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accomplished.

The passage was variously interpreted in early times. TERTULLIAN, representing the sterner (Montanist) view, held that it declared that all who had fallen away from the faith, either by temporary apostasy or by gross sin, were cut off from it for their whole life, without possibility of readmission on repentance: de Pudic. xx. Hoc qui ab apostolis didicit et cum apostolis docuit, nunquam moecho et fornicatori secundam poenitentiam promissam ab apostolis norat.

In the earliest stage of the Novatianist controversy the words do not seem to have been quoted. Novatian himself does not refer to the epistle.

In the fourth century and onwards however it was pressed by those who held his views (comp. Theodoret ad loc. ; Athanas. Ep. ad Serap. iv. § 13; Hieron. adv. Jovin. 2.3; Ambros. de Poen. 2.2 §§ 6 ff.).

But this opinion and this use of these words found no favour in the Catholic Church. On the contrary the Catholic writers limited the meaning of the passage to the denial of a second baptism. So among the Greek Fathers.

ATHANASIUS ( l. c. ) mivan ei\nai th;n ajnakaivnisin dia; tou' baptivsmato" kai; mh; deutevran ajpofaivnetai .

EPIPHANIUS ( Haer. 59.2, p. 494) tw'/ me;n o[nti tou;" a{pax ajnakainisqevnta" kai; parapesovnta" ajnakainivzein ajduvnaton . ou[te ga;r e[ti gennhqhvsetai Cristo;" i{na staurwqh'/ uJpe;r hJmw'n : ou[te ajnastaurou'n duvnataiv ti" to;n uiJo;n tou' qeou' to;n mhkevti staurouvmenon : ou[te duvnataiv ti" loutro;n deuvteron lambavnein : e}n gavr ejsti to; bavptisma kai; ei|" oJ ejgkainismov" .

CHRYSOSTOM ( ad loc. ) tiv ou\n ; ejkbevblhtai hJ metavnoia ; oujc hJ metavnoia : mh; gevnoito : ajllj oJ dia; loutrou' pavlin ajnakainismov" . ouj ga;r ei\pen ajduvnaton ajnakainisqh'nai eij" metavnoian kai; ejsivghsen, ajllj eijpw;n
ajduvnaton ejphvgagen ajnastaurou'nta" ’... o} de; levgei tou'tov ejsti: to; bavptisma staurov" ejsti : sunestaurwvqh ga;r oJ palaio;" hJmw'n a[nqrwpo" ....

THEODORET: tw'n a[gan ajdunavtwn, fhsivn, tou;" tw'/ panagivw/ proselhluqovta" baptivsmati ... au\qi" proselqei'n kai; tucei'n eJtevrou baptivsmato" : tou'to ga;r oujdevn ejstin e{teron h] pavlin to;n uiJo;n tou' qeou' tw'/ staurw'/ proshlw'sai .

OECUMENIUS: tiv ou\n… ejxevbale th;n metavnoian… mh; gevnoito ... ajlla; th;n dia; baptiv" mato" metavnoian ... o{qen kai; ei\pen ajnakainivzein o{per i[dion baptivsmato" .

EUTHYMIUS ZIG. tiv ou\n ; ejkbevblhtai hJ metavnoia ; mh; gevnoito : eijpw;n ga;r eij" metavnoian oujk e[sth mevcri touvtou ajllj ejphvgagen ajnastaurou'nta" eJautoi'" to;n uiJo;n tou' qeou',&rsquo… dia; metanoiva", fhsivn, ajnastaurouvsh" to;n Cristovn ... to; [ ga;r ] bavptisma staurov" ejstin ... w{sper ou\n a{pax ajllj ouj deuvteron ejstaurwvqh oJ Cristo;" ou{tw" a{pax ajllj ouj deuvteron crh; baptivzesqai .

And among the Latin fathers: AMBROSE ( de Poenit. 2.3): De baptismate autem dictum verba ipsa declarant quibus significavit impossibile esse lapsos renovari in poenitentiam, per lavacrum enim renovamur...eo spectat ut de baptismo dictum credamus in quo crucifigimus filium Dei in nobis....

Possum quidem etiam illud dicere ei qui hoc de poenitentia dictum putat, quia quae impossibilia sunt apud homines possibilia sunt apud Deum....


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