The Neo-Manichaean Church:
History of Manichaeanism
HISTORY OF MANICHAEANISM
Mani first spread his teachings in Persia two centuries after Christ. He was tortured and slain by a pro-Zoroastrian monarch, but his faith lived on, spreading to the Roman Empire, central Asia and even China. This religion, with its obvious truths, was a threat to the established religions and their incomplete, inferior dogma. Christians especially feared that their newfound power in the Roman Empire would be undermined because of the superior logic of Mani's teachings. They considered Manichaeanism a heresy, and used force to destroy the Religion of Light.
Over the next few centuries Manichaeanism was violently persecuted by both Zoroastrianism in Persia and Christianity in the Roman realm. After the Arab conquests in the 7th century, Islam took its turn, exterminating Manichaeanism in Persia. However, even then, the Religion of Light had converted the Uighurs in central Asia, and spread into China to compete with Buddhism, Taoism, and Nestorian Christianity. In China, Manichaeanism lasted until the time of Marco Polo (Yuan Dynasty) and by some accounts survived in some form almost until the end of the Manchu reign. Ultimately, certain Buddhist sects absorbed Mani's teachings--and apparently Mani himself as a saint, just as Buddhism has absorbed many pagan gods as incarnations of Buddha-nature.
Mani's religion was supposedly wiped out in Europe by the 6th century, but Manichaean beliefs continued to persist underground, reviving whenever the corrupt Christian Church relaxed its grip on power. The Cathars of France considered themselves Christians, but their theology was Manichaean, and the Cathar faith made great inroads against the arrogant, greedy Roman Catholic Church. This, of course, doomed them to be slaughtered by one of the many Crusades directed against other Europeans, not Muslim Arabs.
Many religions boast of the sacrifices of their martyrs, often exaggerating the amount of persecution they endured. But no other religion has ever suffered such continuous atrocities as the Religion of Light. No other international religion has ever been completely exterminated. This would be a depressing story of the victory of Might over Right, of force over truth. But the struggle is not over. So long as one person can pass the truth to another, the struggle continues, and the followers of evil are the ones who have failed.
Back to main page