Donatists

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A historical sect of Christians in North Africa who believed in the necessity of moral purity among church leaders for valid sacraments
2. Members of a group from the 4th century that rejected bishops perceived as corrupt and insisted on the validity of their own clergy
3. A disobedient faction that maintained that the church's sanctity depended on the moral character of its ministers, leading to schismatic doctrines in early Christianity

Etymology: The Donatists were named after Donatus, one of their leaders, in North Africa in the early 4th century. Their origin lay in the Great Persecution under the Roman emperor Diocletian, when many Christian clergy handed over scriptures and sacred objects to Roman authorities. Some bishops were seen as having betrayed the faith, and when a rival bishop was consecrated at Carthage around 311, the dispute hardened into a schism. The word passed into English through Medieval Latin "Dōnātista", a term that gave the movement a leader's name rather than a description of its beliefs. Its members opposed the idea that the sacraments were valid only if administered by a worthy minister, and they insisted on rebaptising converts who came from churches they regarded as tainted.