Quartodecimans

Leaders

• Polycarp of Smyrna (per tradition)
• Melito of Sardis
• Polycrates of Ephesus

Beliefs

Christ's Passover (Pascha) should be kept on 14 Nisan, the Jewish Passover date, whatever the day of the week, following what they held to be the practice of John and Philip. They had no distinct doctrine otherwise.

Home bases

• Ephesus (Polycrates and the Asian Easter tradition)

  Selçuk, Turkey · 2nd

  Around 190–195 Polycrates of Ephesus, writing for the bishops of Asia, defended keeping Pascha on the 14th of Nisan, whatever the weekday. He appealed to the tombs of Philip, John, Polycarp and Melito. His letter to Pope Victor survives in Eusebius.

• Sardis (Melito and the Peri Pascha)

  Sartmustafa, Turkey · 2nd

  Melito, bishop of Sardis (d. c. 180), was a Quartodeciman whose Easter homily Peri Pascha was rediscovered in papyri in the 20th century. Sardis also had one of the largest ancient synagogues, which bears on modern debates about Melito's anti-Jewish rhetoric.

  

Spread

The churches of Asia Minor, with later pockets in Phrygia (Novatianists of Pazus) and elsewhere.

Books

• Melito of Sardis, Peri Pascha (On the Passover)

What happened to it

Pope Victor tried to excommunicate the Asian churches around 190, and Irenaeus urged peace. Nicaea (325) fixed a Sunday Easter, and later canons treated remaining 'Fourteeners' as schismatics.

Hostile sources

• Eusebius of Caesarea. Church History V.23–25 c. 313–325

  Hostile toward heresies; quotes earlier documents verbatim. NPNF translation (public domain).

• Council of Nicaea / Constantine. Constantine's letter on Easter (in Eusebius, Life of Constantine III.18–20) 325

  Hostile.

Their own words

• Polycrates of Ephesus. Letter to Victor (in Eusebius V.24) c. 190

  Insider.

• Melito of Sardis. Peri Pascha c. 160–170

  Insider homily, surviving.

Sources

• Easter ControversyConfessional source

  Catholic Encyclopedia 1913 (confessional). Accessed 2026-11-11.

• Quartodecimanism

  Wikipedia. Accessed 2026-11-11.