A Brief History of Heresies

[Thy Geekdom Come]

A Brief History of Heresies

Originally Published "SECTION X-THE PRINCIPAL SECTS, THE FATHERS WHO REFUTED THEIR ERRORS, AND THE COUNCILS WHICH CONDEMNED THEM."

From:

[u]The Catholic Church Alone—The One True Church of Christ.[/u] Rev. Henry Dodridge, et al. 1902. Catholic Educational Company. New York, Philadelphia. pgs. 534-541.

Edited by: Micah Murphy

[b]Q. What were the principal heretics of the first century?[/b]

A. Even in the time of the Apostles, there arose Simon the magician, Menander, the Nicolaites, the Cerinthians, and Ebionites, Simon imagined, that he could buy the power to give the Holy Ghost; he wished to be considered a god; rejected the Old Testament, denying that God was its author; he also denied the Resurrection. He was confounded and destroyed by St. Peter; Arnobiu, lib. 2, contra Gent. p. 50. Menander wished to pass for the Saviour; he pretended by his false baptism to preserve from old age and death; S. Just. Apol. n. 72. The Nicolaites were like Menander, the disciples of the impious Simon; and Cerinthus and the Ebionites, amongst other errors, were the first to deny the divinity of Christ; against these, according to St. Jerome, St. John wrote the Gospel; Jerom. Epist. ad Heliodor.

[b]Q. Who were the heretics of the second century?[/b]

A. Saturninus, who condemned marriage, and Basilides, who pretended that Christ had not a real but and imaginary body, and that he did not really die. These two heresies were refuted by St. Ireneus, Clement of Alexandria, and others. The Gnostics followed, adding to the above errors others equally shocking. They said that Christ was only a mere man; and practiced abominable rites, which were by the Pagans, attributed to the whole body of Christians, and used a pretext, to excite persecutions; see Minucius Felix, in his Octavius.
The Valentinians, the Cerdonians, and the Marcionites, were offshoots of the above, and taught the same errors with some peculiar variations; they had numerous followers, and were opposed and refuted by Tertullian, Ireneus, Justin, Epiphanius, and Clement of Alexandria. Montanus pretended he was the Holy Spirit, and endeavored to pass off for the prophetesses two infamous women, whom he carried about with him. He forbade marriage, ordered three Lents to be observed, and pretended, that there were a great number of sins from which the Church had no power to absolve. Tertullian, one of the ablest writers of the Church, became the victim of this heresy—a terrible example of pride, to all the children of God. Tatian condemned marriage, forbade animal food and wine, and used water for the sacrifice of the Mass. His errors were refuted by Clement of Alexandria, Ireneus, Origen, Epiphanius, and many others.

[b]Q. What were the sects of the third century?[/b]

A. The Novatians began by schism; Novatian having wished to have himself elected Pope in place of Cornelius, who was lawfully elected. It was on this occasion that St. Cyprian distinguished himself by various letters addressed to Pope Cornelius, and by his admirable work on the unity of the Church. The Novatians became heretics, by maintaining that the Church had not power to absolve from great crimes committed after baptism. St. Cyprian, St. Pacian, St. Ambrose, St. Basil, and others, wrote against this heresy, which was finally condemned by the general Council of Nice.
The Sabellians held that there were not three persons in the godhead; that the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost were only three names for the same person. Paul of Samosata, Bishop of Antioch, through vanity and pride fell into the same error. He was condemned in the two celebrated Councils of Antioch. This heresy was opposed by St. Dionysius of Alexandria, by St. Athanasius, and St. Basil, and was condemned by the first Council of Nice.
The Manicheans held that there were two first principles, one good, the other bad; that each man had a good and a bad soul. They forbade marriage, they denied human liberty, original sin, the necessity of Baptism or faith, the authority of the Old Testament. St. Augustin, who knew them well, because he had been one of their sect before his baptism, exposed their errors in a most powerful manner. These errors had long before been foretold and condemned by St. Paul; I Tim. iv. I; St. Leo, serm. 15.
The Origenists held that the soul of Christ was been united to the eternal Word before the Incarnation; that the soul of each man subsisted before his body, and was infused into the body as into a prison, in punishment of former sins; that Jesus died not only for men, but for the devils and that the pains of hell would not be eternal. Many deep theologians believe that Origen did not teach these errors, but that his disciples pretended they derived them from him; thus attempting to give importance to their sect, by claiming as its founder, a man who, for learning, was the wonder of his age. These errors of the Origenists were opposed by St. Jerome, Epiphanius, and others, and were condemned in various general Councils, especially in the fifth general Council, held at Constantinople, under Pope Vigilius, in 552.

[b]Q. What were the sects of the fourth century?[/b]

A. The Donatists were first schismatics, the heretics. Donatus was so rash as to consecrate Majorin, to the prejudice of Cecilian, the lawful bishop of Carthage, and thus raised altar against altar, causing a schism. His followers soon added heresy tot he schism of their master. They declared Baptism, and other Sacraments, administered by the Church, null—that the Church existed only with them. They ordained priests and bishops for themselves, declaring that Catholic ordinations were null and void. The profaned Churches, and the Holy Eucharist; they broke down the altars, trampled the holy oils under foot; they split up, like every other heresy into various sets, yet remained united against Catholicism. They were condemned at Rome in 313; at Arles in 314. The emperor Honorius ordered a conference of Catholic and Donatists bishops in 411. There met 280 Catholics and 159 Donatists. The Catholic bishops offered to divide their sees, or to cede them altogether to the Donatists, if they would quit there schism; but nearly all refused, and persisted in their rebellion. Their followers, however, diminished after this; and in less than a century, the heresy died out. St. Optatus and St. Augustin wrote powerfully against this sect and it would be well if Protestants would read these writings;for it they did, the honest amongst them would abandon their errors.
Arius, a priest of Alexandria, followed Paul of Samosata in his errors on the Trinity. He pretended that Jesus Christ was not truly God, because, as he said, he was neither coeternal nor consubstantial with the Father. This heresy is much the same as the modern modifications of it, Socinianism and Unitarianism. The Arians, though much divided amongst themselves, were, like all heretics, united against the Church. They gained over to their party many powerful adherents, and raised horrible persecutions against the Church. The errors of Arius were refuted by St. Athanasius, St. Hilary, St. Gregory Nazianzen, St. Basil, and a host of others. They were condemned in many Councils, but especially in the Council of Nice, anno 325. Macedonius denied the divinity of the Holy Ghost, and was refuted by St. Basil, St. Gregory of Nyssa, St. Epiphanius, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, and many others. His errors were condemned by the first Council of Constantinople, in 381.
Eunomius added to the errors of Arius other blasphemies. He pretended that God was not incomprehensible; that he knew God as well as God knew himself; that relics were to be despised, and the miracles, wrought at the tombs of the martyrs, laughed at. He refused to baptize in the name of the Trinity, rejected the authority of the prophets and Apostles; and held many other absurdities and immoral doctrines. He was opposed in his wicked career by St. Basil, St. Gregory of Nyssa, St. John Chrysostom, St. Epiphanius, St. Augustine and Theodoret. The Emperor Theodosius made severe laws against this sect.
Arius held that priests were equal to bishops. He condemned prayers for the dead, and the fasts and abstinences of the Church; he forbade Easter as a feast. St. Epiphanius and St. Augustine assailed this heresy, which has been condemned by almost every Council held in the Church. Photinus held like Arius, that Jesus Christ was not God; but he added that he was a mere man, having no existence whatever before his temporal birth. This heretic was refuted and anathematized by the same Fathers and Councils which condemned Arius. The Messalians and Euchites were a sort of enthusiasts who maintained that baptism was useless, that prayer alone was useful. They prayed or slept all day; they pretended to revelations from heaven, and lived horrible libertines. St. Epiphanius and Theodoret refuted their errors, which were condemned by the Council of Ephesus, Act 7.
Lucifer, Bishop of Cagliari, refused to receive repenting Arian bishops back into the Church, and thus with his followers became schismatics. St. Jerome, who refutes them, says, they wished also to rebaptize all converted Arians; and St. Augustine adds, that they were accused of teaching that the soul is material and begotten of the body. Apollinaris held that Christ had no human soul, that the Word of God became one and the same substance with his body, and animated it. That both died on the cross; that the body of Jesus was not formed from the Blessed Virgin, but came from heaven; that the Holy Ghost was inferior to the Son, and the Son to the Father. SS. Jerome, Athanasius, and others opposed this heresy, which was condemned at Alexandria in 362, at Rome in 373, at Antiochin 378, and at Constantinople in 381.
The Priscillianists taught a compound of the errors of the Gnostics, Manicheans, and Sabellians. The labored to conceal their opinions, and permitted lies and perjury for that purpose. Supicius Severus wrote strongly against them, and St. Augustine composed, against them, his book on lies. They were condemned at Saragossain 380, at Toledo in 400, and at Braga in 569. The Jovinianists believed marriage more holy than virginity, and declared man after baptism impeccable. They believed all sins equal, and that Jesus Christ was not born of a virgin. St. Jerome, St. Ambrose, and St. Augustine, combated their errors, and they were condemned at Rome in 390, and afterwards in the Council of Trent I, in the persons of Protestants. The Collyridians were a set of Arabian women who adored the Blessed Virgin as a deity. They were confuted by St. Epiphanius.

[b]Q. What were the heretics of the fifth century?[/b]

A. Vigilantius rejected the invocation of Saints and the veneration of relics. He despised miracles wrought at the tombs of the martyrs; he declared virginity nothing better than marriage. His errors were condemned in those of Jovinian, and refuted by St. Jerome. Pelagius and Celestius were the leaders in the Pelagian heresy. They held that Adam was created to die, whether he sinned or not; that his sin injured only himself; that infants are born without original sin; that consequently baptism was useless; that concupiscence was no evil; that ignorance or forgetfulness were in no case sins; that death and the miseries of life were not the punishment of sin; that infants who die without baptism, enjoy eternal life, but not in heaven; that man’s liberty is as strong now as before the fall; that if man wished, he had it in his OWN power to control all passions; that virtue was not the gift of God. Such are some of the gross errors of Pelagianism. St. Germanus and St. Augustine labored successfully to destroy this heresy, which was condemned at Carthage in 412, at Diospolis in 415, and by Innocent I., in 417. Pope Celestine I. confirmed the decisions of all his predecessors against this heresy, and in the Council of Ephesus, anno 431, two express canons are directed against it.
The Semipelagian sprang from the ruins of the Pelagian heresy. It held that man, by his own power, could merit the first grace necessary to salvation, whilst the Church holds that such grace must come from God. St. Augustine died whilst engaged in refuting these heretics. St. Prosper, St. Fulgentius, Popes Celestine, Zozimus, and Gelasius, condemned this heresy between 423 and 494. It was condemned also by various Councils, whose decisions were confirmed by Boniface II.
Nestorius held, that there were two persons in Jesus Christ. That the Son of God was not united hypostatically, but accidentally, to the Son of Man, so the Jesus Christ was the Son of God only by adoption. He held also as necessary consequence that the Blessed Virgin was not the mother of God. This blasphemer was opposed by SS. Proclus, Cyril, and Pope Celestine, whose condemnation of Nestorius was received by acclamation, and ratified by the Council of Ephesus, 431.
Eutiches maintained that there was only one nature in Christ, as there was only one Person, whilst the Church has always taught two distinct natures, the nature of God, and the nature of man. This heresy gained credit from Dioscorus of Alexandria, who declared himself its protector. St. Flavian, Patriarch of Constantinople, had it condemned in a Council held in that city, anno 449. In the Council of Chalcedon, Eutiches and his heresy were condemned, and the impious Dioscorus was deposed.

[b]Q. What were the heretics of the sixth century?[/b]

A. The Agnoetes were the followers of Themistius, who was infected by the Eutychian heresy. They attributed ignorance in many things to Christ. They were refuted by Eulogus, Patriarch of Alexandria, whose writings were approved of by St. Gregory the Great. The heresy of the Tritheists consisted in the admission of three distinct natures in God. This heresy was refuted by the Eutychians themselves, and very soon disappeared. The Acemetes, which means those who never sleep, denied the Incarnation, the birth of Jesus of a virgin, and his death. They were condemned as Nestorians by Pope John II. We shall pass over the condemnation of the Three Chapters, the history of which is too complicated for a work of this description. These Three Chapters were the writings of Theodorus, Bishop of Mopsuestus, a letter of Ibas, Bishop of Edessa, and the writings of Theodoret, Bishop of Cyr. These three writings were solemnly condemned in the second general Council of Constantinople.

[b]Q. What were the errors of the seventh century?[/b]

A. The Monothelites maintained, that though there were two natures in Christ, he had only one will, which was the divine, and not the human will. This heresy was supported by Sergius, Patriarch of Constantinople, Cyrus, Patriarch of Alexandria, and others. It was refuted by John of Alexandria, Sophronius of Jerusalem, Arcadius, Bishop of Cyprus, St. Maximus, Martyr, the Popes, Severinus, John IV., and Agatho, by whom it was condemned in the Council of Constantinople, anno 680. The Paulicians were a sect of Manicheans under a new name. Their leader was a certain Paul, an Armenian. They were guilty of every abomination; see Bos. Hist. Variat. lib. xi. n. 13.
It was in this age that Mahomet, a Cyrenean, aided as it is supposed by Sergius, a Nestorian monk, formed the Mahometan sect, whose doctrines are a monstrous compound of Judaism, Christianity, and the ancient heresies. God, according to Mahomet, is the author of evil as well as good; man has no free will; there is only one person in God; Jesus was only crucified in appearance: the devils will be saved. He maintained that paradise consists in carnal pleasures; that these are not sins; that man may have many wives; that circumcision is necessary, and baptism useless; that the Eucharist is idolatry, and that wine is forbidden. God has permitted this monstrous evil to over-spread all the East, as a punishment for the crimes of Christians.

[b]Q. What heretics appeared during the eighth century?[/b]

A. The Iconoclasts, so called because they destroyed or broke images, protested against the honor which the Church had ever given to the images of Christ and his Saints. The Emperor Leo the Isaurian, a Bishop named Constantine, Constantine Copronymus, and his son Leo, were the chief support of this heresy, which made great havoc in the Church. This heresy was opposed by Gregory II., St. Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople, and others; and was condemned in the second Council of Nice, anno 787. Felix, Bishop of Toledo, taught, that Christ was the Son of God only by adoption; a whole host of Fathers opposed this blasphemy, which was condemned at Ratisbon in 792, at Frankfort 794, and at Rome, under Leo III., 799.

[b]Q. Who were the heretics of the ninth century?[/b]

A. Sergius and Baanes renewed the Paulician heresy, to which they added some new errors. Claude, Bishop of Turin, renewed that of Vigilantius and Aerius. These were successfully opposed by Jonas, Bishop of Orleans, and Dungale, a monk of Paris. Gotescalk, a monk of Soissons, was accused of teaching the errors of the Predestinarians; he was severely punished by Hincmar, Archbishop of Rheims, and condemned in 848 at Mayence; and at Querci in 849, 853.
Photius, the nephew of St. Tarasius, Patriarch of Constantinople, was intruded, though a laic, into the See of Constantinople, in place of St. Ignatius, the lawful Bishop, who was driven from his See by the impious Bardas, nephew of the Emperor Michael III., to whom St. Ignatius refused communion, because he was living in open incest. Photius in six days received all the orders up to Patriarch, from Gregory of Syracuse, and excommunicated and deposed bishop. Photius was excommunicated by Nicholas I. He then commenced to teach that the Holy Ghost did not proceed from the Son, an error opposed to the uniform and perpetual doctrine of the Church. In 869 St. Ignatius was restored to his See, and Photius was, by the eight general Council, deposed and excommunicated. On the death of St. Ignatius, Photius, by address, got himself made lawful Patriarch of Constantinople. He now again began to teach error, and was deposed by John VIII., and Adrian III., and Stephen V. Still he persisted in his error, until he was driven from his See by the Emperor Leo the Wise, and confined to a monastery, where he died. His heresy and schism did not die with him; the exist amongst the Greeks to this day. John Scotus taught various errors on Predestination and the Holy Eucharist during this century, but as he had no followers, we shall say nothing more about him.
During the tenth century, no heresy of note made its appearance. In Italy, the Anthropomorphites, who gave God a body, showed themselves for a time, and expired; and Walafrid, in Languedoc, denied the immortality of the soul, and was ably refuted by Durandus, afterwards made Bishop of Castres, by John XXII.

[b]Q. Who were the heretics of the eleventh century?[/b]

A. The new Manicheans appeared in the city of Orleans, led by two canons, who, on being discovered, were condemned and degraded, in a Council held for that purpose.
Berengarius, Archdeacon of Angers, dared to teach that the body of Jesus Christ was only figuratively contained in the Sacrament. The whole Church rose against him. He was condemned in a Council at Rome, in 1050; in that of Paris the same year; and in that of Florence, 1055, under Victor II. He was condemned successively in 1059, 1063, 1075, 1078, and 1079. He retracted his error, and died penitent in the bosom of the Church.
Michael Cerularius, Patriarch of Constantinople, in 1043, wrote against the Latin Church, accusing her of the following crimes, viz.: Consecrating in unleavened bread, eating strangled meats, shaving the beard, fasting on Saturday, eating meat during Quinquagesima week, adding the word Filioque to the Symbol of Nice, allowing two brothers to marry two sisters, giving the kiss of peace in Mass before the Communion, not singing the Alleluia in Lent, not honoring images and relics of the Saints, with many other false or frivolous charges. Such were the pretexts for the Greek schism. Leo IX. sent three legates, who were honorably received by the Emperor, Constantine Monomachus. These conferred often with Michael the Patriarch, but without effect. They at last excommunicated him in the Church of St. Sophia. The Emperor banished Michael, but the schism was not destroyed. Many of the Greeks were still out of the Church, either through Nestorianism, or Eutychianism, or Monothelism, or Cerularianism.

[b]Q. What were the errors of the twelfth century?[/b]

A. Tanchelin taught that Christ did not institute the ministry of Bishops and Priests; that the reception of the Holy Eucharist was useless to salvation. The life of this monster was full of infamy. The mob followed him as a prophet, until God by the ministry of St. Norbert, Bishop of Madgeburg, destroyed this heresy. Peter of Bruis renewed the heresy of the Manicheans at Nimes; his followers were called Petrobusians. Peter was burnt by order of the magistrates; and his followers, from whom the Albigenses sprung, were refuted by st. Bernard and others, and condemned in the Council of Lateran, under Innocent II., in 1039. These heretics were also called Henricians, from an apostate monk henry, who led them after the death of Peter. Arnaud of Brescia taught errors on the Eucharist, Baptism, and the religious state. He was opposed by the same Fathers, and condemned in the same Council. St. Bernard also refuted the errors of Peter Abailard on the Trinity and other questions; and Peter was condemned at Soissons, in 1120; at Sens, in 1140; which condemnations were confirmed by Innocent II. Abailard retracted his errors. Gilbert, Bishop of Poitiers, taught some errors on the Trinity, which were refuted by St. Bernard, and condemned in the Council of Rheims in 1148, where retracted. Eon de l’Etoile, and ignorant fanatic, fancied that it was he who was to come and judge the living and the dead; he had followers. he and they were condemned at Rheims in 1148. He was condemned to perpetual imprisonment.
The Waldenses were the followers of a merchant of Lyons, called Waldo; they were called the poor men of Lyons, as they made a boast of poverty. They attempted to preach without a mission, or orders,; they held some doctrines, afterward adopted by Protestants, but most of their creed was Catholic; see Bossuet, Hist. Var. lib. xi. Reinerus, who had been one of themselves, refutes their errors, which were condemned in 1163 at Lombez, in 1178 at Toulouse, in the third Council of Lateran, under Alexander III., and the fourth Council of Lateran, under Innocent III., in 1215.

[b]Q. Inform us as to the errors of the thirteenth century?[/b]

A. The Albigenses, so called because they inhabited Albi, and High Languedoc, professed the errors of the Manicheans, and a compound of Petrobusianism and Waldensism. They plunged into every infamy; yet Protestants own them as their Fathers, and glory in their shame. Peter of Castelnau, and St. Dominic, labored with great zeal to convert these madmen. They were condemned at Avignon in 1210, at Lavaur in 1213, at Montpellier in 1214, in the fourth Council of Lateran in 1215, and by several others, up to the year 1246.
Amalric, or Aimeri, taught several errors similar to the Calvinistic errors. Besides these, he denied the resurrection of the body; he declared heaven and hell mere chimeras; that our heaven was our virtues, and our hell was a state of mortal sin; that the word of God was not to be found in the writings of the Fathers, more than in the poets. This heretic was condemned at Paris in 1209, and in the fourth Lateran Council in 1215. Joachim of Calabria erred on the subject of the Trinity, and was condemned by the above Council, in 1215. He had fanatical followers, who substituted his book in place of the New Testament, which they rejected. They and their fancies were condemned at Arles, in 1260.
The Circumcellions, who appeared in Germany, were a kind of Donatists. They maintained that Bishops and Priests forfeited all spiritual power, by mortal sin; they then declared the Pope, Bishops, and Priests, all in a state of mortal sin; and most modestly claimed all power to themselves, as the only people free from sin. This insolent folly had been long before condemned in the persons of the Donatists. The Flagellantes were an assemblage of people, who, naked to the middle, used the discipline most unmercifully. In the beginning, they broached no error; but in course of time they declared, that no one could receive the forgiveness of his sins, unless he entered their confraternity; and although laymen, they confess and absolved one another. They passed from Italy to Germany, and from that to Hungary. They were condemned at Paris, 1349. The Beguards and Beguines led horrible lives, and believed a compound of the Manicheism and the Albigensism; something like the Quietists of more modern times. They were condemned int he general Council of Vienne, under Clement V., in 1311.

[b]Q. What heretics appeared in the fourteenth century?[/b]

A. The Turlupins, and abominable sect, who appeared in Dauphine and Savoy. They adopted the errors of the Beguards, and maintained that mental prayer alone was good and useful. They went naked in public, and gloried in the most shameful actions. This infamous sect was put down by the civil law. Raymond Lulle, of Majorca, published a work, full of errors, on the Trinity, the Attributes of God, etc. Gregory XI. condemned his works, to which condemnation he submitted. There was also a second Raymond Lulle, who, after being a Jew, became a Christian; he wrote several works on magic, crammed with nonsense, both ancient and modern.
John Wickliffe, a priest of the diocese of Lincoln, taught many errors against Jesus Christ, the Sacraments, and the Church; he was partly Donatist, partly the precursor of Calvin; still he did not reject either confirmation, penance, or extreme unction; he held the Mass, the invocation of Saints, and the veneration of relics and images; he was condemned in several councils, and especially in the general Council of Constance, 1414.
During the fifteenth century, John Hus, rector of the University of Prague, renewed the heresy of Wickliffe, and added other novelties. Protestants boast of him as their champion, and this too, whilst they admit that he held the real presence, transubstantiation, purgatory, the invocation of Saints, and the seven Sacraments. He was condemned in the Council of Constance; and, by the secular power, was burnt alive, as an obstinate heretic. Jerome of Prague was the disciple of Hus, and had the same fate.
With the heresies of the sixteenth century, Christians of all classes, in these countries, ought to be well acquainted. Commencing with one man, they multiplied with such celerity that, in less than a century, they became almost innumerable, all differing from one another—each opposed to its neighbor—yet, like every heresy, all united against truth, and waging war with God’s Church. We shall take no special notice of these Protestant heresies here, as the whole object of this and every other work on Faith and Morality, written by Catholics, is by establishing truth, to refute modern Protestant error. Protestantism was condemned by several Popes, and finally proscribed in the General Council of Trent, held from 1545 till 1563. Neither shall we take and notice here of the errors of Jansenius, Quesnell, or their adherents, first, because they are nearly forgotten; and, secondly, because they were of so subtle a description, that only theologians could well understand them; and these have abundant opportunities of making themselves acquainted with them in their own theological works.

[phatcatholic]

rock on

i'll add this to ur list of tracts and to the History of the Church entry

[photosynthesis]

what about 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st century heresies?

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='photosynthesis' date='Mar 1 2006, 01:07 AM']what about 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st century heresies?
[right][snapback]900492[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]
I couldn't exactly edit the work to add information. I simply adjusted a few typesetting issues.

For a more comprehensive study of the more modern heresies, I suggest [u]Dissent from the Creed[/u] by Fr. Richard M. Hogan.

[Thy Geekdom Come]

Just reading this again and thought I'd bump it.

[eustace scrubb]

thank you! it was very helpful!!!

[Bennn]

Thank you. It is very enlightening.

[Formosus]

You do realize there is little historical evidence for John VIII's deposing of Photius. The 20th century (Catholic ) historian Fr. Francis Dvornik debunked that in his works concerning St. Photius(who is listed as a saint as according to the Liturgical calender of the UGCC). St. Photius died in full communion and in good friendship with Pope John VIII.

Edit*

I will at least give the author of this work the benefit of the doubt, as the truth concerning St. Photius was published long after the writing of this work. It is important to know that he should not be considered among the same crowd of people as Arius and the gnostics now though.

Edited April 14, 2010 by Formosus

[Resurrexi]

[quote name='Formosus' date='13 April 2010 - 11:02 PM' timestamp='1271217739' post='2093005']
You do realize there is little historical evidence for John VIII's deposing of Photius. The 20th century (Catholic ) historian Fr. Francis Dvornik debunked that in his works concerning St. Photius(who is listed as a saint as according to the Liturgical calender of the UGCC). St. Photius died in full communion and in good friendship with Pope John VIII.

Edit*

I will at least give the author of this work the benefit of the doubt, as the truth concerning St. Photius was published long after the writing of this work. It is important to know that he should not be considered among the same crowd of people as Arius and the gnostics now though.
[/quote]

Photius isn't a saint.

[Apotheoun]

[quote name='Formosus' date='13 April 2010 - 10:02 PM' timestamp='1271217739' post='2093005']
You do realize there is little historical evidence for John VIII's deposing of Photius. The 20th century (Catholic ) historian Fr. Francis Dvornik debunked that in his works concerning St. Photius(who is listed as a saint as according to the Liturgical calender of the UGCC). St. Photius died in full communion and in good friendship with Pope John VIII.[/quote]
St. Photios pray for us.

[Innocent]

[quote name='Resurrexi' date='14 April 2010 - 11:04 AM' timestamp='1271219689' post='2093017']
Photius isn't a saint.
[/quote]

I understand that we could only say with certainty, from what the Church teaches, that someone [i]is[/i] a saint (i.e., when the Church canonises that person) and that we can't say with certainty that someone is [i]not[/i] a saint. Is that not right?

Edited April 14, 2010 by Innocent