true, their Mifrepresentations must be accounted thoroughly unjustifiable, fince they refused Information, though so near at hand.

Of CARPOCRATES and his Followers.

Hough this Herefiarch could not be the Head of the Gnoftics, as (a) was already obferved, yet by what the Fathers fay of his Principles, he might be ranked in that Clafs, were their accounts of him to be reconciled, fo as to be able to make any Thing of them. But this is more than I can do. (aa) Tertullian and Epiphanius (b) do pofitively affirm, that Carpocrates was older than Cerinthus. Yet if ever Cerinthus exifted, (and there is no doubt but he did), it must have been at the Time of the Apoftles, and had Carpocrates flourished before, or at that fame Time, the apoftolic Fathers, no doubt, would have taken notice of a Man fo remarkable by his Principles and Deeds, as is faid by the fucceeding Fathers, he was, And it evidently appears by what the other Herefiologists

N 3

(a) Vid, & Theɔdorit. in 1 Tim. vi p. 490. Eufeb. H. E, Lib. ii. 13. & Iren. lib. i. c. 30. (aa) De Præfcript. c. 48. (4) Hæres. xxviii, e. i. vid. et Philaftr. c. 8.

Herefiologists fay of him (c) that he must have lived many Years, after Cerinthus'sDeath. Such a Contradiction plainly fhews, that the accounts of the Herefiologifts are not taken fromauthentic Memoirs, but are of their own Invention. Though they be entirely ignorant as to the Time Carpocrates lived, they are nevertheless well acquainted with the Hiftory of his Life. They tell us with one accord, (d) that he was fent by the Devil, to stop the Progress of the Chriftian Religion, by rendering, its Profeffors odious to all virtuous People, on account of the infamous Things he did through a Man who took the Name of a Christian. A Scheme worthy of the Devil indeed, and as is faid, wonderfully well executed. There is one Thing however in this account, which puzzles me, and that is, how the Devil, who had formerly affumed fo great and fo confpicuous a Power over Mankind, fhould have fo thoroughly loft it, as that not the least Sign of it should remain. Without prefuming to account for fo lucky a change, I do heartily rejoice at it. But I think that whenever the Devil took Poffeffion of an Here

(c) Iren. Lib. i. c. 24. Clement. A Strom. Lib. iii. P. 312. Auguftin. ad quodv. De. c. 7. Theod. Hæret. Fabul. Lib. i. Eufeb. H. E. Lib. iv. c. 22. (d) Clem. p. 428. Iren ab. fup. Epiph. xxvii. c. 3. p. 104. Euseb, Lib. iv. c. 7.

Heretic, the Catholics were as guilty as the Heretic himself, and anfwerable for all the Mischief he might do, fince they fuffered him to remain quietly in that Poffeffion, though (e), as they pretend, they had it in their Power to caft him out whenever they pleased. Their Neglect with respect to Carpocrates was of a dreadful Confequence, for there never was one bad Thing imagi ned but what he performed, at least we are told fo. His Intention was to feduce Mankind and drive them as faft as poffible, into the Way of Perdition, and here is the Way he proceeded to the Execution of that generous Plan. He well judged this was too great an Undertaking for one Man alone, and that if he once could draw fome of the Fair Sex into his Snares, the Succefs would be no longer doubtful. Accordingly he applied to a Lady (f), who, to judge of her by what he did, was extremely well qualified for his Purpofe. Marcellina was her Name. She was well fkilled in polite Learning and Philofophy, and extremely fond of them, fince the is faid to have worshipped the Image of ·Homer (g), and Pythagoras, as well as thofe of Jefus

Ν

N 4

2

Jefus and Paul. The Reader, no doubt, expects to be told how he was enticed into the villainous Scene of Action, the is faid to have followed. A Woman may be feduced, but not fo far as to become the Public Apologist of an execrable and unparalleled Proftitution. To explain this fhocking Phænomenon, the Fa thers affign a Reafon which does the Bufinefs at once. Carpocrates was a very artful Magician (b). He got from the Devil, or from certain (i) Spirits that are the Caufes of Dreams and called Familiars, the Secret of making amorous Potions, by the Means of which he easily deluded any Woman that was not firm in the Orthodox Faith. Marcellina must have drank plentifully of of the hellish Potion; her Zeal for Carpocrates and his Doctrine was fo inflamed, that he could restrain it no longer; fhe went about preaching, and perverted a great number of People, especially at Rome (k). This is faid to have happened in the Time of Anicetus, Bishop of Rome, and about the Year 157th, or 160th. But Origen gives

us

(b) Vid. Iren. ub. fup. Tertul. de anima c. 35. p. 338. (i) Euleb. ub. fup. (k) Iren. Lib. i. c. 24. Epiph. ub. fup. Tillemont Tom. ii. p. 253. Buddei Ecclef. Apoftol. p. 574. Bafnag Annal. polit. Ecclef. Tom. ii. p. 50. Univ. Hift. Tom. xv. p. 42, n. 8°. Dubl. 1745.,

us room to deny the Truth of this Account. He flourished Forty or Fifty (1) Years after the Time affigned to this famous Female Preacher. Had the done all the Mischief ascribed to her, he must have known fomething of it; especially after the earneft Enquiries he made about it (m); yet he is fo thoroughly unacquainted with Carpocrates, Marcellina and their Followers, that he even mistakes as to their Names, calling them Harpocratians inftead of Carpocratians, and freely owns his Ignorance. Celfus, fays he, fpeaks of the Marcellini, that fprung from Marcellina, and of the Harpocratiani,but these are Sects entirely unknown to us, though the great Defire for Inftruction we have has prompted us to enquire, as much as we could, into all the different Opinions of those who profess Christianity.' This Declaration is decifive. Had the Church received fo confiderable a Damage from Carpocrates and his Marcellina, as is faid by Irenæus and the other Herefiologifts it did, Origen, who travelled much,and with a Defign of learning what befel to the Christians before his Time, would infallibly have been told it, and fince he did not hear of it, I conclude that the greatest Part, if nos

Bafnag, ub.fup. p. 226.

4

the

(m) Origen, ub. fup: