Defending the Value of the Ransom

A strong Jewish presence was felt in the important cities of Asia Minor. The Jews of Sardis, where Melito lived, observed the Hebrew Passover on Nisan 14. Melito wrote a homily entitled The Passover that showed the legitimacy of the Passover under the Law and defended the Christian observance of the Lord’s Evening Meal on Nisan 14.

Yet, historian Raniero Cantalamessa states: “The decline of Melito, which progressively led to the disappearance of his writings, began when​—after the triumph of the custom of the Sunday Passover—​the Quartodecimans started to be considered heretics.”