Tertullian, Prescription against Heretics 32
Still, if anyone dares to slot themselves into the apostolic age so they can claim the apostles handed them down—since they were 'under the apostles'—we can say: Let them produce the origins of their churches. Let them lay out the succession of their bishops, running unbroken from the start, so that their first bishop can show an apostle, or an apostolic man who stuck with the apostles, as his author and predecessor. That is how apostolic churches present their credentials: the church of Smyrna reports Polycarp was appointed by John; Rome produces Clement, ordained by Peter; likewise every other church exhibits bishops the apostles installed, as bearers of apostolic seed. Let the heretics fabricate a pedigree like that. What is forbidden them after blasphemy? But even if they forge one, they gain nothing. Their own doctrine, set beside the apostolic, will expose by its variety and contradiction that they have no apostolic author and are not apostolic; because just as the apostles never taught conflicting things among themselves, so apostolic men never proclaimed anything contrary to the apostles—unless those who learned from the apostles preached otherwise. Therefore, they will be tested against those churches which, though they cannot name an apostle or apostolic man as their founder because they are much later, indeed established daily, nevertheless conspire in the same faith and are reckoned no less apostolic by reason of doctrinal kinship. Thus all heresies, challenged by our churches to meet either standard, let them prove themselves apostolic as they imagine. But they are not, they cannot prove what they are not, and they are not received into peace and communion by churches that are in any way apostolic—precisely because of a sacramental difference that is in no way apostolic.
Latin
Caeterum, si quae audent interserere se aetati apostolicae, ut ideo videantur ab Apostolis traditae, quia sub Apostolis fuerunt, possumus dicere: Edant ergo origines Ecclesiarum suarum: evolvant ordinem episcoporum suorum, ita per successiones ab initio decurrentem, ut primus ille episcopus aliquem ex Apostolis, vel apostolicis viris, qui tamen cum Apostolis perseveraverit, habuerit auctorem et antecessorem. Hoc enim modo Ecclesiae apostolicae census suos deferunt: sicut Smyrnaeorum Ecclesia Polycarpum ab Joanne conlocatum refert: sicut Romanorum, Clementem a Petro ordinatum edit; proinde utique et caeterae exhibent quos ab Apostolis in episcopatum constitutos apostolici seminis traduces habeant. Confingant tale aliquid Haeretici. Quid enim illis post blasphemiam inlicitum est? Sed etsi confinxerint, nihil promovebunt. Ipsa enim doctrina eorum cum apostolica comparata, ex diversitate et contrarietate sua pronuntiabit, neque apostoli alicujus auctoris esse, neque apostolici; quia sicut Apostoli non diversa inter se docuissent, ita et apostolici non contraria Apostolis edidissent, nisi illi qui ab Apostolis didicerunt aliter praedicaverunt. Ad hanc itaque formam probabuntur ab illis ecclesiis, quae licet nullum ex Apostolis, vel apostolicis, auctorem suum proferant, ut multo posteriores, quae denique quotidie instituuntur; tamen in eadem fide conspirantes, non minus apostolicae deputantur, pro consanguinitate doctrinae. Ita omnes haereses ad utramque formam nostris Ecclesiis provocatae, probent se quaqua putant apostolicas. Sed adeo nec sunt, nec probare possunt quod non sunt, nec recipiuntur in pacem et communicationem ab Ecclesiis quoquo modo apostolicis, scilicet ob diversitatem sacramenti nullo modo apostolicae.