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Simon Magus, also known as Simon the Magician, Simon the Sorcerer and Simon of Gitta , was a Samaritan (Proto-) Gnostic. The ancient Gnostic sect of Simonianism believed that he was God in human form. Almost all of the surviving sources for the life and thought of Simon Magus are contained in Christian works: in the Acts of the Apostles, in patristic works ( Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Hippolytus) and in the apocryphal Acts of Peter. The different sources for information on Simon contain quite different pictures of him, so much so that it has been questioned whether they all refer to the same person. Assuming all references are to the same person, the earliest reference to him is the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 8. This tells of Simon Magus practicing magic in the city of Sebaste in Samaria, being converted to Christianity by Philip the Evangelist and working as a missionary, but then trying to buy from the Apostles the power of conveying the Holy Spirit. (This led to the word " simony".) Many scholars have questioned whether this Simon is the Simon intended to be refered to in legends concocted later, or a different one. Some believe that the story of Simon Magus here is actually a coded EbioniteThe Ebionites (from Hebrew; Ebionim "the poor ones") were a sect of Judean followers of John the Baptizer and later Jesus Yeshua in Aramaic) which existed in Judea and Palestine during the early centuries of the Common Era. History Virtually no writings o attack on Paul of TarsusPaul of Tarsus (originally Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul the Apostle (c. 66) is considered by many Christians to be the most important disciple of Jesus, and next to Jesus the most important figure in the development of Christianity. Paul is recognized by, with Simon used to represent Paul.

There are small fragments of a work written by him (or by one of his later followers using his name), the Apophasis Megale, or Great Pronouncement. He is also supposed to have written several treatises, two of which allegedly bear the titles The Four Quarters of the World and The Sermons of the Refuter, but are lost to us. This Simon was also the founder of witchcraft in old asia in which he was proclaimed as a god in his own way. He is specifically said to have possessed the ability to levitateMetaphysical levitation is a name given to the paranormal phenomenon of levitation occurring without any scientific explanation (such as electromagnetism or air pressure). Of course, as with all paranormal events, cases of levitation are hotly disputed; t and fly at will. Simon Magus was the preacher of ancient metaphysicalMetaphysics is a branch of philosophy, and related to the natural sciences, like physics, psychology and the biology of the brain; and also to mysticism, religion, and other spiritual subjects. It is notoriously difficult to define, but for purposes of br teachings according to his own ideas of occultFor other uses of this term, see occult (disambiguation). The word occult comes from Latin occultus (hidden), referring to the knowledge of the secret' or 'knowledge of the hidden' and often meaning 'knowledge of the supernatural', as opposed to 'knowledg matters. There were accusations that Simon was a demonSatan In folklore, mythology, and in many religions, a demon is a supernatural entity, generally (but not in all traditions) an evil or malicious spirit. The Greek word daemon ω, appears in the works of Plato and many other ancient authors, without in human form, with the story of Simon the wizard as the cultural equivalent of MerlinAlternate uses, see Merlin. Merlin Ambrosius ( Welsh: Myrddin Emrys (also known as Myrddin Wyllt [Merlin the Wild], Merlin Caledonensis [Scottish Merlin], Merlinus and Merlyn , is the personage best known as the mighty wizard featured in accounts of Arthu during the medieval timesThe Middle Ages formed the middle period in a schematic division of European history into three 'ages': Classical civilization, the Middle Ages, and Modern Civilization. It is commonly dated from the end of the Western Roman Empire ( 5th century) until th.

The apocryphal Acts of Peter gives a legendary tale of Simon Magus' death. Simon is performing magic for the Roman Emperor Claudius Caesar in the forum. In order to prove himself to be a god, he flies up into the air. The Apostles Peter and Paul pray to God to stop his flying, and he stops mid-air and falls to his death.

Justin and Irenaeus record several other pieces of information, including: that Simon came from the Samaritan village of Gitta and that the Simonians worshipped Simon in the form of Zeus and Helene in the form of Athena. They also say that a statue to Simon was erected by Claudius Caesar on the island in the Tiber which the two bridges cross, with the inscription "Simoni Deo Sancto", "To Simon the Holy God". However, in the 1500s, a statue was unearthed on the island in question, inscribed to Semo Sancus, a Sabine deity, leading most scholars to believe that Justin Martyr confused Semoni Sancus with Simon.

The Catholic Church named the sin of exchanging spiritual for temporal goods simony after the story of Simon Magus in Acts.