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Church Fathers

The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical period in which they worked became known as the Patristic Era and spans approximately from the late 1st to mid-8th centuries,[a] flourishing in particular during the 4th and 5th centuries, when Christianity was in the process of establishing itself as the state church of the Roman Empire.

The Church Fathers, an 11th-century Kievan Rus' miniature from Svyatoslav's Miscellany

In traditional dogmatic theology, authors considered Church Fathers are treated as authoritative, and a somewhat restrictive definition is used. The academic field of patristics, the study of the Church Fathers, has extended the scope of the term, and there is no definitive list.[1][2][better source needed] Some, such as Origen and Tertullian, made major contributions to the development of later Christian theology, but certain elements of their teaching were later condemned.

Great Fathers

In the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church traditions, there are four Fathers each who are called the "Great Church Fathers".[dubious ][by whom?][3] In the Catholic Church, they are collectively called the "Eight Doctors of the Church".[3]

Western Church
Eastern Church

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, three of them (Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus and John Chrysostom) are honored as the "Three Holy Hierarchs".

Apostolic Fathers

The Apostolic Fathers were Christian theologians who lived in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, who are believed to have personally known some of the Twelve Apostles, or to have been significantly influenced by them.[4] Their writings, though popular in Early Christianity, were ultimately not included in the canon of the New Testament once it reached its final form. Many of the writings derive from the same time period and geographical location as other works of early Christian literature that did come to be part of the New Testament, and some of the writings found among the Apostolic Fathers' seem to have been just as highly regarded as some of the writings that became the New Testament. The first three, Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp, are considered the chief ones.

Clement of Rome

The First Epistle of Clement (c. 96),[5] is the earliest extant epistle from a Church Father.[6] In the epistle, Clement calls on the Christians of Corinth to maintain harmony and order.[5]

Copied and widely read in the Early Church,[7] First Clement had been considered by some as part of the New Testament canon, e.g., listed as canonical in Canon 85 of the Canons of the Apostles,[8] among other early canons of the New Testament, showing that it had canonical rank in at least some regions of early Christendom. As late as the 14th century Ibn Khaldun mentions it as part of the New Testament.[9]

Ignatius of Antioch

Ignatius of Antioch (also known as Theophorus) (c. 35 – c. 110)[10] was the third bishop of Antioch and a student of the Apostle John. En route to his martyrdom in Rome, Ignatius wrote a series of letters which have been preserved. Important topics addressed in these letters include ecclesiology, the sacraments, the role of bishops, and the Incarnation of Christ. Specifically, concerning ecclesiology, his letter to the Romans is often cited as a testament to the universal bounds of the Roman church.[11] He is the second after Clement to mention Paul's epistles.[5]

Polycarp of Smyrna

Polycarp of Smyrna (c. 69 – c. 155) was a Christian bishop of Smyrna (now İzmir in Turkey). It is recorded that he had been a disciple of "John". The options/possibilities for this John are John, the son of Zebedee, traditionally viewed as the author of the Gospel of John, or John the Presbyter.[12] Traditional advocates follow Eusebius of Caesarea in insisting that the apostolic connection of Polycarp was with John the Evangelist and that he was the author of the Gospel of John, and thus the Apostle John.

Polycarp tried and failed to persuade Pope Anicetus to have the West celebrate Passover on the 14th of Nisan, as in the Eastern calendar. Around A.D. 155, the Smyrnans of his town demanded Polycarp's execution as a Christian, and he died a martyr. The story of his martyrdom describes how the fire built around him would not burn him, and that when he was stabbed to death, so much blood issued from his body that it quenched the flames around him.[5] Polycarp is recognized as a saint in both the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.

Papias of Hierapolis

Very little is known of Papias apart from what can be inferred from his own writings. He is described as "an ancient man who was a hearer of John and a companion of Polycarp" by Polycarp's disciple Irenaeus (c. 180). Eusebius adds that Papias was Bishop of Hierapolis around the time of Ignatius of Antioch. In this office, Papias was presumably succeeded by Abercius of Hierapolis. The name Papias was very common in the region, suggesting that he was probably a native of the area. The work of Papias is dated by most modern scholars to about A.D. 95–120.

Despite indications that the work of Papias was still extant in the Late Middle Ages, the full text is now lost; however, extracts appear in a number of other writings, some of which cite a book number.

Greek Fathers

Those who wrote in Greek are called the Greek (Church) Fathers. In addition to the Apostolic Fathers, famous Greek Fathers include: Justin Martyr, Irenaeus of Lyons, Clement of Alexandria, Athanasius of Alexandria, John Chrysostom, Cyril of Alexandria, the Cappadocian Fathers (Basil of Caesarea, Gregory Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa), Peter of Sebaste, Maximus the Confessor, and John of Damascus.

Justin Martyr

Justin Martyr was an early Christian apologist, and is regarded as the foremost interpreter of the theory of the Logos in the 2nd century.[13][14] He was martyred, alongside some of his students, and is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic Church,[15] the Anglican Church,[16] the Eastern Orthodox Church,[17] and the Oriental Orthodox Churches.

Irenaeus of Lyons

Irenaeus was bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, which is now Lyon(s), France. His writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology, and he is recognized as a saint by both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. He was a notable early Christian apologist. He was also a disciple of Polycarp.

In his best-known book, Against Heresies (c.180) he enumerated heresies and attacked them. Irenaeus wrote that the only way for Christians to retain unity was to humbly accept one doctrinal authority—episcopal councils.[5] Irenaeus proposed that the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all be accepted as canonical.

Clement of Alexandria

Clement of Alexandria (c. 150–215) was the first member of the church of Alexandria whose writings have survived, and was one of its most distinguished teachers. He saw wisdom in Greek philosophy and sought to harmonize it with Christian doctrine. Clement opposed Gnosticism, and yet used some of its terminology; for instance, he valued gnosis that with communion for all people could be held by common Christians. He developed a Christian Platonism[5] and has been described by scholars as "the founder of what was to become the great tradition of Christian philosophical theology."[18] Due to his teaching on salvation and divine judgement in passages such as Paedagogus 1.8 and Stromata 7.2, Clement is often regarded as one of the first Christian universalists.[19] Like Origen, he arose from the Catechetical School of Alexandria and was well-versed in pagan and biblical literature.[5]

Origen of Alexandria

Origen, or Origen Adamantius (c. 185 – c. 254) was a scholar and theologian. According to tradition, he was an Egyptian[20] who taught in Alexandria, reviving the Catechetical School where Clement had taught. The patriarch of Alexandria at first supported Origen but later expelled him for being ordained without the patriarch's permission. He relocated to Caesarea Maritima and died there[21] after being tortured during a persecution. He later became a controversial figure and some of his writings were condemned as heretical. Using his knowledge of Hebrew, he produced a corrected Septuagint.[5] He wrote commentaries on all the books of the Bible.[5] In Peri Archon (First Principles), he articulated a systematic philosophical exposition of Christian doctrine.[5] He at times employed an allegorical hermeneutic in his interpretation of the Old Testament, and was partly influenced by Stoic, Neo-Pythagorean, and Platonist thought.[5] Like Plotinus, he has been thought to believe that the soul passes through successive stages before incarnation as a human and after death, eventually reaching God.[5] However, more recent scholarship has concluded that Origen actually denied the preexistence of disembodied souls, and simply taught the preexistence of individuals' logoi in the mind of God.[22] Yet Origen did suggest, based on 1 Corinthians 15:22-28, that all creatures, possibly including even the fallen angels, will eventually be restored and reunited to God when evil is finally eradicated. For Origen, God was the First Principle, and Christ, the Logos[5] through whom salvation is accomplished. Origen's various writings were interpreted by some to imply a hierarchical structure in the Trinity, the temporality of matter, "the fabulous preexistence of souls", and "the monstrous restoration which follows from it." These alleged "Origenist errors" were declared anathema by a council in 553, three centuries after Origen had died in the peace of the church.[23][24]

Athanasius of Alexandria

 
St. Athanasius, depicted with a gospel book, an iconographic symbol used mostly for priests and bishops as preachers of the gospel.

Athanasius of Alexandria (c. 293 – 373) was a theologian, Pope of Alexandria, and a noted Egyptian leader of the 4th century. He is remembered for his role in the conflict with Arianism and for his affirmation of the Trinity. At the First Council of Nicaea (325), Athanasius argued against the Arian doctrine that Christ is of a distinct substance from the Father.[5]

Cappadocian Fathers

The Cappadocian Fathers are Basil the Great (330–379), who was bishop of Caesarea; Basil's younger brother Gregory of Nyssa (c. 332 – 395), who was bishop of Nyssa; and a close friend, Gregory of Nazianzus (329–389), who became Patriarch of Constantinople.[25] The Cappadocians promoted early Christian theology and are highly respected in both Western and Eastern churches as saints. They were a 4th-century monastic family, led by Macrina the Younger (324–379) to provide a central place for her brothers to study and meditate, and also to provide a peaceful shelter for their mother. Abbess Macrina fostered the education and development of her three brothers Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa and Peter of Sebaste (c. 340 – 391) who became bishop of Sebaste.

These scholars set out to demonstrate that Christians could hold their own in conversations with learned Greek-speaking intellectuals. They argued that Christian faith, while it was against many of the ideas of Plato and Aristotle (and other Greek philosophers), was an almost scientific and distinctive movement with the healing of the soul of man and his union with God at its center. They made major contributions to the definition of the Trinity finalized at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the final version of the Nicene Creed.

Subsequent to the First Council of Nicea, Arianism did not simply disappear. The semi-Arians taught that the Son is of like substance with the Father (homoiousios), as against the outright Arians who taught that the Son was unlike the Father (heterousian). So the Son was held to be like the Father but not of the same essence as the Father. The Cappadocians worked to bring these semi-Arians back to the Orthodox cause. In their writings they made extensive use of the formula "three substances (hypostases) in one essence (homoousia)", and thus explicitly acknowledged a distinction between the Father and the Son (a distinction that Nicea had been accused of blurring) but at the same time insisting on their essential unity.

John Chrysostom

John Chrysostom (c. 347 – c. 407), archbishop of Constantinople, is known for his eloquence in preaching and public speaking; his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders, recorded sermons and writings making him the most prolific of the eastern fathers, and his ascetic sensibilities. After his death (or according to some sources, during his life) he was given the Greek epithet chrysostomos, meaning "golden mouthed", rendered in English as Chrysostom.[26][27]

Chrysostom is known within Christianity chiefly as a preacher and theologian, particularly in the Eastern Orthodox Church; he is the patron saint of orators in the Roman Catholic Church. Chrysostom is also noted for eight of his sermons that played a considerable part in the history of Christian antisemitism, diatribes against Judaizers composed while a presbyter in Antioch, which were extensively exploited and misused by the Nazis in their ideological campaign against the Jews.[28][29] Patristic scholars such as Robert L Wilken point out that applying modern understandings of antisemitism back to Chrysostom is anachronistic due to his use of the Psogos. The Psogos, along with the encomium, were both rhetorical techniques used in the ancient world in a polemical context. With the encomium "one passes over a man's faults in order to praise him, and in a psogos, one passed over his virtues to defame him. Such principles are explicit in the handbooks of the rhetors, but an interesting passage from the church historian Socrates, writing in the mid-fifth century, shows that the rules for invective were simply taken for granted by men and women of the late Roman world."[30]

Chrysostom's sermons along with Basil the Great's have greatly influenced the Christian Church's understanding of economic and distributive justice for the poor, being cited extensively by the Catechism of the Catholic Church[31] as well as Pope Francis in his own sermons critiquing modern-day forms of capitalism.[32][33]

Cyril of Alexandria

Cyril of Alexandria (c. 378 – 444) was the Bishop of Alexandria when the city was at its height of influence and power within the Roman Empire. Cyril wrote extensively and was a leading protagonist in the Christological controversies of the late 4th and early 5th centuries. He was a central figure in the First Council of Ephesus in 431, which led to the deposition of Nestorius as Archbishop of Constantinople. Cyril's reputation within the Christian world has resulted in his titles "Pillar of Faith" and "Seal of all the Fathers".

Maximus the Confessor

Maximus the Confessor (also known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople) (c. 580 – 662) was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar. In his early life, he was a civil servant and an aide to the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius; however, he gave up this life in the political sphere to enter into the monastic life.

After moving to Carthage, Maximus studied several Neo-Platonist writers and became a prominent author. When one of his friends began espousing the Christological position known as Monothelitism, Maximus was drawn into the controversy, in which he supported the Chalcedonian position that Jesus had both a human and a divine will. Maximus is venerated in both Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity. His Christological positions eventually resulted in his torture and exile, soon after which he died; however, his theology was vindicated by the Third Council of Constantinople, and he was venerated as a saint soon after his death. His feast day is celebrated twice during the year: on 21 January and on 13 August. His title of Confessor means that he suffered for the faith, but not to the point of death, and thus is distinguished from a martyr. His Life of the Virgin is thought to be the earliest complete biography of Mary, the mother of Jesus.

John of Damascus

John of Damascus (c. 676 – 749) was a Syrian Christian monk, priest, hymnographer and apologist. Born and raised in Damascus, he died at his monastery, Mar Saba, near Jerusalem.

A polymath whose fields of interest and contribution included law, theology, philosophy, and music, he was given the by-name of Chrysorrhoas (Χρυσορρόας, literally "streaming with gold", i.e. "the golden speaker"). He wrote numerous works expounding the Christian faith, and composed hymns which are still used both liturgically in Eastern Christian practice throughout the world as well as in western Lutheranism at Easter.[34] He was particularly known for his defense of icons.[35]

The Catholic Church regards him as a Doctor of the Church, often referred to as the Doctor of the Assumption because of his writings on the Assumption of Mary.

Latin Fathers

Those fathers who wrote in Latin are called the Latin (Church) Fathers.

Tertullian

Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus (c. 155 – c. 222), who was converted to Christianity before 197, was a prolific writer of apologetic, theological, controversial and ascetic works.[36] He was born in Carthage, the son of a Roman centurion.

Tertullian denounced Christian doctrines he considered heretical, such as allowing widows to remarry and permitting Christians to flee from persecution, but later in life adopted Montanism, regarded as heretical by the mainstream Church, which prevented his canonization. He wrote three books in Greek and was the first great writer of Latin Christianity, thus sometimes known as the "Father of the Latin Church".[37] He was evidently a lawyer in Rome.[38] He is said to have introduced the Latin term trinitas with regard to the Divine (Trinity) to the Christian vocabulary[39] (but Theophilus of Antioch already wrote of "the Trinity, of God, and His Word, and His wisdom", which is similar but not identical to the Trinitarian wording),[40] and also probably the formula "three Persons, one Substance" as the Latin "tres Personae, una Substantia" (itself from the Koine Greek "τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις, ὁμοούσιος; treis Hypostases, Homoousios"), and also the terms vetus testamentum (Old Testament) and novum testamentum (New Testament).

In his Apologeticus, he was the first Latin author who qualified Christianity as the vera religio, and systematically relegated the classical Roman imperial religion and other accepted cults to the position of mere "superstitions".

Later in life, Tertullian joined the Montanists, a heretical sect that appealed to his rigorism.[36] He used the early church's symbol for fish—the Greek word for "fish" being ΙΧΘΥΣ which is an acronym for Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ Υἱός, Σωτήρ (Jesus Christ, God's Son, Saviour)—to explain the meaning of baptism since fish are born in water. He wrote that human beings are like little fish.

Cyprian of Carthage

Cyprian (c. 200 – 258) was bishop of Carthage and an important early Christian writer. He was born in North Africa, probably at the beginning of the 3rd century, perhaps at Carthage, where he received an excellent classical (pagan) education. After converting to Christianity, he became a bishop and eventually died a martyr at Carthage. He emphasized the necessity of the unity of Christians with their bishops, and also the authority of the Roman See, which he claimed was the source of "priestly unity"'.

Hilary of Poitiers

Hilary of Poitiers (c. 300 – c. 368) was Bishop of Poitiers and is a Doctor of the Church. He was sometimes referred to as the "Hammer of the Arians" (Latin: Malleus Arianorum) and the "Athanasius of the West." His name comes from the Graeco-Latin word for happy or cheerful. His optional memorial in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints is 13 January. In the past, when this date was occupied by the Octave Day of the Epiphany, his feast day was moved to 14 January.

Ambrose of Milan

Ambrose[b] was an archbishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century. He was a governor before becoming bishop. He is counted as one of the four original doctors of the Church. He offered a new perspective on the theory of atonement.[which?]

Pope Damasus I

Pope Damasus I (305–384) was active in defending the Catholic Church against the threat of schisms. In two Roman synods (368 and 369) he condemned the heresies of Apollinarianism and Macedonianism, and sent legates (papal representatives) to the First Council of Constantinople that was convoked in 381 to address these heresies. He also wrote in defense of the Roman See's authority, and inaugurated use of Latin in the Mass, instead of the Koine Greek that was still being used throughout the Church in the west in the liturgy.

Jerome of Stridonium

 
Print of Jerome in his study. Preserved in the Ghent University Library.[41]

Jerome (c. 347 – 420) is best known as the translator of the Bible from Greek and Hebrew into Latin. He also was a Christian apologist. Jerome's edition of the Bible, the Vulgate, is still an important text of Catholicism. He is recognised by the Roman Catholic Church as a Doctor of the Church.

Augustine of Hippo

Augustine (354–430), Bishop of Hippo, was a philosopher and theologian. Augustine, a Latin Father and Doctor of the Church, is one of the most important figures in the development of Western Christianity. In his early life, Augustine read widely in Greco-Roman rhetoric and philosophy, including the works of Platonists such as Plotinus.[42] He framed the concepts of original sin and just war as they are understood in the West. When Rome fell and the faith of many Christians was shaken, Augustine wrote The City of God, in which he defended Christianity from pagan critics and developed the concept of the Church as a spiritual City of God, distinct from the material City of Man.[5] Augustine's work defined the start of the medieval worldview, an outlook that would later be firmly established by Pope Gregory the Great.[5]

Augustine was born in present-day Algeria to a Christian mother, Monica of Hippo. He was educated in North Africa and resisted his mother's pleas to become Christian. He took a concubine and became a Manichean. He later converted to Christianity, became a bishop, and opposed heresies, such as Pelagianism. His many works—including The Confessions, which is often called the first Western autobiography—have been read continuously since his lifetime. The Roman Catholic religious order, the Order of Saint Augustine, adopted his name and way of life. Augustine is also the patron saint of many institutions and a number have been named after him.

Pope Gregory the Great

Gregory I the Great (c. 540 – 604) was pope from 3 September 590 until his death. He is also known as Gregorius Dialogus (Gregory the Dialogist) in Eastern Orthodoxy because of the Dialogues he wrote. He was the first of the popes from a monastic background. Gregory is a Doctor of the Church and one of the four great Latin Fathers of the Church (the others being Ambrose, Augustine, and Jerome). Of all popes, Gregory I had the most influence on the early medieval church.[43]

Isidore of Seville

Isidore of Seville (c. 560 – 636) was Archbishop of Seville for more than three decades and is considered, as the historian Montalembert put it in an oft-quoted phrase, "le dernier savant du monde ancien" ("the last scholar of the ancient world"). Indeed, all the later medieval history-writing of Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal) was based on his histories.

At a time of disintegration of classical culture and aristocratic violence and illiteracy, he was involved in the conversion of the royal Visigothic Arians to Catholicism, both assisting his brother Leander of Seville and continuing after his brother's death. He was influential in the inner circle of Sisebut, Visigothic king of Hispania. Like Leander, he played a prominent role in the Councils of Toledo and Seville. The Visigothic legislation which resulted from these councils is regarded by modern historians as exercising an important influence on the beginnings of representative government.

Syriac Fathers

A few Church Fathers wrote in Syriac; many of their works were also widely translated into Latin and Greek.

Aphrahat

Aphrahat (c. 270–c. 345) was a Syriac-Christian author of the 3rd century from the Adiabene region of Northern Mesopotamia, which was within the Persian Empire, who composed a series of twenty-three expositions or homilies on points of Christian doctrine and practice. He was born in Persia around 270, but all his known works, the Demonstrations, come from later on in his life. He was an ascetic and celibate, and was almost definitely a son of the covenant (an early Syriac form of communal monasticism). He may have been a bishop, and later Syriac tradition places him at the head of Mar Matti monastery near Mosul, in what is now northern Iraq. He was a near contemporary to the slightly younger Ephrem the Syrian, but the latter lived within the sphere of the Roman Empire. Called the Persian Sage (Syriac: ܚܟܝܡܐ ܦܪܣܝܐ, ḥakkîmâ p̄ārsāyā), Aphrahat witnesses to the concerns of the early church beyond the eastern boundaries of the Roman Empire.

Ephrem the Syrian

Ephrem the Syrian (ca. 306 – 373) was a Syriac deacon and a prolific Syriac-language hymnographer and theologian of the 4th century from the region of Syria.[44][45][46][47] His works are hailed by Christians throughout the world, and many denominations venerate him as a saint. He has been declared a Doctor of the Church in the Catholic Church. He is especially beloved in the Syriac Orthodox Church and in the Church of the East.

Ephrem wrote a wide variety of hymns, poems, and sermons in verse, as well as prose biblical exegesis. These were works of practical theology for the edification of the church in troubled times. So popular were his works, that, for centuries after his death, Christian authors wrote hundreds of pseudepigraphal works in his name. He has been called the most significant of all of the fathers of the Syriac-speaking church tradition.[48]

Isaac of Antioch

Isaac of Antioch (451–452), one of the stars of Syriac literature, is the reputed author of a large number of metrical homilies (The fullest list, by Gustav Bickell, contains 191 which are extant in MSS), many of which are distinguished by an originality and acumen rare among Syriac writers.

Isaac of Nineveh

Isaac of Nineveh was a 7th-century Syriac bishop and theologian best remembered for his written work. He is also regarded as a saint in the Church of the East, the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church and among the Oriental Orthodox Churches, making him the last saint chronologically to be recognised by every apostolic Church. His feast day falls on January 28 and in the Syriac Orthodox calendar on March 14. Isaac is remembered for his spiritual homilies on the inner life, which have a human breadth and theological depth that transcends the Nestorian Christianity of the Church to which he belonged. They survive in Syriac manuscripts and in Greek and Arabic translations.

Desert Fathers

The Desert Fathers were early monastics living in the Egyptian desert. Although they did not write as much as other Church Fathers, their influence was also great, and they are credited with beginning the practice of monasticism, and codifying many of its features. Among them are Paul of Thebes, Anthony the Great and Pachomius. Many of their, usually short, sayings are collected in the Apophthegmata Patrum ("Sayings of the Desert Fathers").

Modern positions

In the Catholic Church, the patristic era is believed to have passed, and John of Damascus is most commonly considered to be the last of the Fathers, although occasionally St. Bernard of Clairvaux has been named; however, the Church does grant the similar title of Doctor of the Church to notable post-patristic saints who made significant contributions to Catholic theology or doctrine.[49] [50]

The Eastern Orthodox Church does not consider the age of Church Fathers to be over and includes later influential writers up to the present day. The Orthodox view is that men do not have to agree on every detail, much less be infallible, to be considered Church Fathers. Rather, Orthodox doctrine is determined by the consensus of the Holy Fathers—those points on which they do agree. This consensus guides the church in questions of dogma, the correct interpretation of scripture, and to distinguish the authentic sacred tradition of the Church from false teachings.[51]

The original Lutheran Augsburg Confession of 1530, for example, and the later Formula of Concord of 1576–1584, each begin with the mention of the doctrine professed by the Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea.

Though much Protestant religious thought is based on sola scriptura (the principle that the Bible itself is the ultimate authority in doctrinal matters),[citation needed] the first Protestant reformers, like the Catholic and Orthodox churches, used the theological interpretations of scripture set forth by the early Church Fathers. John Calvin's French Confession of Faith of 1559 states, "And we confess that which has been established by the ancient councils, and we detest all sects and heresies which were rejected by the holy doctors, such as St. Hilary, St. Athanasius, St. Ambrose and St. Cyril."[52] The Scots Confession of 1560 deals with general councils in its 20th chapter. The Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, both the original of 1562-1571 and the American version of 1801, explicitly accept the Nicene Creed in Article VII. Even when a particular Protestant confessional formula does not mention the Nicene Council or its creed, its doctrine is nonetheless always asserted, as, for example, in the Presbyterian Westminster Confession of 1647. Many Protestant seminaries provide courses on patristics as part of their curriculum, and many historic Protestant churches emphasize the importance of tradition and of the fathers in scriptural interpretation. Such an emphasis is even more pronounced in certain streams of Protestant thought, such as Paleo-Orthodoxy.

Patristics

The study of the Church Fathers is known as patristics.

Works of fathers in early Christianity, prior to Nicene Christianity, were translated into English in a 19th-century collection Ante-Nicene Fathers. Those of the First Council of Nicaea and continuing through the Second Council of Nicea (787) are collected in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Byzantine Iconoclasm began in AD 726, John of Damascus died in AD 749; the last of the seven ecumenical councils took place in AD 787.
  2. ^ Known in Latin and Low Franconian as Ambrosius, in Italian as Ambrogio and in Lombard as Ambroeus.

References

  1. ^ Kelly, John N. D. "Patristic literature". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  2. ^ Rasmussen, Adam (10 June 2011). "Who are the Fathers of the Church? A chronological list". Catholic Theology. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  3. ^ a b Hall, Christopher A. (August 17, 1998). Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers. InterVarsity Press. p. 55. ISBN 0830815007. MacDonald, Paul S. (March 2003). History of the Concept of Mind. p. 124. ISBN 0754613658.
  4. ^   Peterson, John Bertram (1913). "The Apostolic Fathers". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Durant, Will (1972). Caesar and Christ. New York: Simon and Schuster.
  6. ^ Di Berardino, Angelo (2014). Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity. IVP Academic. p. 1:549.
  7. ^ Elliott, John. 1 Peter. Doubleday, Toronto, 2000. Page 138.
  8. ^ "The Ecclesiastical Canons of the Same Holy Apostles". Christian Classics Ethereal Library. Ante-Nicene Fathers. Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.A.: Eerdmans Pub Co. Retrieved 2020-10-09.
  9. ^ Ibn Khaldun (1958) [1377], "Chapter 3.31. Remarks on the words "Pope" and "Patriarch" in the Christian religion and on the word "Kohen" used by the Jews", Muqaddimah, translated by Rosenthal, Franz.
  10. ^ See "Ignatius" in The Westminster Dictionary of Church History, ed. Jerald Brauer (Philadelphia:Westminster, 1971) and also David Hugh Farmer, "Ignatius of Antioch" in The Oxford Dictionary of the Saints (New York:Oxford University Press, 1987).
  11. ^ EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS TO THE MAGNESIANS, chapter IX
  12. ^ Polycarp of Smyrna; Ignatius of Antioch; Clement of Rome (1912). The Apostolic Fathers. Loeb classical library. Translated by Lake, Kirsopp. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. p. 280. hdl:2027/hvd.32044016963696. ISBN 9780674990289.
  13. ^ Rokeah (2002) Justin Martyr and the Jews p.22.
  14. ^ Philippe Bobichon, Dialogue with Trypho, critical edition and French translation, vol. 1; vol. 2.
  15. ^   Lebreton, Jules (1910). "St. Justin Martyr". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
  16. ^ (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-05-24. Retrieved 2012-11-08.
  17. ^ "Justin the Philosopher & Martyr and his Companions". Retrieved 2011-04-02.
  18. ^ Bray. God Has Spoken. p. 202.
  19. ^ Ramelli. The Christian Doctrine of Apokatastasis. pp. 119–136.
  20. ^ Sarton, George (1936). "The Unity and Diversity of the Mediterranean World". Osiris. 2: 430. doi:10.1086/368462. S2CID 143379839.
  21. ^ About Caesarea
  22. ^ Ramelli (2019). A Larger Hope, Volume 1. Cascade Books. pp. 226–227.
  23. ^ The Anathemas Against Origen, by the Fifth Ecumenical Council (Schaff, Philip, "The Seven Ecumenical Councils", Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Vol. 14. Edinburgh: T&T Clark)
  24. ^ The Anathematisms of the Emperor Justinian Against Origen (Schaff, op. cit.)
  25. ^ "Commentary on Song of Songs; Letter on the Soul; Letter on Ascesis and the Monastic Life". World Digital Library. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
  26. ^ Pope Vigilius, Constitution of Pope Vigilius, 553
  27. ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "St. John Chrysostom" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  28. ^ Walter Laqueur, The Changing Face of Antisemitism: From Ancient Times To The Present Day, (Oxford University Press: 2006), p.48. ISBN 0-19-530429-2. 48
  29. ^ Yohanan (Hans) Lewy (1997). "John Chrysostom". In Roth, Cecil (ed.). Encyclopaedia Judaica (CD-ROM version 1.0 ed.). Keter Publishing House. ISBN 965-07-0665-8.
  30. ^ John Chrysostom and the Jews: Rhetoric and Reality in the Late 4th Century, by Robert L. Wilken (University of California Press: Berkeley, 1983), p. 112.
  31. ^ . www.vatican.va. Archived from the original on 2002-09-10.
  32. ^ "St. John Chrysostom and Pope Francis: What they have in common". 12 September 2014.
  33. ^ "What St. John Chrysostom Can Teach Us About Social Justice". 6 September 2018.
  34. ^ Lutheran Service Book (Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, 2006), pp. 478, 487.
  35. ^ Aquilina, Mike (1999). The Fathers of the Church: An Introduction to the First Christian Teachers (illustrated ed.). Our Sunday Visitor Publishing. p. 222. ISBN 978-0-87-973689-7.
  36. ^ a b Cross, F. L., ed. (2005). "Tertullian". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. New York: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acref/9780192802903.001.0001. ISBN 9780192802903.
  37. ^ Vincent of Lerins in 434 AD, Commonitorium, 17, describes Tertullian as 'first of us among the Latins' (Quasten IV, p.549)
  38. ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Tertullian" . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  39. ^ A History of Christian Thought, Paul Tillich, Touchstone Books, 1972. ISBN 0-671-21426-8 (p. 43)
  40. ^ To Autolycus, Book 2, chapter XV
  41. ^ "Hiëronymus in zijn studeervertrek". lib.ugent.be. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
  42. ^ Cross, F. L., ed. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005, article Platonism
  43. ^ Pope St. Gregory I at about.com
  44. ^ Karim, Cyril Aphrem (December 2004). Symbols of the cross in the writings of the early Syriac Fathers. Gorgias Press LLC. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-59333-230-3. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  45. ^ Lipiński, Edward (2000). The Aramaeans: their ancient history, culture, religion. Peeters Publishers. p. 11. ISBN 978-90-429-0859-8. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  46. ^ Possekel, Ute (1999). Evidence of Greek philosophical concepts in the writings of Ephrem the Syrian. Peeters Publishers. p. 1. ISBN 978-90-429-0759-1. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  47. ^ Cameron, Averil; Kuhrt, Amélie (1993). Images of women in antiquity. Psychology Press. p. 288. ISBN 978-0-415-09095-7. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  48. ^ Parry, Ken, ed. (1999). The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity. Malden: Blackwell Publishing. p. 180. doi:10.1002/9781405166584. ISBN 9781405166584.
  49. ^ Pius XII. "Doctor Mellifluus". The Holy See. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  50. ^ Stephen Beale. "Who Was the Last of the Church Fathers?". National Catholic Register. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
  51. ^ Pomazansky, Michael (1984) [1973, in Russian], Orthodox Dogmatic Theology (English trans.), Platina CA: Saint Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, pp. 37, ff
  52. ^ Henry Beveridge, trans. Calvin's Tracts (Calvin Translation Society, Edinburgh. 1849)

External links

  • ChurchFathers.org - All of the Church Fathers' writings broken down by topic. Find writings by the Fathers on everything from the Eucharist, to baptism, to the Virgin Mary, to the Pope
  • Church Fathers' works in English edited by Philip Schaff, at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library
  • Church Fathers at the Patristics In English Project Site
  • Early Church Fathers Additional Texts Part of the Tertullian corpus.
  • The Fathers, the Scholastics, and Ourselves by von Balthasar
  • A growing collection of English translations of patristic texts and high-resolution scans from the comprehensive Patrologia compiled by J. P. Migne.
  • Ante Nicene, Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers
  • Writings from the church fathers at www.goarch.com.
  • The Fathers of the Church: A New Translation, by Dr. Roy Joseph Deferrari (1890-1969) and Dr. Ludwig Schopp (d. June 16, 1949) [1] [2], founder and editorial director. Works hosted at the Internet Archive
  • Migne Patrologia Latina and Graeca: a free digital edition of almost all the original texts.
  • Catholic Encyclopedia: The Fathers of the Church

church, fathers, ante, nicene, fathers, redirects, here, book, ante, nicene, fathers, book, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, . Ante Nicene Fathers redirects here For the book see Ante Nicene Fathers book This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Church Fathers news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Church Fathers Early Church Fathers Christian Fathers or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity The historical period in which they worked became known as the Patristic Era and spans approximately from the late 1st to mid 8th centuries a flourishing in particular during the 4th and 5th centuries when Christianity was in the process of establishing itself as the state church of the Roman Empire The Church Fathers an 11th century Kievan Rus miniature from Svyatoslav s Miscellany In traditional dogmatic theology authors considered Church Fathers are treated as authoritative and a somewhat restrictive definition is used The academic field of patristics the study of the Church Fathers has extended the scope of the term and there is no definitive list 1 2 better source needed Some such as Origen and Tertullian made major contributions to the development of later Christian theology but certain elements of their teaching were later condemned Contents 1 Great Fathers 2 Apostolic Fathers 2 1 Clement of Rome 2 2 Ignatius of Antioch 2 3 Polycarp of Smyrna 2 4 Papias of Hierapolis 3 Greek Fathers 3 1 Justin Martyr 3 2 Irenaeus of Lyons 3 3 Clement of Alexandria 3 4 Origen of Alexandria 3 5 Athanasius of Alexandria 3 6 Cappadocian Fathers 3 7 John Chrysostom 3 8 Cyril of Alexandria 3 9 Maximus the Confessor 3 10 John of Damascus 4 Latin Fathers 4 1 Tertullian 4 2 Cyprian of Carthage 4 3 Hilary of Poitiers 4 4 Ambrose of Milan 4 5 Pope Damasus I 4 6 Jerome of Stridonium 4 7 Augustine of Hippo 4 8 Pope Gregory the Great 4 9 Isidore of Seville 5 Syriac Fathers 5 1 Aphrahat 5 2 Ephrem the Syrian 5 3 Isaac of Antioch 5 4 Isaac of Nineveh 6 Desert Fathers 7 Modern positions 8 Patristics 9 See also 10 Notes 11 References 12 External linksGreat Fathers EditIn the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church traditions there are four Fathers each who are called the Great Church Fathers dubious discuss by whom 3 In the Catholic Church they are collectively called the Eight Doctors of the Church 3 Western ChurchAmbrose A D 340 397 Jerome 347 420 Augustine of Hippo 354 430 Pope Gregory I 540 604 Eastern ChurchAthanasius of Alexandria c 296 or 298 373 Gregory of Nazianzus 329 c 390 Basil of Caesarea c 330 379 John Chrysostom 347 407 In the Eastern Orthodox Church three of them Basil of Caesarea Gregory of Nazianzus and John Chrysostom are honored as the Three Holy Hierarchs Apostolic Fathers EditMain article Apostolic Fathers The Apostolic Fathers were Christian theologians who lived in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD who are believed to have personally known some of the Twelve Apostles or to have been significantly influenced by them 4 Their writings though popular in Early Christianity were ultimately not included in the canon of the New Testament once it reached its final form Many of the writings derive from the same time period and geographical location as other works of early Christian literature that did come to be part of the New Testament and some of the writings found among the Apostolic Fathers seem to have been just as highly regarded as some of the writings that became the New Testament The first three Clement Ignatius and Polycarp are considered the chief ones Clement of Rome Edit Main article Pope Clement I The First Epistle of Clement c 96 5 is the earliest extant epistle from a Church Father 6 In the epistle Clement calls on the Christians of Corinth to maintain harmony and order 5 Copied and widely read in the Early Church 7 First Clement had been considered by some as part of the New Testament canon e g listed as canonical in Canon 85 of the Canons of the Apostles 8 among other early canons of the New Testament showing that it had canonical rank in at least some regions of early Christendom As late as the 14th century Ibn Khaldun mentions it as part of the New Testament 9 Ignatius of Antioch Edit Main article Ignatius of Antioch Ignatius of Antioch also known as Theophorus c 35 c 110 10 was the third bishop of Antioch and a student of the Apostle John En route to his martyrdom in Rome Ignatius wrote a series of letters which have been preserved Important topics addressed in these letters include ecclesiology the sacraments the role of bishops and the Incarnation of Christ Specifically concerning ecclesiology his letter to the Romans is often cited as a testament to the universal bounds of the Roman church 11 He is the second after Clement to mention Paul s epistles 5 Polycarp of Smyrna Edit Main article Polycarp Polycarp of Smyrna c 69 c 155 was a Christian bishop of Smyrna now Izmir in Turkey It is recorded that he had been a disciple of John The options possibilities for this John are John the son of Zebedee traditionally viewed as the author of the Gospel of John or John the Presbyter 12 Traditional advocates follow Eusebius of Caesarea in insisting that the apostolic connection of Polycarp was with John the Evangelist and that he was the author of the Gospel of John and thus the Apostle John Polycarp tried and failed to persuade Pope Anicetus to have the West celebrate Passover on the 14th of Nisan as in the Eastern calendar Around A D 155 the Smyrnans of his town demanded Polycarp s execution as a Christian and he died a martyr The story of his martyrdom describes how the fire built around him would not burn him and that when he was stabbed to death so much blood issued from his body that it quenched the flames around him 5 Polycarp is recognized as a saint in both the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches Papias of Hierapolis Edit Main article Papias of Hierapolis Very little is known of Papias apart from what can be inferred from his own writings He is described as an ancient man who was a hearer of John and a companion of Polycarp by Polycarp s disciple Irenaeus c 180 Eusebius adds that Papias was Bishop of Hierapolis around the time of Ignatius of Antioch In this office Papias was presumably succeeded by Abercius of Hierapolis The name Papias was very common in the region suggesting that he was probably a native of the area The work of Papias is dated by most modern scholars to about A D 95 120 Despite indications that the work of Papias was still extant in the Late Middle Ages the full text is now lost however extracts appear in a number of other writings some of which cite a book number Greek Fathers EditThose who wrote in Greek are called the Greek Church Fathers In addition to the Apostolic Fathers famous Greek Fathers include Justin Martyr Irenaeus of Lyons Clement of Alexandria Athanasius of Alexandria John Chrysostom Cyril of Alexandria the Cappadocian Fathers Basil of Caesarea Gregory Nazianzus Gregory of Nyssa Peter of Sebaste Maximus the Confessor and John of Damascus Justin Martyr Edit Main articles Justin Martyr and First Apology of Justin Martyr Justin Martyr was an early Christian apologist and is regarded as the foremost interpreter of the theory of the Logos in the 2nd century 13 14 He was martyred alongside some of his students and is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic Church 15 the Anglican Church 16 the Eastern Orthodox Church 17 and the Oriental Orthodox Churches Irenaeus of Lyons Edit Main article Irenaeus Irenaeus was bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul which is now Lyon s France His writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology and he is recognized as a saint by both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church He was a notable early Christian apologist He was also a disciple of Polycarp In his best known book Against Heresies c 180 he enumerated heresies and attacked them Irenaeus wrote that the only way for Christians to retain unity was to humbly accept one doctrinal authority episcopal councils 5 Irenaeus proposed that the Gospels of Matthew Mark Luke and John all be accepted as canonical Clement of Alexandria Edit Main article Clement of Alexandria Clement of Alexandria c 150 215 was the first member of the church of Alexandria whose writings have survived and was one of its most distinguished teachers He saw wisdom in Greek philosophy and sought to harmonize it with Christian doctrine Clement opposed Gnosticism and yet used some of its terminology for instance he valued gnosis that with communion for all people could be held by common Christians He developed a Christian Platonism 5 and has been described by scholars as the founder of what was to become the great tradition of Christian philosophical theology 18 Due to his teaching on salvation and divine judgement in passages such as Paedagogus 1 8 and Stromata 7 2 Clement is often regarded as one of the first Christian universalists 19 Like Origen he arose from the Catechetical School of Alexandria and was well versed in pagan and biblical literature 5 Origen of Alexandria Edit Main article Origen Origen or Origen Adamantius c 185 c 254 was a scholar and theologian According to tradition he was an Egyptian 20 who taught in Alexandria reviving the Catechetical School where Clement had taught The patriarch of Alexandria at first supported Origen but later expelled him for being ordained without the patriarch s permission He relocated to Caesarea Maritima and died there 21 after being tortured during a persecution He later became a controversial figure and some of his writings were condemned as heretical Using his knowledge of Hebrew he produced a corrected Septuagint 5 He wrote commentaries on all the books of the Bible 5 In Peri Archon First Principles he articulated a systematic philosophical exposition of Christian doctrine 5 He at times employed an allegorical hermeneutic in his interpretation of the Old Testament and was partly influenced by Stoic Neo Pythagorean and Platonist thought 5 Like Plotinus he has been thought to believe that the soul passes through successive stages before incarnation as a human and after death eventually reaching God 5 However more recent scholarship has concluded that Origen actually denied the preexistence of disembodied souls and simply taught the preexistence of individuals logoi in the mind of God 22 Yet Origen did suggest based on 1 Corinthians 15 22 28 that all creatures possibly including even the fallen angels will eventually be restored and reunited to God when evil is finally eradicated For Origen God was the First Principle and Christ the Logos 5 through whom salvation is accomplished Origen s various writings were interpreted by some to imply a hierarchical structure in the Trinity the temporality of matter the fabulous preexistence of souls and the monstrous restoration which follows from it These alleged Origenist errors were declared anathema by a council in 553 three centuries after Origen had died in the peace of the church 23 24 Athanasius of Alexandria Edit St Athanasius depicted with a gospel book an iconographic symbol used mostly for priests and bishops as preachers of the gospel Main article Athanasius of Alexandria Athanasius of Alexandria c 293 373 was a theologian Pope of Alexandria and a noted Egyptian leader of the 4th century He is remembered for his role in the conflict with Arianism and for his affirmation of the Trinity At the First Council of Nicaea 325 Athanasius argued against the Arian doctrine that Christ is of a distinct substance from the Father 5 Cappadocian Fathers Edit Main article Cappadocian Fathers The Cappadocian Fathers are Basil the Great 330 379 who was bishop of Caesarea Basil s younger brother Gregory of Nyssa c 332 395 who was bishop of Nyssa and a close friend Gregory of Nazianzus 329 389 who became Patriarch of Constantinople 25 The Cappadocians promoted early Christian theology and are highly respected in both Western and Eastern churches as saints They were a 4th century monastic family led by Macrina the Younger 324 379 to provide a central place for her brothers to study and meditate and also to provide a peaceful shelter for their mother Abbess Macrina fostered the education and development of her three brothers Basil the Great Gregory of Nyssa and Peter of Sebaste c 340 391 who became bishop of Sebaste These scholars set out to demonstrate that Christians could hold their own in conversations with learned Greek speaking intellectuals They argued that Christian faith while it was against many of the ideas of Plato and Aristotle and other Greek philosophers was an almost scientific and distinctive movement with the healing of the soul of man and his union with God at its center They made major contributions to the definition of the Trinity finalized at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the final version of the Nicene Creed Subsequent to the First Council of Nicea Arianism did not simply disappear The semi Arians taught that the Son is of like substance with the Father homoiousios as against the outright Arians who taught that the Son was unlike the Father heterousian So the Son was held to be like the Father but not of the same essence as the Father The Cappadocians worked to bring these semi Arians back to the Orthodox cause In their writings they made extensive use of the formula three substances hypostases in one essence homoousia and thus explicitly acknowledged a distinction between the Father and the Son a distinction that Nicea had been accused of blurring but at the same time insisting on their essential unity John Chrysostom Edit Main article John Chrysostom John Chrysostom c 347 c 407 archbishop of Constantinople is known for his eloquence in preaching and public speaking his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders recorded sermons and writings making him the most prolific of the eastern fathers and his ascetic sensibilities After his death or according to some sources during his life he was given the Greek epithet chrysostomos meaning golden mouthed rendered in English as Chrysostom 26 27 Chrysostom is known within Christianity chiefly as a preacher and theologian particularly in the Eastern Orthodox Church he is the patron saint of orators in the Roman Catholic Church Chrysostom is also noted for eight of his sermons that played a considerable part in the history of Christian antisemitism diatribes against Judaizers composed while a presbyter in Antioch which were extensively exploited and misused by the Nazis in their ideological campaign against the Jews 28 29 Patristic scholars such as Robert L Wilken point out that applying modern understandings of antisemitism back to Chrysostom is anachronistic due to his use of the Psogos The Psogos along with the encomium were both rhetorical techniques used in the ancient world in a polemical context With the encomium one passes over a man s faults in order to praise him and in a psogos one passed over his virtues to defame him Such principles are explicit in the handbooks of the rhetors but an interesting passage from the church historian Socrates writing in the mid fifth century shows that the rules for invective were simply taken for granted by men and women of the late Roman world 30 Chrysostom s sermons along with Basil the Great s have greatly influenced the Christian Church s understanding of economic and distributive justice for the poor being cited extensively by the Catechism of the Catholic Church 31 as well as Pope Francis in his own sermons critiquing modern day forms of capitalism 32 33 Cyril of Alexandria Edit Main article Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Alexandria c 378 444 was the Bishop of Alexandria when the city was at its height of influence and power within the Roman Empire Cyril wrote extensively and was a leading protagonist in the Christological controversies of the late 4th and early 5th centuries He was a central figure in the First Council of Ephesus in 431 which led to the deposition of Nestorius as Archbishop of Constantinople Cyril s reputation within the Christian world has resulted in his titles Pillar of Faith and Seal of all the Fathers Maximus the Confessor Edit Main article Maximus the Confessor Maximus the Confessor also known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople c 580 662 was a Christian monk theologian and scholar In his early life he was a civil servant and an aide to the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius however he gave up this life in the political sphere to enter into the monastic life After moving to Carthage Maximus studied several Neo Platonist writers and became a prominent author When one of his friends began espousing the Christological position known as Monothelitism Maximus was drawn into the controversy in which he supported the Chalcedonian position that Jesus had both a human and a divine will Maximus is venerated in both Eastern Christianity and Western Christianity His Christological positions eventually resulted in his torture and exile soon after which he died however his theology was vindicated by the Third Council of Constantinople and he was venerated as a saint soon after his death His feast day is celebrated twice during the year on 21 January and on 13 August His title of Confessor means that he suffered for the faith but not to the point of death and thus is distinguished from a martyr His Life of the Virgin is thought to be the earliest complete biography of Mary the mother of Jesus John of Damascus Edit Main article John of Damascus John of Damascus c 676 749 was a Syrian Christian monk priest hymnographer and apologist Born and raised in Damascus he died at his monastery Mar Saba near Jerusalem A polymath whose fields of interest and contribution included law theology philosophy and music he was given the by name of Chrysorrhoas Xrysorroas literally streaming with gold i e the golden speaker He wrote numerous works expounding the Christian faith and composed hymns which are still used both liturgically in Eastern Christian practice throughout the world as well as in western Lutheranism at Easter 34 He was particularly known for his defense of icons 35 The Catholic Church regards him as a Doctor of the Church often referred to as the Doctor of the Assumption because of his writings on the Assumption of Mary Latin Fathers EditThose fathers who wrote in Latin are called the Latin Church Fathers Tertullian Edit Main article Tertullian Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus c 155 c 222 who was converted to Christianity before 197 was a prolific writer of apologetic theological controversial and ascetic works 36 He was born in Carthage the son of a Roman centurion Tertullian denounced Christian doctrines he considered heretical such as allowing widows to remarry and permitting Christians to flee from persecution but later in life adopted Montanism regarded as heretical by the mainstream Church which prevented his canonization He wrote three books in Greek and was the first great writer of Latin Christianity thus sometimes known as the Father of the Latin Church 37 He was evidently a lawyer in Rome 38 He is said to have introduced the Latin term trinitas with regard to the Divine Trinity to the Christian vocabulary 39 but Theophilus of Antioch already wrote of the Trinity of God and His Word and His wisdom which is similar but not identical to the Trinitarian wording 40 and also probably the formula three Persons one Substance as the Latin tres Personae una Substantia itself from the Koine Greek treῖs ὑpostaseis ὁmooysios treis Hypostases Homoousios and also the terms vetus testamentum Old Testament and novum testamentum New Testament In his Apologeticus he was the first Latin author who qualified Christianity as the vera religio and systematically relegated the classical Roman imperial religion and other accepted cults to the position of mere superstitions Later in life Tertullian joined the Montanists a heretical sect that appealed to his rigorism 36 He used the early church s symbol for fish the Greek word for fish being IX8YS which is an acronym for Ἰhsoῦs Xristos 8eoῦ Yἱos Swthr Jesus Christ God s Son Saviour to explain the meaning of baptism since fish are born in water He wrote that human beings are like little fish Cyprian of Carthage Edit Main article Cyprian of Carthage Cyprian c 200 258 was bishop of Carthage and an important early Christian writer He was born in North Africa probably at the beginning of the 3rd century perhaps at Carthage where he received an excellent classical pagan education After converting to Christianity he became a bishop and eventually died a martyr at Carthage He emphasized the necessity of the unity of Christians with their bishops and also the authority of the Roman See which he claimed was the source of priestly unity Hilary of Poitiers Edit Main article Hilary of Poitiers Hilary of Poitiers c 300 c 368 was Bishop of Poitiers and is a Doctor of the Church He was sometimes referred to as the Hammer of the Arians Latin Malleus Arianorum and the Athanasius of the West His name comes from the Graeco Latin word for happy or cheerful His optional memorial in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints is 13 January In the past when this date was occupied by the Octave Day of the Epiphany his feast day was moved to 14 January Ambrose of Milan Edit Main article Ambrose of Milan Ambrose b was an archbishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the 4th century He was a governor before becoming bishop He is counted as one of the four original doctors of the Church He offered a new perspective on the theory of atonement which Pope Damasus I Edit Pope Damasus I 305 384 was active in defending the Catholic Church against the threat of schisms In two Roman synods 368 and 369 he condemned the heresies of Apollinarianism and Macedonianism and sent legates papal representatives to the First Council of Constantinople that was convoked in 381 to address these heresies He also wrote in defense of the Roman See s authority and inaugurated use of Latin in the Mass instead of the Koine Greek that was still being used throughout the Church in the west in the liturgy Jerome of Stridonium Edit Main article Jerome Print of Jerome in his study Preserved in the Ghent University Library 41 Jerome c 347 420 is best known as the translator of the Bible from Greek and Hebrew into Latin He also was a Christian apologist Jerome s edition of the Bible the Vulgate is still an important text of Catholicism He is recognised by the Roman Catholic Church as a Doctor of the Church Augustine of Hippo Edit Main article Augustine of Hippo Augustine 354 430 Bishop of Hippo was a philosopher and theologian Augustine a Latin Father and Doctor of the Church is one of the most important figures in the development of Western Christianity In his early life Augustine read widely in Greco Roman rhetoric and philosophy including the works of Platonists such as Plotinus 42 He framed the concepts of original sin and just war as they are understood in the West When Rome fell and the faith of many Christians was shaken Augustine wrote The City of God in which he defended Christianity from pagan critics and developed the concept of the Church as a spiritual City of God distinct from the material City of Man 5 Augustine s work defined the start of the medieval worldview an outlook that would later be firmly established by Pope Gregory the Great 5 Augustine was born in present day Algeria to a Christian mother Monica of Hippo He was educated in North Africa and resisted his mother s pleas to become Christian He took a concubine and became a Manichean He later converted to Christianity became a bishop and opposed heresies such as Pelagianism His many works including The Confessions which is often called the first Western autobiography have been read continuously since his lifetime The Roman Catholic religious order the Order of Saint Augustine adopted his name and way of life Augustine is also the patron saint of many institutions and a number have been named after him Pope Gregory the Great Edit Main article Gregory the Great Gregory I the Great c 540 604 was pope from 3 September 590 until his death He is also known as Gregorius Dialogus Gregory the Dialogist in Eastern Orthodoxy because of the Dialogues he wrote He was the first of the popes from a monastic background Gregory is a Doctor of the Church and one of the four great Latin Fathers of the Church the others being Ambrose Augustine and Jerome Of all popes Gregory I had the most influence on the early medieval church 43 Isidore of Seville Edit Main article Isidore of Seville Isidore of Seville c 560 636 was Archbishop of Seville for more than three decades and is considered as the historian Montalembert put it in an oft quoted phrase le dernier savant du monde ancien the last scholar of the ancient world Indeed all the later medieval history writing of Hispania the Iberian Peninsula comprising modern Spain and Portugal was based on his histories At a time of disintegration of classical culture and aristocratic violence and illiteracy he was involved in the conversion of the royal Visigothic Arians to Catholicism both assisting his brother Leander of Seville and continuing after his brother s death He was influential in the inner circle of Sisebut Visigothic king of Hispania Like Leander he played a prominent role in the Councils of Toledo and Seville The Visigothic legislation which resulted from these councils is regarded by modern historians as exercising an important influence on the beginnings of representative government Syriac Fathers EditA few Church Fathers wrote in Syriac many of their works were also widely translated into Latin and Greek Aphrahat Edit Main article Aphrahat Aphrahat c 270 c 345 was a Syriac Christian author of the 3rd century from the Adiabene region of Northern Mesopotamia which was within the Persian Empire who composed a series of twenty three expositions or homilies on points of Christian doctrine and practice He was born in Persia around 270 but all his known works the Demonstrations come from later on in his life He was an ascetic and celibate and was almost definitely a son of the covenant an early Syriac form of communal monasticism He may have been a bishop and later Syriac tradition places him at the head of Mar Matti monastery near Mosul in what is now northern Iraq He was a near contemporary to the slightly younger Ephrem the Syrian but the latter lived within the sphere of the Roman Empire Called the Persian Sage Syriac ܚܟܝܡܐ ܦܪܣܝܐ ḥakkima p arsaya Aphrahat witnesses to the concerns of the early church beyond the eastern boundaries of the Roman Empire Ephrem the Syrian Edit Main article Ephrem the Syrian Ephrem the Syrian ca 306 373 was a Syriac deacon and a prolific Syriac language hymnographer and theologian of the 4th century from the region of Syria 44 45 46 47 His works are hailed by Christians throughout the world and many denominations venerate him as a saint He has been declared a Doctor of the Church in the Catholic Church He is especially beloved in the Syriac Orthodox Church and in the Church of the East Ephrem wrote a wide variety of hymns poems and sermons in verse as well as prose biblical exegesis These were works of practical theology for the edification of the church in troubled times So popular were his works that for centuries after his death Christian authors wrote hundreds of pseudepigraphal works in his name He has been called the most significant of all of the fathers of the Syriac speaking church tradition 48 Isaac of Antioch Edit Main article Isaac of Antioch Isaac of Antioch 451 452 one of the stars of Syriac literature is the reputed author of a large number of metrical homilies The fullest list by Gustav Bickell contains 191 which are extant in MSS many of which are distinguished by an originality and acumen rare among Syriac writers Isaac of Nineveh Edit Main article Isaac of Nineveh Isaac of Nineveh was a 7th century Syriac bishop and theologian best remembered for his written work He is also regarded as a saint in the Church of the East the Catholic Church the Eastern Orthodox Church and among the Oriental Orthodox Churches making him the last saint chronologically to be recognised by every apostolic Church His feast day falls on January 28 and in the Syriac Orthodox calendar on March 14 Isaac is remembered for his spiritual homilies on the inner life which have a human breadth and theological depth that transcends the Nestorian Christianity of the Church to which he belonged They survive in Syriac manuscripts and in Greek and Arabic translations Desert Fathers EditThe Desert Fathers were early monastics living in the Egyptian desert Although they did not write as much as other Church Fathers their influence was also great and they are credited with beginning the practice of monasticism and codifying many of its features Among them are Paul of Thebes Anthony the Great and Pachomius Many of their usually short sayings are collected in the Apophthegmata Patrum Sayings of the Desert Fathers Modern positions EditIn the Catholic Church the patristic era is believed to have passed and John of Damascus is most commonly considered to be the last of the Fathers although occasionally St Bernard of Clairvaux has been named however the Church does grant the similar title of Doctor of the Church to notable post patristic saints who made significant contributions to Catholic theology or doctrine 49 50 The Eastern Orthodox Church does not consider the age of Church Fathers to be over and includes later influential writers up to the present day The Orthodox view is that men do not have to agree on every detail much less be infallible to be considered Church Fathers Rather Orthodox doctrine is determined by the consensus of the Holy Fathers those points on which they do agree This consensus guides the church in questions of dogma the correct interpretation of scripture and to distinguish the authentic sacred tradition of the Church from false teachings 51 The original Lutheran Augsburg Confession of 1530 for example and the later Formula of Concord of 1576 1584 each begin with the mention of the doctrine professed by the Fathers of the First Council of Nicaea Though much Protestant religious thought is based on sola scriptura the principle that the Bible itself is the ultimate authority in doctrinal matters citation needed the first Protestant reformers like the Catholic and Orthodox churches used the theological interpretations of scripture set forth by the early Church Fathers John Calvin s French Confession of Faith of 1559 states And we confess that which has been established by the ancient councils and we detest all sects and heresies which were rejected by the holy doctors such as St Hilary St Athanasius St Ambrose and St Cyril 52 The Scots Confession of 1560 deals with general councils in its 20th chapter The Thirty nine Articles of the Church of England both the original of 1562 1571 and the American version of 1801 explicitly accept the Nicene Creed in Article VII Even when a particular Protestant confessional formula does not mention the Nicene Council or its creed its doctrine is nonetheless always asserted as for example in the Presbyterian Westminster Confession of 1647 Many Protestant seminaries provide courses on patristics as part of their curriculum and many historic Protestant churches emphasize the importance of tradition and of the fathers in scriptural interpretation Such an emphasis is even more pronounced in certain streams of Protestant thought such as Paleo Orthodoxy Patristics EditMain article Patristics The study of the Church Fathers is known as patristics Works of fathers in early Christianity prior to Nicene Christianity were translated into English in a 19th century collection Ante Nicene Fathers Those of the First Council of Nicaea and continuing through the Second Council of Nicea 787 are collected in Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers See also EditChristian apologetics Confessor of the Faith Great Church Historiography of early Christianity List of Church Fathers List of Christian women of the patristic age List of Eastern Orthodox saint titles Patron Saints of Europe Sacred tradition Clavis Patrum GraecorumNotes Edit Byzantine Iconoclasm began in AD 726 John of Damascus died in AD 749 the last of the seven ecumenical councils took place in AD 787 Known in Latin and Low Franconian as Ambrosius in Italian as Ambrogio and in Lombard as Ambroeus References Edit Kelly John N D Patristic literature Encyclopedia Britannica Retrieved 11 May 2018 Rasmussen Adam 10 June 2011 Who are the Fathers of the Church A chronological list Catholic Theology Retrieved 11 May 2018 a b Hall Christopher A August 17 1998 Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers InterVarsity Press p 55 ISBN 0830815007 MacDonald Paul S March 2003 History of the Concept of Mind p 124 ISBN 0754613658 Peterson John Bertram 1913 The Apostolic Fathers In Herbermann Charles ed Catholic Encyclopedia New York Robert Appleton Company Retrieved 30 June 2016 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Durant Will 1972 Caesar and Christ New York Simon and Schuster Di Berardino Angelo 2014 Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity IVP Academic p 1 549 Elliott John 1 Peter Doubleday Toronto 2000 Page 138 The Ecclesiastical Canons of the Same Holy Apostles Christian Classics Ethereal Library Ante Nicene Fathers Grand Rapids Michigan U S A Eerdmans Pub Co Retrieved 2020 10 09 Ibn Khaldun 1958 1377 Chapter 3 31 Remarks on the words Pope and Patriarch in the Christian religion and on the word Kohen used by the Jews Muqaddimah translated by Rosenthal Franz See Ignatius in The Westminster Dictionary of Church History ed Jerald Brauer Philadelphia Westminster 1971 and also David Hugh Farmer Ignatius of Antioch in The Oxford Dictionary of the Saints New York Oxford University Press 1987 EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS TO THE MAGNESIANS chapter IX Polycarp of Smyrna Ignatius of Antioch Clement of Rome 1912 The Apostolic Fathers Loeb classical library Translated by Lake Kirsopp New York G P Putnam s Sons p 280 hdl 2027 hvd 32044016963696 ISBN 9780674990289 Rokeah 2002 Justin Martyr and the Jews p 22 Philippe Bobichon Dialogue with Trypho critical edition and French translation vol 1 vol 2 Lebreton Jules 1910 St Justin Martyr In Herbermann Charles ed Catholic Encyclopedia Vol 7 New York Robert Appleton Company Retrieved 2 November 2013 For All the Saints PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2010 05 24 Retrieved 2012 11 08 Justin the Philosopher amp Martyr and his Companions Retrieved 2011 04 02 Bray God Has Spoken p 202 Ramelli The Christian Doctrine of Apokatastasis pp 119 136 Sarton George 1936 The Unity and Diversity of the Mediterranean World Osiris 2 430 doi 10 1086 368462 S2CID 143379839 About Caesarea Ramelli 2019 A Larger Hope Volume 1 Cascade Books pp 226 227 The Anathemas Against Origen by the Fifth Ecumenical Council Schaff Philip The Seven Ecumenical Councils Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers Series 2 Vol 14 Edinburgh T amp T Clark The Anathematisms of the Emperor Justinian Against Origen Schaff op cit Commentary on Song of Songs Letter on the Soul Letter on Ascesis and the Monastic Life World Digital Library Retrieved 6 March 2013 Pope Vigilius Constitution of Pope Vigilius 553 Herbermann Charles ed 1913 St John Chrysostom Catholic Encyclopedia New York Robert Appleton Company Walter Laqueur The Changing Face of Antisemitism From Ancient Times To The Present Day Oxford University Press 2006 p 48 ISBN 0 19 530429 2 48 Yohanan Hans Lewy 1997 John Chrysostom In Roth Cecil ed Encyclopaedia Judaica CD ROM version 1 0 ed Keter Publishing House ISBN 965 07 0665 8 John Chrysostom and the Jews Rhetoric and Reality in the Late 4th Century by Robert L Wilken University of California Press Berkeley 1983 p 112 Catechism of the Catholic Church The seventh commandment www vatican va Archived from the original on 2002 09 10 St John Chrysostom and Pope Francis What they have in common 12 September 2014 What St John Chrysostom Can Teach Us About Social Justice 6 September 2018 Lutheran Service Book Concordia Publishing House St Louis 2006 pp 478 487 Aquilina Mike 1999 The Fathers of the Church An Introduction to the First Christian Teachers illustrated ed Our Sunday Visitor Publishing p 222 ISBN 978 0 87 973689 7 a b Cross F L ed 2005 Tertullian The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church New York Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 acref 9780192802903 001 0001 ISBN 9780192802903 Vincent of Lerins in 434 AD Commonitorium 17 describes Tertullian as first of us among the Latins Quasten IV p 549 Herbermann Charles ed 1913 Tertullian Catholic Encyclopedia New York Robert Appleton Company A History of Christian Thought Paul Tillich Touchstone Books 1972 ISBN 0 671 21426 8 p 43 To Autolycus Book 2 chapter XV Hieronymus in zijn studeervertrek lib ugent be Retrieved 2020 10 02 Cross F L ed The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church New York Oxford University Press 2005 article Platonism Pope St Gregory I at about com Karim Cyril Aphrem December 2004 Symbols of the cross in the writings of the early Syriac Fathers Gorgias Press LLC p 3 ISBN 978 1 59333 230 3 Retrieved 8 June 2011 Lipinski Edward 2000 The Aramaeans their ancient history culture religion Peeters Publishers p 11 ISBN 978 90 429 0859 8 Retrieved 8 June 2011 Possekel Ute 1999 Evidence of Greek philosophical concepts in the writings of Ephrem the Syrian Peeters Publishers p 1 ISBN 978 90 429 0759 1 Retrieved 8 June 2011 Cameron Averil Kuhrt Amelie 1993 Images of women in antiquity Psychology Press p 288 ISBN 978 0 415 09095 7 Retrieved 8 June 2011 Parry Ken ed 1999 The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity Malden Blackwell Publishing p 180 doi 10 1002 9781405166584 ISBN 9781405166584 Pius XII Doctor Mellifluus The Holy See Retrieved 6 August 2020 Stephen Beale Who Was the Last of the Church Fathers National Catholic Register Retrieved 26 February 2023 Pomazansky Michael 1984 1973 in Russian Orthodox Dogmatic Theology English trans Platina CA Saint Herman of Alaska Brotherhood pp 37 ff Henry Beveridge trans Calvin s Tracts Calvin Translation Society Edinburgh 1849 External links Edit Wikiquote has quotations related to Church Fathers ChurchFathers org All of the Church Fathers writings broken down by topic Find writings by the Fathers on everything from the Eucharist to baptism to the Virgin Mary to the Pope Church Fathers works in English edited by Philip Schaff at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library Church Fathers at the Patristics In English Project Site Early Church Fathers Additional Texts Part of the Tertullian corpus Excerpts from Defensor Grammaticus Excerpts from the Church Fathers The Fathers the Scholastics and Ourselves by von Balthasar Faulkner University Patristics Project A growing collection of English translations of patristic texts and high resolution scans from the comprehensive Patrologia compiled by J P Migne Early Church Fathers Writings Ante Nicene Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers Writings from the church fathers at www goarch com The Fathers of the Church A New Translation by Dr Roy Joseph Deferrari 1890 1969 and Dr Ludwig Schopp d June 16 1949 1 2 founder and editorial director Works hosted at the Internet Archive Migne Patrologia Latina and Graeca a free digital edition of almost all the original texts Catholic Encyclopedia The Fathers of the Church Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Church Fathers amp oldid 1143099707, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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