one John Askusnages, at last evolved pure Polytheism, teaching that the three Divine Persons are three Gods. This goes even beyond what one might expect in a Christian heresy. He was banished; but he formed a school of Tritheists. John Philoponos (a professor of philosophy), a monk Athanasius and others defended this monstrous error in various works. Stephen Niobes, philosopher at Alexandria, carried the Monophysite principle a step further. He saw that, if Monophysites conceded any difference of Divine and human attributes in Christ, this would lead logically to admitting two natures in him. So his cry was: no differences ((
Greek characters)) in Christ at all. Damian, Monophysite Patriarch of Alexandria (570-605?), and his colleague Peter (of Kallinikos), Patriarch of Antioch (580-591), opposed this opinion; others (Probus, priest at Antioch, and John Barbur, Abbot of a Syrian monastery) took up and formed yet another sect (the Niobists). They were excommunicated by the other Monophysites, and, strangely enough, many members of this extreme sect eventually came back to the Catholic Church. Hefele notices aptly that if the Monophysites who excommunicated Niobists really admitted distinct Divine and human attributes in our Lord, there could have been little but a mere verbal difference between them and Chalcedon, in spite of their formula, "one nature only."[1]
Towards the end of the 6th century Monophysism in Syria was going to pieces. In Egypt it was too strong, and had too much hold on the native population, to be much persecuted; but in Syria (always less united than Egypt) it was only one party among others. There were severe laws against it. It was breaking up into all manner of minor sects. It seemed as if it were about to disappear altogether. Then came James Baradai, who spent his life gathering up the Syrian Monophysites into one strong body. He gave them a hierarchy and an organization; and so practically founded the Jacobite Church. His story will be told when we come to Chapter X (pp. 323-325).
- ↑ Hefele-Leclercq: Hist. des Conciles, ii. (2), p. 878.
