Simon the Magician – A Heretic Opposing the Apostles
“There was therefore great joy in that city. Now there was a certain man named Simon, who before had been a magician in that city, seducing the people of Samaria, giving out that he was some great one: To whom they all gave ear, from the least to the greatest, saying: This man is the power of God, which is called great.
“And they were attentive to him, because, for a long time, he had bewitched them with his magical practices. But when they had believed Philip preaching of the kingdom of God, in the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Simon himself believed also; and being baptized, he adhered to Philip. And being astonished, wondered to see the signs and exceeding great miracles which were done. Now when the apostles, who were in Jerusalem, had heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John. Who, when they were come, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost.
“For he was not as yet come upon any of them; but they were only baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands upon them, and they received the Holy Ghost. And when Simon saw, that by the imposition of the hands of the apostles, the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying: Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I shall lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said to him: Keep thy money to thyself, to perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money” (Acts 8:9-20).
The word ‘simony’ comes from this account of Simon the Magician in the Book of Acts. Simon wanted to perform miracles like St. Peter, and even offered money to learn how to do so, for which St. Peter rebuked Simon, whose followers persisted in this error.[1] His followers, known as the Simoniacs, are numbered among the first heretics as they rejected the true Catholic Faith after Baptism and embraced a perversion of the True Faith. Their beliefs, which are a form of Gnosticism, lingered until the 4th century before dying out. But the word ‘simoniac’ eventually became used to describe any member of the clergy engaging in simony.
Ancient sources of tradition also indicate that this same Simon Magus employed satanic preternatural power to curry Emperor Nero’s favor. Simon became part of the imperial court. He even claimed he could rise into the heavens, mimicking Christ’s Ascension. Saint Peter was present at this spectacle and commanded the diabolical powers to cease. Simon fell to his death. Nero was infuriated. It was on account of this incident that Nero determined to have Saint Peter executed.
Simony
Like usury, simony has been a “forgotten” sin. Turning to the Father Hardon Dictionary, simony is defined as such:
“A sacrilege that consists in buying and selling what is spiritual in return for what is temporal. In simony the person tries to equate material things, such as money, with spiritual things, such as divine grace, and treats the latter as though he or some other human being had full ownership of what really belongs to God.…
“Simony includes both agreements that are illicit by divine law and those which the law of the Church forbids, as greater protection and reverence for spiritual goods. Thus, to promise prayers only in exchange for a certain sum of money is simony forbidden by divine (natural) law. To confer sacred orders or obtain some position of authority in the Church in return for money or its equivalent is simony forbidden by ecclesiastical law. When simony is against the divine law, it is always a grave sin. Its gravity in other cases depends on the serious nature of what is bought or sold, and on the degree of scandal given.”
Simony Violates the First Commandment
Father Heribert Jone, the highly regarded Capuchin canonist and moral theologian, describes the seriousness of this sin in his meticulous work, ‘Moral Theology’:
“Simony of divine right is the deliberate will to buy or sell a spiritual thing, or a temporal thing that is especially annexed to a spiritual thing, for a temporal price.”
To what does buying and selling refer specifically, and when is the sin of simony incurred? He states:
“‘Buying’ and ‘selling’ here mean any agreement by which one wishes to oblige another to exchange a spiritual thing for a temporal thing or vice versa.
“It is not necessary that the agreement be made explicitly. It suffices that it be deducible from circumstances (C. 728). — The sin of simony is committed at the time when one makes such an intention; but the ecclesiastical penalties are only incurred when the contract is actually made, either expressly or tacitly (De internis non judicat Praetor). — Rendering some service merely in the hope that one may receive some spiritual good in return is not simony. But it would be simoniacal for one to do so for the primary purpose of giving another an occasion to return a spiritual good which he would otherwise not return.”
Regarding the second part of the definition – “a temporal thing that is especially annexed to a spiritual thing, for a temporal price” – Fr. Jone elaborates:
“Spiritual things are: graces, Gifts of the Holy Ghost, Sacraments, sacramentals, prayers, exercise of ecclesiastical jurisdiction, indulgences, blessings, consecrations, admission into a religious community, reception of an ecclesiastical office, etc.
“He commits simony who sells relics, or who for a temporal price casts a vote for someone in an election to an ecclesiastical office. — It is not simony to accept something upon the occasion of a spiritual function, e.g., stolar fees, stipends (C. 730). — Whoever demands a higher stipend than is legitimately permitted commits an injustice and is obliged to restitute, but he does not sin by simony, since the prohibition against requiring a higher stipend is not made to prevent the appearance of simony, but to protect the people against excessive demands.
“ — Neither does he commit simony who gives a priest money that the latter may not unfairly refuse someone a spiritual good, e.g., to administer a Sacrament. It is not simony to buy sacred objects to save them from profanation. Nor would it be simony if a cleric gave someone money as an inducement to recant a calumny, etc., which stands in his way of receiving some ecclesiastical office. But it would be simony to bribe a competitor against accepting an appointment to an office to which he is eligible according to Canon Law.
“ — It is not simoniacal to give another a temporal good to persuade him to do something for his soul’s salvation, e.g., to hear Mass, make his Easter [duty]. Finally, it is not simony to give a poor man an alms in order to induce him to pray for his benefactor in gratitude for the assistance given.”
Some additional considerations are given, which further illustrate the completeness of Fr. Jone’s work:
“Therefore, he is guilty of simony who receives payment for the exertion connected with the celebration of Mass or a sick call. It would not be simony to require some compensation for saying a Mass at a late hour or in some distant place. Nor is it sinful to induce another by a monetary gift to sacrifice his attachment for a relic. — Neither is he guilty of simony who sells indulgenced rosaries or consecrated chalices if he does not increase the price thereof because of the consecration, etc.”[2]
The Church Unwaveringly Condemns Simony
St. Peter Damian (1007 – 1072) was a Benedictine monk who supported the reforming popes at a time in their work against simony and immoral clergy. During the 11th century, the sins of simony, lack of priestly celibacy, and absenteeism (bishops overseeing more than one diocese simultaneously and thus often being absent from them) were ravishing large portions of the Church. Humanly speaking, defeating simony seemed hopeless. But with God, all things are possible.
In 1059, St. Peter was sent to Milan where the situation was very grave – the ecclesiastical positions of authority in the Church were being sold quite openly, and priests were publicly taking concubines. Saint Peter confronted the wrongdoers in the Cathedral and spoke to them severely. After extracting an oath from them to stop their activities, and giving each a penance, St. Peter restored them to their ecclesiastical positions.
He was a severe critic of simony and homosexuality, upheld the importance of celibacy for priests, and insisted that the Divine Office be prayed carefully and reverently. His prayer is inspirational for all of us who need forgiveness. His tireless work and that of his contemporary, St. John Gualbert, certainly helped influence the Church during the First Lateran Council.
The very first Canon of the First Lateran Council (1123 AD) unequivocally condemned the selling and buying of Holy Orders: “Following the examples of the holy fathers and renewing them as we are bound by our office, by the authority of the apostolic see, we altogether forbid anyone to be ordained or promoted in the church of God for money. If anyone indeed should have been ordained or promoted in the church in such a fashion, let him be utterly deprived of the office acquired.”
This, however, was not the only such occasion. During the 40th Session of the Council of Constance held on October 30, 1417, the Council listed 18 areas of reform that should be accomplished after the cardinals elected a new Pope. The first was the “number, quality and nationality” of the cardinals, and the list also included the eradication of simony, reforms to indulgences, dispensations, and the revenues of the popes and the cardinals.
Denzinger’s “The Sources of Catholic Dogma,” which lists in minute details all the Church’s dogmatic teachings in the most comprehensive single volume, states the following before mentioning more than 20 official prohibitions of simony:
“The following are against the heresy of simony, which was called a heresy because the simoniacs not only sinned against the law but contended that the payment of money for holy orders is licit; and so they attacked the law of good morals, or they said that what they themselves on the other hand opposed were not prohibited by it (simony). Against this curse the Pontiffs and Councils fought with the following decrees: Chalcedon 451, can. 2 [Msi VII 393 B]; Clement II in Roman Synod 1047 [Msi XIX 627 f.]; Leo IX in Roman Synod I 1049,…”
Closer to our times, the Catholic Encyclopedia, written around the time of St. Pius X, described two modern prohibitions against simony and the associated severe penalty of excommunication:
“The Decree ‘Vigilanti’ (25 May, 1893) forbade the practice indulged in by some booksellers of receiving stipends and offering exclusively books and subscriptions to periodicals to the celebrant of the Masses. The Decree ‘Ut Debita’ (11 May, 1904) condemned the arrangements according to which the guardians of shrines sometimes devoted the offerings originally intended for Masses partly to other pious purposes. The offenders against the two decrees just mentioned incur suspension ipso facto from their functions if they are in sacred orders; inability to receive higher orders if they are clerics inferior to the priests; excommunication of pronounced sentence (latae sententiae) if they belong to the laity.”
But despite the Church’s longstanding prohibition against simony, this sin – like many others – is often forgotten. Various forms of simony, especially those not stated explicitly, ravage the Church today and are a devastating element of today’s grave ecclesial crisis.
Priests have an obligation to teach about this sin, to ensure that the faithful know its seriousness, and to resist it themselves.
Conclusion
We must ensure that we do not fall into the sin of simony. Asking for money in exchange for prayers, refusing sacraments unless certain monies are paid, selling blessed items for a higher price because they are blessed, and only praying for those who give us temporal goods are all manifestations of this sin.
May Our Lord, Destroyer of all heresies, stamp out the heresy of Simoniasm.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!
[1] More on Simon the Magician may be read at https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13797b.htm
[2] Pages 104-107 of Moral Theology detail more information for those looking to learn more in the specific applications of simony and how this sin may manifest itself. Information on restitution is also detailed by Fr. Jone.