Philosophumena; or, The refutation of all heresies, Volume II

by Antipope Hippolytus

3. What Valentinus has laid down, and that his doctrine is not framed from the Scriptures, but from those of the Platonists and Pythagorists.

4. And what is thought by Secundus, Ptolemy and Heracleon, and how they have used as their own, but with different words, the thoughts of those whom the Greeks (think) wise.

5. What has been held by Marcus and Colarbasus [and their disciples] and that some of them gave heed to magic arts and Pythagorean numbers.

6. Now such opinions as belong to those who have taken their principles from the serpent[1] and, when the time arrived, of their own accord brought their doctrines into light, we have set forth in the Book before this, being the p. 243. Vth of the Refutation of all Heresies. Here, however, I will not keep silence as to the opinions of those who come after (them),[2] but will leave not one unrefuted, if it be possible to keep them all in mind, together with their secret rites which are justly to be called orgies, inasmuch as those who dare such things are not far from God’s wrath[3]—to use the word in its etymological sense.

1. About Simon.

7. It seems then right now to set forth also the (doings) of Simon,[4] the man of Gitto,[5] a village of Samaria, whereby we shall show that those also who followed (him) taking hints from other names have ventured upon like things. This Simon, being skilled in magic arts and having played upon many, sometimes by the Thrasymedean[6] process in the way we have set forth above, but sometimes working iniquity by means of devils, designed to deify himself, (although only) a human sorcerer filled with desperation whom the p. 244. Apostles refuted in the Acts.[7] Than whom Apsethus the Libyan was much wiser and more modest when he ambitiously attempted to be considered a god in Libya. Whose story as it is not very different from the vain desire of Simon, it seems fitting to narrate as one worthy to have been attempted by Simon himself.

8. Apsethus the Libyan yearned to become a god. But since, after making himself very busy, he utterly failed (to accomplish) his desire, he wished at all events to appear to have become one, and seemed as if he might really effect this in course of time. For the foolish Libyans sacrificed to him as to some divine power, thinking that they must give faith to a voice from heaven above. For he collected and shut up in one and the same cage a great many of the birds called parrots; there being many parrots in Libya who imitate quite clearly the human voice. For some time he fed the birds and taught them to say “Apsethus is a god”: and when the birds had been p. 245. trained for a long time, and repeated the saying which he thought would make Apsethus be considered a god, he opened the cage and let the parrots out in all directions. The noise of the flying birds went forth into all Libya, and their words reached as far as the land of the Greeks.[8] And thus the Libyans being wonderstruck by the voices of the birds and not understanding the trick played by Apsethus, held him for a god. But a certain Greek having carefully studied the clever device of the so-called god, not only refuted him by the (mouth of the) same parrots but removed from the earth that human quack and rascal. The Greek shut up many of the parrots and taught them to say instead (of their former speech): “Apsethus shut us up and forced us to say: ‘Apsethus is a god.’” And the Libyans hearing the parrots’ recantation (and) all assembling with one mind burned Apsethus.[9]

9. This (sort of man) one must suppose Simon the magician (to be), so that we would far sooner liken him to the Libyan who was born a man than to (Him) who is really God.[10] But if the details of the likeness be held accurate and the magician had some such passion as Apsethus, we will undertake to teach Simon’s parrots that Simon who stood, stands and will stand was not Christ, but p. 246. a man (sprung) from seed, born of a woman[11] begotten from blood and fleshly desire like the rest, and that he knew this to be so, we shall easily show as the story goes on.[12] But Simon, stupidly and clumsily garbling the Law of Moses—for when Moses has said that God was “a burning and consuming fire,”[13]—he, not having received Moses’ saying rightly, says that fire is the principle of the universals, and not having comprehended the saying that God is not Fire, but a burning and consuming fire, (thereby) not only rends in twain the Law of Moses, but steals from Heraclitus the Obscure.[14] But Simon proclaims that the principle of the universals is a boundless power, speaking thus:—“This is the writing of the Announcement[15] of Voice and Name from the Thought of the great power of the Boundless One. Wherefore it will be sealed up, hidden, concealed and will be in the dwelling-place where the root of the universals is founded.”[16] But he says that the dwelling-place is the same man who has been begotten from blood and that the p. 247. Boundless Power dwells in him, which (power) he says is the root of the universals. But the Boundless Power, the fire according to Simon, is not simple as the many say who think that the four elements are simple and that fire is simple; but there is a certain double nature of fire, and of this double nature he calls one part hidden and the other manifest. But the hidden (parts) have been hidden in the manifest parts of the fire, and the manifest have come into being by the hidden. This it is which Aristotle calls potentiality and action, and Plato the comprehensible and the perceptible.[17]

And the manifest (part) of the fire contains within itself all which one can perceive[18] or which can escape one, but remains visible; but the hidden (part) contains everything which one can perceive as something intelligible but which evades the sense or which as not being thoroughly understood one passes over. But it must be said generally that of all things which are perceptible and intelligible, which Simon calls hidden and manifest,[19] the supercelestial fire is the Treasure-house,[20] like unto the great tree which was seen by Nebuchadnezzar in a dream, from which all flesh is fed.[21] p. 248. And he considers the trunk, the boughs, the leaves, and the bark on the outside of it to be the manifest part of the fire. All these things which are attached to the great tree the flame of the all-devouring fire causes to vanish. But the fruit of the tree, if it be made a perfect likeness[22] and has received its own shape, is placed in a storehouse and not in the fire. For the fruit, he says, has been produced that it may be put in a storehouse, but the chaff that it may be cast into the fire, which (chaff) is the trunk which has not been produced for its own sake, but for that of the fruit.

10. And this is, he says, what is written in the Scripture: “The vine of the Lord Sabaoth is the house of Israel, and a man of Judah his beloved plant.”[23] But if a man of Judah is his beloved plant, it proves, he says, that a tree is nothing else than a man. But of its secretion and dissolution, he says, the Scripture has spoken sufficiently, and for the instruction of those who have been made completely after (its) likeness,[24] the saying is enough that: “All flesh is grass and all the glory of the flesh as the flower of grass. The grass withereth and the flower fadeth away: but the word p. 249. of the Lord abideth for ever.”[25] But the word, he says, is the word and speech of the Lord born in the mouth, save which there is no other place of generation.