observations on this subject than by another
repetition of it. "There is nothing more abominable than that trash
which is in circulation under the name of Ignatius." [428:1]

CHAPTER IV.

THE GNOSTICS, THE MONTANISTS, AND THE MANICHAEANS.

When Christianity made its appearance in the world, it produced a
profound sensation. It spread on all sides with great rapidity; it was
at once felt to be a religion for the common people; and some
individuals of highly cultivated minds soon acknowledged its authority.
For a time its progress was impeded by the persecutions of Nero and
Domitian; but, about the beginning of the second century, it started
upon a new career of prosperous advancement, and quickly acquired such a
position that the most distinguished scholars and philosophers could no
longer overlook its pretensions. In the reigns of Trajan and Hadrian, a
considerable number of men of learning were already in its ranks; but it
would appear that, on the whole, it derived very equivocal aid from the
presence of these new adherents. Not a few of the literati who joined
its standard attempted to corrupt it; and one hundred and twenty years
after the death of the Apostle John, the champions of orthodoxy had to
contend against no less than thirty-two heresies. [429:1]

Of those who now adulterated the gospel, the Gnostics were by far the
most subtle, the most active, and the most formidable. The leaders of
the party were all men of education; and as they were to be found
chiefly in the large cities, the Church in these centres of influence
was in no small degree embarrassed and endangered by their speculations.
Some of the peculiarities of Gnosticism have been already noticed;
[430:1] but as the second century was the period when it made most
progress and awakened most anxiety, we must here advert more distinctly
to its outlines. The three great antagonists of the gospel were the
Grecian philosophy, the heathen mythology, and a degenerate Judaism; and
Gnosticism may be described as an attempt to effect a compromise between
Christianity and these rivals. As might have been expected, the attempt
met with much encouragement; for many, who hesitated to accept the new
religion unconditionally, were constrained to acknowledge that it
exhibited many indications of truth and divinity; and they were,
therefore, prepared to look on it with favour when presented to them in
an altered shape and furnished with certain favourite