Priscillian of Avila (died 385) was a Spanish theologian and the founder of a party which advocated strong asceticism. He was the first person in the history of Christianity to be executed for heresy. His party, in spite of severe persecution for heresy, continued to subsist in Spain and in Gaul until after the middle of the 6th century. vila is a town in the south of Castile, the capital of the province of the same name, now part of the autonomous community of Castile-Leon, Spain. ... Events February 11 - Oldest Pope elected: Siricius, bishop of Tarragona. ... Theology is literally reasonable discourse concerning God (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason). By extension, it also refers to the study of other religious topics. ... The word ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askesis (practice, training or exercise). ... Christianity is the worlds largest religion. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the ‘catholic’ or orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... Gaul (from Latin Gallia, c. ... (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 by St. ...

He was a wealthy layman who had devoted his life to study. He was an ascetic mystic and regarded the Christian life as continual intercourse with God. His favourite idea is that which St Paul had expressed in the words "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God?" and he argued that to make himself a fit habitation for the divine a man must, besides holding the Catholic faith and doing works of love, renounce marriage and earthly honour, and practise a hard asceticism. It was on the question of continence in, if not renunciation of, marriage, that he came into conflict with the authorities, and his influence among growing numbers of followers threatened the authority of the church. Christianity is the worlds largest religion. ... A 19th-century picture of Paul of Tarsus Paul of Tarsus (originally Saul of Tarsus) or Saint Paul the Apostle (c. ... Marriage is a relationship and bond between two individuals that plays a key role in the definition of many families. ... Honour (or honor) comprises the reputation, self-perception or moral identity of an individual or of a group. ...

It is not always easy to separate the genuine assertions of Priscillian himself from those ascribed to him by his enemies, nor from the later developments taken by groups who were labelled "Priscillianist." Priscillian casts a long shadow in the north of Spain and the south of France, where mystic asceticism has repeatedly been carried to extremes that the political mainstream has denounced as "heretical."

Some writings by Priscillian were accounted orthodox and were not burned. For instance he divided the Pauline epistles (including the Epistle to the Hebrews) into a series of texts on their theological points and wrote an introduction to each section. These "canons" survived in a form edited by Peregrinus. They contain a strong call to a life of personal piety and asceticism, including celibacy and abstinence from meat and wine. Slavery is abolished in Jesus Christ, and gender differences also, ideas that did not go down well anywhere in Christendom. The charismatic gifts of all believers are equally affirmed. Study of scripture is urged. Like all 4th century Christians, Priscillian placed considerable weight on works later considered apocrypha. Canon can mean: A rule adopted by an ecumenical council of the Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches. ... The word charisma (from the Greek word charis) or gift, is often used in this form to describe an ability to charm or influence people. ... In Judeo-Christian theology, the word apocrypha (Greek απόκρυφα, neuter plural of απόκρυφος, hidden) refers to texts that are not considered canonical, part of the Bible, but are of roughly similar style and age as the accepted Scriptures. ...

Priscillian and his sympathizers included many women, who were welcomed as equals of men. They were organised into bands of spiritales and abstinentes, like the Cathari of later days, indignantly refusing the compromise which by this time the Church had established in the matter. This explains some the charge of Manichaeism levelled against Priscillian. (Even Jerome, for his talk of the Sordes nuptiarum, had been similarly accused, and to escape popular indignation had retired to Bethlehem). To this charge was added the accusation of magic and licentious orgies (a particularly preposterous charge, given the nature of Priscillian's doctrines) that the Catholic Church has levelled against critics in every age. Cathars being expelled from Carcassone in 1209. ... Manichaeism was one of the major ancient religions. ... , by Albrecht Dürer , by Peter Paul Rubens Jerome (about 340 - September 30, 420), (full name Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus) is best known as the translator of the Bible from Greek and Hebrew into Latin. ... This article is about the city in the West Bank. ... For other uses of the term or name Magic, see Magic (illusion) or Magic (disambiguation). ...

Among the more prominent of Priscillian's friends were two bishops, named Instantius and Salvianus, and Hyginus of Cordova also joined the party; but, through the exertions of Idacius of Emerita, the leading Priscillianists, who had failed to appear before the synod of Spanish and Aquitanian bishops to which they had been summoned, were excommunicated at Zaragoza in October 380. Meanwhile, however, Priscillian was made bishop of Ávila, and the orthodox party found it necessary to appeal to the emperor (Gratian), who issued an edict threatening the sectarian leaders with banishment. Priscillian, Instantius and Salvianus succeeded, however, in procuring the withdrawal of Gratian's edict, and the attempted arrest of Ithacius of Ossonuba. Mérida is the capital of the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. ... Capital Bordeaux Area 41,309 km² Regional President Alain Rousset ( PS) (since 1998) Population   - 2004 estimate   - 1999 census   - Density (Ranked 6th) 3,049,000 2,908,359 74/km² (2004) Arrondissements 18 Cantons 235 Communes 2,296 Départements Dordogne Gironde Landes Lot-et-Garonne Pyrénées-Atlantiques Aquitaine... For alternative meanings, see Zaragoza (disambiguation). ... This article is about the year 380 AD. For the aircraft, see Airbus A380. ... vila is a town in the south of Castile, the capital of the province of the same name, now part of the autonomous community of Castile-Leon, Spain. ... For the 12th century canon lawyer, see Gratian (jurist). ...

On the murder of Gratian in Paris and the accession of Magnus Maximus (383) Ithacius fled to Treves, and in consequence of his representations a synod was held (384) at Bordeaux, where Instantius was deposed. Priscillian appealed to the emperor, with the unexpected result that with six of his companions he was beheaded at Treves in 385, the first Christians martyred by Christians. The first instance of the application of the Theodosian law against heretics had the approval of the synod which met at Treves in the same year, but Ambrose of Milan and Martin of Tours can claim to have reduced the persecution. It has since been claimed that his execution was strongly protested by his former opponents in the church, Ambrose of Milan, Martin of Tours, and the pope, largely on the jurisdictional grounds of bringing an ecclesiastical case before a civil tribunal, not a precedent they wished to see followed. Magnus Maximus (Welsh: Macsen Wledig), also Maximianus, (c. ... Events January 19 - Arcadius is elevated as Roman Emperor. ... Trier: The Porta Nigra, viewed from outside Trier (French: Trèves), is Germanys oldest city. ... A synod (also known as a council) is a council of a church, usually a Christian church, convened to decide an issue of doctrine or administration. ... Events Forum of Theodosius built in Constantinople. ... City motto: Lilia sola regunt lunam undas castra leonem. ... Events February 11 - Oldest Pope elected: Siricius, bishop of Tarragona. ... Saint Ambrose, Latin Sanctus Ambrosius, Italian SantAmbrogio (circa 340 – April 4, 397), bishop of Milan, was one of the most eminent fathers of the Christian church in the 4th century. ... Location within Italy Piazza della Scala Milan (Italian: Milano; Milanese dialect: Milán) is the main city in northern Italy, and is located in the plains of Lombardy, the most populated and developed of Italian regions. ... Statue of Saint Martin cutting his cloak in two. ...

The heresy, notwithstanding the severe measures taken against it, continued to spread in France as well as in Spain; in 412 Lazarus, bishop of Aix-en-Provence, and Herod, bishop of Arles, were expelled from their sees on a charge of Manichaeism. Proculus, the metropolitan of Marseilles, and the metropolitans of Vienne and Narbonensis Secunda were also followers of the rigorous tradition for which Priscillian had died. Events The Visigoths move into Gaul, led by Alarics brother Ataulf. ... Aix (prounounced eks), or, to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, Aix-en-Provence is a city in southern France, some 30 km north of Marseille. ... Map of western Mediterranean, showing location of Arles Arles (Arle in Provençal) is a city in the south of France, in the Bouches-du-Rhône département, of which it is a sous-préfecture, in the former province of Provence. ... Marseilles redirects here. ... This article is about the French département. ...

Something was done for its repression by a synod held by Turibius of Astorga in 446, and by that of Toledo in 447; as an openly professed creed it had to be declared heretical once more by the second synod of Braga in 563, a sign that Priscillianist asceticism held stong hold long aftyer his execution. "The official church," says F. C. Conybeare, "had to respect the ascetic spirit to the extent of enjoining celibacy upon its priests, and of recognizing, or rather immuring, such of the laity as desired to live out the old ascetic ideal. But the official teaching of Rome would not allow it to be the ideal and duty of every Christian. Priscillian perished for insisting that it was such; and seven centuries later the Church began to burn, the Cathari by thousands because they took a similar view of the Christian life." Astorga (Latin Asturica Augusta) is a city in the province of León, Spain. ... Events A synod is held by Turibius of Astorga. ... The façade of Toledo cathedral The largest Toledo in the world is Toledo, Ohio. ... Events Synod of Toledo: The filioque clause is added to the Nicene Creed Merovech becomes king of the Franks Battle of the Utus: Attila the Hun defeats the Eastern Romans in an indecisive battle. ... Braga is a city in northwestern Portugal, in the province of Minho. ... Events Saint Columba, the Irish missionary, founds his mission to the Picts and his monastery on Iona. ... The word ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askesis (practice, training or exercise). ... A vow of clerical celibacy is the promise of a religious or clerical official to remain unmarried, or not to remarry. ... The word ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askesis (practice, training or exercise). ... Cathars being expelled from Carcassone in 1209. ...

The long prevalent estimation of Priscillian as a heretic and Manichaean rested upon Augustine, Turibius of Astorga, Leo the Great and Orosius (who quotes a fragment of a letter of Priscillian's), although at the Council of Toledo in 400, fifteen years after Priscillian's death, when his case was reviewed, the most serious charge that could be brought was the error of language involved in a misrendering of the word innascibilis ("unbegettable"). Manichaeism was one of the major ancient religions. ... St. ... Pope Saint Leo I, or Leo the Great, a Roman aristocrat, was Pope from 440 to 461. ... Paulus Orosius (c. ... For alternate uses, see Number 400. ...

It was long thought that all the writings of the "heretic" himself had perished, but in 1885, Georg Schepss discovered at the University of Würzburg eleven genuine tracts, published in the Vienna Corpus 1886. Though they bear Priscillian's name, four describing Priscillian's trial appear to have been written by a close follower. "They contain nothing that is not orthodox and commonplace, nothing that Jerome might not have written," and go far to justify the description of Priscillian as "the first martyr burned by a Spanish Inquisition". Unsympathetic historians and folk tradition have built upon facts like these what is known as the "Black Legend" of alleged Spanish fanaticism. 1885 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... The University of Würzburg is a university in Würzburg, Germany, founded in 1402. ... Pedro Berruguete. ... The Black Legend (in Spanish, leyenda negra) is the depiction of Spain and the Spaniards as bloodthirsty and cruel, greedy and fanatical, in excess of reality. ...

Priscillian was long honored as a martyr, not heretic, especially in Galicia, where his body was reverentially returned from Triers. Some claim that the remains found in the 8th century at the site rededicated to Santiago de Compostela that even today are a place of pilgrimage belong not to Saint James the Great but to Priscillian. Motto: Capital Santiago de Compostela Official languages Galician and Castilian Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % of Spain Ranked 7th  29 574 km²  5,8% Population  â€“ Total (2003)  â€“ % of Spain  â€“ Density Ranked 5th  2 737 370  6,5%  92,36/km² Demonym  â€“ English  â€“ Galician  â€“ Spanish  â€“ Portuguese  Galician  galego  gallego  galego Statute of Autonomy April... (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. ... Santiago de Compostela (2003 pop. ... A pilgrimage is a term primarily used in religion and spirituality of a long journey or search of great moral significance. ... For people and places called Saint James, see the diambiguation page. ...

According to Raymond Brown's Epistle of John, the source of the Comma Johanneum appears to be the Latin book "Liber Apologeticus" by Priscillian. Father Raymond Edward Brown (died August 8, 1998), a member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission in 1972 and in 1996 and professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York, was one of Americas preeminent biblical scholars. ... The Comma Johanneum was a clause present in most translations of the First Epistle of John published from 1522 until the later part of the 19th century, owing to the widespread use of the third edition of the Textus Receptus as a sole source for translation. ...

External links

• Analysis of Priscillian and Priscillianism

This entry adapts some information originally from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. (Redirected from 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica) The Eleventh Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica (1911) in many ways represents the sum of knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century. ...