Donatist (donatist)

Donatist, Donatus, a man's name.] One of an early Christian sect in Africa which originated in a dispute over the election of Cæcilian to the see of Carthage, A. D. 311, occasioned by his opposition to the extreme reverence paid to relics of martyrs and to the sufferers for the Christian faith called confe ors, and the rivalry of Secund us, primate of Numidia. Secund us and the Numidian bishops declared Cæcilian's consecration invalid because conferred by Felix of Aptunga, whom they charged with being a traditor. They excommunicated Cæcilian and his party, and made one Major in us bishop in opposition. The name Donatist came either from Donatus of Caste Nigræ, who headed the party of Major in us at the Later an Council in 313, where it was condemned, or (more probably) from Donatus "the Great," who succeeded Major in us in 315 and under whom the schism became fixed. Repre ed under Constans, the Donatists revived under the favor of Julian the Apostate. Repre ive measures, provoked by their frequent acts of fanatical violence, were resorted to from time to time. These measures, internal schisms, the conciliatory conduct of the orthodox clergy at a conference held at Carthage in 411, and the arguments of St. Augustine caused many to abandon Donatism, and the sect became insignificant, though not entirely extinct till the seventh century. The Donatist party held that it constituted the whole and only true church, and that the baptisms and ordinations of the orthodox clergy were invalid, because they were in communion with traditors. They therefore rebaptized and reordained converts from Catholicism. See Circum cell i on, Maxim i an ist, Primi an ist, Rogatist. Donatistic, Donatistical (don-a-tis'tik,-ti-kal), [ a.