Two of his followers, a Spanish woman named Agape and the rhetorician Helpidius, converted Priscillian,[1] who was a layman "of noble birth, of great riches, bold, restless, eloquent, learned through much reading, very ready at debate and discussion".
[2] Through his oratorical gifts and reputation for extreme asceticism, Priscillian attracted a large following, including Helpidus and two bishops, Instantius and Salvianus.
They then resorted to intrigue and bribery at the court with such success that they were not only freed from the sentence of exile, but permitted to regain possession of their churches in Hispania, where, under the patronage of the imperial officials, they enjoyed such power as to compel Ithacius to leave the country.
[1] As he wished to curry favour with the orthodox bishops and to replenish his treasury through confiscations, the Emperor gave orders for a synod, which was held in Bordeaux in 384.
After expressing his disapproval of bringing an ecclesiastical case before a civil tribunal, he obtained from the emperor a promise not to carry his condemnation to the extent of shedding blood.
St. Martin, hearing what had taken place, returned to Trier and compelled the emperor to rescind an order to military tribunes, who were on their way to Hispania to extirpate the heresy.
Paulus Orosius, a Gallaecian priest from northwest Hispania, wrote to St. Augustine (415 CE) to enlist his aid in combating the heresy.
Because their doctrines were esoteric and exoteric, and because it was believed that men in general could not understand the higher paths, the Priscillianists, or at least those of them who were enlightened, were permitted to tell lies for the sake of a holy end.
[3] It was long thought that all the writings of Priscillian himself had perished, but in 1885, Georg Schepss discovered at the University of Würzburg eleven genuine tracts, published as Priscilliani quae supersunt.
According to Raymond Brown's Epistle of John, the source of the Comma Johanneum appears to be the Latin book Liber Apologeticus by Priscillian.
While direct evidence of Persian religious influence in 4th-century Hispania is limited, several scholars have identified theological parallels between Priscillianist and Zoroastrian concepts.
[7] Analysis of the Würzburg Tractates identifies astrological elements in Priscillian's teachings that show similarities to Zoroastrian priestly traditions, particularly in their understanding of celestial bodies' spiritual significance.
Burrus argues that while Priscillianism's dualism was less absolute than that found in Manichaeism, it shows distinct patterns that could suggest indirect Zoroastrian sources.
The emphasis on the struggle between light and darkness in Priscillian's theology bears notable similarities to Zoroastrian concepts of cosmic conflict.
Archaeological evidence from late Roman Hispania shows trading connections with the East, providing possible channels for Persian religious ideas.
[8] However, Van Dam suggests that many of Priscillianism's apparently "eastern" elements could be explained by broader ascetic trends in late antique Christianity.
Jerome's association of Priscillian with Zoroastrian practices reflects a common late antique heresiological strategy of linking heterodox Christian movements to "eastern" or "Persian" influences.