ERASTIAN

Erastian (i-ras-ch[schwa]n or i-ras-tee-[schwa]n). Hist. A follower of Thomas Erastus (1524–1583), who thought that offenses against religion and morality should be punished by the civil power and not by the censures of the church. • As a sect, Erastians had great influence in England, particularly among 17th-century common-law lawyers.