A Presbyter of Rome and highly respected theologian. He argued that the church had no power to grant forgiveness to those guilty of murder, adultery, and apostasy. It could only intercede for God’s mercy at the Last Judgment. Eventually, the people supported his opponent for the Roman Bishopric. The minority that followed Novatian, Novatianists, formed a network of small congregations and considered the Catholic churches polluted as a result of their lenient attitude toward sinners.
[tags]BlogRodent, church-history, ChurchRodent, history, Novatian[/tags]