Heresies:

Already in the first century within the Christian communities there were currents that were fighting among themselves. In the revelation John mentions the heretics the Nicolaitans, which, however, nothing definite is known. In the II century Christianity was a fierce struggle between the individual sects and currents. The most interesting movement of the Gnostics, including marcionites, and the movement of the Montanists.

The question of the role of Gnosticism in early Christianity is quite complex. The word “gnosis” in Greek means knowledge, knowledge, which was reduced by the Gnostics to the mystical knowledge of God. Gnostics are mystical philosophers who claim that man can understand the secret of the deity and the essence of the world. Historians of Christianity usually view Gnosticism as a side branch of this religion, as heresy, a sectarian creed, soon suppressed by Orthodox Christian theologians. On the contrary, other scientists, especially A. It is believed that Gnosticism did not grow on the basis of Christianity, but, on the contrary, Christianity on the basis of Gnosticism, that is, Gnosticism is older than Christianity. There seems to be some truth in both points of view: the early Gnostic teachings (I—II centuries) really influenced the formation of Christian ideology. For example, the philosophy of the Gnostic Philo of Alexandria, who is considered by some to be the “father of Christianity”. Later Gnostic teachings, starting from the middle of the second century, were considered later as deviations from” true ” Christianity.

The essence of the Gnostic teaching, which grew up on the basis of the late Hellenistic idealistic philosophy, consisted in the dualistic opposition of the light, good spirit and dark, full of suffering matter. The good great God, the spirit of plerom (το πλήρωμα-literally “fullness”), could not be the Creator of such a bad world. The world was created by some subordinate, evil, and limited God. Some Gnostics identified him with the Jewish Yahweh. There is no direct contact between the inaccessible good God and the lowly material world. But between them there is an intermediary, the divine logos (word, meaning, reason), which can save suffering humanity and bring it into the Kingdom of the light spirit-God. However, this is not available to all people, but only to the chosen ones, people of the spirit, “Pneumatics” (from the Greek πνεμμα — spirit, breath).

The Gnostic doctrine of the logos has passed into Christianity, having merged into the image of Christ the Saviour. This is especially evident in the fourth gospel (“John”), permeated with the Gnostic spirit (“in the beginning there was a word, and the word was with God, and the word was God…”; CH. 1, art. 1). But unlike Christians (Judeo-Christians), most Gnostics strongly rejected the entire Jewish religion, considering the Jewish God Yahweh an evil being, contrasting him with his bright great God and Savior-the logos. This rejection of Judaism was especially pronounced in the sermon of Marcion (mid-II century), who completely rejected the entire old Testament. In the teachings of Marcion and other Gnostics, anti-Jewish sentiment reached its highest point. Christianity, however, did not follow this path, but, on the contrary, tried to reconcile the Jewish religion with the cult of the Saviour.

However, Gnosticism could not become the dominant trend in Christianity just because it was the worldview of philosophically educated, refined intellectuals, rich people, a doctrine inaccessible to the masses. The common people needed a living image of the Saviour, not an abstract philosophical logos and such speculative speculations. Yet some of the Gnostic philosophy has entered into the Christian creed.

Another heretical movement, which also arose in the second century, was an attempt to revive the fighting spirit of Judeo-Christianity in the first century. the Founder of the sect of Montanus, a former priest of Cybele in Phrygia — — about him, however, very little is known-strongly opposed any regulation of Church life, against the growing power of the bishops. He was charismatic and preached in the name of God himself (“I am the Lord God Almighty who dwells in man,” he said), adhered to and demanded extreme asceticism and celibacy (although his followers did not observe this requirement), proclaimed the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of the world. It was a hopeless attempt to return Christianity to the original revolutionary-democratic path and stop the inevitable process of turning Christianity into a peaceful religion, beneficial to those who hold power.Montanism was spread mainly in Phrygia. The prominent Christian apologist Tertullian also joined him, although he obscured the revolutionary side of this doctrine.

By the middle of the second century, wealthy slave owners and traders had already firmly seized power in Christian communities. They managed to suppress all sorts of democratic sentiments. In the struggle against Montanism, for the strengthening of the Episcopal organization of the Church, the doctrine of the Apostolic succession of Episcopal power was created, that Christ himself, through the apostles, transferred power to the bishops and authorized them to lead the Church in matters of faith.

After overcoming the mystical and eschatological currents of the second century, new sects appear in the third century. Of these, the Manichean sect is particularly characteristic, having spread to the East, Iran, and neighboring countries. It was a peculiar combination of Christianity and Zoroastrianism-a sharply dualistic creed. Named after the semi-legendary Mani (manes, Manichaeus), executed in 276.the Main thing in the teachings of the Manichaeans is the idea of the polar opposite of light and darkness, good and evil. The world we see, including people, is created by mixing particles of light with particles of darkness. Jesus, incarnated in a ghostly body, taught people to separate light from darkness, good from evil. Mani taught the same thing. The entire old Testament and most of the New Testament were rejected by the Manichaeans. Their communities were divided into classes: the upper class — the” chosen”, the” purest ” – participated in all religious rites, others only in some. After the conversion of Christianity into a state religion, the Manichean sect was suppressed, but its ideas were later revived in the medieval sects of the Pavlikians, Bogomils, and others.