from such a vile group of revelers. Despite his attempts to seduce them, urging them to prophesy, they abhor and reject him. They understand that the gift of prophecy is granted by God’s grace from above, not by Marcus, the magician. Those blessed with this divine power speak when and where God wishes, not when Marcus commands. The one who commands holds greater authority than the one being commanded, as the former rules while the latter is subject. If Marcus or anyone else issues commands—as they habitually do at their feasts, drawing lots and ordering each other to prophesy, aligning their supposed oracles with their own desires—it implies that the person commanding holds higher authority than the prophetic spirit. This is impossible because he is merely a man. The spirits that these people command to speak at their bidding are earthly, weak, audacious, and impudent, released by Satan to lead to the downfall of those who do not steadfastly adhere to the well-founded faith they originally received through the Church.

MOREOVER: Marcus makes love potions and philters to take advantage of some, if not all, of these women. Those who have returned to the Church of God often admit that he defiled them and filled them with a burning passion for him. A sad instance of this involved an Asiatic, one of our deacons, who welcomed Marcus into his home. His wife, a woman of remarkable beauty, became both mentally and physically ensnared by this magician and traveled with him for a long time. Finally, after much effort from the brethren to convert her, she devoted herself entirely to public confession, weeping and lamenting the defilement she had suffered from this magician.

SOME OF HIS DISCIPLES: also engaging in the same behaviors, have deceived many foolish women and corrupted them. They declare themselves "perfect," claiming that no one can compare to them in the vastness of their knowledge, not even Paul, Peter, or any of the apostles. They assert that they know more than everyone else and that they alone possess the fullness of the knowledge of that indescribable power. They also claim to have reached a level above all power and therefore believe they are free to do whatever they want, fearing no one.

They say that because of the "Redemption," they cannot be apprehended or seen by the judge.

But should they be caught, they might just say these words while standing before the judge alongside the "Redemption": "O you, who sit beside God, and the mystical, eternal Sige, you through whom the mighty angels, who always behold the face of the Father, having you as their guide, receive their forms from above, inspired with mind because of the goodness of the Propator, produced us as their images, with her mind focused on higher things, as in a dream,— behold, the judge is here, and the crier orders me to defend myself.

But you, understanding the affairs of both, present the case for both of us to the judge, since it is truly one case." As soon as the Mother hears these words, she places the Homeric helmet of Pluto on them, so they can escape the judge unseen. Then she immediately takes them, leads them into the bridal chamber, and hands them over to their partners.

SUCH ARE THE WORDS AND DEEDS BY WHICH: in our own district of the Rhone, they have deceived many women, who have their consciences seared as with a hot iron. Some of them, indeed, make a public confession of their sins, but others are ashamed to do this, and silently, despairing of attaining the life of God, some of them have completely apostatized, while others hesitate between the two choices and experience what is expressed in the proverb, “neither without nor within,” possessing this as the result from the seed of the children of knowledge.