Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is God manifest in the flesh (I Timothy 3:16) and thus Very God of Very God, had this severe warning to state regarding this particular sin: “And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.” (Matthew 12:32). This is further verified in the Gospel of St. Mark 3:29: “But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:” The Pharisees along with other apostate Jewish religious leaders in the time when our Lord walked the earth were not only guilty of this for their deliberate rejection of Christ and calling Him “Beelzebub”, but throughout history, even within modern times, there have been a number who have been guilty of this unpardonable sin. To begin with, there are many sincere but deluded followers of these following heretics and heresiarchs who follow them to damnation but can be delivered since they did not deliberately come to the blasphemous conclusion on their own but merely followed their leaders. This damnation is issued to those who were deliberate in their motives of denying Christ as being of God but accrediting Him with Satan as well as those who deliberately promoted heresies that denied the Triune Godhead even to the point of actually attacking the Holy Spirit in doctrine or in some other way to deny the Truth. Such is of an antichrist spirit. Let us begin by opening with these firm warnings from the Holy Scripture regarding the difference between what is of the Holy Ghost and what is of the antichrist/Satanic spirit:

“Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.” (I Corinthians 12:3) “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.” (I John 2:22, 23)

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.” (I John 4:1-6)

From this we gather that: 1) Only the Spirit of God will confess Jesus as Lord (God in the flesh) and to do otherwise is of the satanic, antichrist spirit. 2) An antichrist spirit or a person with an antichrist spirit not only denies Jesus as the Christ (Messiah) but also denies the deity and oneness of the Father and the Son, not to mention the Third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Ghost. 3) We are to test every spirit in the world and there is a test: if the spirit behind the person confesses that Christ is God in the flesh, then it is of the Holy Spirit of God. If otherwise, then it is of the spirit of antichrist. Also, the antichrist spirit rejects Apostolic Teaching and doctrine too. Is it no wonder then that many heresies and cults often claim they are part of the Apostles and that the real Apostolic Churches (Orthodox and Roman Catholic) “apostatised” altogether only to be restored by their founder or leader?

Before we continue, I would like to make it clear that there are some persons who sincerely believed that they somehow blasphemed the Holy Ghost and were very grieved over it. Such people are actually not guilty of this sin as is evident by their sorrow and grief and wishing for repentance. People who have committed this unpardonable sin do it out of much deliberation and not something that is done overnight. Those guilty of this sin have actually done so out of deliberation and genuine hatred of the Holy Trinity and never feel grief at their actions. To tell a true story, I knew of one person who as a child saw a white bird flying around in the park and due to the depictions in art of the Holy Spirit descending on Christ our God at baptism, actually said: “This must be the Holy Spirit coming down now.” This child automatically felt grief over what he said and went to confess his sin to a godly Anglican minister and also a godly chaplain in the Anglican school he was going to. Thankfully, they advised him correctly that he had not committed such a sin and that this sin was something a lot worse than his imagination playing tricks on him. Today this child is a committed Christian man that is fighting for the cause of Christ against evil. May this be of comfort before we continue our discourse.

It should also be mentioned that the purpose of the Holy Ghost is to convict men of the reality of Christ and His Truth. The Holy Ghost will always point to Christ and the Father as the True God and Eternal Life. Christ stated this regarding the Holy Ghost: “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you….But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you…But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:” (John 14:16, 17, 26; 15:26) Hence, for one to reject the Holy Ghost and His revelation regarding the Truth of Christ and the Father, is to reject any possibility of  entering into Truth and for that matter, any possibility of seeing everlasting life. It is no wonder therefore that Christ termed blasphemy against the Holy Ghost as unpardonable, since the guilty party is intent on rejecting the Holy Ghost, and for that matter, the whole of the Trinity. Such is the nature of heresiarchs and cultists.

Amongst the character traits to look for in blasphemers of the Holy Ghost, look for the following:

1. Rejection of either the Deity of Christ or rejection of the Trinity. Also look for mockery of the Trinity.
2. A denial of either the Personality or Deity of the Holy Ghost
3. Placing themselves as equally inspired and prophetic as the Holy Scriptures and the Apostles under the Holy Ghost
4. Having established this, let us give the brief and dishonourable list of some of the heresiarchs that have blasphemed the Holy Ghost in history even going into modern times. We will be discussing the following briefly:

• Simon Magus
• Cerinthus
• Arius (founder of the Arian heresy)
• Muhammad (founder of Islam)
• Hong Xiuquan (founder of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement)
• Ellen G. White (founder of the Seventh Day Adventist cult)
• Charles Taze Russell (founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, originally known as “Russelites”)
• Joseph Smith (founder of the Mormon sect)
• Madam Blavatsky (founder of the Theosophical Society)
• Mary Baker Eddy (founder of Christian Science cult)
• Brother John Thomas and Robert Roberts (founders of the Christadelphian sect)
• Sun Myung Moon (Founder of the Unification Church. Aka Moonies)
• William Branham
• Victor Paul Wierwille and George Lamsa(founders of the Way International)
• Felix Manalo (founder of Iglesia Ni Cristo cult)
• Atheists behind the “Blasphemy Challenge” video

There are more that could be discussed but time and space will only allow me to discuss these few. Once again I must clarify that there are many sincere and deluded followers of these aforementioned who can be saved and are capable of repentance. It is my sincere hope that God will delivers by His grace of the Holy Ghost, a number of these sincere deluded followers before they seal their own damnation for eternity. Nevertheless, let us begin the discussion:

SIMON MAGUS

St. Peter and St. Paul praying against Simon Magus.

One of the earliest heresiarchs that the Holy Scriptures bothers to give mention of is found in none other than Simon the Sorcerer (aka Simon Magus) as found in Acts 8:9-24. The passage mentions that not only was he a Samaritan in origin (the half-caste relations of the Jews and apostates), but also that he was well known in his region as someone great. It was even known that he was a practitioner of sorcery and dark arts. Let us look at the passage first: “[9] But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:

[10] To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.

[11] And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.

[12] But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

[13] Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.

[14] Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John:

[15] Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:

[16] (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)

[17] Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

[18] And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,

[19] Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.

[20] But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.

[21] Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.

[22] Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

[23] For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.

[24] Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.” (Acts 8:9-24)

We not only gather that he was a Samaritan sorcerer but on top of that, he was also worshipped by the people as even “the great power of God” (v10). St. Irenaeus of Lyons and St. Justin Martyr, who were direct disciples of the Apostles via Polycarp, even highlight that Simon Magus was known for his powers and was worshipped as such to the point that even a statue was built in his honour by Claudius Caesar for him. What is worse, is that when he was exposed for his evil intent by St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, he not only went so far as to study further the black arts, but even blasphemed the whole of the Trinity, saying that he was a manifestation of all 3 Personalites. Here is the details by St. Irenaeus of Lyons: “Simon the Samaritan was that magician of whom Luke, the disciple and follower of the apostles, says, But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who beforetime used magical arts in that city, and led astray the people of Samaria, declaring that he himself was some great one, to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This is the power of God, which is called great. And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had driven them mad by his sorceries. Acts 8:9-11 This Simon, then— who feigned faith, supposing that the apostles themselves performed their cures by the art of magic, and not by the power of God; and with respect to their filling with the Holy Ghost, through the imposition of hands, those that believed in God through Him who was preached by them, namely, Christ Jesus— suspecting that even this was done through a kind of greater knowledge of magic, and offering money to the apostles, thought he, too, might receive this power of bestowing the Holy Spirit on whomsoever he would—was addressed in these words by Peter: Your money perish with you, because you have thought that the gift of God can be purchased with money: you have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God; for I perceive that you are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. He, then, not putting faith in God a whit the more, set himself eagerly to contend against the apostles, in order that he himself might seem to be a wonderful being, and applied himself with still greater zeal to the study of the whole magic art, that he might the better bewilder and overpower multitudes of men. Such was his procedure in the reign of Claudius Cæsar, by whom also he is said to have been honoured with a statue, on account of his magical power. This man, then, was glorified by many as if he were a god; and he taught that it was himself who appeared among the Jews as the Son, but descended in Samaria as the Father while he came to other nations in the character of the Holy Spirit. He represented himself, in a word, as being the loftiest of all powers, that is, the Being who is the Father over all, and he allowed himself to be called by whatsoever title men were pleased to address him.” (St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, Book I, Chapter 23). [Emphasis mine]

St. Irenaeus of Lyons, direct disciple of St. Polycarp

St. Justin Martyr, a direct disciple of St. Irenaeus of Lyons

As further indication of his blasphemy, St. Justin Martyr had this to reveal: “There was a Samaritan, Simon, a native of the village called Gitto, who in the reign of Claudius Cæsar, and in your royal city of Rome, did mighty acts of magic, by virtue of the art of the devils operating in him. He was considered a god, and as a god was honoured by you with a statue, which statue was erected on the river Tiber, between the two bridges, and bore this inscription, in the language of Rome:— Simoni Deo Sancto, To Simon the holy God. And almost all the Samaritans, and a few even of other nations, worship him, and acknowledge him as the first god; and a woman, Helena, who went about with him at that time, and had formerly been a prostitute, they say is the first idea generated by him. And a man, Menander, also a Samaritan, of the town Capparetæa, a disciple of Simon, and inspired by devils, we know to have deceived many while he was in Antioch by his magical art. He persuaded those who adhered to him that they should never die, and even now there are some living who hold this opinion of his.” (St. Justin Martyr, First Apology, Chapter 26) [Emphasis mine]

From this, we can also gather that Simon Magus not only blasphemed God by claiming His titles, but also blasphemed the whole Trinity and worse, misled many to believe he had the power over life and death via his sorcery. Even more telling was his attempt at founding heresy, particularly the Gnostic heresy, of which he is considered the main founder. Both Fathers give even more sordid details of his immoral life and his actual heresies but time and space only permits me to mention some of these such as his blasphemies against the Trinity, claiming divinity for himself and founding the Gnostic heresies to rival the Apostles.

The term “simony” was in fact associated with his evil attempt to buy the power of the Holy Ghost with money. St. Peter not only placed a curse on him but highlighted his wicked character stating that he was in the “gall of bitterness” and “bond of iniquity”.(v23) Both phrases indicate that not only was Simon Magus bitter over not getting the glory that God was getting via the Apostles, but also that he was bound in wickedness despite entering the Church and even being baptised. A lesson for the Church: even Satan knows how to get his men and women in there to join the Church via baptism only to attempt to destroy it from within. Such was Simon Magus. Deuteronomy 29:16-18 highlights clearly that this “gall of bitterness” was associated with idolatry and by St. Peter making reference to it, he is highlighting that Simon Magus was clearly an idolater at heart that does not really worship the True God at all. The “bond of iniquity” has to do with a reference in Isaiah 58:6, whereby God rebukes Israel for fasting hypocritically but not loosening the bonds of wickedness and heavy burdens and letting the oppressed go free. Thus by St. Peter using this phrase, he is indicating that not only was Simon Magus a hypocrite, but also a wicked oppressor of the souls of many, which he was. Simon Magus taught many the heresy of Gnosticism, which would deny the reality of Christ as God in the flesh as well as the eternity of Christ, but also would continue to be a foul blasphemer and sorcerer.

This wicked heresiarch and arch enemy of the Apostles, was not content in blaspheming the whole Trinity as shown earlier, but also continued to deceive people into believing that he was divine and able to perform miracles. Not much different from today’s cult leaders and a number of gurus from India, such as the late Sathya Sai Baba, that claimed to be both God the Father and God the Son as well as other deities from different religions. It is recorded that in his final days of his life, he was using the demonic to levitate himself to deceive the people. It was St. Peter and St. Paul that cast out the demons in the name of Christ and thus Simon Magus came crashing down to his death, thus going to the hell he deserved. St. Cyril of Jerusalem, after pointing out that Simon Magus was the father of heretics in the Church, then gave this sobering account: “As the delusion was extending, Peter and Paul, a noble pair, chief rulers of the Church, arrived and set the error right; and when the supposed god Simon wished to shew himself off, they straightway shewed him as a corpse. For Simon promised to rise aloft to heaven, and came riding in a daemons’ chariot on the air; but the servants of God fell on their knees, and having shewn that agreement of which Jesus spoke, that If two of you shall agree concerning anything that they shall ask, it shall be done unto them, they launched the weapon of their concord in prayer against Magus, and struck him down to the earth. And marvellous though it was, yet no marvel. For Peter was there, who carrieth the keys of heaven: and nothing wonderful, for Paul was there, who was caught up to the third heaven, and into Paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful far a man to utter. These brought the supposed God down from the sky to earth, thence to be taken down to the regions below the earth. In this man first the serpent of wickedness appeared; but when one head had been cut off, the root of wickedness was found again with many heads.” (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Jerusalem Catecheses, Lecture VI, 15) [Emphasis mine]

St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Earlier, St. Cyril of Jerusalem had this statement to make that confirms everything the Apostolic Fathers stated and more: “The inventor of all heresy was Simon Magus: that Simon, who in the Acts of the Apostles thought to purchase with money the unsaleable grace of the Spirit, and heard the words, Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter, and the rest: concerning whom also it is written, They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us. This man, after he had been cast out by the Apostles, came to Rome, and gaining over one Helena a harlot, was the first that dared with blasphemous mouth to say that it was himself who appeared on Mount Sinai as the Father, and afterwards appeared among the Jews, not in real flesh but in seeming, as Christ Jesus, and afterwards as the Holy Spirit whom Christ promised to send as the Paraclete. And he so deceived the City of Rome that Claudius set up his statue, and wrote beneath it, in the language of the Romans, “Simoni Deo Sancto,” which being interpreted signifies, “To Simon the Holy God.“” (Ibid. Lecture VI, 14) [Emphasis mine]. So here we have it once again, that Simon Magus was indeed a wicked blasphemer against the Holy Ghost via openly claiming to be all 3 Persons of the Holy Trinity and a demonic heresiarch that met an evil end befitting for his evil deeds of not only heresy but also of hypocrisy, sorcery and many other evils. [Interesting Note: After the manner of Simon Magus, the founder of the Valentinian heresy, Manes, also claimed to be the Comforter, thus blaspheming the Holy Ghost. Simon Magus began the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost as a doctrine for founding heresiarchs following after him. This again is noted by St. Cyril of Jerusalem: “For the heretics, who are most profane in all things, have sharpened their tongue against the Holy Ghost also, and have dared to utter impious things; as Irenæus the interpreter has written in his injunctions against heresies. For some of them have dared to say that they were themselves the Holy Ghost—of whom the first was Simon , the sorcerer spoken of in the Acts of the Apostles; for when he was cast out, he presumed to teach such doctrines: and they who are called Gnostics, impious men, have spoken other things against the Spirit , and the wicked Valentinians again something else; and the profane Manes dared to call himself the Paraclete sent by Christ…If he who attaches himself to a thief, and consents with him, is subject to punishment, what hope shall he have, who offends against the Holy Ghost?” (St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lecture XVI, 6)]

Heresy knows no bounds as is evidenced with the likes of Simon Magus and other later heresiarchs that time and space does not permit to be discussed here.

CERINTHUS(c.100A.D)

St. John the Apostle fleeing the bathhouse at the sight of Cerinthus.

Few in the Evangelical and Protestant circles are aware that one of the reasons that St. John the Apostle penned the Gospel of John as well as First and Second John, was to not only instruct the Church but also to counter the damning heresies of Cerinthus and other early Gnostic heresiarchs, of whom Cerinthus was chief. Cerinthus is accredited to be one of the founding heresiarchs of Gnosticism along with Simon Magus. Amongst his heresies was not only a denial of the Deity of Christ as well as denial of his Virgin Birth, thus agreeing with the Judaizing Ebionites, but more specifically, denying the God of Scripture by teaching that there was a separation between the God of the Old and New Testament, and even then, he blasphemed the Old Testament as coming from angelic beings who created the world in imperfection, thus denying God as Creator. In addition, Cerinthus separated Christ from Jesus in such a way to the point of blaspheming the Holy Ghost. St. Irenaeus of Lyons describes his heresy in this manner:

“Cerinthus, again, a man who was educated in the wisdom of the Egyptians, taught that the world was not made by the primary God, but by a certain Power far separated from him, and at a distance from that Principality who is supreme over the universe, and ignorant of him who is above all. He represented Jesus as having not been born of a virgin, but as being the son of Joseph and Mary according to the ordinary course of human generation, while he nevertheless was more righteous, prudent, and wise than other men. Moreover, after his baptism, Christ descended upon him in the form of a dove from the Supreme Ruler, and that then he proclaimed the unknown Father, and performed miracles. But at last Christ departed from Jesus, and that then Jesus suffered and rose again, while Christ remained impassible, inasmuch as he was a spiritual being. 2. Those who are called Ebionites agree that the world was made by God; but their opinions with respect to the Lord are similar to those of Cerinthus and Carpocrates. They use the Gospel according to Matthew only, and repudiate the Apostle Paul, maintaining that he was an apostate from the law. As to the prophetical writings, they endeavour to expound them in a somewhat singular manner: they practise circumcision, persevere in the observance of those customs which are enjoined by the law, and are so Judaic in their style of life, that they even adore Jerusalem as if it were the house of God,” (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, book 1, Chapter 26 paragraph 1)

St. Epiphanius of Salamis, author of Panarion.

Another Father, Epiphanius of Salamis, stated this regarding his heresy:

“Now Cerinthus in turn, the founder of the so-called Cerinthians, has come from this bestial seed, bringing the world his venom. But almost nothing different from Carpocrates is spouting out into the world, just the same harmful poisons. For he slanderously gives the same account of Christ as Carpocrates, that he was born of Mary and Joseph’s seed, and likewise that the world was made by angels. In the inculcation of his teaching he differs from Carpocrates in no way except only in this, that he adhered in part to Judaism. He, however, claims that the Law and prophets have been given by the angels, and the law-giver is one of the angels who have made the world….I have already said of him that he too preached that the world was not created by the first, supreme power—and that when ‘Jesus,’ the offspring of Mary and the seed of Joseph, had grown up, ‘Christ,’ meaning the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, came down to him in the Jordan from the God on high, revealing the unknowable Father to him, and through him to his companions. And therefore, because a power had come to him from on high, he performed works of power. And when he suffered, the thing that had come from above flew away from Jesus to the heights. Jesus has suffered and risen again but the Christ who had come to him from above flew away without suffering—that is, the thing which had descended in the form of a dove—and Jesus is not Christ. In turn this Cerinthus, fool and teacher of fools that he is, ventures to maintain that Christ has suffered and been crucified but has not risen yet, but he will rise when the general resurrection of the dead comes…” (Panarion, Book I, Chapter 28-On the Cerinthians)

Cerinthus not only taught denial of a good God and Creator in the proper sense, but also even blasphemed the Holy Ghost by even stating that it was the Christ that came as a dove on Jesus at baptism and departed from Him at his Passion and that He did not resurrect but awaits the General Resurrection! What vile blasphemy! Ironically, whilst denying the reality of the Old Testament, Cerinthus insisted on his followers to follow customs of Judaism such as circumcision and only reverenced the Gospel of Matthew whilst rejecting St. Paul. Does this not sound like a mixture of New Age and some of the Hebrew Roots Cultists in today’s terms? There are no new heresies in the end! Cerinthus followed the path of denial of Christ’s deity and Apostolic teaching to the end degree hence he only accepted one Gospel, albeit in a mangled format not even authentic, to the rejection of all the Apostolic Teaching. Is it no wonder therefore that (as it was revealed by St. Polycarp to St. Irenaeus) that the Blessed St. John this situation in relation to Cerinthus:

“There are also those who heard from him that John, the disciple of the Lord, going to bathe at Ephesus, and perceiving Cerinthus within, rushed out of the bath-house without bathing, exclaiming, “Let us fly, lest even the bath-house fall down, because Cerinthus, the enemy of the truth, is within.” (Irenaeus. Against Heresies,  Book III, Chapter 3, Verse 4)

Cerinthus was clearly a blasphemer against the Holy Ghost as was Simon Magus, and hence he naturally opposed the correct doctrine of the Triune God and the Deity of Christ. In addition, Cerinthus was an opponent of the Apostles just as the Pharisees and other apostate Jewish religious leaders were opponents of Christ our God, thus being guilty of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which we mentioned a lot earlier.

ARIUS (256-336A.D)

St. Nicholas punching the heretic Arius.

Amongst the very serious heretics that challenged the Apostolic Church in a very formidable way second to the Gnostics and Ebionites, was none other than the Arian heresy, of which Arius was its founder. Arius was a presbyter (elder) in Alexandria, Egypt during the 4^th century that taught that only God the Father was true God who is uncreated and the Son/Word/Logos was created and is not God along with teaching that the Holy Ghost is neither a Personality nor is he God but an illuming power. This vile anti-Trinitarian belief is held today by a number of heretical groups, of which the Jehovah’s Witnesses are a part of. (More on that heretical group later). Arius despite learning correct theology, chose to come up with his own vile imagination. When he was challenged by many Fathers and Saints, (many of whom had experienced persecution for their Faith in Christ our God in the most adverse of Roman persecutions, and had wounds to show for it) Arius could only resort to mockery and distortion of the Scriptures with very little Apostolic evidence. There are many notable Fathers and Saints that challenged Arius for his heresy of denying the Trinity, (particularly denying the Deity of the Son and the Holy Ghost), amongst whom we have St. Athanasius of Alexandria (aka St Athanasius the Great) and St. Nicholas of Myra. In fact, the heretical influence was such that not only were some Emperors in the Byzantine empire persuaded to adopt Arianism, but also caused the persecution of Orthodox Christians in many instances. St. Athanasius of Alexandria was in exile when he wrote many defences of the Deity of Christ and the Holy Ghost and was influential in the Council of Nicea along with many other bishops in maintaining Orthodoxy against the heresy of Arius. When Arius was called to explain his position before the Council at Nicea, he resorted to a mocking song that blasphemed the Deity of the Son as well as the Deity of the Holy Ghost. St. Nicholas of Myra, a bishop that is associated with the founding of “Santa Claus”, was incensed at his blasphemy that he punched Arius in the mouth.  Although temporarily deposed for punching that vile heretic, St. Nicholas was reinstated after the other bishops had received a dream of Christ our God and the Blessed Virgin Mary awarding St. Nicholas a crown for defending Christ against blasphemy. In addition, he was miraculously released from his cell too, which thus confirmed the support of both Christ and the Blessed Virgin on this matter. Arius was not content in deceiving many with his heresies. Despite the fact that Emperor St. Constantine called for a Council to be held to resolve the dispute that was dividing both the Church and the Empire, Arius was very adamant in spreading his heresies throughout the Empire. Arius was also intent on deceiving the Church by pretending to be reconciled with the Church. This was also done through a number of wicked friends of Arius in the Church who allowed him to swear on oath to the Emperor Constantine that he had not committed heresy. Although St. Constantine gave him some benefit of the doubt, he also gave this stern warning: “If thy Faith be right, thou hast done well to swear; but if thy Faith be impious, and thou hast sworn, God judge of thee according to thy oath.” These wicked friends of Arius who had made him appear before St. Constantine now intended to make him appear before Bishop Alexander to be received in Communion with the Church. They even resorted to blackmail and threats stating: “As we have caused him to be invited by the Emperor, in opposition to your wishes, so to-morrow, though it be contrary to your desire, Arius shall have communion with us in this Church.” Bishop Alexander was thus grieved that he prayed to God either to remove him from the earth or to remove Arius from the earth in judgment: “If Arius is brought to communion to-morrow, let me Thy servant depart, and destroy not the pious with the impious; but if Thou wilt spare Thy Church (and I know that Thou wilt spare), look upon the words of Eusebius and his fellows, and give not thine inheritance to destruction and reproach and take off Arius, lest if he enter into the Church, the heresy also may seem to enter with him, and henceforward impiety be accounted for piety.” God answered this prayer in the most extraordinary manner. Whilst Arius was proud and glorifying his evil, he felt the need to go to the bathroom to relieve himself. As he went to the bathroom, his insides literally exploded and thus he died such an unceremonious death. The judgment of God had struck this vile heretic and the friends of Arius were in a state of embarrassment and shock over what to do that they had the area in which this incident occurred destroyed not long after.

Arius in hell being devoured. Righteous Melchizedek destroying Arius.

Tragically, the blasphemer against the Holy Ghost may be gone, but his heresies continued to plague others in more ways than one. The heretics do not seem to learn from such a horrid death that these heresiarchs faced. This reminds me of how the late Ahmad Deedat, the infamous Muslim apologist from South Africa, was constantly distorting and mocking the Holy Scriptures and after many years of his evil, experienced the judgment of God whereby he was struck with a severe stroke which made him unable to speak ever again whilst living on earth. This wicked character faced eternity on his deathbed with a horrified look and thus passed away. This is confirmed in a video featuring his last hours. Like Arius, Deedat’s evil works still persist despite the horrendous judgment that he faced for not only his heresy but constant mockery and blasphemy against the Holy Ghost too. If only their blind followers could take heed and repent! The heresy of Arius has now penetrated into many groups, amongst which we are now going to move into discussion over.

See the horrific death of Ahmad Deedat for yourself here:

MUHAMMAD (FOUNDER OF ISLAM)-570-632A.D

Muhammad (Mahomet) being torn by the devils in hell. 14th century fresco from a church in Italy.

Of all the blasphemers against the Holy Ghost, none have caused great damage to the whole world like Muhammad, the founder of Islam. Muhammad was born into a world in the 6^th century, whereby Arabia had been a den for all manner of heretics that were exiled by the Byzantine Empire. Amongst the many heresies that found its way into Arabia in the time of Muhammad’s birth was none other than the aforementioned Arianism. St. John of Damascus, who himself witnessed the takeover of Syria by Islam in the 7^th century, made note of the fact that it was an Arian monk that came to deceive Muhammad in his childhood. This is discussed in his book, Fount of Knowledge, in the chapter on “The Heresy of the Hagarenes/Ishamaelites”. It is already wicked enough that Muhammad rejected the Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ and also rejected the Holy Trinity as is evidenced in the Qu’ran (Surah 3:51, 59; 5:17, 18, 72-77, 116,117), but even worse was his evil attempt to make it appear that the Torah and the Gospels were pointing to him as well as calling himself the equivalent of the Comforter and Holy Ghost in the Qu’ran and saying that Christians should look to him. This is evidenced in these verses in the Qu’ran:

“Those who follow the messenger, the Prophet who can neither read nor write, whom they will find described in the Torah and the Gospel (which are) with them. He will enjoin on them that which is right and forbid them that which is wrong. He will make lawful for them all good things and prohibit for them only the foul; and he will relieve them of their burden and the fetters that they used to wear. Then those who believe in him, and honour him, and help him, and follow the light which is sent down with him: they are the successful.” (Surah 7:157)

“And when Jesus son of Mary said: O Children of Israel! Lo! I am the messenger of Allah unto you, confirming that which was (revealed) before me in the Torah, and bringing good tidings of a messenger who cometh after me, whose name is the Praised One. Yet when he hath come unto them with clear proofs, they say: This is mere magic.” (Surah 61:6) [Note: The Islamic “Jesus” speaks of a “Praised One” to come after him. This is where the term for “Muhammad” in Arabic is derived from the word “Ahmad” meaning “Praised One”. This is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost and mockery of the text in the Gospels relating to the Holy Ghost! What satanic mockery indeed!]

Islamic apologists are keen to state that the Greek in the Gospels relating to John 14:16, 26 should not read “Parakletos” or “Comforter” but rather “Periklitos” or “Praised One”. Not only does that fly in the most obvious within the text itself but even more importantly there is no manuscript nor evidence for such a ludicrous suggestion in Apostolic Tradition either. We need to ask the most obvious question to Muslims who attempt to use the Gospel text to “prove” their blasphemy: “The Gospel states clearly that the Comforter/Paraclete will dwell inside the believer of Christ and will teach them all the things that Christ has taught. Can Muhammad actually physically dwell inside a person and teach them? If you are saying that, then you yourself have committed blasphemy by both Islamic and Christian standards. By Islamic standards, you have committed shirk since you have made Muhammad almost on the level of the Divine. By Christian standards, you have committed blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. Both ways, you lose O Muslim!” Whilst it is possible for Muslims to be saved and repent, Muhammad, who started this heresy has most definitely committed the unpardonable sin. Muhammad was guilty not only according to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ but also in the words of St. Ambrose of Milan: “But if any one should deny the dignity, majesty, and eternal power of the Holy Spirit… there is fullness of sacrilege.” (St. Ambrose, On the Holy Spirit, 3:54)

Just as the Pharisees and apostate Jewish religious leaders denied the Deity of Christ and ascribed Christ as being of the devil and hence were guilty of the unpardonable in light of their deliberate rejection despite clear evidence, so too was Muhammad guilty of the unpardonable in the face of clear evidence too. In the same manner in which these apostate Jewish religious leaders sought the death of Christ and His Apostles and followers, so too did Muhammad do the same. Due to the fact that Muhammad had committed the unpardonable sin, it only stood to logic that he would seek to persecute those who were of Christ. Not only that, he also sought the elimination of the Jewish people too, in the same way that Satan has always sought the elimination of both Jews and Christians (Apocalypse/Revelation 12:13-17) There are many references in the Hadiths of Muhammad eliminating whole tribes of both Christians and Jews in Arabia which time and space will not allow to delve into depth. What should be pointed out is that Muhammad was clearly devil possessed due to his obvious delving into spirits, or jinn as he referenced them as, and was clearly demonically deceived into believing that a demonic entity passing off as the “angel Gabriel” gave him the revelations which Muslims accept as the Qu’ran. Not only is it evident that it is devilish from the viewpoint of St. Paul in II Corinthians 11:12-14, and Galatians 1:8, 9; it is also clear that Muhammad engaged in the forbidden practices of the Law of Moses as stated in Leviticus 19:31. Is it no wonder therefore that Muhammad in the Qu’ran stated that amongst the jinn, there would be “Muslims”(Surah 72:14) and when Muhammad’s armies were conquering Arabia and other places, they were to execute the monks and priests that were orthodox (Surah 9:34. Abu Bakr, the successor of Muhammad also issued the same order. This can be found in the History of Al-Tabari, Vol. 10). As a result of Muhammad blaspheming the Holy Ghost and thus blaspheming the Holy Trinity in the process of so doing, he was not only devilish in his actions from cold blooded murder to stealing wives of others amongst whom were Zaynab and Safiya, but also even on his death bed cursed Christians and Jews and was even fearful of eternity. Amongst his last words was:

“Narrated ‘Aisha and ‘Abdullah bin ‘Abbas:

When the last moment of the life of Allah’s Apostle came he started putting his ‘Khamisa’ on his face and when he felt hot and short of breath he took it off his face and said, “May Allah curse the Jews and Christians for they built the places of worship at the graves of their Prophets.” The Prophet was warning (Muslims) of what those had done.” (Sahih Bukhari, Vol 1, Book 8, No. 427)

“Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah’s Apostle said, “May Allah’s curse be on the Jews for they built the places of worship at the graves of their Prophets.” (Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 1, Book 8, No. 428)

In fact, Muhammad often feared demonic attacks and deception even from his demonic deity, Allah. Many Hadiths discuss his constant fear of insanity, demonic attack and even uncertainty of whether Allah was deliberately deceiving him or not. So much for the Muslim’s claim that Muhammad was the best and greatest of prophets! Muhammad had no solution for dealing with the devils when attacked unlike our Lord Jesus Christ. This can only be expected of a heresiarch, especially one that has blasphemed the Holy Ghost and deliberately rejected the Trinity. The greatest tragedy of all is the fact that even after his death, his wicked heresy not only continued to grow, but grew to the extent of destroying kingdoms and nations, creating wars and dissensions, even to this very day. What evil heresy Islam is! Is it no wonder then that St. John of Damascus referred to Muhammad and his filthy religion as: “the forerunner of the Antichrist”? What can one honestly conclude about a man who lived his life not only in rejecting the Trinity and the Holy Scriptures as well as the Church, but who lived a life of brigandry, cold blooded murder, stealing of wives of others, pedophilia at the end of his life only to meet his due by being poisoned by a Jewish woman and suffering the severe effects of it on his death bed? Shall we say that this is a prophet of God or a prophet of Satan and a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost? I will conclude this section with the words of St. Gregory Palamas in a debate with a Turkish nobleman whilst he was under captivity: “It is true that Muhammad started from the east and came to the west, as the sun travels from east to west. Nevertheless he came with war, knives, pillaging, forced enslavement, murders, and acts that are not from the good God but instigated by the chief manslayer, the devil. Consider now, in times past, did not Alexander (the Great) prove victorious from the West to the East? There have also been many others, in many other times, who set out on military campaigns and dominated the world. Yet none of the peoples believed in their leaders as you revere Muhammad. Though Muhammad may employ violence and offer pleasures, he cannot secure the approval of the world. Albeit, the teaching of Christ, though it turns away from (worldly) pleasures, it has taken hold to the ends of the world, without violence, since it is opposed to it. This phenomenon is the victory that overcomes the world. [I John 5:4]”

And regarding the behaviour of the followers of such a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost:

“they live a reproachful, inhuman, and God-hating life ….to live a prodigal life in swords and knives, indulging in slavery, murder, plundering, rape, licentiousness, adultery and homosexuality.”

What evil legacy has this blasphemer against the Holy Ghost left today for the world that remains unchanged! No wonder Dante in the Divine Comedy saw Muhammad being torn apart and cut asunder by the devils in hell!

HONG XIUQUAN (1814-1864)

Hong Xiuquan, founder of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement. (Taiping Tian Guo).

If there was a blasphemer against the Holy Ghost from China, then one cannot help but think of Hong Xiuquan, the founder of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement in the 1860s. I plan to give more details of this man’s evil at a later date, however, for now, I shall give a brief summary regarding this vile heretic. Hong Xiuquan was a failed scholar that sought to sit for Confucian scholarship exams in order to enter an official’s post in China. However, since he failed, he was about to return to his home village in the Hakka region but chanced upon a book by a Protestant preacher, Liang Afa. After reading this book, which contained nothing more than summarised biblical accounts, instead of bowing his knees to the Lord Jesus Christ and repenting of his sins, he was given a demonic based dream. He dreamt that he was anointed by Jehovah to be the “Second Son of God” and thus the younger brother of our Lord Jesus Christ, and that it was his mission to eradicate China from superstition and to cause the whole world to come under his rule as that Second Son. That does not sound much different from Muhammad in his lifetime too of attempting to purge Arabia from the idols and also to “correct” the Jews and Christians as well as rule the whole world too under the “Prophethood” of Muhammad! In fact, this is no different than the Antichrist in terms of the goal of world domination and worship of the self ultimately. Hong Xiuquan was keen on getting followers and when successful, he managed to create communes not dissimilar to Mormon communes. In a heretical vein, Hong Xiuquan not only created a “corrected” version of the Holy Scriptures (not dissimilar to the Mormons having the “Inspired Version” from Joseph Smith and the Jehovah’s Witnesses having the “New World Translation”), but also denied the Holy Trinity as would be expected of a heretic. Hong openly rejected the deity of Christ, which should have already been tell tale sign of an antichrist spirit, but he was not satisfied with that. It was already seriously blasphemous enough to claim to be the “Second Son of God” but the next blasphemy was even worse. He told his deceived followers that one of his underlings, Yang Xiuqing, was the Holy Ghost! In fact, it became a doctrine for the Taipings that Hong was the Second Son of God and Yang Xiuquing was the Holy Ghost! In vain did an American Baptist Missionary to China attempt to approach him and correct him of his heresies, only to return to America in disappointment. As a sign of a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost, Hong not only became brazen in his heresies, but even stated that he was Melchizedek as discussed in Hebrews 7:3, in a wicked attempt to make himself as great as Christ our God.

Charles “Chinese” George Gordon (1833-1885), the British General that fought both Hong Xiuquan and the “Mahdi” in Sudan. A committed Christian man and fighter of antichrists.

As would be anticipated of a heretic, never mind his attacks on Confucianism and Buddhism, but rather consider his open attacks on orthodox Christianity to the point when the Taiping followers approached the capital, Peking, they would destroy Catholic churches but would tolerate Islamic mosques. In fact, when the whole movement died, many of the remnants actually joined forces with Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang to rebel against the Imperial government, only to fail, thank God. This vile heretic was not content with deceiving others, but also in a very similar situation to David Koresh and Jim Jones, led his followers to their deaths by eating poisonous weeds made into balls and calling them “manna”, a clear mockery of the Scriptures, as Satan is the master mocker. Is it no wonder then that 2 committed Christians, Queen Victoria and General Gordon, committed their forces to help defeat the Taiping rebels? Thankfully, the Taipings were soundly defeated or else there would be no telling what damage would have occurred to China under a heresy. A blasphemer of the Holy Ghost such as Hong Xiuquan died on his own sword rather than surrender. His movement ended in utter heresy and failure, yet it also left a very damaging mark on the history of Christianity in China, since it gave inspiration for the Communists nearly a century later to draw inspiration from him and his movement for their vile takeover of China. In fact, a Chinese Communist publication even mentioned the Taiping Rebellion in a positive, glowing light despite its pseudo-Christian doctrines.  O what evil impact such blasphemers of the Holy Ghost leave on the world! (For the best information on this, please read Jonathan Spence, God’s Chinese Son (1997), Flamingo, London).

ELLEN G. WHITE (1827-1915)

Heretic Ellen G White, founder of Seventh Day Adventism.

One of the biggest Jezebels of heresiarchs is none other than the founder of the Seventh Day Adventist movement, Ellen G White. As Brother Shoebat has already discussed some of the objectionable teachings, I will not go over that area. However, what needs mentioning is that Ellen G White was a wicked Jezebel that saw herself as the equivalent of the Holy Ghost in inspiration of revelation and truth. This is clear in her writings and also by the fact that anyone who is baptised into the Seventh Day Adventist cult, must confess that Ellen G. White was a prophetess inspired by God. It is in fact a point of doctrine in Seventh Day Adventism to believe such. She stated:

“In ancient times God spoke through the mouths of prophets and apostles. In these days he speaks to them by the Testimonies of his Spirit.” (Testimonies, Volume 4, p.148; Volume 5, p.661).

And even more blasphemously in reference to her own words:

“It is God, and not an erring mortal, that has spoken.” (Testimonies, Volume 3, p.257).

Putting oneself on the level of the Holy Ghost is tantamount to blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. As a further reflection on her blasphemy, she taught that not only was Christ Michael the Archangel that became God by declaration but even that Satan was the equal to Christ in rank and ability. Consider these words:

“Among the inhabitants of heaven, Satan, next to Christ, was at one time most honored of God, and highest in power and glory.” — (Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, July 23, 1902) [Emphasis mine. This is blasphemous to assert that Satan was equivalent to Christ in power and glory!]

“Michael, or Christ, with the angels that buried Moses” (Jude 9, Spiritual Gifts, IV a, p. 158)

“And before the context closed Christ Himself came to Gabriel’s aid—Gabriel declares ‘But lo, Michael, one of the Chief Princes came to help me” (Dan 10:13, Prophets & Kings, p.572)

“There is none that holdeth with me in these things but Michael (Christ) your prince.” (Desire of Ages p.99)

“Moses passed under the dominion of death – but Christ the Savior brought him forth from the grave. (Jude 9, (ibid 379)

However, as real proof of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, since Ellen G White rejected the standard Trinitarian doctrine held by all orthodox Christians, she not only denied that the Holy Spirit was the Third Person in the Trinity but even stated that the Holy Spirit is simply an extension of the Personality of Christ Himself. Hence in the mind of this confused heretic Holy Spirit equals to Christ. Consider these quotes:

“We want the Holy Spirit, which is Jesus Christ. If we commune with God, we shall have strength and grace and efficiency.” (Ellen G. White, Lt66, April 10, 1894)

“Let them be thankful to God for His manifold mercies and be kind to one another. They have one God and one Saviour; and one Spirit–the Spirit of Christ–is to bring unity into their ranks.” (Ellen G. White, Testimonies Volume 9, p. 189, 1909)

“Christ is to be known by the blessed name of Comforter. “The Comforter,” said Christ to His disciples, “which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you, [John 14:26 quoted]” (E.G. White, Ms7-1902, January 26, 1902)

“The Saviour is our Comforter. This I have proved Him to be.” (Ellen G. White, 8MR 49.3)

Equally blasphemous, was Ellen G White’s assertion that the Holy Spirit was a “Divine Power” which is not dissimilar to the New Agers and for that matter other heretical cults that deny the personality of the Holy Ghost as well as His Deity.

“Christ has given HIS Spirit as a divine POWER.”(Ellen G. White, Review and Herald, November 19, 1908)

“The divine Spirit that the world’s Redeemer promised to send, is the presence and POWER of God.” (Ellen G. White, Signs of the Times, November 23)

Any orthodox Christian can see that Ellen G. White has denied the Holy Trinity and is a blasphemer against the Holy Ghost. As was typical of such heretics, she attacked the real Holy Trinity as being a “Papist” or Catholic doctrine, which she so despised. It was already bad enough that Ellen G White made numerous prophecies that never came to pass beginning with the failed teaching of William Miller (whom she was associated with) that Christ would return in 1844 to failed prophecies regarding the Civil War of the United States, of which she said England would get involved and America would fall, which never came to pass. (Please see details here: http://biblebelievers.com/SDA/SDA3.html#3-g ) Even worse is that she had the gall to blaspheme the Holy Trinity too by claiming that Christ and Satan were equal in power along with stating that Christ was also Michael the Archangel and that there is no Third Person of the Trinity, since the Holy Ghost=Christ and even that the Holy Spirit was also a “Divine Power”. All this is enough to merit Ellen G White as a heretic. But equally damning is her teaching that Satan is the Sin Bearer in Leviticus 16:4:

“It was seen, also, that while the sin offering pointed to Christ as a sacrifice, and the high priest represented Christ as a mediator, the scapegoat typified Satan, the author of sin, upon whom the sins of the truly penitent will finally be placed. Christ will place all these sins upon Satan, … so Satan, …will at last suffer the full penalty of sin.” (Great Controversy, p.422,485,486).

A question to ask Seventh Day Adventists: “If Satan was a sin bearer for the atonement of the sins of Israel in Leviticus 16:4, then did God decide to have 2 saviours?” Any honest student of the Scriptures can see that passage was clearly nothing to do with Satan being a sin bearer for humanity, but rather, since both goats were slain for the sins of Israel, both typified Christ. Ellen G White was clearly unschooled and unlearned in the Holy Scriptures to the point of wresting it to her destruction.

There is more that would be worth discussing in terms of her heresies such as investigative judgment heresy, soul sleep heresy (annihilationism), enforced Sabbath keeping and enforced vegetarianism on the members, but they have already been discussed at length by others. Nevertheless, from this matriarch of heretics came other heretics that followed which will also be discussed. Nevertheless, Ellen G White was clearly a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost for the above reasons and for even daring to associate Christ with Satan even in salvation! May God save Seventh Day Adventists from such deviancies. What should finally be concluded is that Ellen G White was a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost and rejected the Holy Trinity as is clearly admitted by Ellen G White here:

“The man Christ Jesus was not the Lord God Almighty, yet Christ and the Father are one. The Deity did not sink under the agonizing torture of Calvary, yet it is none the less true that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”(Ellen G. White, Ms140, September 27, 1903) [This is not only self contradictory, but equally blasphemous. I suppose Ellen G White never considered Revelation/Apocalypse 1:8-11, where the Son is called the Almighty too!]

James White, the husband of Ellen G White, made this damning statement confirming Ellen G White did not believe in the Trinity and for that matter, the whole of unbroken Apostolic Doctrine: “As fundamental errors, we might class with this counterfeit sabbath other errors which Protestants have brought away from the Catholic church, such as sprinkling for baptism, the trinity, the consciousness of the dead and eternal life in misery. The mass who have held these fundamental errors, have doubtless done it ignorantly; but can it be supposed that the church of Christ will carry along with her these errors till the judgment scenes burst upon the world? We think not.” (James White, Review and Herald, September 12, 1854, p. 36) [Emphasis mine]

Very sadly, many Seventh Day Adventists in their sincere deception to uphold Ellen G White, would insist on following her over proper Apostolic Doctrine as taught by both Holy Scripture and the Fathers, and thus are placing their souls in mortal danger eternally. I urge Seventh Day Adventists and other cultists not to follow in the way of their founders, who blasphemed the Holy Ghost and urge them to sincerely repent towards the Holy Trinity. Amen.

CHARLES TAZE RUSSELL (1852-1916)

Heretical founder of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Russellites, Charles Taze Russell.

Many remember this man as the founder of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, which were once called “Russellites”. So much for the claim by this particular heretical group that they are named after Jehovah whilst all the others are named after men! What few remember is that not only were his followers called Russellites but that after a split amongst the heretics, those that followed Judge Joseph Rutherford officially took on the name: “Jehovah’s Witnesses”, whilst the others went by various titles such as “International Bible Students”, “Dawn Bible Students”, etc. However, what should be discussed here are not only his foul heresies and blasphemies, but also more importantly, how he blasphemed the Holy Ghost. To Russell, the Holy Ghost was not even a Person let alone actually God but an emanation of the mind of God, and is even an impersonal force. This is made clear here:

“There is consistency in the Scripture teaching that the Father and Son are in full harmony and oneness of purpose and operation, as we have just seen. And equally consistent is the Scripture teaching respecting the holy Spirit-that it is not another God, but the spirit, influence or power exercised by the one God, our Father, and by his Only Begotten Son-in absolute oneness, therefore, with both of these, who also are at one or in full accord.” (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 5, p165)

As a further indication of such blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, Russell was also content to blaspheme the whole Trinity too in these words:

“This view [the Trinity] suited well ‘the dark ages’ it helped to produce” (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. V, p166)

“…this theory [a reference to the Trinity]…is as unscriptural as it is unreasonable” (Ibid.)

“…if it were not for the fact that this Trinitarian nonsense was drilled into us from earliest infancy, and the fact that it is so soberly taught in Theological Seminaries by gray haired professors…nobody would give it a moment’s serious consideration.” (Ibid.)

“How the great Adversary [Satan] ever succeeded in foisting it [The Trinity] upon the Lord’s people to bewilder and mystify them, and render much of the Word of God of none effect, is the real mystery…” (Ibid.)

As a further indication of his damnable doctrines, Russell went so far as to state these blasphemies regarding our Lord Jesus Christ, all of which are held today as standard doctrine for both the break of sects of Russellites and Jehovah’s Witnesses alike:

• Denial of the Deity of Christ and teaching that he was “a god” and that he was the first created along with being Michael the Archangel.

“…our Lord Jesus Christ is a God…still the united voice of the Scriptures most emphatically asserts that there is but one Almighty God, the Father of all.” (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. V, p 55) [Although Russell did not start up the New World Translation, yet this became the basis for the New World Translation in 1950  for the New Testament, whereby the rendering of John 1:1 became: “the Word was a god”, instead of the correct reading in all translations: “the Word was God”. This combined with inspiration from a spiritist known as Johannes Greber, who did a similar translation before this came to being. Funny how one heretical notion can not only resort to distortion but even use someone involved in the occult for inspiration! This is embarrassing for Jehovah’s Witnesses!]

“Our Redeemer existed as a spirit being before he was made flesh and dwelt amongst men. At that time, as well as subsequently, he was properly known as ‘a god’-a mighty one” (Ibid., p84)

“…the Logos [Christ] himself was ‘the beginning of the creation of God’” (Ibid. p86) [A very poor attempt to distort the words of both Revelation/Apocalypse 3:14 and Colossians 1:15. The context of the quotes clarify that “beginning of the creation of God” has to do with the fact that Christ is the Creator and thus is the beginning of it. Cultists and heretics never care for context!]

“As chief of the angels and next to the Father, he [Christ] was known as the Archangel (highest angel or messenger), whose name, Michael, signifies, ‘Who as God’ or God’s Representative”. (Ibid. p84) [Note: Since Russell was once associated with the Adventist movement, where else could he have got such an idea from, albeit at variance with the Adventist teaching on the matter?]

• Denial of the physical resurrection of Christ and stating that Christ was resurrected as a spirit

“…our Lord was put to death in flesh, but was made alive in spirit; he was put to death a man, but was raised from the dead a spirit being of the highest order of the divine nature…” (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. V, p 453) [This is also the teaching of many occultists and spiritists too! Russell could well have had his ideas from them, considering he was also involved with Freemasonry as well].

• Denial of hell and everlasting punishment:

“Many have imbibed the erroneous idea that God placed our race on trial for life with the alternative of eternal torture, whereas nothing of the kind is even hinted at in the penalty” (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. I, p127)

“Eternal torture is nowhere suggested in the Old Testament Scriptures, and only a few statements in the New Testament can be so misconstrued as to appear to teach it.” (Ibid., p128) [This is so typical of all these heretics and cultists. Denial of eternal bliss and eternal punishment. Let us not forget that Russell was also associated with the Adventist movement that taught the same damnable heresy too.]

Charles Taze Russell was not only known for such heresies but for attempting to deceive others too. Many are familiar with his attempt at predicting the Battle of Armageddon would arrive in 1874 which would then bring in the Millennial Kingdom of Christ, only to be proven wrong but then have another attempt at it in 1914. The Watchtower Society (aka Jehovah’s Witnesses) continued in that vein of thought many times over, and instead of admitting that they have committed the sin of false prophecy, simply tried to brush it over by saying that these were all miscalculations. Russell and the Watchtower Society that would come later not only held their followers on to such delusion and heresy on pain of being “disfellowshipped”, but continued to make such embarrassing false prophecies. Worst of all, was that they were claiming to be under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost as either a “prophet” or even as a “prophet organisation” that speaks as the “mouthpiece of Jehovah”.

What is disheartening is his poor attempt to convince others that he was skilled in both Hebrew and Greek. This was contested in a court of law and he was proven to not only be ignorant of the Hebrew and the Greek, but also to have committed fraud. What else can we expect from a blasphemer of the Holy Ghost, a son of Belial, and a heretic? As a very embarrassing monument to Charles Taze Russell, he was buried with a pyramid on his gravesite, attesting to the fact that he believed that the Great Pyramid of Egypt were inspired by God for revelation, and in fact, he used that idea in his Studies of the Scriptures, to base his failed calculations as to when Armageddon would take place. [Does this not sound like Freemasonry again? Freemasonry loves the Egyptian mysteries.]

Burial site of Charles Taze Russell. Notice the Great Pyramid!

Not so surprisingly, Russell in his publications, not only called himself the “faithful and wise servant” in Luke 12:42, 43, which later on, the Watchtower Society attributed to themselves, but on top of that, had the gall to attribute himself as one of the 7 messengers in Revelation/Apocalypse, calling himself the messenger for the Laodicean Age. Demonic pride has no bounds. Interestingly enough, he attributed the heretic and blasphemer against the Holy Ghost, Arius from the 4^th century to be one of the 7 messengers. This is not so surprising, considering that Russell looked to Arius’ heretical ideas for his theology and doctrine. Therefore we can only conclude that Russell was indeed a blasphemer against the Holy Ghost and in not so surprising a vein, hated the Apostolic Churches, particularly the Roman Catholic Church. May the deluded followers of this blasphemer repent and reconsider their ways or else they will land up in damnation as their founder has done. [Side note: Russell also saw a kin not only in Arius, but also in the blasphemous Reformers, Luther and Tyndale, both of whom he saw as amongst the 7 messengers in Revelation].

JOSEPH SMITH (1805-1844)

Joseph Smith, Freemason and founder of the Mormon cult aka Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Amongst the most fanciful of heretics and blasphemers against the Holy Ghost is none other than the founder of the Mormon Church aka Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Joseph Smith. If one was to take his religion and its text, the Book of Mormon, as purely fantasy, then we could simply laugh it off. However, very tragically, this particular sect boasts of having billions of followers, rivalling the Catholic Church and with assets in Utah alone rivalling the Vatican. Worst of all, are the unorthodox and heretical doctrines being espoused that clearly run contrary to both the Holy Scriptures and the Apostolic Faith. All of this stems from none other than a practitioner of Freemasonry (who fell out of grace with them and was eventually murdered by them) and occultist, Joseph Smith. The very poison and blasphemies that Smith believed in were continued further in Brigham Young and other successors in the Mormon “Apostleship”. As space is somewhat limited, I will try and make his blasphemies as brief as possible, and it will become clear that this man blasphemed the Holy Ghost via blaspheming the whole of the Holy Trinity, either collectively or individually. To begin with, Joseph Smith in his state of spiritual deception (prelest) as all heresiarchs and cult founders are in, declared this about the Holy Trinity:

“The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s; the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit. Were it not so, the Holy Ghost could not dwell in us.” (Doctrines and Covenants 130:22; April 2, 1843)

If this blasphemy against the Holy Trinity was not enough, then he went further to state this blasphemous statement against the whole of the Trinity as God in this disgusting mocking statement:

“Many men say there is one God; the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are only one God. I say that is a strange God anyhow—three in one, and one in three! It is a curious organization. “Father, I pray not for the world, but I pray for them which thou hast given me.” “Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one as we are.” All are to be crammed into one God, according to sectarianism. It would make the biggest God in all the world. He would be a wonderfully big God—he would be a giant or a monster.”(Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, June 16, 1844, p372)

Joseph Smith did not stop there either. As continued in the teaching of Brigham Young and other succeeding “Prophets”, he taught that God the Father impregnated the Virgin Mary to produce our Lord Jesus Christ via sexual means, thus blaspheming both Christ and the Holy Ghost, since the Scriptures clearly teach that the Holy Ghost placed the Lord into the Blessed Virgin without any sexual means whatsoever. Since Joseph Smith believed that God the Father was only a man, then the following from Brigham Young and his descendant, Joseph Fielding Smith merely continued the blasphemy:

“The birth of the Savior was as natural as are the births of our children; it was the result of natural action. He partook of flesh and blood—was begotten of his Father as we were of our fathers” (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 8, p115)

And also:

“When the Virgin Mary conceived the child Jesus, the Father had begotten him in his own likeness. He was not begotten by the Holy Ghost” (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 1, p.50)
“The birth of the Savior was a natural occurrence unattended by any degree of mysticism, and the Father God was the literal parent of Jesus in the flesh as well as in the spirit” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Religious Truths Defined, p.44).

Clearly Joseph Smith and the Mormon “Apostleship” had blasphemed the whole of the Holy Trinity and committed blasphemy against the Holy Ghost via attacking the Holy Ghost’s role in the birth of our Lord. But the evil does not end here. Similar to other blasphemers against the Holy Ghost, Joseph Smith and company believed that Lucifer had some equal footing with Christ, to the point of declaring that both Lucifer and Christ were brothers and that Lucifer was planning to be a “saviour” of mankind, only to be rejected in favour of Christ. Consider this: “The contention in heaven was…Jesus said there would be certain souls that would not be saved; and the Devil said he could save them all, and laid his plans before the grand council, who gave their vote in favour of Jesus Christ. So the Devil rose up in rebellion against God, and was cast down.” (Joseph Smith, Journal of Discourses, Vol. 6, p.8) [This is blasphemous to the nth degree! Any honest student of the Scripture will know that Lucifer rebelled out of pride and wanted the throne of God. Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:13-17.]

“And Satan came among them, saying: I am also a son of God” (Pearl of Great Price, Moses, 5:17)

If that is not evil enough, then the fact that Joseph Smith also put himself on equal footing with the Lord Jesus Christ in the following quotes should be self-explanatory: “ [Regarding Joseph Smith] that whatsoever seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven, and whatsoever you shall bind on earth, in my name and by my word, saith the Lord, it shall be eternally bound in the heavens; and whatsoever sins you remit on earth shall be remitted eternally in the heavens; and whatsoever sins you retain on earth shall be retained in heaven. And again, verily I say, whosoever you bless I will bless and whosever you curse I will curse, saith the Lord.” (Doctrines and Covenants, 132:46-47) [Is this nothing short of Joseph Smith attempting to be the equivalent of the Apostles by mimicking the words of Christ in the Gospels? How wicked and blasphemous!]

“What is the root of Jesse spoken of in the 10^th verse of the 11^th chapter [of Isaiah]? Behold, thus saith the Lord, it is a descendant of Jesse, as well as Joseph, unto whom rightly belongs the priesthood, and the keys of the kingdom, for an ensign, and for the gathering of my people in the last days.” (Doctrine and Covenants, 113:5, 6) [Emphasis mine. So Joseph Smith wants to claim descent from our Lord Jesus Christ despite not having Jewish blood in himself! Even worse, is to claim the keys of the kingdom, priesthood and everything Apostolic for himself!]

In fact, it gets worse whereby followers of Brigham Young and Joseph Smith had this to state regarding Brigham Young, Joseph Smith and Jesus Christ:

“Some have said that I was very presumptuous to say that Brother Brigham was my God and Saviour, Brother Joseph was his God and the one that gave Joseph the keys of the kingdom was his God which was Peter. Jesus Christ was his God and (the) Father of Jesus Christ was Adam.” (Journal of Wilford Woodruff, April 10, 1852) [This is absolute blasphemy! No further commentary needed here].

As an ultimate blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, Joseph Smith had the following to state regarding the Holy Ghost which any orthodox Christian will reject as outright blasphemy:

“The Holy Ghost is yet a spiritual body and is waiting to take to himself a body, as the Savior did.”[Joseph Smith, Encyclopedia of Joseph Smith’s Teachings, edited by Larry E. Dahl and Donald Q. Cannon (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1997)

“The Holy Ghost is now in a state of probation which if he should perform in righteousness he may pass through the same or a similar course of things that the Son has.” (Joseph Smith, The Words of Joseph Smith, p. 245; Sabbath address, Nauvoo, 27 August 1843. Reported by Franklin D. Richards.)

It is already bad enough that there are all these damnable heresies, all of which are an attack on the Holy Trinity, even an attack on the Holy Ghost. However, we should also bear in mind that Joseph Smith also admired another heresiarch and blasphemer of the Holy Ghost and practiced things based on his example such as polygamy and inhabiting the heavens and planets in the after life with wives (not different from Muhammad’s paradise) and the doctrine of Blood Atonement which not only is a blasphemy against the blood of Christ, but stems from an Islamic idea of jihad and killing the infidels and apostates. [This is a very embarrassing episode in Mormon history today!]. However, due to time and space, I will conclude this with a quote by Joseph Smith calling himself another Muhammad:

“I will be to this generation a second Mohammed, whose motto in treating for peace was ‘the Alcoran [Koran] or the Sword.’ So shall it eventually be with us—‘Joseph Smith or the Sword!’ ” (Joseph Smith is quoted during the Mormon War in 1838. The quote is found in Fawn M. Brodie, No Man Knows My History, second edition, (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1971), p. 230–231 and is also confirmed in History of the [Mormon] Church, p167)

Is it no wonder also that Mormon leadership has continually without pause had nothing but praise for Islam and Muhammad? Nevertheless, it is clear that since one blasphemer of the Holy Ghost is following the example of another, there is nothing short of deception and damnation. Joseph Smith like Muhammad has damned himself for eternity due to such blasphemy and it is my sincere hope that his followers will have their eyes opened and repent to the True God, who is Father, Son and Holy Ghost, and leave this den of heresy and blasphemy which will damn their souls too.

TO BE CONTINUED….