Montanism was another early Christian “heresy” that proved popular in parts of Anatolia (i.e. modern Turkey) and later in other parts of the Roman Empire. It also was quite different from most other Christian movements, whether “orthodox” or heretical; it didn’t fall into any of the categories of such movements. In a number of ways, it was unique.
Montanism was the product of a man named Montanus, who in the middle of the 2nd century (sometime between 140 and 170 CE) converted to Christianity and started prophesying, in the Roman province of Phrygia. Some accounts claim he’d previously been a priest of Cybele or possibly Apollo. As he gained a following, he announced the town of Pepuza was a “New Jerusalem.” He also claimed the source of his prophecies was the Paraclete (or the Holy Spirit) promised by Jesus (e.g. in Jn 14:16-17).
Also early in his career, Montanus acquired two companion prophets, named Priscilla (or Prisca) and Maximilla. He called his movement “the New Prophecy.” Others sometimes referred to them as “the Phrygians” after their region of origin. All three of these prophets taught their followers that they, too, could become prophets themselves, by fasting, prayer, and other acts of devotion. In this regard, Montanism was extremely egalitarian, even fanatically so, given that two of its initial trio of leaders were women.
Another aspect of Montanism that made it quite different from other Christian movements is that, in many locations, there was no physical distinction between it and other sects. Many followers of “the New Prophecy” remained members of existing congregations which generally offered more “mainstream” Christian teachings.
It’s true that most of the other “heretical” movements described in this site could also say they had followers who belonged to other types of churches, but with Montanism — outside of Phrygia where it originated, as well as a few other larger cosmopolitan areas such as the environs of Carthage — that was more the rule than the exception.
Followers of “the New Prophecy” who prophesied, themselves, sometimes did so ecstatically, not unlike contemporary charismatic Christians. More than anything else, it was their charismatic ways that tended to mark them as different from other types of Christians.
Montanists tended to be celibate or even ascetic. Later in its history, some Montanists lived in what might be described as communes. Note that this wasn’t unusual in the Greco-Roman world; for centuries, groups such as the Pythagoreans had done much the same. Still, they weren’t hermits; they didn’t exclude themselves from society entirely. A more modern parallel might be the Shakers. They, too, lived communally, and with the sexes segregated from one another, but always remained in contact with the outside world, operating businesses such as farms or manufacturing shops that traded freely with others.
Early on, other Christian clergy regarded Montanism with contempt. Occasionally a bishop or a regional clerical synod would condemn the movement. But for a few decades at least, Montanism managed to linger on, in spite of this. Many congregations tolerated followers of “the New Prophecy” among their number.
The heresy-hunting Church Father Tertullian even expressed admiration for Montanists’ devotion, and late in life, reportedly joined a Montanist commune himself. In his home city, Carthage, there was a great deal of overlap between Montanists and other Christian sects, so to an extent, this makes some sense.
It’s worth noting that no Christian sect, in the 2nd century, automatically condemned prophesying in the name of God or Jesus or the Holy Spirit. As noted, what set Montanists apart was their presumption that any believer could become a prophet, at any time, and the dramatic way they went about it. Another point of difference was, that Montanists had no problem with women becoming clergy; some were even regarded as bishops.
As mentioned, Montanism endured for quite some time, including well into the period of the great Christological schisms (Arianism, Nestorianism, Monophysitism, etc.). Since Montanism tended to overlap other Christian groups, Montanism itself, as a movement, also was divided along the same lines.
Despite the degree of overlap, there were some distinct Montanist congregations and communities, especially in Phrygia, but also elsewhere such as Carthage. Later in its history, there was also something of a Montanist hierarchy of clerics, including bishops. The larger community of Christians, of course, tended to ignore such titles (especially when they were held by women).
By the 6th century, though, what tolerance of Montanism there may have been, officially ended. In the 530s, the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I exiled Montanist clergy from Constantinople, and in 550 ordered the reputed shrine of Montanus, Priscilla, and Maximilla in Pepuza destroyed.
It’s probably not fair to say that Montanism “ended.” It was, in its own way, an organic movement (perhaps moreso than others) that changed with the times and in the wake of various other changes within Christendom and the Greco-Roman world, as the centuries passed.
This is natural, given the amount of overlap Montanism had with the rest of Christianity. Over the 4th through 8th centuries, what had been the collection of “literalist” Christian churches began to move toward one another as a group of proto-orthodox churches. As the Christological conflicts came to be settled, they merged into the entity which eventually became the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Montanism — which as noted overlapped with other Christian sects, both heretical and heterodox — eventually was subsumed by it all.
The last known group of Montanists, in Anatolia, was targeted by Byzantine Emperor Leo III sometime during his reign (717 through 741). Some of its members were forced to convert to orthodox Christianity; a small number reportedly barricaded themselves in one of their last remaining churches, set it on fire, and died.
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