Heresies and false teachers

As we said before, the evil demons also put forward Marcion of Pontus, who even now teaches people to deny that the God who made everything in heaven and on earth is God, and to deny that the Christ proclaimed beforehand through the prophets is his Son. Instead, he proclaims another god besides the Creator of all, and likewise another son.

Many have been persuaded by him as though he alone knew the truth, and they ridicule us even though they have no proof for what they say. Irrationally swept away like lambs by a wolf, they become prey to atheistic teachings and to demons.

For those called demons strive for nothing other than to lead human beings away from God who made them and from Christ his firstborn. Those who are unable to lift themselves above the earth they have fastened, and continue to fasten, to earthly things and to works made by human hands. Those who aspire to the contemplation of divine things they secretly turn aside; and unless such people have sober reasoning and a pure, passionless way of life, the demons drive them into impiety.