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The Early Church Fathers of the Catholic ChurchAnte-Nicene Fathers, Nicene Fathers, Post-Nicene FathersChristian Tradition begins with the writings of the Early Church Fathers, teachings of those taught directly by the apostles and in a line of succession beyond them.
Ante-Nicene Fathers, Teachings of the Apostolic Fathers and MartyriumsThe Writings of the Early Church Fathers begin with a ten volume series of teachings given to the direct successors of the apostles of Jesus Christ. These are those who were taught directly by St. Peter, St. Paul, St. James and all of the twelve apostles. Some of the writers include Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Origen, Hippolytus, Cyprian, Dionysius and Lactantius. They also contain some of the first liturgies of the Catholic Church, the Apostolic Teachings and Constitutions, Apocryphal Gospels and Acts and the works of the Twelve Patriarchs. MartyriumsOne of the most fascinating elements of the earliest writings of the church includes the introduction of martyriums. The reader gets a fascinating look into the true life and death of the early church as the writings travel through the teachings of each successor in the line and then find themselves suddenly caught in a martyrium, the story of how each and every one of them was martyred for the faith. The martyrium became a tradition in the early church because almost all of the original teachers were killed for their beliefs in frankly heinous fashion. The Blessed Virgin MaryCoincidentally, the only known words written by the Blessed Virgin Mary are recorded in the Ante-Nicene Fathers in the form of a letter of encouragement to one of the Apostles. The Pastor of HermasAnother fascinating book recorded in the writings of the Early Church Fathers is the Pastor of Hermas. Very popular in the days of the early church, it was a surprise when it was taken from the canon of the bible by the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. Similar to the Revelation of St. John, the Pastor of Hermas is a book with many theories regarding its origin, wherein a man is taken into the heavens and shown the ravages and consequences of various sins. Powerful and sometimes frightening, the depictions of the heavenly and hellish realms could be compared to that of the Old Testament era Book of Enoch. Nicene FathersThe Nicene Fathers consist of all the writings of St. Augustine and St. John Chrysostom which are extensive and consist of fourteen large volumes. Post-Nicene FathersThe Post-Nicene Fathers contain another large fourteen volumes beginning with the Church History of Eusebius and ending with the Seven Ecumenical Councils. Great writers of the church such as Theodoret, Jerome, Gennadius, Rufinus, Socrates, Sozomenus, Athanasius, Jerome, Cyril, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory Nazianzen and Basil all contribute to these lengthy treatises, many of them church histories. PhilokaliaAnother vein of writers from the early church exist which are lesser known but considered just as important as the Early Church Fathers by most Orthodox Christians. The writers of the Philokalia were the great Early Desert Fathers who retired into the desert to learn from the silence the truth of God within. Perhaps with the combination of these treasures of history, you may get a more true and complete understanding of the origins and original purpose of Christianity and Catholicism in particular. Sources: Writings of the Early Church Fathers, Philokalia
The copyright of the article The Early Church Fathers of the Catholic Church in Catholicism is owned by Marilynn Hughes. Permission to republish The Early Church Fathers of the Catholic Church in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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