John Chrysostom : "For first of all, when ye come together in the Church, I hear that divisions exist among you." And he saith not, "For fear that you do not sup together in common;" "for I hear that you feast in private, and not with the poor:" but what was most calculated thoroughly to shake their minds, that he set down, the name of division, which was the cause of this mischief also: and so he reminded them again of that which was said in the beginning of the Epistle, and was "signified by them of the house of Chloe." "And I partly believe it." Thus, lest they should say, "But what if the accusers speak falsely?" he neither saith, "I believe it," lest he should rather make them reckless; nor again, on the other hand, "I disbelieve it," lest he should seem to reprove without cause, but, "I partly believe it," saith he, i.e., "I believe it in a small part;" making them anxious and inviting them to return to correction. — Homily on 1 Corinthians 27 Tertullian : For he shows us that it was owing to the prospect of the greater evil that he readily believed the existence of the lighter ones; and so far indeed was he from believing, in respect of evils (of such a kind), that heresies were good, that his object was to forewarn us that we ought not to be surprised at temptations of even a worse stamp, since (he said) they tended "to make manifest all such as were approved; " in other words, those whom they were unable to pervert. — The Prescription Against Heretics Tertullian : These were the ingenious arts of "spiritual wickednesses," wherewith we also, my brethren, may fairly expect to have "to wrestle," as necessary for faith, that the elect may be made manifest, (and) that the reprobate may be discovered. — The Prescription Against Heretics Tertullian : If, however, the angels of the rival god are referred to, what fear is there for them? for not even Marcion's disciples, (to say nothing of his angels, ) have any desire for women. We have often shown before now, that the apostle classes heresies as evil among "works of the flesh," and that he would have those persons accounted estimable who shun heresies as an evil thing. — Against Marcion Book V