The Arabici (meaning "Arabians") were a small
Christian sect of the 3rd century. The name of their founder is lost to history.
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
labelled them "Arabici" in the belief that this sect flourished in
Arabia.
Other sources referred to them occasionally as Thnetopcychitae ( grc, θνητοψυχῖται) or Thanatopsychitae (meaning "(believers in) the death of the soul").
The Arabici believed the soul was to perish with the body, though both soul and body would be revived again on
Judgement Day.
The Arabici theorized this from their study of
I Tim., vi, 16, "Who only hath immortality." This passage, they held, ascribes immortality to
God alone, and therefore prevents its possession by man. The Arabici's estrangement from the main body of Christianity only lasted approximately 40 years. At a council in 250 AD, the Arabici were reconciled to mainline Christianity, through the persuasive mediation of
Origen.
See also
*
Soul sleep
References
Christian denominations established in the 3rd century
Nature of Jesus Christ
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