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A Treatise on the Soul

Tertullian

Chapter 35

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter XXXV.—The Opinions of Carpocrates, Another Offset from the Pythagorean Dogmas, Stated and Confuted.

However, it is not for you alone, (Simon

‹ Chapter 34 Chapter 36 ›

)

,

that

the

transmigration

philosophy

has

fabricated

this

story

.

Carpocrates

also

makes

equally

good

use

of

it

,

who

was

a

magician

and

a

fornicator

like

yourself

,

only

he

had

not

a

Helen

.

And

why

should

he

not

?

since

he

asserted

that

souls

are

reinvested

with

bodies

,

in

order

to

ensure

the

overthrow

by

all

means

of

divine

and

human

truth

.

For

,

(

according

to

his

miserable

doctrine

,

)

this

life

became

consummated

to

no

man

until

all

those

blemishes

which

are

held

to

disfigure

it

have

been

fully

displayed

in

its

conduct

;

because

there

is

nothing

which

is

accounted

evil

by

nature

,

but

simply

as

men

think

of

it

.

The

transmigration

of

human

souls

,

therefore

,

into

any

kind

of

heterogeneous

bodies

,

he

thought

by

all

means

indispensable

,

whenever

any

depravity

whatever

had

not

been

fully

perpetrated

in

the

early

stage

of

life’s

passage

.

Evil

deeds

(

one

may

be

sure

)

appertain

to

life

.

Moreover

,

as

often

as

the

soul

has

fallen

short

as

a

defaulter

in

sin

,

it

has

to

be

recalled

to

existence

,

until

it

“

pays

the

utmost

farthing

,

”

thrust

out

from

time

to

time

into

the

prison

of

the

body

.

To

this

effect

does

he

tamper

with

the

whole

of

that

allegory

of

the

Lord

which

is

extremely

clear

and

simple

in

its

meaning

,

and

ought

to

be

from

the

first

understood

in

its

plain

and

natural

sense

.

Thus

our

“

adversary

”

(

therein

mentioned

)

is

the

heathen

man

,

who

is

walking

with

us

along

the

same

road

of

life

which

is

common

to

him

and

ourselves

.

Now

“

we

must

needs

go

out

of

the

world

,

”

if

it

be

not

allowed

us

to

have

conversation

with

them

.

He

bids

us

,

therefore

,

show

a

kindly

disposition

to

such

a

man

.

“

Love

your

enemies

,

”

says

He

,

“

pray

for

them

that

curse

you

,

”

lest

such

a

man

in

any

transaction

of

business

be

irritated

by

any

unjust

conduct

of

yours

,

and

“

deliver

thee

to

the

judge

”

of

his

own

(

nation

)

,

and

you

be

thrown

into

prison

,

and

be

detained

in

its

close

and

narrow

cell

until

you

have

liquidated

all

your

debt

against

him

.

Then

,

again

,

should

you

be

disposed

to

apply

the

term

“

adversary

”

to

the

devil

,

you

are

advised

by

the

(

Lord’s

)

injunction

,

“

while

you

are

in

the

way

with

him

,

”

to

make

even

with

him

such

a

compact

as

may

be

deemed

compatible

with

the

requirements

of

your

true

faith

.

Now

the

compact

you

have

made

respecting

him

is

to

renounce

him

,

and

his

pomp

,

and

his

angels

.

Such

is

your

agreement

in

this

matter

.

Now

the

friendly

understanding

you

will

have

to

carry

out

must

arise

from

your

observance

of

the

compact

:

you

must

never

think

of

getting

back

any

of

the

things

which

you

have

abjured

,

and

have

restored

to

him

,

lest

he

should

summon

you

as

a

fraudulent

man

,

and

a

transgressor

of

your

agreement

,

before

God

the

Judge

(

for

in

this

light

do

we

read

of

him

,

in

another

passage

,

as

“

the

accuser

of

the

brethren

,

”

or

saints

,

where

reference

is

made

to

the

actual

practice

of

legal

prosecution

)

;

and

lest

this

Judge

deliver

you

over

to

the

angel

who

is

to

execute

the

sentence

,

and

he

commit

you

to

the

prison

of

hell

,

out

of

which

there

will

be

no

dismissal

until

the

smallest

even

of

your

delinquencies

be

paid

off

in

the

period

before

the

resurrection

.

What

can

be

a

more

fitting

sense

than

this

?

What

a

truer

interpretation

?

If

,

however

,

according

to

Carpocrates

,

the

soul

is

bound

to

the

commission

of

all

sorts

of

crime

and

evil

conduct

,

what

must

we

from

his

system

understand

to

be

its

“

adversary

”

and

foe

?

I

suppose

it

must

be

that

better

mind

which

shall

compel

it

by

force

to

the

performance

of

some

act

of

virtue

,

that

it

may

be

driven

from

body

to

body

,

until

it

be

found

in

none

a

debtor

to

the

claims

of

a

virtuous

life

.

This

means

,

that

a

good

tree

is

known

by

its

bad

fruit

—

in

other

words

,

that

the

doctrine

of

truth

is

understood

from

the

worst

possible

precepts

.

I

apprehend

that

heretics

of

this

school

seize

with

especial

avidity

the

example

of

Elias

,

whom

they

assume

to

have

been

so

reproduced

in

John

(

the

Baptist

)

as

to

make

our

Lord’s

statement

sponsor

for

their

theory

of

transmigration

,

when

He

said

,

“

Elias

is

come

already

,

and

they

knew

him

not

;

”

and

again

,

in

another

passage

,

“

And

if

ye

will

receive

it

,

this

is

Elias

,

which

was

for

to

come

.

”

Well

,

then

,

was

it

really

in

a

Pythagorean

sense

that

the

Jews

approached

John

with

the

inquiry

,

“

Art

thou

Elias

?

”

and

not

rather

in

the

sense

of

the

divine

prediction

,

“

Behold

,

I

will

send

you

Elijah

”

the

Tisbite

?

The

fact

,

however

,

is

,

that

their

metempsychosis

,

or

transmigration

theory

,

signifies

the

recall

of

the

soul

which

had

died

long

before

,

and

its

return

to

some

other

body

.

But

Elias

is

to

come

again

,

not

after

quitting

life

(

in

the

way

of

dying

)

,

but

after

his

translation

(

or

removal

without

dying

)

;

not

for

the

purpose

of

being

restored

to

the

body

,

from

which

he

had

not

departed

,

but

for

the

purpose

of

revisiting

the

world

from

which

he

was

translated

;

not

by

way

of

resuming

a

life

which

he

had

laid

aside

,

but

of

fulfilling

prophecy

,

—

really

and

truly

the

same

man

,

both

in

respect

of

his

name

and

designation

,

as

well

as

of

his

unchanged

humanity

.

How

,

therefore

could

John

be

Elias

?

You

have

your

answer

in

the

angel’s

announcement

:

“

And

he

shall

go

before

the

people

,

”

says

he

,

“

in

the

spirit

and

power

of

Elias

”

—

not

(

observe

)

in

his

soul

and

his

body

.

These

substances

are

,

in

fact

,

the

natural

property

of

each

individual

;

whilst

“

the

spirit

and

power

”

are

bestowed

as

external

gifts

by

the

grace

of

God

and

so

may

be

transferred

to

another

person

according

to

the

purpose

and

will

of

the

Almighty

,

as

was

anciently

the

case

with

respect

to

the

spirit

of

Moses

.

Notes

1
For Carpocrates, see Irenæus, i. 24; Eusebius, H. E. iv. 7; Epiphan. Hær. 27.
2
Matt. v. 26.
3
Ver. 25.
4
1 Cor. v. 10.
5
Luke vi. 27.
6
Matt. v. 25.
7
Ver. 26.
8
Rev. xii. 10.
9
Morâ resurrectionis. For the force of this phrase, as apparently implying a doctrine of purgatory, and an explanation of Tertullian’s teaching on this point, see Bp. Kaye on Tertullian, pp. 328, 329. [See p. 59, supra.]
10
Spero.
11
Matt. xvii. 12.
12
Matt. xi. 14.
13
John i. 21.
14
Mal. iv. 5.
15
Num. xii. 2.