Montanism was an early Christian sectarian movement of the mid-2nd century A.D., named after its founder Montanus. It flourished mostly in and around the region of Phrygia, where early on its followers were called Cataphrygians; although it spread rapidly to other regions in the Roman Empire, and at a time before Christianity was generally tolerated or legal. Although the orthodox mainstream Christian church prevailed against Montanism within a few generations, labeling it a heresy, the sect persisted in some isolated places into the 8th century. Some people have drawn parallels between Montanism and Pentecostalism (which some call Neo-Montanism). The most widely known Montanist was undoubtedly Tertullian, who was the foremost Latin church writer before he converted to Montanism. The term Early Christianity here refers to Christianity of the period after the Death of Jesus and the foundation of the churches of Jerusalem and Antioch in the 30s and before the First Council of Nicaea in 325. ... Sectarianism is an adherence to a particular sect or party or denomination, it also usually involves a rejection of those not a member of ones sect. ... The 2nd century is the period from 101 - 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... Look up AD in Wiktionary, the free dictionary AD or ad may stand for: ad or advertisement, see advertising ad- prefix Administrative domain Air Defence Andorra, ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code Anno Domini (In the Year of [Our] Lord). This year is A.D. 2005. ... Location of Phrygia - traditional region (yellow) - expanded kingdom (orange line) In antiquity, Phrygia (Greek: ) was a kingdom in the west central part of the Anatolian Highland, part of modern Turkey. ... Motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus (SPQR) The Roman Empire at its greatest extent, c. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... Look up Heresy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ... The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ... Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicized as Tertullian, (ca. ...

History

Montanus travelled among the rural settlements of Asia Minor after his conversion, and preached and testified what he purported to be the Word of God; however, his teachings were regarded as heresy by the orthodox Church for a number of reasons. He claimed not only to have received a series of direct revelations from the Holy Ghost, but personally to be the incarnation of the paraclete mentioned in the Gospel of John 14:16. Montanus was accompanied by two women, Prisca, sometimes called Priscilla, and Maximilla, who likewise claimed to be the embodiments of the Holy Spirit that moved and inspired them. As they went, "the Three" as they were called, spoke in ecstatic visions and urged their followers to fast and pray, so that they might share these personal revelations. His preachings spread from his native Phrygia (where he proclaimed the village of Pepuza as the site of the New Jerusalem) across the contemporary Christian world, to Africa and Gaul. Anatolia (Greek: ανατολη anatole, rising of the sun or East; compare Orient and Levant, by popular etymology Turkish Anadolu to ana mother and dolu filled), also called by the Latin name of Asia Minor, is a region of Southwest Asia which corresponds today to... Look up Heresy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For the school of Peter Abelard, see Oratory of the Paraclete. ... In Christian religions that trace their roots to belief in the Nicene Creed, the Holy Spirit (Hebrew: Ruah haqodesh; Greek: ; Latin: ; also called the Holy Ghost) is the third consubstantial Person of the Holy Trinity or the Godhead. ... Pepuza (also spelled Pepouza) was a town in the Phrygia region of Asia Minor (nowadays in Western Turkey) which was proclaimed in the 3rd century by the Montanist Christians as the new Jerusalem and the place in which Jesus would descend to the Earth again. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

It is generally agreed that the movement was inspired by Montanus' reading of the Gospel of John— "I will send you the advocate [paraclete], the spirit of truth" (Heine 1987, 1989; Groh 1985). The response to this continuing revelation split the Christian communities, and the more orthodox clergy mostly fought to suppress it. Bishop Apollinarius found the church at Ancyra torn in two, and he opposed the "false prophesy" (quoted by Eusebius 5.16.5). But there was real doubt at Rome, and Pope Eleutherus even wrote letters in support of Montanism, although he later recalled them (Tertullian, "Adversus Praxean" c.1, Trevett 58-59). The Gospel of John is the fourth gospel in the canon of the New Testament, traditionally ascribed to John the Evangelist. ... For the school of Peter Abelard, see Oratory of the Paraclete. ... In general, continuous revelation or continuing revelation is a theological belief or position that God continues to reveal divine principles or commandments to humanity. ... Ankara from the Atakule Tower, looking N-NE Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the countrys second largest city after Istanbul. ...

Prisca claimed that Christ had appeared to her in female form. When she was excommunicated, she exclaimed "I am driven away like the wolf from the sheep. I am no wolf: I am word and spirit and power." Look up logos in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The most widely known defender of Montanists was undoubtedly Tertullian, onetime champion of orthodox belief, who believed that the new prophecy was genuine and began to fall out of step with what he began to call "the church of a lot of bishops" (On Modesty). Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus, anglicized as Tertullian, (ca. ...

Although the orthodox Christian church prevailed against Montanism within a few generations, inscriptions in the Tembris valley of northern Phrygia, dated between 249 and 279, openly proclaim their allegiance to Montanism. Events Trajan Decius becomes Roman emperor. ... Events Births Deaths Categories: 279 ...

A letter of Jerome to Marcella, written in 385, refutes the claims of Montanists that had been troubling her [1]. Events February 11 - Oldest Pope elected: Siricius, bishop of Tarragona. ...

A group of "Tertullianists" continued to exist at Carthage. The anonymous author of Praedestinatus (v.1 c.86 [2]) records that a preacher came to Rome in 388 where he made many converts and obtained the use of a church for his congregation on the grounds that the martyrs to whom it was dedicated had been Montanists. He was obliged to flee after the victory of Theodosius I. Augustine records (De haeresibus c. 86 [3]) that the Tertullianist group dwindled to almost nothing in his own time, and finally was reconciled to the church and handed over their basilica. It is not certain whether the Tertullianists were Montanist or not. // Events Bahram IV becomes king of Persia. ... An engraving depicting what Theodosius may have looked like, ca. ...

In the sixth century, at the orders of the emperor Justinian, John of Ephesus led an expedition to Pepuza to destroy the Montanist shrine there, which was based around the tombs of Montanus, Priscilla and Maximilla. (5th century — 6th century — 7th century — other centuries) Events The first academy of the east the Academy of Gundeshapur founded in Persia by the Persian Shah Khosrau I. Irish colonists and invaders, the Scots, began migrating to Caledonia (later known as Scotland) Glendalough monastery, Wicklow Ireland founded... Justinian may refer to: Justinian I, a Roman Emperor; Justinian II, a Byzantine Emperor; Justinian, a storeship sent to the convict settlement at New South Wales in 1790. ...

The sect persisted into the eighth century. The Columbia Encyclopedia claims that “in isolated areas of Phrygia, where it [Montanism] continued to the 7th cent.” (7th century — 8th century — 9th century — other centuries) Events The Iberian peninsula is taken by Arab and Berber Muslims, thus ending the Visigothic rule, and starting almost 8 centuries of Muslim presence there. ...

Some modern writers have suggested that some of its emphasis on direct, ecstatic personal presence of the Holy Spirit bears resemblance to all forms of Pentecostalism. “It [Montanism] claimed to be a religion of the Holy Spirit and was marked by ecstatic outbursts which it regarded as the only true form of Christianity”, Bruce Metzger, The Canon of the New Testament, (Oxford, 1987), p. 99. [ISBN 0198269544] While there may be some similarities between Montanism and modern Pentecostalism, there does not appear to be any historical link between the two, as most Pentecostals claim authenticity based on the New Testament book of Acts (especially chapter 2). The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ...

Differences between Montanism and orthodox Christianity

The beliefs of Montanism contrasted with orthodox Christianity in the following ways:

• The belief that the prophecies of the Montanists superseded and fulfilled the doctrines proclaimed by the Apostles.

• The encouragement of ecstatic prophesying, contrasting with the more sober and disciplined approach to theology dominant in orthodox Christianity at the time and since.

• The view that Christians who fell from grace could not be redeemed, also in contrast to the orthodox Christian view that contrition could lead to a sinner's restoration to the church.

• The prophets of Montanism did not speak as messengers of God: "Thus saith the Lord," but rather described themselves as possessed by God, and spoke in his person. "I am the Father, the Word, and the Paraclete," said Montanus (Didymus, De Trinitate, III, xli); This possession by a spirit, which spoke while the prophet was incapable of resisting, is described by the spirit of Montanus: "Behold the man is like a lyre, and I dart like the plectrum. The man sleeps, and I am awake" (Epiphanius, "Panarion", xlviii, 4).

• A stronger emphasis on the avoidance of sin and church discipline than in orthodox Christianity. They emphasized chastity, including forbidding remarriage.

• Some of the Montanists were also "Quartodeciman" ("fourteeners"), preferring to celebrate Easter on the Hebrew calendar date of 14 Nisan, regardless of what day of the week it landed on. The orthodoxy held that Easter should be commemorated on the Sunday following 14 Nisan. (Trevett 1996:202)

Jerome and other church leaders claimed that the Montanists of their own day held the belief that the Trinity consisted of only a single person, similar to Sabellianism, as opposed to the orthodox view that the Trinity is one God of three persons which Tertullian also had held. There were some that were indeed modalistic monarchians (Sabellians) and some that were closer to the Trinitarian doctrine. It is reported that these modalists baptized mentioning the name of Jesus Christ as opposed to mentioning the Trinity. Most of the later Montanists were of the modalistic camp.^{[citation needed]} The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Various guitar picks A plectrum (plural plectra or plectrums) is a device for plucking or strumming a stringed instrument. ... Quartodecimanism (fourteenism, derived from Latin) refers to the practice of fixing the celebration of Passover for Christians on the fourteenth day of Nisan in the Old Testaments Hebrew Calendar (for example Lev 23:5, in Latin quarta decima). This was the original method of fixing the date of the... For other uses, see Trinity (disambiguation). ... In Christianity, Sabellianism (also known as modalism) is the belief that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are different modes or aspects of one God, rather than three distinct persons. ...

See also

• Testament of Job
• Charismatic Christianity
• Pentecostalism
• Apostolic-Prophetic Movement

The Testament of Job is a book written in the 1st century BCE or the 1st century CE, elaborating upon the Book of Job with many parallels to Christian belief. ... For a description of the personality trait, see Charismatic authority. ... The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ... The Apostolic-Prophetic Movement in millennial-era Charismatic Christianity is seen by its participants as a restoration of the neglected elements of the Five-Fold Ministry described in the New Testament book of Ephesians, some apostles, and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers; for the equipping...

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia: Montanists
• Jerome's letter (xli) to Marcella to refute the heresy of Montanus, written in 385, "the passages brought together from the Gospel of John" having occasioned Marcella's questions
• EarlyChurch.org.uk Extensive bibliography and on-line articles.
• Montanism in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica

The Encyclopædia Britannica is a general encyclopedia published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. ...

Sources

• Eusebius of Caesarea, Historia ecclesiae, 5.16–18

• Tabbernee, William, 1997. Montanist Inscriptions and Testimonia: Epigraphic Sources Illustrating the History of Montanism (Macon [GA], Mercer University Press) (North American Patristic Society Patristic Monograph Series, 16).

Eusebius of Caesarea Eusebius of Caesarea (c. ...

Further reading

• Groh, Dennis E. 1985. "Utterance and exegesis: Biblical interpretation in the Montanist crisis," in Groh and Jewett, The Living Text (New York) pp 73 – 95.
• Heine, R.E., 1987 "The Role of the Gospel of John in the Montanist controversy," in Second Century v. 6, pp 1 – 18.
• Heine, R.E., 1989. "The Gospel of John and the Montanist debate at Rome," in Studia Patristica 21, pp 95 – 100.
• Metzger, Bruce, The Canon of the New Testament. Its Origin, Development, and Significance, 1987, (Oxford University Press), pp. 99-106. [ISBN 0198269544]
• Pagels, Elaine, 2003. Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas ISBN 0-375-50156-8, contains a brief introduction to Montanism, with notes in chapter "God's Word or Human Words?"
• Trevett, Christine, 1996. Montanism: Gender, Authority and the New Prophecy (Cambridge University Press)
• Hirschmann, Vera-Elisabeth, 2005. Horrenda Secta. Untersuchungen zum fruеhchristlichen Montanismus und seinen Verbindungen zur paganen Religion Phrygiens (Stuttgart, Franz Steiner Verlag)