Concerning those who have yielded merely upon threat of penalties and of the confiscation of their goods, or of banishment, and have sacrificed, and who till this present time have not repented nor been converted, but who now, at the time of this synod, have approached with a purpose of conversion, it is decreed that they be received as hearers till the Great Day,1 and that after the Great Day they be prostrators for three years, and for two years more communicate without oblation, and then come to full communion, so as to complete the period of six full years. And if any have been admitted to penance before this synod, let the beginning of the six years be reckoned to them from that time. Nevertheless, if there should be any danger or prospect of death whether from disease or any other cause, let them be received, but under limitation.
There were some in the church who fell away and sacrificed to idols because of the threat of torture, and this they continued to do but now have repented of these acts. These are to be allowed to hear the meeting until Easter, then go through a six-year progression to be brought back fully into communion with penance served prior to Easter to be allowed toward the entire time. If because of possible imminent death for the person, he or she may be allowed in with limitations.
At this point one questions whether or not those who fell so easily were true believers. That is a legitimate concern and may be a chief reason for lengthy time period for full reinstatement.
1 EasterDay – Wm. A. Hammond states, "The great reverence which the Primitive Church from the earliest ages felt for the holy festival of Easter is manifested by the application of the epithet Great, to everything connected with it." (NPNF2 14:66).
There were some in the church who fell away and sacrificed to idols because of the threat of torture, and this they continued to do but now have repented of these acts. These are to be allowed to hear the meeting until Easter, then go through a six-year progression to be brought back fully into communion with penance served prior to Easter to be allowed toward the entire time. If because of possible imminent death for the person, he or she may be allowed in with limitations.
At this point one questions whether or not those who fell so easily were true believers. That is a legitimate concern and may be a chief reason for lengthy time period for full reinstatement.
1 EasterDay – Wm. A. Hammond states, "The great reverence which the Primitive Church from the earliest ages felt for the holy festival of Easter is manifested by the application of the epithet Great, to everything connected with it." (NPNF2 14:66).
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