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ChildofGod
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| Joined: | Sat Jul 12th, 2008 |
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| Posts: | 214 |
| First Name: | Darlene | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Christian in the Wilderness |
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Posted: Sun Aug 31st, 2008 04:38 pm |
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I am at the point of needing to read in depth literature as regards our Christian faith. I would like some advice on which resources are considered the most valuable in understanding the Apostolic teaching and deposit of faith. I'm very interested in reading the writings of early Church Fathers from the 1st to 6th Centuries. I would like these resources to include writings from both the Eastern and Western Fathers.
What I'm looking for are the actual writings, not sources which merely include quotes from the ECF. This would eliminate many of the apologetic type books which have been written within the last 20 yrs. I'm especially interested in the writings of Ignatius of Antioch, Iraneaus, Eusebius, Justin Martyr, Athanasius, and Jerome. But I would be open to reading the writings of some of the well-reknown Eastern Fathers not included in my list.
I look forward to each and everyone's input.
Darlene
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David W. Emery
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| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
| Location: | Brownsville, Texas USA |
| Posts: | 2522 |
| First Name: | David | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Catholic |
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Posted: Sun Aug 31st, 2008 05:32 pm |
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I think you are aware of the three volume work by William A. Jurgens, The Faith of the Early Fathers. It is not apologetics; the text selections were selected for their doctrinal content, avoiding other topics and prolixity, and were initially directed toward seminarians and college theology majors. In addition to orthodox works, selections from the better-known heretical writers are also included to provide balance and comparison.
If you wish to wade through entire texts, including much irrelevant matter, many of these are available online. One such source, which contains over 400 titles, is available both on the New Advent Catholic site and the Christian Classics Ethereal Library Protestant site. These texts are from the 37 volume opus sponsored about 100 years ago by the Church of Scotland (Calvinist). The Protestant site also includes the original work’s introductions and notes which, while sometimes informative, are unfortunately based on outdated scholarship and often display an outspoken anti-Catholic bias.
I'm especially interested in the writings of Ignatius of Antioch, Iraneaus, Eusebius, Justin Martyr, Athanasius, and Jerome. But I would be open to reading the writings of some of the well-reknown Eastern Fathers not included in my list.
All of these are included in both resources, and all except Jerome are considered Eastern.
David
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mg57
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| Joined: | Mon Oct 9th, 2006 |
| Location: | Connecticut USA |
| Posts: | 243 |
| First Name: | mg57 | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Infant Baptised Catholic |
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Posted: Sun Aug 31st, 2008 11:18 pm |
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Darlene -
Along with Jurgen's, I would like to recommend the four volume set - "Patrology" by Johannes Quasten (1900 - 1987). It is available through Ignatius Press (where I ordered mine), and, of course, through online booksellers.
Together, the four volumes total 2,210 pages and was designed to be a kind of introductory reference for both scholars and students, providing extended excerpts from a comprehensive list of writers found in early Church literature. The advantage here are the subject / author references which make it easier to find what you're looking for in the original texts.
You may already know that Penguin Classics publishes titles such as "The History of the Church" by Eusebius, and, "Early Christian Writings" which includes Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, and the Didache. These do contain introductions, but include the complete text.
Also, try out Fordham University's site for Early Church History - http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook2.html
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Free
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| Joined: | Wed Nov 28th, 2007 |
| Location: | Michigan USA |
| Posts: | 429 |
| First Name: | Jane | | Gender: | Female | | Faith History: | Presbyterian, Gnostic, non-denominational, Catholic |
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Posted: Mon Sep 1st, 2008 12:07 pm |
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You might want to invest in a few volumes of the hardbound Ancient Christian Writers series by Paulist Press. They offer the complete text of the earliest writers, and follow with extensive notes for those who want to delve further into commentary. They are available from Amazon Books.
I bought Volume 1 which contains the writings of St. Clement of Rome and St. Ignatius of Antioch; Volume 56 which contains the writings of St. Justin Martyr; and Volume 55 which contains the writings of St. Irenaeus of Lyons. I plan to invest in a few more in the future.
Among the several indexes, each volume has a Scripture index so that you can turn to the Scripture passages that coincide with the writings of each author.
In addition I bought the three-volume paperback set by Jurgens, Faith of the Early Fathers, which includes excerpts from all the early Christian writers. When I say excerpts, I don't mean quotations, but large chunks of the writing. And the many indexes in these volumes includes a doctrinal index helping you to explore a certain doctrine's validity (especially helpful for a Protestant still not sure about some Catholic doctrines).
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Robert
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| Joined: | Mon Nov 12th, 2007 |
| Location: | Germany |
| Posts: | 147 |
| First Name: | Robert | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | The whole spectrum from black to white, now 100% Catholic! |
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Posted: Mon Sep 1st, 2008 02:17 pm |
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This is my favorite source, its not free but worth the cost.
http://www.thisisthefaith.com/
____________________
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15)
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