The auncient ecclesiasticall histories of the first six hundred yeares after Christ, wrytten in the Greeke tongue by three learned historiographers, Eusebius, Socrates, and Euagrius. Eusebius Pamphilus Bishop of Cæsarea in Palæstina vvrote 10 bookes. Socrates Scholasticus of Constantinople vvrote 7 bookes. Euagrius Scholasticus of Antioch vvrote 6 bookes. VVhereunto is annexed Dorotheus Bishop of Tyrus, of the liues of the prophetes, apostles and 70 disciples. All which authors are faithfully translated out of the Greeke tongue by Meredith Hanmer, Maister of Arte and student in diuinitie. Last of all herein is contayned a profitable chronographie collected by the sayd translator, the title whereof is to be seene in the ende of this volume, with a copious index of the principall matters throughout all the histories

CAP. XIIII.

The censure of the olde writers toutching Montanus, and his false prophetes.

THe victorious and inuincible power of the trueth alwayes preuailing, hath raysed vp A∣pollinarius of Hierapolis (of whome we spake before) as a stiffe and strong defence, to∣gether with many other discreate persons of those tymes, to the confutation of the fore∣sayd Phrygian heresie. whiche haue left behinde them matter sufficient, and very copious, for this our historye. Wherefore one of them taking penne in hande, to paynte out these heretickes, signi∣fieth at the entrance how he rebuked them with vnwritten elenches, he beginneth thus: It is novv* 1.1 a great vvhile agoe (vvelbeloued Auircus Marcellus) since thou diddest enioyne me this taske▪ that I should publish some booke against the follovvers of the hereticke Miltiades, vvherupon I doubted vnto this day, vvhat vvas best to be done. not but that I vvas able to confute their false∣hoode, and geue testimony vnto the trueth: but that I feared greatly, lest by vvriting, I shoulde adde something vnto the perfect vvordes of the nevv testament. vvhereto nothing may be ad∣ded, and vvherefro nothing may be taken avvay, by him, that vvill leade a life agreeable to the Gospell. I being of late at Ancyra in Galatia, founde the Churche throughout Pontus, filled, not vvith Prophets, (as they call them) but rather, as it shall be proued, vvith false Prophets: vvhere through the Lorde, as much as in me laye, I disputed in the Churche, the space of many* 1.2 dayes, against them, and their seuerall obiections. so that the Churche reioysed, and vvas there∣by confirmed in the trueth. but the contrary parte yet repyned, and the gaynesayers vvere very sorovvefull. and vvhen the Elders of that place required of me, in the presence of our fellovve minister Zoticus Otrenus, that I vvould leaue them in vvriting, some commentary of such things as vvere vttered against the aduersaries of the trueth: At that time I did not, but promised, that I vvoulde shortly, through the helpe of the Lorde, vvrite somevvhat therof vnto them. these and the like thinges layd downe in the proeme, in processe of his booke he writeth thus: VVherefore the originall of them, and their nevve founde opinion against the Churche of God, vvas af∣ter this sorte: there is a certaine village in Mysia, (a region of Phrygia) called Ardabau, vvhere* 1.3 histories recorde, that first of all, one Montanus, a late conuerte, in the time of Gratus, Proconsul of Asia, pufte vp vvith an immoderate desire of primacy, opened a gappe for the aduersary to enter into him. and being madde and sodainly estraunged, and berefte of his vvitts, vvaxed furious, and published straunge doctrine, contrary to the tradition, and custome, and auncient succession (novv receaued) vnder the name of prophecy. they vvhich then vvere auditors of this vnlavvfull preaching, some chasticed & checked him, for a lunaticke, & one that vvas possessed of the spirite of error, & forbad him to preach, being mindful of the forevvarning, & threatning of our Sauiour, tending to this ende: that vve shoulde take diligent heede of false prophets: o∣thers * 1.4 some vvaxed insolent, boasted & bragged of him not a litle, as if he vvere endued vvith the holy Ghost, & the gift of prophecye: being forgtefull of the forevvarning of God, they cal∣led vpon the dissembling, the flattering and seducing spirite of the people, (by the vvhich they vvere snared, & deceaued) that through silēce he should no more be hindred. the deuil through a certain arte, or rather the like subtle methode, vvorking the destruction of disobedient persons being more honored thē his merit did require: stirred vp & kindled their mindes, svvarued alrea∣dy from the faith, & slumbring in sinne, so that he raised tvvo vvomen, possessed of a foule spirit* 1.5 vvhich spake fonde, foolish, & fanaticall thinges (euen as he had before) they reioyced, & glori∣ed in the spirite vvhich pronounced them happy, and puffed them vp, vvith infinite faire promi∣ses. yet sometimes by signes and tokens he rebuked them to their faces, so that he seemed a cha∣sticing spirite. there vvere fevve of the Phrygians seduced, notvvithstanding, that boulde and blinde spirite, instructed them to blaspheme, and reuile generally, euery Church vnder heauen, because they neyther did homage, neyther curteously receaued amonge them, that false spi∣rite* 1.6 of prophecye. the faithfull throughout Asia, for this cause men often and in many places, examined the nevve founde doctrine: pronounced it for prophane▪ they excommunicated, reiected, and banished this hereticall opinion, out of their churches. When he had written these thinges, in the beginning, and throughout his first booke reprehended their error: in his seconde booke he writeth thus of their endes: because they charge vs with the deathe of the Prophets, for that vve receaue not their disordered fantasies (these saye they are the Prophets vvhiche the Lorde promysed to sende his people) let them aunsvvere me, I charge them in the

name of the liuing God, ôye good people: is there any one of the secte of Montanus, and these vvomen, vvhich hath bene persecuted by the Ievves, or put to deathe by any tyrant? not one of them bearing this name, vvas eyther apprehended, or crucyfied. neyther vvas there any vvoman of them in the Synagogues of the Ievves, eyther scurged, or stoned at all. but Mon∣tanus, and Maximilla, are sayde to dye an other kinde of deathe. many doe vvrite that* 1.7 both these, throughe the motion of their madde spirit, not together at one tyme, but at se∣uerall tymes, hanged them selues, and so ended their lyues, after the manner of Indas the traytour. euen as the common reporte goeth of Theodotus, that iolly fellovve, the first foun∣der* 1.8 of their prophecye, vvho being frenticke, persvvaded him selfe on a certayne tyme through the spirit of error, to take his flight vp into the heauens, and so being caste into the ayre, tom∣bled dovvne and dyed miserably. thus it is reported to haue come to passe. yet in so muche vve savve it not vvith our eyes, vve can not (Ovvorthy Syr) alleadge it for certayne, vvhether Montanus, Theodotus, and the vvoman dyed thus, orno. Agayne he writeth in the same booke, howe that the holy Bishops, going about to rebuke the spirite, which spake in Ma∣ximilla were hindered by others, that wrought with the same spirite, sayinge as followeth: let not the spirite of Maximilla saye as it is in the Epistle to Asterius Ʋrbanus: I am cha∣ced as a vvolfe from the sheepe. I am no vvolfe. I am the vvorde, the spirite, and povver: but let him manifestly expresse that povver, by the spirite, and preuayle. let him compell such men as then vvere present to trye, and conferre vvith that talkatyue spirite. namely these vvorthy men and Bishops: Zoticus of Comanum, and Iulian of Apamia: to confesse the same. vvhose mouthes vvhen the companions of Themison had stopped, they suffered not the lying spirite, and seducer of the people to be rebuked. In the same booke after he had layde downe other thinges to the confutation of Maximilla his false prophecyes, he declareth with all, the tyme when he wrote, and their prophecyes foreshewing warres and sedicions, whose fonde fantasies he confuteth in this sorte: And hovv can it othervvise fall out but that this be* 1.9 founde a manifest vntrueth and open falsehoode. For novve it is more then thirtene yeares agoe since this vvoman dyed, and yet in all this space, hath there happened in this vvorlde neither ci∣uill, neither generall vvarres, but especially the Christians, through the mercy of God haue had continuall peace. Thus much out of the seconde booke. out of the thirde booke we will alleadge a fewe lynes, agaynst them which gloried that many of them were crowned with martyrdome, for thus he writeth: VVhen as they are in the premisses blanked, confuted, and voyde of argu∣ments,* 1.10 they flye for shift and refuge vnto martyrs, reporting them selues to haue many, affirming that to be a sure and a certayne proofe of the propheticall spirite raygning among them. nei∣ther is this a most euident proofe as it appeareth, for diuers other hereticall sectes haue many Martyrs, vnto vvhome for all that, vve neither condescende, neither confesse that they haue the* 1.11 trueth among them. And first for all the Mareionites affirme they haue many Martyrs, vvhen as for all that their doctrine is not of Christ him self according vnto the trueth. a litle after he sayth: these that are called to their tryall, and to testifie the true fayth by suffring of Martyrdome, are of the Churche: they communicate not vvith any of the Phrygian hereticall Martyrs, but are seuered from them, consenting no not in one iote vvith the fonde spirite of Montanus, and his vvoman, and that this vvhich I saye is moste true, it shall euidently appeare by the examples of Caius, and Alexander, Martyrs of Eumenia, vvho suffered in our tyme at Apamia, situ∣ated vppon the ryuer Maeander.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Apollinarius b. of Hiera∣polis tout∣ching Mon∣tanus & his originall.
• * 1.2

  Apollinarius disputed and cōfuted Mō∣tan{us} figmēts at Ancyra in Galatia. Zoticus O∣trenus.
• * 1.3

  Ardabau. Montanus.
• * 1.4

  Matth. 24.
• * 1.5

  2. womē the prophetisses of Montan{us}.
• * 1.6

  The Chur∣ches, the sy∣nodes & faith full of Asia▪ condemned Montanus. Apollinarius of the endes of the false prophets
• * 1.7

  Montanus & Maximilla hanged them selues.
• * 1.8

  Theodotus the hereticke flying vp, broke his necke.
• * 1.9

  Apollinarius of the salse prophecies of the Mon∣tanists.
• * 1.10

  Apollinarius lib. 3.
• * 1.11

  Not the death but the cause of it proueth a Martyr.