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NovATus. A. D. 251. 91
suppose, his sect, forbade second marriages absolutely, and
in all cases. Theodorct says this'* was an additional doctrine
of the Novatians. Socrates' asserts, that the Novatians were
not all of one mind upon this head : the Novatians in Phrygia,
he says, condennied second marriages ; they of Constantinople
had no positive rule concerning this matter ; but the
Novatians in the West received big-amists to communion
without scruple. This is likely to be the truth : some had
this rigid sentiment, but not all; for it being- not a doctrine
of Novatus himself, but added afterwards, as Theodoret assures
us, all the sect v/as not agreed in this point. However,
here we see another sin, beside apostasy, that excluded
men from communion ; for the Novatians, that condemned
second marriages, esteemed such as married a second time
after baptism to be unworthy of that privilege.
And perhaps it may be allowed not to be an improbable
conjecture, that this principle was borrowed from the Montanists,
and therefore prevailed most among the Novatians of
Phrygia ; though, possibly, some few in other places also
approved of the same rigid doctrine. Paciau expressly says,
that'' the Novatians made great vise of Tertullian ; meaning-,
J suppose, those works of his which were written after he
had imbibed the Cataphrygian doctrine. Pacian says like-
M'ise, that' Avhen S^mpronian first wrote to him, he did not
well know what to think of him ; whether he ought to take
him for a follower of Montanus, or of Novatus.
It is scarce needful to observe, that they baptized afresh all
who came over to them from other sects ; because it seems to
be a necessary consequence of their refusing communion with
other christians, as not sufficiently pure. This was the doctrine
of Novatus himself, as Cyprian allows plainly. He
says that herein Novatus aped the catholic church.
I shall add here but one thing more. Eulogius" says that
the Novatians of Alexandria did not pay due reverence to the
^ O'l is Turn ?uiSoy(Oi Kai trepa n^) Soyfiari irpo^tQiiKCKyC tsq yap Sivrepoic
yufioiQ wfiiKr]i:oTag rmv Upuv e^eXawHO'i fjVTrjpiov. Haer. Fub. 1. iii. e. v. p.
229. D. ' Socr. 1. v. cap. 22. p. 288. B. C. ^ Terhillianiis
post haeresim suam : (nam raulta inde sumpsistis.) Pacian. Ep. 3. p. 314. £.
' Cum prinium scripseras, Cataphrygem putabam. Id. ib. p. 308. A.
" Nee nos movet, irater carissime, quod in literis tuis complexns es, Novatienses
rebaptizare eos, quos a nobis solicitant.—Nam Novatianus, simiarum
more, quae, cum homines non sint, homines tamen imitantur, vult ecclesiae
cathoUcfe auctoritatem sibi et veritatem vindicare, quando ipse in ecclesia non
sit.—Sciens etenini unujn esse baptisma, hoc unum sibi vindicat, ut apud se
esse ecclesiam dicat, et nos haereticos faciat. Cyprian, ad Jubaian. Ep. 73. p. 1 98.
" — 0»;ffi KM TUQ iv AXiKav^pi^f "SavaTiavag Kara to)v naprvpti)v ts XptT«
•civoXoyavrac- Eulog. ap. Phot. Cod. 280. p. 1617. fin.