A Source Book for Ancient Church History - Mirrors

120 A Source Book for Ancient Church Historyare initiated into, and confirmed in, this heresy. For these areMarcion's antitheses—that is, contradictory propositions; andthey aim at putting the Gospel at variance with the law, that fromthe diversity of the statements of the two documents they mayargue for a diversity of gods, also.IV, 2. With Marcion the mystery of the Christian religiondates from the discipleship of Luke. Since, however, it wasunder way previously, it must have had its authentic materials bymeans of which it found its way down to Luke; and by aid of thetestimony which it bore Luke himself becomes admissible.IV, 3. Well, but because Marcion finds the Epistle to theGalatians by Paul, who rebukes even Apostles for “not walkinguprightly according to the truth of the Gospel” [Gal. 2:14], aswell as accuses certain false apostles of being perverters of theGospel of Christ, he attempts to destroy the standing of thosegospels which are published as genuine and under the names ofApostles, or of apostolic men, to secure, forsooth, for his owngospel the credit he takes away from them.(c) Rhodon, in Eusebius, Hist. Ec., V, 13. (MSG, 20:459.)[105]At this time Rhodon, a native of Asia, who, as he himself states,had been instructed at Rome by Tatian, with whom we have alreadybecome acquainted, wrote excellent books, and publishedamong the rest one against the heresy of Marcion which, he says,was in his time divided into various sects; and he describes thosewho occasioned the division and refutes carefully the falsehooddevised by each. But hear what he writes: “Therefore also theyhave fallen into disagreement among themselves, and maintaininconsistent opinions. For Apelles, one of their herd, pridinghimself on his manner of life and his age, acknowledged oneprinciple [i.e., source of existence], but says that the prophecieswere from an opposing spirit. And he was persuaded of thetruth of this by the responses of a demoniac maiden named