was skilful in music, the mathematics, geography, astronomy, astrology, medicine and painting.* He believed in the spherical figure of the earth, and had himself constructed a terrestrial globe. When or how he became a Christian, we are not told; but he is said to have joined to his knowledge of the sciences an acquaintance with the Scriptures, and so great a zeal for the faith, that he was made a Christian priest at Ahvaz, a considerable city of one of the smaller Persian provinces. Here he taught and interpreted the sacred books, and disputed with the Jews, the Magi, and Pagan strangers from abroad.† The churches of Persia‡ were in a tranquil state when Manes first broached his heresy; and there was at the head of the clergy of the East, a proud, imperious, unworthy primate, Papas by name, under whose administration a state of things had come about not unfavorable to the progress of the heretic. Under these circumstances Manes set himself up for an apostle, boasted that he had received his apostleship immediately from heaven, and alleged in proof of it, first, the perfection and plenitude of his knowledge, and second, the promise which Christ had made to the church of sending the Paraclete, the Comforter.§ Most of the Grecian writers have accused Manes of professing himself to be the Paraclete; but whether he meant that he was himself the personification of the Holy Spirit, or simply that the Holy Spirit dwelt in him, is difficult to say. Eusebius is the first writer who declares him to have pretended that he was the Paraclete. In the Acts of Archelaus it is said, that "as he found in the sacred books the name of Paraclete, he pretended himself to be that Paraclete." The historian Socrates declares that he called himself the Paraclete, and also named *Hist. du Manich. Tom. I. p. 158. † Idem, Tom. I. pp. 67, 169. Lightfoot, Vol. VII., also Vol. XII. p. 574, argues that St. Peter himself had preached in Chaldea, and that when he wrote his epistles he was in Babylon, the use of the word Bosor, in 2 Pet. 2: 15, indicating the Chaldee dialect. § Hist. du Manich. Tom. I. p. 186. Eusebius, Hist. Ecc. ch. 31. See the whole original Acta Disputationis in Routh's Reliquiæ Sacræ, Vol. IV. Also quoted in Beausobre, Tom. I. p.15. himself in his epistles an Apostle of Christ.* Cyril of Jerusalem also makes the same charge. The Epistle of Manes to Marcellus, as given by Epiphanius and others from the book of the Acts of Archelaus, commences thus: "Manes, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, and all the Saints and Virginst with me, to Marcellus my dear son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Beausobre thinks the charge made against Manes of having professed himself to be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, is not true, for how should he make this pretension, and at the same time call himself simply an Apostle of Jesus Christ? He brings Augustine to witness that Manes began all his letters with these words: MANES THE APOSTLE OF JESUS CHRIST. The assertion, however, is not made merely on the authority of the book of the Acts of Archelaus, of which Beausobre denies the authenticity, since, if Beausobre's opinion be correct, Eusebius mentions it before that book had been published; and as it is repeated by almost every writer on the subject, it seems highly probable. Mosheim is of opinion that Manes asserted himself to have been the Paraclete.¶ Titus, bishop of Bostra, a calm and apparently impartial controversialist, distinctly makes this accusation.* ** A number of places may be collected from Augustine on this point, but this Father does not, that we are aware of, anywhere distinctly affirm that Manes asserted himself to be the Paraclete, but only that the Holy Ghost dwelt in him with full authority.++ The record of the blasphemous pretensions of Manes is not *Socrates, Hist. Ecc. ch. 22. + Cyril, Catechesis, 6, § 16. † Πάντες ἅγιοι καὶ παρθένοι. Tillemont supposes that these saints and virgins were disciples of Manes of both sexes; but Beausobre supposes the terms saints and virgins to refer to one and the same class, viz. men who had taken the vow of celibacy and chastity. Beausobre, Vol. I. p. 93. § Epiphanius, Adv. Hæres. L. II. Hist. du Manich. Tom. I. ch. 2. § 10. ** Paracletum se appellavit, usu nominis quod non solum supra nominem, sed supra angelum est. Contr. Manich. Lib. III. Bib. Patr. IV. 467. †† Augustine, Confe ss. L.V. 8, 9. Titus Bost. Præf. confined to the Greek writers. "This impostor," says D'Herbelot, "having heard say that Jesus Christ had promised to send after him a Paraclete, wished to persuade the ignorant people of Persia that himself was the Paraclete, who would announce to them from God a new religion."* Continuing the history from D'Herbelot, who omits all mention of that famous dispute with Archelaus, bishop of Mesopotamia, which figures so largely in the accounts of the earliest writers, we observe that after Manes had for some time attracted admiration by his various knowledges, he began to collect disciples, who opposed the worship and ceremonies of the Zoroastrian religion, professed hitherto by the Persians. To avoid the wrath of Sapor on this account, he fled to Turquestan, into a city or town named in Hyde and Beausobre Tchighil, where he made himself popular by adorning the temples with paintings. Here he preached his doctrine and gathered disciples. Having discovered a convenient grotto in which was a sweet fountain, he gathered provisions for a year, and in order to pass for some divinity, or more probably, if this story be true, to support his pretensions to be considered the Paraclete, told his disciples that he was going to heaven for a year, after which he should descend to earth again, and would reappear in the cave which he pointed out to them. In this retreat he perfected and arranged his scheme of philosophy and religion, and prepared a gospel for his disciples, with all the art, which as a skilful painter he was master of. At the expiration of the year they did not fail to seek him, and then he showed them that wonderful book, which he professed to have brought from heaven, bearing the name, as D'Herbelot has it, of Erzenk, or Ertenk.† It was full of wondrous images and figures, magical, astrological and prophetical, adorned and painted with such marvellous skill and beauty, that it became so celebrated in all Persia as to pass into a proverb.‡ Lardner observes that the eastern authors, quoted by Hyde and Herbelot, are not ancient but modern, being either Moham * Bibl. Orient. Voc. Mani. + Ibid. Kemal Esfahani, Poëte Persien, pour louer l'habilité d'un Peintre, dit "que ses ouvrages faisoient plier le Livre d'Ertenk, et mépriser toutes ses figures." Bibl. Orient. Voc. Ertenk and Erzenk. medans or Christians of later times, and intimates that their account of the journey to heaven is taken from the history of Mohammed.* But this might equally have been imitated from the life of Zoroaster, who is said to have dwelt in a cavern, the sides of which he sculptured with mystical figures, and in that retirement may have written his book entitled the Zend, the Bible of the Zoroastrian Magi, which they called the book of life. Khondemir, the Oriental historian quoted by D'Herbelot, asserted in reference to the pretension of Manes to be the Paraclete, that Manes wished to apply to himself what Jesus Christ intended for Mohammed, who was to establish a new religion after him. But it does not seem probable that Mohammedan writers would have taken passages from the life of their prophet, to deepen the interest of the Manichæan history. While Manes was in Turquestan, the Emperor Sapor died, and Hormisdas his son reigned in his stead. Manes thereupon returned to Persia, and presented to the king the book of his revelations. Hormisdas embraced the doctrines of the new prophet, and under his protection the sect increased rapidly in numbers. Beausobre observes that all religionists hated * Lardner on the History of Mani, Works, Vol. III. p. 311. † Ce mot de Zend signifie vivant; de sorte qu'il semble que les Mages ayent qualifié leur livre qu'ils estiment sacré, du titre de Vie, ou Livre de Vie. The book of Zend was followed by another named Pazend, and both together have a commentary, which goes by the name of Abesta or Avesta, ordinarily ŽENDAVESTA. The Magi attributed it to Abraham, whom they believed to be the same with Zoroaster; and the three volumes, the Zend, the Pazend and the Avesta, or commentary, taken together, comprehend the whole of their religion. Their tradition is that Abraham read these books in the midst of the fiery furnace, into which Nimrod had cast him. In all probability the book of the revelations of Manes was an imitation. Bibl. Orient. Voc. Zend and Abesta. The Persians call it Er-Tengh-Mani, the book of the paintings of Manes. Beausobre, Tom. I. p. 190. § D'Herbelot observes that this emperor "gave himself to study, but his science did only injure him, inasmuch as he fell into the errors of Manes, who pretended to have refined upon the doctrine of Zoroaster, the legislator of the Magi, in mingling it with that of the Christians." This might have proved an injury to the monarch among his people, but surely not in Manes to such a degree that the king was obliged to build him a strong castle to serve as a retreat from his persecutors. For the Christians and the Magi on the one hand pursued him as a heretic and an apostate, and the Jews and the Pagans, on the other, as the sworn enemy of their sects.* Hormisdas died in about two years, and Varanes I., his son, succeeded him. Under Varanes, who seems at first to have favored the heresiarch, a public dispute was appointed between Manes and the most learned of the Magi; a mere artifice, according to some, to draw him from his retreat into the power of his enemies. Be this as it may, the dispute was fatal to Manes, who was forthwith condemned as a heretic, and put to death in the most fearful manner. TENETS AND DISCIPLINE OF THE MANICHEANS. In gathering into one view the absurdities of the scheme of Manes, we shall avail ourselves principally of the condensation by Beausobre of what he calls the whole Manichæan theology into a system, referring, however, to other authorities, and reminding our readers that Beausobre's view is more favorable than can be found in any other writer. He enumerates, in the first place, what may be called the external principles or features of Manichæism, four in number. First, the pretended authority of the heresiarch as the apostle and prophet of Jesus Christ, inspired by the Paraclete to reform all religions, and reveal to the world those truths, which the Saviour did not think proper to commit to his first disciples.† Paul himself knew but in part, and prophesied in part; but for Manes was reserved to destroy what is partial, and establish what is perfect. In the second place, in virtue of this pretended divine mission, Manes rejected the Old Testament, as being the work of the Principle or Deity of Evil, with innumerable blasphemous reference to any sprinkling of Christian truth which he received, unless the monstrous mixture of the Manichæan system be regarded as worse than the simple Paganism of Zoroaster. Bibl. Orient. Voc. Hormouz. * Hist. du Manich. Tom. I. p. 201. + Pref. à l'Hist. du Manich. p. 10. Archelai et Manetis Disputatio. 13. Rel. Sac. Vol. IV. 174. |