MONTANISM. Montanism may be regarded as an effort to retain or revive the liberty of prophesying. In itself the movement was not necessarily one to be con demned, but it arose at a difficult period in the history of the Church, and tended to encourage movements which were or might be dangerous. We read of prophets and of a kind of prophetic ministry in the New Testament, and It Is not easy to understand w'hy the prophets or their activity should suddenly have come to an end.
Montanus was one of those who claimed that it had not done so as late as, or later than, the middle of the second century. It seems to have been about the middle of the second century that Montanus became active at Arda ban, a village in Phrygian Mysia. The worship of Cybele (identified with the Cretan goddess Rhea jo.v.]) had long prevailed in Phrygia, and it is thought that before his conversion to Chf-istianity, Montanus was a priest of Cybele. In any case, he attracted attention by becoming at times ecstatic and in his transports uttering strange words. The kind of phenomena which were associated with his ecstasies have been observed even in modern times. He seemed to become as it were a passive instrument through which some other agent spoke. In other words he seemed. and in fact claimed to be, inspired. He himself repre sents the inspirer as describing his condition thus : " Behold the man is as a lyre, and I sweep over him as a plectrum." The inspiration of a prophet has often been described in this way. Dr. Lindsay points out that Athenagoras describes the Spirit of God as inspiring the prophets as " a flute-player breathes into his flute," and that the author of the " Cohortatio ad Gentes " says that " the divine plectrum descends from heaven and uses righteous men as an instrument like a harp or lyre." The description is a good one; but in ancient times the Powers and operations of the Subjective Mind (q.v.) were not scientifically understood, with the result that a dis tinction could not easily be made between an utterance derived from a treasure-house of human thought and experience and an utterance transmitted, as it were tele pathically (see TELEPATHY), from a Divine Mind. In any case, Montanus became a prophet, and soon two prophetesses attached themselves to him, Prisca or Pris cilla and Maximilla, women who manifested the same spiritual phenomena. Montanus claimed that the person who spoken through him was the Paraclete (q.v.). As Dr. Salmon says, he does not seem to have claimed that he himself was the Paraclete. Through him the Para clete was speaking and proclaiming a new dispensation.
The Paraclete confidently announced the speedy return of Christ, and the Vision of the Heavenly Jerusalem descending from above, which was to appear first in the clouds, and then rest on the earth, at a spot indicated.
This was a plain on the further side of Phrygia, between the two little towns of Pepuza and Tymion. The three prophets transported themselves thither, when or where fore is not precisely known : they were followed by an immense multitude. In some places the people were so entirely won over to the movement that all the Christians left. In the feverish expectation of the last day, country, family, and all earthly ties were disregarded. Marriages were dissolved; and community of goods and the most severe asceticism prevailed. This state of mental exaltation was fostered by the words of the possessed prophets; the voice of the Paraclete was heard, and his exhortations animated them afresh " (Louis Duchesne). The Montanists were orthodox in so far as they did not reject the sacred writings or the doctrines of the Church. Their heresy consisted in the belief that they received new revelations which supplemented and explained these. In such writings as the Gospel and Apocalypse of St. John they believed that they could find particular support for their views. A curious result of this was that, as a protest, a body arose, the Alogi (q.v.). which rejected the writings of St. John altogether. But if the Montanists were not unorthodox, the Church was not prepared at this critical time to tolerate long the doctrine of a progressive revelation. The promised Heavenly Jerusalem did not appear; but a terrestrial Jerusalem was established, the name of Pepuza being changed to that of New Jerusalem. The movement spread from the East to the West and caused divisions in the Church. The result was that in course of time Mon tanism was discouraged or condemned both in the East and in the West, in spite of its great moral austerity. This did not prevent the great Tertullian from becoming a Montanist. He was chosen head of the Montanists in Africa. and they were even called Tertullianists there. But the opposition to Montanism became more and more pronounced. Under the Emperor Constantine, according to Sozomen, they were exterminated everywhere but in Phrygia. Sterner measures were taken against them by later Emperors. The Emperor Justinian even sent soldiers against them. They were so harried that they set fire to their churches in which they had taken refuge. See Schaff-Herzog: T. Al. Lindsay in the Prot. Dict.; the Cath. Dict.; Louis Duchesne, Hist.; G. Salmon in `race and Piercy.