Simon the Anti-Christ? The Magos as Christos in Early Christian Literature

ABSTRACT

Simon the sorcerer was one of the most notorious villains of early Christian literature and imagination. His enemies labelled him a deceiver and, as his epithet indicates, a magos, the worst kind of scourge upon society. According to the texts, however, Simon saw himself in a completely different way, presenting himself as no less than the Christ, the Son of God, who was being persecuted by the false apostles of a false master. This paper will explore the ways in which the literarily constructed Simon of heresiological literature and the apocryphal acts attempts to prove his identity as the Christ by appealing to characteristics both consistent with, and in tension with, the Christ of the canonical gospels. Ultimately, the final showdown with the apostles proved who was and was not the true Christ, and his death was seen as a just sentence and divine punishment for his crimes.

Keywords:

• Simon Magos
• Anti-Christ
• Apostle Paul
• Apostle Peter
• Nero
• apocryphal acts
• heresiology