Reply-To:
blissInSanFrancisco@mouse-potato.com
On 7/11/25 14:43, William Hyde wrote:
Bobbie Sellers wrote:
On 6/22/25 23:54, The Horny Goat wrote:
On Mon, 24 Feb 2025 08:46:47 -0800, Paul S Person
<psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
As to Simon Magus, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Magus> notes
that the Early Fathers did attribute Gnosticism to him but modern
scholars are divided on whether he actually was a Gnostic or was
merely regarded as one by the Church Fathers. All of whom, since Simon >>>> Magus and Peter the Apostle were contemporaries, were writing a
century or two after he died.
That's what I remembered and I was therefore mystified by how Simon
Magus could still be around in the time of Marcus Aurelius.
Might there not have been another Simon Magus or a charlatan
assuming
the name to increase his reputation?
It was very common for writers in the ancient world to publish works
under the name of an older, famous writer.
Thus the "false Geber" published his alchemy under the name of an
earlier alchemist. Somewhat ironic as the false Geber was a better alchemist than Geber (details in Asimov's "biographical encyclopedia of science and technology).
And of course people who were not Paul writing letters as Paul would be
a more famous example.
But as Simon Magus was given a very bad reputation (the sin of Simony
being named after him) using his name would be of value only in unusual circumstances.
William Hyde
Simon Magus was a competing cuit leader performing miracles and
as I recall threw himself off a building to try to compete with Peter's levitation.
But it has been many years since I read the relevant verses.
Now Simon Magus died on that occasion but another cult leader evan
a Gnostic cult leader might use his name to inherit.
Simony was named after Simon Magus's attempted crimeor sin of attempting to purchase magic that compels Deity aka "theourgy"
from Simon Peter who was given Godly protection in order to convince
the listeners to his accounts of Jesus. But someone was alive and a gnostic cult leader using the name of Simon Magus as a front for whatever value.
When was the sin named or concieved of?.
But think it is rather a dead issue unless you
want to write a novel set in those two times before
100 AD and around 300 AD when the relevant council
met. It would take more suspension of belief than I can raise
to take those texts seriously. The Shaver Mystery is more unbelievable
to me but I enjoyed some of the stories I read when I got a copy of
Amazing from the office of the Motel and Trailer Park. 1940s. I read
the Bible which was much less entertaining in those years as well
surrounded by believers in the duality of body and soul, Triune diety
presumed to have all sorts of wishful-fulfillment super powers.
bliss
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