Hereby the _Greek_ Empire, upon the division of
the _Roman_ Empire into the _Greek_ and _Latin_ Empires, became _the King
who_, in matters of religion, _did according to his will_; _and_, in
legislature, _exalted and magnified himself above every God_: and at
length, by the seventh general Council, established the worship of the
images and souls of dead men, here called _Mahuzzims_.
The same King placed holiness in abstinence from marriage. _Eusebius_ in
his Ecclesiastical history [1] tells us, that _Musanus_ wrote a tract
against those who fell away to the heresy of the _Encratites_, which was
then newly risen, and had introduced pernicious errors; and that _Tatian_,
the disciple of _Justin_, was the author thereof; and that _Irenaeus_ in his
first book against heresies teaches this, writing of _Tatian_ and his
heresy in these words: _A Saturnino & Marcione profecti qui vocantur
Continentes, docuerunt non contrahendum esse matrimonium; reprobantes
scilicet primitivum illud opificium Dei, & tacite accusantes Deum qui
masculum & faeminam condidit ad procreationem generis humani. Induxerunt
etiam abstinentiam ab esu eorum quae animalia appellant, ingratos se
exhibentes ergo eum qui universa creavit Deum. Negant etiam primi hominis
salutem. Atque hoc nuper apud illos excogitatum est, Tatiano quodam omnium
primo hujus impietatis auctore: qui Justini auditor, quamdiu cum illo
versatus est, nihil ejusmodi protulit.
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