The problem with studying Catholic heresies is that they litreally made a hobby out of inventing fully realised heretical theologies in order to accuse each other of subscribing to them. Basically every single one comes with a big asterisk noting that it’s unclear whether anyone ever actually believed this, or whether some random theologian just made up a guy to get mad at – and the worst part is that you absolutely cannot tell just from looking at them, because the heresies we do have evidence of actual practice for are, if anything, even weirder. Like, the guys who thought Jesus was a hologram were 100% real, so you can’t rule anything out!
My favorite example of this are the Ranters who (allegedly) believed that because god was in all living things there was no such thing as sin or hierarchical order. Therefore, they should show the totality of God’s forgiveness by sinning as hard and as often as possible (at the orgy in the pub every night). Anarchy, sexual liberation and equality for women, abolish the church and state, peace and love on planet earth.
Real sect of Dissenters or strawmen for theological anxieties? Who knows. I sure hope they were real because they seem to be having a great time.