und, however, that they could make nothing of it. But when he
died, and when Caecilian, who had been his archdeacon and his righthand
man, was chosen bishop in his stead, these people made a great outcry,
and set up another bishop of their own against him. All sorts of people
who had taken offence at Caecilian or Mensurius thought this a fine
opportunity for having their revenge; and thus a strong party was
formed. It was greatly helped by the wealth of a lady named Lucilla,
whom Caecilian had reproved for the superstitious habit of kissing a
bone, which she supposed to have belonged to some martyr, before
communicating at the Lord's table. The first bishop of the party was one
Majorinus, who had been a servant of some sort to Lucilla; and, when
Majorinus was dead, they set up a second bishop, named Donatus, after
whom they were called Donatists. This Donatus was a clever and a learned
man, and lived very strictly; but he was exceedingly proud and
ill-tempered, and used very violent language against all who differed
from him; and his sect copied his pride and bitterness. Many of them,
however, while they professed to be extremely strict, neglected the
plainer and humbler duties of Christian life.

The Donatists said that every member of their sect must be a saint:
whereas our Lord himself had declared that evil members would always be
mixed with the good in His Church on earth, like tares growing in a
field of wheat, or bad fishes mixed with good ones in a net; and that
the separation of the good from the bad would not take place until the
end of the world (_St. Matt._ xiii. 24-30, 36-43, 47-50). And they said
that their own sect was the only true Church of Christ, although they
had no congregations out of Africa, except one which was set up to
please a rich lady in Spain, and another at Rome. Whenever they made a
convert from the Church, they baptized him afresh, as if his former
baptism were good for nothing. They pretended to work miracles, and to
see visions; and they made a very great deal of Donatus himself, so as
even to pay him honours which ought not to have been given to any child
of man; for they sang hymns to him, and swore by his gray hairs.

Shortly after Constantine got possession of Africa by his victory over
Maxentius, and declared liberty of religion to the Christians (A.D.
312-313),[35] the Donatists applied to him against the Catholics;[36]
and it was curious that they should have been the first to c