DONATISTS

DONATISTS, ancient schismatics in Africa, so denominated from their leader Donatus. This sect arose in A.D. 311, when, in the room of Mensurius, who died in that year on his return to Rome, Caccilian was elected bishop of Carthage, and consecrated by the African bishops alone, without the concurrence of those of Numidia. The people refused to acknowledge him, and set up in opposition Majorinus, who, accordingly, was ordained by Donatus, bishop of Casse Nigre. The Donatists were condemned in a council held at Rome two years after their separation; again, in another held at Arles the year following; and a third time at Milan in 316, before Constantine the Great, who deprived them of their churches, sent their seditionist bishops into banishment, and even punished some of them with death. Their cause was espoused by another Donatus, called the Great, the principal bishop of that sect, who, with great numbers of his followers, was exiled by order of Constantine. Many of them were punished with great severity. However, after the accession of Julian in 362, they were permitted to return, and restored to their former liberty. Gratian, however, in 377 deprived them of their churches, and prohibited all their assemblies. Yet notwithstanding the severities which they suffered, it appears that towards the close of this century they had a very considerable number of churches; but about the same time they began to decline, on account of a schism among themselves, occa-

sioned by the election of two bishops, in the room of Parmenian, the successor of Donatus. One party elected Primian, and were called Primianists, and another Maximian, and were called Maximianists. Their decline was also precipitated by the zealous opposition of St. Augustin, and by the violent measures which were pursued against them by the Emperor Honorius, at the solicitation of two councils held at Carthage, the one in 404, and the other in 411. Many of them were fined, the bishops were banished, and some were put to death. The sect revived and multiplied under the protection of the Vandals, who invaded Africa in 427, and took possession of this province; but it sunk again under new severities, when their empire was overturned in 534. Nevertheless they remained in a separate body till the close of this century, when Gregory, the Roman pontiff, succeeded in suppressing them, and there are few traces of the Donatists to be found after this period. They were distinguished by other appellations, as Circumcelliones, Montenses or Mountaineers, Campites, Rupitani, and so on. They held three councils, or conciliabules, one at Cyrt in Numidia, and two at Carthage.

The primary errors of the Donatists consisted in holding that baptism conferred out of the church, that is, out of their sect, was null (for which reason they re-baptized those who joined their party from other churches, and re-ordained their ministers), and that theirs was the only true, pure, and holy church, all the rest of the churches being regarded as prostitute and fallen. From the Donatist controversies, the doctrine passed into the Catholic Church, that there is no salvation beyond the pale of the church, and that therefore men might be compelled to enter in. (Luke xiv. 23).

Donatus seems likewise to have inclined to the doctrine of the Arians, with whom he was closely allied; and accordingly St. Epiphanius, Theodoret, and some others, accused the Donatists of Arianism; nor is it improbable that the charge was well founded, because they were patronized by the Vandals, who maintained that doctrine. But St. Augustin affirms that the Donatists, in this point, kept clear of the errors of their leader.