Recusant

(re-ku'zant.) [From L. recusans, an objecting to. ] (Eccl. Hist.) Originally, a term which came to be applied in England in the 16-17th cent., to denote a person who denied the king's supremacy as head of the Church. Later, the term became extended in its application so as to include all those who di ented from the doctrines or ceremonies of the established Anglican Church. [s. 758]