The Collaborative International Dictionary
Novatian \No*va"tian\, n. (Eccl. Hist.) One of the sect of Novatius, or Novatianus, who held that the lapsed might not be received again into communion with the church, and that second marriages are unlawful.
Wikipedia
Novatian (c. 200–258) was a scholar, priest, theologian and antipope between 251 and 258. Some Greek authors, give his name as Novatianus.
He was a noted theologian and writer, the first Roman theologian who used the Latin language, at a time when there was much debate about how to deal with Christians who had lapsed and wished to return, and the issue of penance. Consecrated as pope by three bishops in 251, he adopted a more rigorous position than the established Pope Cornelius. Novatian was shortly afterwards excommunicated: the schismatic church which he established persisted for several centuries (see Novatianism). Novatian fled during a period of persecutions, and may have been a martyr.
Usage examples of "novatian".
Constantine afterwards chose for his support, and the Novatian Catharist one.
Donatists, the Novatians, the Macedonians, the Eunomians, and those who, with a more prosperous fortune, adhered to the doctrine of the Council of Nice.
Novatians, went so far as to say that he who sins after the first Penance which is done in Baptism, cannot be restored again through Penance.