Heraclides (bishop)

Heraclides was a 2nd-century Gnostic Christian bishop, traditionally considered the successor to Valentinus as head of the Valentinian school in Italy or Sicily. Very little is definitively known about his life. He is primarily known through his writings, which are fragmentary and cited by later Church Fathers, particularly Hippolytus of Rome. These fragments suggest Heraclides elaborated on Valentinian cosmology and theology, developing distinct interpretations of the divine pleroma and the nature of Christ. Some scholars believe he may have moderated or altered some of Valentinus's original teachings, potentially leading to further divisions within Valentinianism. He is regarded as an important figure in the development of Gnostic thought in the Roman Empire.