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ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 309 CHAPTER XXXI. The error of the Manichees, which commenced at this time. IN the mean time, also, that madman QiaveLg Tag p£ra$) Ma nes, as he was called, well agreeing with his name, for his daemoniacal heresy, armed himself by the perversion of his reason, and at the instigation of Satan, to the destruction of many. He was a barbarian in his life, both in speech and conduct, but in his nature as one possessed and insane. Accordingly, he attempted to form himself into a Christ, and then also proclaimed himself to be the very paracletef and the Holy Spirit, and with all this was greatly puffed up with his madness. Then, as if he were Christ, he selected twelve disciples, the partners of his new religion, and after patching together false and ungodly doctrines, collected from a thousand heresies long since extinct, he swept them off like a deadly poison, from Persia, upon this part of the world. Hence the impious name of the Manichees spreading among many, even to the present day. Such then was the occasion of this know ledge, as it was falsely called, that sprouted up in these times. Our author here uses an epithet, ,u*vns, instead of the proper name of this here tic. Eusebius here taking occasion to rail at the folly of Manes, by an allusion to his name, finds a word in his own language which seems to characterise, whilst it gives his name nearly. We cannot, however, infer from this, that Eusebius consi dered the name Greek. He doubtless knew as well as we, that Manes was a Per sian name, or at least that it was not Greek. But he wanted nothing more than similarity of sound for his purpose. Shorting is mistaken in supposing our author here to intimate the word was Greek. The truth is, the orientals call the name Mani, whence the Greek and Latin Jl fanes. The resemblance of this name to the Greek ^« vs. c, madman, gave our author an opportunity to exercise his wit, by the application of the epithet with out the name. •J-Paraclete.] See note, Book V. ch. 16. The names of three prominent lea ders in delusion, to whom the holy epithet paraclete was either applied, or by whom it was claimed, however different their errors, seem almost to coalesce by allitera tion ; Montanus, Manes, Mahomet ; the first a deluded and ignorant fanatic, the second a crazed philosopher, and the third an ambitious, artful voluptuary, present ing a singular concordia discors, all at antipodes in doctrine, yet all aspiring to the exalted attributes of the Paraclete.
