Glimpses #162: Cyprian: Early Church Martyr, Theological Combatant
Format: 4-page bulletin insert
Our Price: $2.00 per pack (each pack contains 25 copies). Back issues are available only in packs of 25 copies.
Product Description: Those who had stood firm under suffering called themselves "the confessors." They gained great prestige from this. Others had renounced their faith. These were called the "lapsed." The confessors opposed Cyprian over readmitting the lapsed to the church, saying that a claim of repentance should be the sole condition of restoration. Cyprian insisted on stricter terms. Eventually a council of bishops decided that the lapsed would be readmitted if they repented. Those who had obtained certificates saying they had sacrificed (without actually doing so) would also be accepted if certain conditions were met. All would have to appear in church in sackcloth and ashes. Lapsed clergy would be readmitted only on the point of death. The "confessors" broke away to form their own church. Cyprian's enemies elected a rival bishop, Cecilianus by name.
