Pat - I

HOLY TRINITY UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF PRACTICAL THEOLOGY

Dept., of pastoral Theology
HOLY TRINITY January 1

UNIVERSITY 2021
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PATROLOGY -I.
PART ONE
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THE CONCEPT OF PATROLOGY

The importance of Patrology is of a growing interest, for this science
researches in the lives of the Fathers, their literature, and thoughts.
Contemporary Christians are eager to discover the faith of the early
(Universal) catholic2 Orthodox Church and acknowledge her spirit. In fact,
the story of the Fathers is the story of the early church in all its aspects of
worship, pastorship, social concepts, preaching, spirituality, etc. It is the
story of the living church of the time, who embraced her children through
divine love. It taught them to face the pagan world and the heretics with
love, to deliver them as her beloved children, guide them to overcome their
evils, and to acknowledge their errors and heresies. The mother church
strives for their spiritual growth and ultimately their salvation.
METHODS OF PATRISTIC STUDIES

In studying Patrology, we face two integral systems:
1. The scientific system, which the West adopts: Scholars are
interested in publishing the texts of the Patristic literature in a
scientific accurate translation to modern languages, criticizing them
and studying their doctrines and thoughts: theological, ascetic,
spiritual, biblical, etc.
2. The spiritual system, which the East adopts: The Eastern churches
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are interested in enjoying the richness of the Fathers’ spirituality, by

penetrating the depth of the texts and putting them to practice within
the church life.
These two systems are inseparable, for they are integral. The scientific
system helps to establish sound basics, and the spiritual system transfers
the texts into life and practic
PATROLOGY
The word “Patrology” is derived from the Latin word “Pater”

which means “Father.”
Patrology is the science which deals with the life, acts, writings, sayings,
doctrines and thoughts of the orthodox writers of the early church.
1. The life of the Fathers: In order to understand their writings and
sayings, their lives and the environment in which they lived, must
also be considered.
2. Their acts: The writings, sermons, dialogues, letters, etc. of the
Fathers are inseparable from their own lives. Patrology’s message
is to be sure of the authenticity of these acts scientifically,
publishing them and translating them in modern languages.
3. More importantly is the discovery of the thoughts of the Fathers,
their dogma, doctrines and concepts concerning God, man,
church, salvation, worship, creation, the body, the heavenly life, etc.
Patrology is the door through which we can enter into the church and attain
her spirit, which affects our inner life, conduct and behavior. Through
Patrology, the acts of the Fathers are transferred into living thoughts and
concepts which are based on a sound foun-dation, without ignoring the
world around us.
THE FATHERS OF THE CHURCH
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are called the “Patriarchs,” or the Fathers of
Israel (Gen. 1:24 LXX; Exod. 3:13, 15; Duet. 1:8; Acts 3:13; 7:2, 12; Rom. 4:12,
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16; 2 Pet. 3:4).

According to the Jewish tradition the official title of the scribes was “Father.”
In the New Testament Church, the Jewish and pagans on the martyrdom
of St. Polycarp of Smyrna, were crying: “This is the Fa-ther of the
Christians3.”
When St. Athanasius referred to St. Dionysius of Alexandria, St. Dionysius
of Rome and others, he used the term “Fathers.”
THE TERM “FATHER” IN PATROLOGY
In the first century, teaching was a bishopric work, or a “Fatherly” work.

Teaching was not merely presenting some dogmas or doctrines, but
presenting a living experience, which the disciples exam-ined, together with
their Fathers. Teaching and discipleship were inseparable. Through true
Fatherhood, the bishops and priests, looked to “teaching” not merely as a
fruit of theoretical dogmas, but of their fa-therly love, through which they
can repeat the words of St. Paul, “In Christ Jesus I have begotten you
through the Gospel” 1 Cor. 4:15.
‘‘When a man learns from the mouth of another, it is said that he is the son
of the person who teaches him, and the latter is called his father.’’
St. Irenaeus
‘‘The speech is the son of the soul, therefore we call those who teach us our
fathers.’’
St. Clement of Alexandria
In Patrology the term “Fathers” was not confined to bishops, priests and
deacons, but included all those who supported us with orthodox Christian
literature. This designated the apologists who defended the Christian faith
in the early church even though they were not clergymen. It also
designated the leaders of the monastic life who escaped from priesthood
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but they had many disciples who practised evangelical asceticism.
NECESSARY QUALIFICATIONS
Certain qualifications are necessary and only some of the ecclesiastical
writers are called Church Fathers . These qualifications are:
a. The “Father” according to Patrology, is the one who participates in
the Christian Literature, such as discourses, dialogues, letters,
sermons, advises and (or) commentaries on some books of the
Scripture.
b. Orthodoxy of doctrine: The “Father” examines the church life

without deviation from orthodox doctrines.
There are, however, some exceptions for the title “Father.” It has been
conferred upon those who have valuable literature, although they have
inclined towards some heretic attitudes, e.g. Tertullian, Tatian, Origen,
Eusebius of Caesarea.
Patrology is concerned with the study of the writings of heretics and the
apocryphal in order to understand the whole environment of the church,
and its surroundings. This gives an insight into how she stood in the face of
heresies and witnessed to the truth, struggling to serve even the heretics
themselves and win them back to the kingdom of God.
c. Holiness of Life: Orthodoxy of doctrine and holiness of life are
integral. We study Patrology to enjoy the evangelical life of the
church, and to attain the spirit of the early church, through her saints
who offered their lives, side by side with their teachings, as a living
record that witnesses the living truth.
To ensure the orthodoxy and holiness of life, the writings of the fathers
were mostly introduced by the words, “an essay (or an epistle) of our
Father, Saint...”
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d. Antiquity: Some scholars see that the Patristic epoch starts by the
Apostolic Fathers down to the sixth century. Others take it further to
the eighth century while others see that there is no specific era for
the Fathers. They believe that it extends throughout all ages, forthe
Spirit of God is working in the Church of Christ, as in every age there
are saintly teachers and “Fathers.”
e. The Catholic(universal- እንተ ላዕለኩሉ)Church admits another

condition: the approval of the Church through canonization. However
the Orthodox Church does not canonize the Fathers. She has no
official list of saints and Fathers, but suffices to proclaim the heretical
writings and excommunicate the heretics until they return to the
truth, denying their heresies. The Church has only a list of the saints
who are referred to in the liturgy of the Eucharist and in the church
hymns, asking for their prayers for the salvation of the world.
THE AUTHORITY OF THE FATHERS
The extent we accept what the patristic literature has included:-
The holy fathers’ sayings represent the thoughts of the universal (catholic)
Church, as received from the Apostles, guided by the Holy Spirit Who
unceasingly acts in the church.
St. Augustine says: ‘’They hold fast with what they found in the Church,
practised what they had learned and what they had re-ceived from the
fathers.
‘’He who despises the holy Fathers, must know that he despises the whole
Church.’’
This authority is based on two elements:
Natural element: The Fathers are mostly known by their saintly lives and
their faithfulness in receiving the deposit of the living faith from the
Apostles. They were witnesses to the true Church life in all aspects. They
acquired almost the same spirit as the Apostles in spite of the great
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differences in their cultures, gifts and circumstances.

Divine element: The Fathers lived under the guidance of the Holy Spirit who
directed the Church to the truth. We do not believe in the infallibility of the
Fathers as individuals. However, the church as a whole, is always preserved
in her faith by the Spirit of God.
USING THE WRITINGS OF THE FATHERS.

We must not rely on the writings of a single Father, because no one is
capable of acknowledging the “truth” in its entirety. We only accept the
opinion of a Father, if it is in harmony with the Bible and the church tradition.
We must not rely on one or more separate quotation from the acts of any
Father, but rather study all his thoughts and under-stand the quotations
within his whole work. We must also consider the circumstances and the
church environment, at that time. We must not single out one or more
quotations to form our own opinion.
We must study the meaning of the terms which a Father had used.
Sometimes they had certain contemporary philosophical or popular
concepts of the era. Some Fathers used the same pagan or heretic terms
of that time, especially when they wrote to certain worldly groups. They
wrote to them, using their (pagan) own terms, language and concepts.
It is very useful to study the meaning of some difficult terms by comparing
them with the same terms used by their contem-porary Fathers.
EXAMPLES:-
St. Athanasius used some quotations from the writings of the Fathers in his
works and also St. Basil depended on many quotations from the writings of
the Fathers.
This attitude increased in the fourth century, and increased more and more
in the fifth century. As an example, St. Cyril of Alexandria in his writings to
the Egyptian monks, to defend the use of the term “Theotokos,” referred to
the writings of the saints. Secondly, in assuring the Trinitarian faith, he used
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the wisdom of the holy Fathers. Again in his writings against Nestorius, he
declared that the Holy Spirit spoke in the holy Fathers.
THE HISTORY OF PATROLOGY
The Lutheran theologian, John Gerhard, from the seventeenth century, was
the first scholar who used the word “Patrologia” as a title of his work, which
he published in 1653. But the idea of publishing the sayings of the fathers
dates back to the early centuries of Christianity.
We may divide the History of Patrology into four epochs, which may be
introduced in succession:
The beginning of the spread of Christianity.
The church historians epoch.
The setting of “De viris Illustribus.”
A new scientific epoch.
1. THE BEGINNING OF THE SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY

In this epoch the Patristic literature was considered as a part of the church
tradition. Every generation receives it as a living gift (deposit) which is
passed on to the following generation. Thus the Pa-tristic literature was
spread not for scientific research, but as a precious gift (deposit) that
declared the life of the church and her faith, to be practised throughout
ages.
In other words, it is not preserved in museums or libraries of scientific
institutions or seminaries to be studied and criticized, but as an open living
gospel written by the life and acts of the church guided by the Holy Spirit. A
continuous testimony for the unceasing redeeming work of God throughout
ages.
Thus, our Fathers were interested in this precious treasure, not as an
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ancient spiritual literature to be preserved, but as a continuous church life

to be experienced.
HOW THE PATRISTIC LITERATURES WAS PRESERVED AT THAT EPOCH:

a. It was preserved as part of the deposit of faith. One can
acknowledge how the church was interested in its preservation from
the following quotations: It is fit for us to preserve the tradition we
have received from our forefathers without change.
St. Gregory of Nyssa:- ‘’I am a lover of the true teachings, pursuing the
spiritual steps of my Fathers.’’
St. Cyril of Alexandria:- ‘’It is preserved through the discipleship system,
that every generation enjoys the discipleship of the former one. Many
disciples wrote in their private diaries statements and stories about their
spiritual Fathers who helped them in their spiritual progress.’’
On many occasions, when a spiritual Father departed from this world, one
of his disciples, especially the one who was in close contact with him,
would write a biography of him, including his private behavior, sayings, and
advises.
b. Some believers were eager to record the sermons of their spiritual
fathers. These sermons included commentaries on biblical texts,
spiritual topics, theological items etc. Many sermons of St. John
Chrysostom and St. Augustine were recorded by those who admired
them.
c. Many diaries, memories and books were written by pilgrims. St.

John Cassian (360-435 A.D) for example who visited Egypt and met
many Abbots of the monasteries in Egypt, wrote his well-known two
books: The “Conferences” (dialogues with many de-sert fathers), and
the “Institutes” which dealt with the canons of mo-nasticism and the
methods of victory for a monk in his spiritual struggle.
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Palladius, the historian of monks (c. 365-425) visited Egypt and

acknowledged her ascetics. He also met St. Didymius the Blind, the dean of
the school of Alexandria several times. He wrote his book “The Lausic
History” or “ The Paradise of the Fathers.”
The historian Rufinus (c. 345-410) recorded in his work, “The History of
Monasticism,” some speeches of the Egyptian desert fathers. He visited
Egypt in 372 A.D, and studied there for some years, and became a disciple
of St. Didymius the Blind.
d. The school of Alexandria attracted many church leaders who
transferred its literature to their churches.
e. The translation of the Patristic literature, especially from Greek to
Latin, Syriac and Ethiopian.
√ St. Jerome devoted himself for a long time in translating the works
of Origen, whom he admired.
√ The work of St. Athanasius “The life of Anthony” was translated in
many languages.
√ The sayings of the Egyptian fathers were recorded in Greek and
translated into Latin.
√ Rufinus translated some works of Origen and St. Clement of Alex-
andria.
√ Many Coptic literature was translated to Ethiopian and Nubian lan-
guages.
f. Many Coptic monks and deans of the school of Alexandria visited
other countries with the aim of preaching and establishing
monasteries. They spread some of the Coptic literature in new areas.
2. THE CHURCH HISTORIANS’ EPOCH
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Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 260 - c. 340 A.D) is considered as “The Father of

Patrology,” who established the idea of publishing the sayings and writings
of the fathers. In the introduction to his work: “The Ecclesiastical History,”
written in 326 A.D, he states that he intends to report about “the number of
those who, in each generation, were the ambassadors of the word of God
either by speech or by pen, the names, the number and the age of those
who were driven by the desire of innovations to an extremity of error, have
heralded themselves as the introducers of knowledge, falsely so called.”
He actually presented a list of all the writers and their works. He also
recorded part of the quotations to most of them. His book is the most
important reference in Patrology, though some of the works from which he
quoted had been lost. In spite of its numerous errors it is still the only
reference to some of the early Christian writers.
This book motivated many of the writers in the East and the West to
complete it. They are called “The Church Historians,” such as Socrates,
Sozomen and Theodoret. Their works are similar, but they mostly ignore
the western church. In the west Rufinus translated Eusebius’ work into
Latin, and added to it some events until the age of Theodosius the Great
(392 A.D). These additions have little value.
3. THE SETTING OF “DE VIRIS ILLUSTRIBUS- CONCERNING

DISTINGUISHED MEN’’
This book “The Illustrious Men” is composed by St. Jerome (342 - 420 A.D),
in 392 or 393 A.D, by the demand of his friend Dexter. This work defended
the church from the accusation of Celsus, Prophyry, Julian and other
pagans who thought Christians were not intelligent. St. Jerome records the
Christian writers (till 379 A.D), who were rich in their literature. It consists of
135 chapters, starting with the apostolic age until his days. Each chapter
represents a biography of a writer and his works.
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In his work, St. Jerome, imitated Suetonius, who published his book: “The
Illustrious Fathers” in c. 100 A.D. He dealt in brief with the renowned Latin
writers.
REMARKS ON “ DE VIRIS ILLUSTRIBUS- St. Jerome depended on Eusebius
in the first 78 chapters, though he stated that he did not depend on
previous writings. Yet he repeated Eusebius’ same errors. He was
considered the only source for some early writers, i.e. Marcius Felix,
Novetian, Tertullian etc.
In the introduction he mentioned that his work was bound by those who
wrote concerning the holy Scripture, but in fact it included those who wrote
on theological issues.
As he published it, St. Augustine criticized it6, saying that Jerome did not
separate the Orthodox writers from the heretics. It included some heretics,
i.e. Tatian, Priscillian, Basdesanes and Eunomius; and pagan philosophers,
such as Seneca. It also included some Jewish writers, such as Philo of
Alexandria and Josephius.
E. C. Richardson stated that Jerome did not compose it for scientific
purposes but for practical reasons. He wrote very briefly about well-known
writers, such as. SS. Athanasius, Basil the Great, Cyprian, Gregory of Nyssa,
Epiphanius and Ambrose.
St. Jerome ignored the writings of St. Augustine which were published at
that time, perhaps because of the contention which existed between them.
This work has its precious value in the West. Although it is more than a
thousand years old, it is regarded as a basis of all their studies in this
branch. Attempts are still being made to complete it.
This work was well -connected with the work of Gennadius, a priest in
Marseilles (died at 496 A.D).
REMARKS ON GENNADIUS’ WORK
Richardson states that this work has little value, and is out of sequence
when compared with that of St. Jerome. However, we cannot ignore the
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fact that it is a very useful addition, which may be considered as a second

volume of Jerome’s work.
It consists of 99 chapters, and continues till 495 AD. It concludes with the
writings of the author himself.
c. Gennadius was semi-Pelagian, and this has influenced his work, at the
same time he was a man of extensive knowledge and accurate judgment.
His work remains of prime importance for the history of ancient Christian
literature.
Many writers composed works in the same style, such as Isidore of Serville
(died 636 A.D.), who gave special interest to the Spanish writers7; and his
disciple Ildephonsus of Toledo (d. 667 AD).
Before the end of the eleventh century and the beginning of the twelfth, in
Belgium, the Benedictine historian, Sigebert of Gem-blou, tried to compose
a book that included the Christian literature up to his age. In his book he
dealt with the ancient Christian writers after Jerome and Gennadius. He set
the biography of the Fathers in order, and wrote his remarks on the Latin
theological authors in the beginning of the middle age, without referring to
the Eastern Fathers.
In 1122 Honorius Augustodinum composed similar work, giving it the title,
“De Luminarebus Ecclesiae (The Luminous church).”
In 1135 the so-called Mellicesis published his book “De Scriptoribus
Ecclesiasticis.”
Around 1494 Fr. Johannes Trithemius provided us with a biography of 963
fathers and writers, with some details concerning their writings. Some of
them were not theologians.
Fr. Trithemius was a well-known Benedictine abbot Sponheim, who
established a library of about 2000 volumes. Many nobles used to visit him
to read about the Greek and Latin fathers. Deacon Myraus embraced this
work and corrected it.
Afterwards Cardinal R. Bellarmine was interested in the ancient church
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Literature in a practical way.

In the East, Photius (died on 891 A.D), the Patriarch of Constantinople,
composed a similar work, which was known by its accuracy, and it included
the works of some pagan authors.
In the Coptic church, the Synixarium, which included the biography of
saints, was composed. Some historians, such as John (Yohana) of Necius
appeared. The monasteries were also very inter-ested in copying the
writings of the early fathers.
In the 15th century, Neceforius Kalisty of Constantinople, made a summary
of the previous works and wrote the history of the church from its
establishment until 911 A.D.
3. SCIENTIFIC EPOCH.
A new epoch started in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, by
publishing the first series of the ancient church writings in an exquisite style.
In the nineteenth century many patristic texts were discovered and there
were serious desires to study these texts scientifically. Many academic
institutions and universities established special branches for this subject.
The twentieth century has been predominantly concerned with the history
of ideas, concepts, and terms in Christian literature, and the doctrine of the
various ecclesiastical authors.
OUR CONCERN
When the western scholars are involved in Patrology, they look to the
Church of Alexandria as a living fountain that spreads on the Christendom a
great deal of the Patristic literature texts and spirit.
At the end of the middle age and the beginning of the modern age
treasures of our libraries had been brought to the western museums and
universities, which form a great part of the material of Patrology. J.
Quasten says, “Moreover, the newly discovered papyri of Egypt enabled
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scholars to regain many patristic works which had been lost.”
IMPORTANCE OF PATROLOGY
Patrology is not just a branch of Christian Theology, it is an essential source
of all branches of theology, because the lives and writings of the Fathers
are an open and practical gospel that testifies to the whole aspect of
Christian life and doctrines.
Patrick J. Hamell says, “Theological training is incomplete without the
elements of the history of Dogma and Positive Theology. All the great
theologians studied the Fathers carefully, and reveal that in their works by
extensive quotations.”
1. PATROLOGY AND BIBLICAL STUDIES

The holy Bible is the book of the church, who accepts the Bible as the
treasure of the divine promises, preserves it as her own, and interprets it in
her life through the writings of her Fathers.
The church defended the Old Testament in her dialogue against the
Gnostics, especially Marcion, and explained the harmony and unity
between the Old and the New Testaments.
The Fathers present a treasure of the allegorical interpretation of the whole
Bible, in addition to many historical and moral interpretations, through
which one can enjoy the Bible today and offer its interpretation to the
modern man.
2. PATROLOGY AND DOGMATIC LIFE

Almost all the writings of the Fathers reflect the works of the Holy Trinity in
our life, which is the core of our dogmas.
Patrology, which embraces the minutes and the statements of the local
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and Ecumenical Councils, helps us to deepen our understanding of the

Christian dogmas and doctrines, at that time.
3. PATROLOGY AND COMPARATIVE THEOLOGY

From the very start of Christianity the Church faced those who attacked her
faith: Jews, Philosophers and Heretics. The church also endured the
pressure practised by the rulers of the land. The church faced every group
with its own terms and mentality. For example she depended on the
prophesies from the Old Testament in facing the Jews, and philosophical
logic and terms in facing the philosophical atheists, and the New
Testament in facing the heretics, and love and long-suffering in facing the
persecution.
Patrology supports us not only with the material but also with method by
which we are to face the adversaries.
Moreover, Patrology discovers the Spirit of the Christian in facing those who
resist his faith, taking care not to be absorbed into their errors and violence,
rather desiring their salvation through love.
4. PATROLOGY AND ECCLESIASTICAL THEOLOGY
Rarely do we find writings of the Fathers that looks into the Church, her
concept, her worship etc. Almost all the writings of the Fathers reveal the
work of the Holy Trinity in the Church, as God’s own people, Christ’s own
Body, the temple of the Holy Spirit and the kingdom of God.
The church is declared through the Biblical-exegetical, apologetic, ascetic,
sacramental, and spiritual writings.
Patrology reveals the meaning of the living Church tradition, and its
contents: the faith in the Holy Trinity, Christ’s works and sayings, the
Christian morality and Christian worship. At the same time Patrology is an
essential part of Church tradition.
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5. PATROLOGY AND SACRAMENTAL THEOLOGY

Patrology preserves the ancient liturgical texts which are the source of the
sacramental theology. The early sacramental writings were offered mostly
to the catechumens and the newly- baptized, but for others, practising the
sacraments was sufficient. The sacramental theology, as a branch of
theology, appeared only after the attack against church sacraments, which
occurred in the 16th century in Europe.
6. PATROLOGY AND CHURCH HISTORY

The Early Church in her eschatological attitude was not interested in
recording her history. The first true Church historian was Eusebius of
Caesarea. By his work “Church History” he created the school of the Church
historians in the East and the West. Nevertheless, Patrology supports us
with many historical events and helps us to understand the meanings of
many Church events.
7. PATROLOGY AND MARIOLOGY

For many centuries we rarely find a homily and discourse on Mariology, for
it is unseparated from Christology. In spite of that, we can say that
Mariology had appeared in two attitudes:
a. Dogmatic:
St. Ignatius of Antioch speaks concerning the Virgin birth of Christ as
a living Church tradition that assures the Divinity of Christ.
b. Apologetic:
St. Justine strongly defends this Virgin birth against the Jews who
said that he was a mere man.
According to St. Irenaeus, the attitudes are met together when he
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compares St. Mary with Eve, calling her “second Eve.”

The school of Alexandria offered much in Mariology for it looked to the
personality of St. Mary being fulfilling the genuine Christian thought in its
triple aspects: ascetic, allegorical and dogmatic, because St. Mary is the
model of virgins and ascetics. She also represents the inner glorious life.
The title “Theotokos” assures the hypostatic union between Christ’s
humanity and divinity, for He who was born is the true Son of God.
8. PATROLOGY AND ASCETIC WRITINGS:

Patrology is the science that looks into the sayings and writings of the
Fathers to acknowledge their own Spirit.
The work of St. Athanasius “Vita Anotonii,” the writings of pilgrimages, such
as St. John Cassian, Palladius and St. Jerome; the Apophthegmata
Patrum, the writings of some leaders of the monks, such as that of St.
Isaac of Nineveh, uncover the ascetic life in the Early Church, as an
evangelical life which touches the heart of the believer to enjoy the inner
kingdom of God and to prepare his soul as a heavenly bride. It elevates his
mind and soul to experience the pledge of the eschatological life.
This life is not an escape from the world for rest, but an entrance into an
unceasingly spiritual battle.
It is worthy to note that the ascetic attitude has its effect almost on the life
of every believer, and on the writings of the Fathers.
9. PATROLOGY AND THE SPIRITUAL THEOLOGY

The spirituality of the Early Church can be uncovered not only through the
ascetic writings, homilies and sermons on moral topics, but even through
the apologetic writings and the texts of Church liturgies. Spirituality is a
main line in the life, worship and writings of the Fathers.
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10. PATROLOGY AND THEOLOGY OF EVANGELISM AND PASTORSHIP

The Church’s spirit of witnessing to the evangelical life, by preaching and
shepherding people is extended almost in all early Church writings, even in
the ascetic writings. For preachers, the values of Patrology are immense.
11. PATROLOGY AND ECUMENISM

Patrology helps us not only to acknowledge ecumenism, but also in
realizing it. For the early Churches all over the world had their ecumenical
spirit, not out of gathering together in certain meetings and activities, but
rather through their love for the salvation of all human being, and their unity
in faith.
Ecumenism in fact is the return to the apostolic faith and thought, for it
means oneness in faith, and openness of hearts for heav-enly love, and
unity with one God in Jesus Christ by the One Holy Spirit.
Embracing Patrology helps the Churches to attain the early ecumenical
concepts.
Hamell says, “All Christian bodies hold the Fathers in high esteem, and the
study of the Patristic writings should bring Christians to better knowledge
of Christ’s teaching and promote unity.”
12. PATROLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT

For a long time many Christians regarded Patrology as a rigid work, which
drew the church back to the ancient ages, without any progress. Now,
many theologians and churchmen discovered the importance of Patrology
in the success, progress and edification of the contemporary church. For
Patrology explains the spirit of the early church and offers the experience of
the church living tradition accord-ing to the needs of the contemporary
church. Patrology gives us the genuine basics of the church life and
thought, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit who guides her in the
spiritual way to be united with the Father in the Son.
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THE LANGUAGES AND TEXTS OF THE FATHERS

At the spread of Christianity during the early centuries of the Roman
Empire, the Greek language became the dominant language throughout
the Mediterranean region. Hellenistic civilization and literature had made
such a thorough conquest of the Roman world, that there was hardly any
town in the West in which the Greek language was not in everyday use. For
this reason, Greek must be regarded as an essential language of patristic
literature.
The Fathers did not write in classical Greek, which the Greek writers used in
poetry, history, and philosophy, but in Koine (slang Greek), which became
the official language of the Roman Empire from 300 B.C. to 500 A.D, the
language of the Holy Scriptures, and the Fa-thers of the Early Church2.
In the East the Coptic, Syriac and Armenian languages took over the Greek
language.
THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PATRISTIC WRITINGS

We can classify the patristic writings on many bases:
1. TIME
The Patristic writings, especially of the first five centuries may be classified
on “Time” bases. Some scholars see that the first ecu-menical council
separated the Fathers into two kinds according to their literature;
√ The Ante-Nicene Fathers. Their literature are very simple.

√ The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers.
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2. LANGUAGES
√ The Greek (Eastern) Fathers: the majority of the eastern Fa-thers
wrote in Greek beside their national languages, such as the Coptic,
Syriac and Armenian.
√ The Latin (Western) Fathers.
3. PLACE
√ The Egyptian Fathers, especially those of the School of Alex-
andria, and the Desert Fathers.
√ The Antiochenes.
√ The Capadocian Fathers.
√ The Latin Fathers.
4. THE MATERIAL
● Apologetic writings.
● Biblico-exegetical writings.
● Homilies and sermons.
● Letters.
● Liturgical works.
● Christian poetry and songs.
● Dialogues.
● Ascetic writings.
● Church canons.
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● Church history.
Many scholars had set a classification which is a mixture of some of the
above-mentioned ones.
THE OUTLINE OF THE PATRISTIC LITERATURE

We can present the patristic literature in five stages, using J. Quasten’s
system to some extent:
1. THE BEGINNINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN PATRISTIC LIT-ERATURE
The beginnings of Canonical Legislation, and Liturgical for-mulas.
The writings of the Apostolic Fathers, who were disciples of the
Apostles.
The Apocryphal Literature of the New Testament, which were
separated from the canonical books.
The beginning of Christian Poetry and early hymns.
The first Acts of the Martyrs.
The works of the Apologists.
The beginnings of Heretical Literature.
The beginnings of Anti-Heretical Literature.
2. THE ANTE-NICENE LITERATURE AFTER ST. IRENAEUS
The writings of the Early Fathers of the School of Alexandria.

The Fathers of Asia Minor, Syria and Palestine.
The beginning of the Western Christian literature by Minucius
Felix, Hippolytus of Rome, Novitian etc..
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The African Christian Fathers, such as Tertullian, St. Cyprian,

Arnobius of Sicca and Lactantius.
Other writings of the West, such as Victorinus of Pettau, Re-ticius
of Autun etc...
3. THE GOLDEN AGE AND THE EASTERN FATHERS

The period between the Nicene Council (325 A.D) and the Chalcedonian
Council (425 A.D):
The Egyptian Fathers, such as SS. Alexander who faced Arius,
Athanasius the Apostolic, Serapion of Thmuis, Didymus the Blind,
Theophilus, Synesius of Cyrene, Nonnus of Panopolis, Cyril the
Great...
The Founder of the monastic movement in Egypt, and the writings
of those who visited Egypt to practise and / or to record the monastic
life.
The writings of Asia Minor: Eusebius of Nicomedia, Theognis of
Nicaea, Asterius the Sophist, Marcellus of Ancyra, Basil of Ancyra .
The Cappadocian Fathers: Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazian-zus,
Gregory of Nyssa, Amphilochius of Iconium and Asterius of Amasea
etc.
The writers of Antioch and Syria: Eustathius of Antioch, Aetius of
Antioch, Eunomius of Cyzicus, Eusebius of Caesarea, Acacius of
Caesarea, Gelasius of Caesarea, Euzoius of Caesarea, Eusebius of
Emesa, Nemesius of Emesa etc.
Christianity And Manichaeism: Hegemonius, Titus of Bostra, Cyril of
Jerusalem, Apollinaris of Laodicea, Epiphanius of Salamis, Di-odore
of Tarsus, Theodore of Mopsuestia, Polychronius of Apamea, John
Chrysostom, Acacius of Beroea, Antiochus of Ptolemais, Severian of
Gabala, Macarius Magnes, Hesychius of Jerusalem, Nilus of Ancyra,
Mark the Hermit, Diadochus of Photice, Nestorius, Eutherius of
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Tyana, Proclus of Constantinople, Gennadius of Constantinople, Basil of

Se-leucia etc.
Church Historians of Constantinople: Philip Sidetes, Philos-torgius,
Socrates, Sozomen, Theodoret of Cyrus.
4. THE WESTERN FATHERS IN THE FOURTH AND FIFTH CENTURIES

St. Hilary of Pitiers,
Anti-Arian Writers: Hosuis, Eusebius of Vercelli, Lucifer, Maruis
Victorinusetc.
St. Ambrose Of Milan.
St. Jerome, Rufinus of Aquileia
Christian Poetry: Commodian, Iuvenus, Centones, Damasus,
Ausonius, Prudentius, Paulinus of Nola, Claudianus etc.
St. Augustine and the Pelagian controversy.
The writers of Gaul: Eucherius of Lyons, Eutropius, Evagrius,
Hilary of Arles, Honoratus of Arles, John Cassian, Sulpicius
Severus, Etheria etc.
Italian writers: Fortunatius of Aquileia, Maximus of Turin, Peter
Chrysologus, Siricus, Anastasius, Innocent I, Zosimus, Boniface
I, Celestine I, Sixtus III, Leo.[See Angelio Di Berardino, J.
Quasten: Patrology, vol. IV.]
5. THE WRITINGS AFTER THE COUNCIL OF CHALCEDON
The Great Miaphesite Fathers: SS. Severus of Antioch, Timothy

of Alexandria and Philoxenos of Mobagh.
The Egyptian Fathers in the middle age.
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THE BEGINNINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN PATRISTIC LITERATURE
The beginnings of Canonical Legislation, and Liturgical formulas.

The writings of the Apostolic Fathers.
The Apocryphal Literature of the New Testament.
The beginning of Christian Poetry and early hymns.
The first Acts of the Martyrs.

The works of the Apologists.
The beginnings of Heretical Literature.
The beginnings of Anti-Heretical Literature.
LITURGICAL FORMULAS AND CANONICAL LEGISLATION

The eternal Logos was incarnated and lived among us as a Son of Man, to
create His Church as His holy body, who shares in His characteristics. As
the Heavenly Head he grants Her the practice of the heavenly life, and
attaining the participation in the divine nature. This new life is practised
here on earth through our daily life. In other words, this eschatological
attitude is revealed in the church worship, preaching, and conduct.
The Church preached this heavenly life to the world through human
languages. Her liturgies, order, and canons witness to this evangelical life.
Therefore, we start our study by referring to the Apostles’ Creed
(Symbolum Apostolorum) and the Didache.
Two of the most striking features of the early Church are :
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Her eschatological nature and life.

The development of her visible organization.
THE APOSTLES’ CREED

CREED IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
The Christian faith is a life which the believer experiences per-sonally
together with his brothers, through the unity with the Father in the Son by
the work of the Holy Spirit. This life cannot be defined by a certain creed,
nor limited by a canon because it cannot be expressed by human language.
Nevertheless, there was a necessity for those who accept faith to proclaim
this faith in a brief and simple form before attaining the membership in the
Body of Christ, i.e, before receiving baptism, this form is called a baptismal
creed.
St. Hilary of Poitiers states that we have to utter with what is unspeakable,
and instead of the mere faith we have to deposit our re-ligious doctrines in
human expressions.
When our Lord asked His disciples about their faith St. Peter said. “You are
the Christ, the Son of the living God” Matt. 16:16. Perhaps it was the
starting point of setting a Church creed that ensured our faith in Christ.
Again when our Lord granted His disciples the universal authority to preach,
teach and baptize the believers, He said, “Go you therefore and teach all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Fa-ther, and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit” Matt. 28:19. Our Lord Himself revealed the Trinitarian
formula as a baptismal creed.
The Book of the Acts of the Apostles preserved the original form of the
Creed (8: 37). The apostle Philip baptized the eunuch of Ethiopia after the
latter had professed his faith thus: “I believe that Je-sus Christ is the Son of
God.” This passage proves that the starting point of the Creed was the
confession of faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. There was no need to
require more from the candidates for baptism. The confession of Jesus as
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the Messiah proved sufficient, especially for converts from Judaism.

As time went by, more and more titles were added. Soon after-wards the
word “Savior” was included in the formula, and thus the acrostic (ICHTHUS)
appeared, a favorite Creed in the Hellenistic world, because (ICHTHUS)
‘fish’ contains the initials of the five Greek words for “Jesus Christ, Son of
God, Savior.”
Tertullian and the inscription of Abercius testify to the popu-larity of this
formula in the second half of the second century. Far ear-lier, however this
formula was found, in ancient Christian literature, expressions of faith in
Christ, at once were more formal in character and more extensive in scope.
Already St. Paul’s Epistle to the Romans (1,3) formulates the Gospel of God
as the message of His son, flesh, who was predestined the Son of God in
power, according to the spirit of sanctification by the resurrection of our
Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. Similar formulas can be found in 1 Cor. 15,
3, and in 1 Petr. 3, 18-22. It is possible that these formulas had been in
liturgical use.
About the year 100 A.D, Ignatius of Antioch2 declared his faith in Jesus
Christ in words that remind us very much of the second article in the
Apostle’s Creed: [Jesus Christ, who was of the race of David, who was of
Mary, who was truly born, both ate and drank, was truly persecuted under
Pontius Pilate, was truly crucified and died, while being heavenly, earthly... .
He was also truly raised from the dead, His Father raised Him up, as in
similar fashion His Father will raise us up in Christ Jesus as we believe in
Him, without whom we have no true life.]
THE HISTORY OF CREEDS
As we have said, from the earliest days of the Church the need of some
kind of profession of faith before receiving baptism was felt. Simple and
brief creeds containing a doctrinal summary of Christianity, or a compound
of the faith of the church were used by candidates for baptism.
When the heresies appeared, especially “Gnosticism,” they considered the
bodies and all materials as evil and created by Satan, denying the reality of
incarnation. They almost said that Christ had a heavenly body, different
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from our own body, and that He appeared as if He was a man, but He never
suffered nor was crucified. Therefore the primitive formula was not
sufficient. There was a need of em-phasizing the reality of incarnation,
suffering, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of our Incarnate God.
When heresies, concerning the Trinitarian faith spread, reciting a creed with
emphasis on church faith became necessary, not only for baptism, but in
every worship, private or communal. “Say the creed daily,” St. Augustine
advised his flock, “when you compose yourself to sleep, repeat your creed,
render it to the Lord, be not irked to say it over.”
PRIMITIVE CREEDS
Patrology presents many creed formulas mentioned in the writings of the
Eastern and Western Fathers. Schaff presents a com-parative table of the
Ante- Nicene Rules of Faith, as related to the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene
Creed:
The Apostles’ Creed (Rome), about 340 A.D.
Irenaeus of Lyon, 180 A.D.
Tertullian of Carthage, 200 A.D.
Cyprian of Carthage, 250 A.D.
Novatian of Rome’ 250 A.D.
Origen, Alexandria, 250 A.D.
Gregory of Neo-Caesarea, 270 A.D.
Lucian of Antioch, 300 A.D.
Eusebius of Caesarea, 325 A.D.
Marcellus of Ancyra, 340 A.D.
Cyril of Jerusalem, 350 A.D.
Epiphanius of Salamis, 374 A.D.
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Rufinus of Aquileia, 390 A.D.

The Creed mentioned in the Apostolic Constitution.
THE APOSTLES’ CREED

This creed has a special importance for the Western church, considering it
as the basic of her creeds. Schaff states that the Apostles’ Creed
(Symbolum Apostolicum) is the Creed of creeds, as the Lord’s prayer is the
Prayer of prayers.
It is a brief summary of the principal doctrines of Christianity; hence it may
be called a compendium of the theology of the Church. Its present form,
consisting of twelve articles, does not antedate the sixth century. From the
beginning of the sixth century it was used with certain variation, as a
profession of faith in Gal, Spain, and a little later in Ireland and Germany in
the courses of instruction intended for catechumens.
Rufinus of Aquileia, at the end of the fourth century, had com-posed a
“Commentary on the Symbol of the Apostles.” Creed5 in which he explains
its origin. According to him, there was a tradition which stated that the
ancient text of the Creed goes back to the Apos-tles, not only in contents,
but verbally.
In the sixth century, we meet, for the first time with the asser-tion that each
of the Apostles composed one of the twelve articles of the apostolic
symbol. A pseudo-Augustinian sermon, of that century, thus explains its
origin: ‘Peter said: I believe in God the Father Al-mighty, Creator of heaven
and earth... Andrew said: And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord... ’ ,
each of the Apostles contributed to one of the twelve articles. This sixth
century explanation of the origin of the Apostles’ Creed remained the
prevailing belief throughout the Middle Ages.
It created great surprise, therefore, when Marcus Evgenicus, the Greek
Archbishop of Ephesus, declared at the Council of Ferrara (1438), that the
Eastern Churches knew nothing either of the form of Creed used in the
Western Church, nor of its derivation from the Apostles. A few years later
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the Italian humanist, Lorenzo Valla, denied emphatically the apostolic

authorship of the Symbolum Apostolicum.
F. L. Cross States that this creed had been set after the apostolic age, but it
was called an apostolic, because all its articles express the faith of the
Apostles.
It is agreed that the contents of the old Creed are apostolic, but it is not
possible to prove that the phraseology goes back to the Apos-tles, nor is it
possible to prove that it does not.
ITS CONTENTS
A study of the earliest history of the Creed reveals two distinct forms: the
christological and the Trinitarian formulas.
K. S. Latourette states that this creed was used by the candi-dates of
baptism, declaring that they deny the beliefs of Marcion.
[The opening affirmation “I believe in God the Father Al-mighty” (in original
Greek the word translated “almighty” means “all governing” or “all
controlling,” as one who governs all the universe), quite obviously this rules
out Marcion’s contention that the world is the creation of the Demiurge and
not of the loving Father. The phrases which, “and in Jesus Christ His Son,
who was born of Mary the Virgin, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, on the
third day rose from the dead, ascended into Heaven, sitteth on the right
hand of the Father, from which he cometh to judge the living and the dead,”
clearly do not permit the Marcionite teaching that Christ was a phantom,
but asserts positively that He was the Son, not of the previously unknown
God, but of God who is also the Creator, who was born of a woman, and so
from his conception shared man’s flesh that as sharing as an individual
human being He had a specific place in history, having been crucified and
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buried under a Roman official whose name is known. This, of course, does
not deny that He is also the Son of God and so divine, but, as against
Marcion, it asserts the fact that Jesus Christ was also fully human. The
symbol likewise declares that the risen Christ is seated by the right hand of
the Father, the God who is the Creator and ruler of the universe, so
stressing the conviction that there is only one God, not two gods. By
emphasizing the belief that Christ, the Son of the Father, is to be the Judge,
the creed is repudiating, either deliberately or without that view explicitly in
mind, the Marcionite contention that it is Demiurge, not the Father of The
Son, who is the Judge. Of the concluding phrases {I believe} “In the Holy
Spirit, and the resurrection of the flesh,” the first was not in controversy and
so was not amplified, but the second an addition to the primitive formula,
seems to have been intended as a protest against the view which counted
flesh as evil9.]
THE TEXT
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ, His Only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary; 4. suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried;
He descended into Hades, the third day He rose from the dead; 6. He
ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of God the Father
Almighty;
from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit;
the holy Catholic Church; the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
and the life everlasting.
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THE DIDACHE THE LORD’S INSTRUCTION TO THE GENTILES

THROUGHTHE TWELVE APOSTLES
ITS IMPORTANCE
It is undoubtedly one of the oldest documents, if not the oldest, of Christian
antiquity. It is the oldest source of ecclesiastical law or church manual
which we possess. In early Church, especially in Egypt, Syria and Palestine,
the Didache was very highly esteemed. It was known by name, and in part
(by quotation), from St. Clement of Alex-andria, Origen and St. Athanasius.
F. L. Cross states that the discovery of this work as a guide of an
educational teaching and church order is the most important discovery in
the field of the Fathers’ literature in the last one hundred years.
This work was used in many liturgical works and the writings concerning
the church order and law, such as the Didascalia, Apostolic Tradition of
Hypolitus and the Apostolic Constitutions.
THE AUTHOR
It would be rash to presume, as Duchebne suggested, that the ti-tle points
to apostolic authorship. The text in no wise justifies this. This author’s
intention, evidently, was to give a brief summary of the doctrine of Christ as
taught to the nations by the Apostles. This then explains the title.
Naturally, the Didache was not attributed to a specific author, as it was a
summary of our Lord’s teachings to the Apostles through their evangelism
to the Gentiles. It is in fact, a collection, which the writer put in harmony.
There is no ground for a theory of borrowing from a Jewish work; no
evidence for such a work, and the Didache is specifically Christian in
character5.
DATE
The question of the date of this work was raised, and it has been located all
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the way from A.D 70 to A.D 180. J. P. Audet, who published a very thorough
study of the title work in 1958, has argued that the first half (thorough 11:2)
comes from about A.D 70, while the rest was added not long afterwards.
Perhaps as a whole book it should be dated about the last third of the first
century, possibly around A.D 906.
Its writing dated back to the second half of the first century and not to the
Apostolic era for the following reasons:
1. The details contained in it refer to the stability of the Church
situation. This had been realized at the end of the Apostolic time.
2. Most of the quotations are derived from the Gospel according to St.
Matthew, which means that it was not collated before 90 A.D.
3. It does not deal with the attitude of Judaism, which was the first and
the essential problem the Church faced at the Apostolic age.
Nevertheless, the work had an inner witness that it was collated at a time
very close to the Apostolic era, for the following reasons:
1. Mentioning the running water in baptism, and the absence of
any text of the creed.
2. Its language was very simple, which fitted the period of the
change, from the writing of the New Testament to the writings of
the church.
PLACE
Some scholars state that the method of the Two Ways used here indicates
its place of origin as the East, perhaps Syria or Alexandria.
Some scholars state that Alexandria is the place of its origin for the
following reasons:
1. Alexandria used the method of the Two Ways, such as in the
Apostolic Church order (The Egyptian Church Order).
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2. Some statements were quoted by Egyptian writers, such as St.

Clement of Alexandria .
3. The Egyptian bishop, Serapion, (4th Century) used it in his
Eucharistic Prayers.
4. It used the doxology, which was popular in Egypt, for it used the
words “power” and glory and did not use the word “kingdom.”
Other scholars see that the place of writing was in Syria or Pal-estine
depending on the allusion in to the “corn scattered upon the mountains.”
ITS HISTORY
The complete text of this book of religious instructions was dis-covered in
1873 A.D. by Philotheos Bryennios, Greek Orthodox Metro-politan of
Nicomedia, in the Jerusalem Codex (A.D. 1052 or 1056) and was published
in 1883. (Barnabas and St. Clement of Rome were dis-covered also.)
CONTENTS
Judging by the title only, one might expect the Didache to re-veal the
evangelical preaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. Rather it contains
ecclesiastical rituals of the time, instructions on the organization of
communities, and regulations pertaining to liturgical functions. We here
present a summary of directions, which offer us an excellent picture of
Christian life in the second century. In fact we here have the oldest Church-
Order, and the venerable prototype of all the later collections of
Constitutions or Apostolic Canons with which church law in the East and in
the West began9.
This document enriched and deepened, in an amazing way, our knowledge
of the beginnings of the Church..
This work can be divided into four sections, or rather in three sections and a
conclusion:
● first section: christian behavior (1-6).
● second section: liturgical and sacramental life (7-10, 14).
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● third section: disciplinary regulations (11-15).

● fourth section: the parousia of the lord.
● FIRST SECTION: CHRISTIAN BEHAVIOR:-

Instructions in Christian ethics, containing description of the Two Ways: of
Life (1-4), and of Death (5- 6). It is a high-toned moral catechism
preparatory to baptism, exhorting the catechumens to walk in the path of
righteousness and be cautious of that of unrighteousness.
The method of the “Two Ways” was used by the Jewish writers, but here it
is based on the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The author of this section may have borrowed from the descrip-tion of the
Two Ways in the Epistle of Barnabas, or vice versa, but it is unlikely that
both borrowed from an older source10.
It illustrates that life is found in the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ, while
death is ignoring these teachings. It focused on the Chris-tian way of
spiritual life, especially as demonstrated in the teachings of the sermon on
the mount. The text begins thus:
There are two ways, one of life and one of death, and there is a great
difference between the two ways.
“First of all, love the God who made you; secondly, your neighbor as yourself;
and all things whatsoever you would not have befall yourself, do not do to
another.” 1:1,2.
The description of the way of life:
● Love, even to the enemies. [1:2-5]
● Purity. [1:3]
● Longing for giving and not for receiving. [1:5]
● Obedience of the divine commandments. [4:13]
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● Teaching our children the fear of God [4:9].

● Confession of sins: [In church confess your transgressions, and
do not come to prayer with an evil conscience 4:14.]
● Not to be outside God. [6:1]
● Carrying the yoke of the Lord. [6:2].
The description of the way of death:
● Committing sins and impurity. [5:1]
● Violence, especially against the truth. [5:2]
● SECOND SECTION: LITURGICAL AND SACRAMENTAL LIFE
This section gives directions affecting church rites and orders. It treats
Baptism and Eucharist with the agape. The oldest Eucharistic prayers have
come to light in the Didache.
It refers to some traditional practices at that time, such as;
● .Baptism was practised by immersion in a running water, i.e. in the
rivers. [7:1 -3]. This custom was known in the Apostolic era and in the
proceeding years.
● Baptism by pouring water from a vessel or from the hand of the
minister of baptism was allowed in cases of scarcity of water. After-
wards this mode was applied only to sick persons who could not
leave their bed; hence called clinical baptism [the word κλινικοι from
the word κλινη (bed). Clinicus designated one who was baptized on
the sick bed.]
● Fasting is necessary for candidates, the minister of Baptism, and
others, for one or two days before Baptism. [7:4] In the Coptic Church
this custom is still practised on the same day until Baptism takes
place.
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● Weekly fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays, and praying thrice a

day, without hypocrisy are necessary.
● The necessity of regularly receiving the Holy Eucharist. [9]
● THIRD SECTION: DISCIPLINARY REGULATIONS

Mutual relations of the Christian communities:
● Scrutiny of wandering Christian ministers (apostles, prophets and
teachers).[11]
● Reception of traveling brethren. [12]
● Support of prophets and teachers in the community. [13]
● Religious life of each community ( e.g. divine service on Sun-day).
[14] It calls the first “the Lord’s Day .”
● The superiors of the communities (bishops, deacons). [15] Here it
mentions bishops and deacons, but no presbyter. St. Clement of
Alexandria (2nd century) distinguishes the deaconate, the
presbyterate, and the episcopate; but he assumes only a twofold
official character, that of presbyters, and that of deacons, perhaps for
the following reasons:
√ The word “presbyter” was used some times in a wide meaning to
include the bishops and priests, and others in a narrow
meaning to express only the priests.
√ The tradition of the church of Alexandria, from the time of
evangelist Mark, down to the middle of the third century, the
twelve priests elected one from amongst them to be a bishop,
as their presi-dent11. He considered himself as their brother.
As the Didache is an Alexandrine document it expresses these
feelings at that time.
FOURTH SECTION: THE PAROUSIA OF THE LORD
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This section is an apocalypse apparently based on Matthew 24. It exhorts

watching in preparation for the last day, which is at hand. This is the
purpose of the Church life in her three aspects: the Christian behavior, the
liturgical and sacramental life, and the disciplinary regula-tions.
‘’Be watchful over your life;
never let your lamps go out or your loins be ungirt,
but keep yourselves always in readiness, for you can never be sure of the
hour when our Lord may be coming.
Come often together for spiritual improvement; because all the past years
of your faith will be no good to you at the end, unless you have made
yourselves perfect.
In the last days of the world false prophets and deceivers will abound,
sheep will be perverted and turn into wolves, and love will change to hate,
for with the growth of lawlessness men will begin to hate their fellows and
persecute them and betray them.
Then the Deceiver of the World will show himself, pretending to be a Son of
God and doing signs and wonders, and the earth will be delivered into his
hands, and he will work such wickedness as there has never been since
the beginning.
After that, all humankind will come up for their fiery trial; mul-titudes of
them will stumble and perish, but such as remain steadfast in the faith will
be saved by the Curse.
And then the signs of the truth will appear: first the sign of the opening
heavens, next the sign of the trumpet’s voice,and thirdly the rising of the
dead - not of the dead - not of all the dead, but, as it says, the Lord will
come, and with him all his holy ones.
And then the whole world will see the Lord as He comes riding on the
clouds of heaven...’’
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END. !!!
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HOLY TRINITY UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF PRACTICAL THEOLOGY

HOLY TRINITY January 1

THE CONCEPT OF PATROLOGY

METHODS OF PATRISTIC STUDIES

are interested in enjoying the richness of the Fathers’ spirituality, by

The word “Patrology” is derived from the Latin word “Pater”

16; 2 Pet. 3:4).

THE TERM “FATHER” IN PATROLOGY

In the ﬁrst century, teaching was a bishopric work, or a “Fatherly” work.

but they had many disciples who practised evangelical asceticism.

b. Orthodoxy of doctrine: The “Father” examines the church life

e. The Catholic(universal- እንተ ላዕለኩሉ)Church admits another

differences in their cultures, gifts and circumstances.

USING THE WRITINGS OF THE FATHERS.

THE HISTORY OF PATROLOGY

1. THE BEGINNING OF THE SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY

ancient spiritual literature to be preserved, but as a continuous church life

HOW THE PATRISTIC LITERATURES WAS PRESERVED AT THAT EPOCH:

c. Many diaries, memories and books were written by pilgrims. St.

Palladius, the historian of monks (c. 365-425) visited Egypt and

2. THE CHURCH HISTORIANS’ EPOCH

Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 260 - c. 340 A.D) is considered as “The Father of

3. THE SETTING OF “DE VIRIS ILLUSTRIBUS- CONCERNING

fact that it is a very useful addition, which may be considered as a second

Literature in a practical way.

scholars to regain many patristic works which had been lost.”

1. PATROLOGY AND BIBLICAL STUDIES

2. PATROLOGY AND DOGMATIC LIFE

and Ecumenical Councils, helps us to deepen our understanding of the

3. PATROLOGY AND COMPARATIVE THEOLOGY

5. PATROLOGY AND SACRAMENTAL THEOLOGY

6. PATROLOGY AND CHURCH HISTORY

7. PATROLOGY AND MARIOLOGY

compares St. Mary with Eve, calling her “second Eve.”

8. PATROLOGY AND ASCETIC WRITINGS:

9. PATROLOGY AND THE SPIRITUAL THEOLOGY

10. PATROLOGY AND THEOLOGY OF EVANGELISM AND PASTORSHIP

11. PATROLOGY AND ECUMENISM

12. PATROLOGY AND DEVELOPMENT

THE LANGUAGES AND TEXTS OF THE FATHERS

THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE PATRISTIC WRITINGS

√ The Ante-Nicene Fathers. Their literature are very simple.

THE OUTLINE OF THE PATRISTIC LITERATURE

2. THE ANTE-NICENE LITERATURE AFTER ST. IRENAEUS

The writings of the Early Fathers of the School of Alexandria.

The African Christian Fathers, such as Tertullian, St. Cyprian,

3. THE GOLDEN AGE AND THE EASTERN FATHERS

Tyana, Proclus of Constantinople, Gennadius of Constantinople, Basil of

4. THE WESTERN FATHERS IN THE FOURTH AND FIFTH CENTURIES

5. THE WRITINGS AFTER THE COUNCIL OF CHALCEDON

The Great Miaphesite Fathers: SS. Severus of Antioch, Timothy

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE CHRISTIAN PATRISTIC LITERATURE

The beginnings of Canonical Legislation, and Liturgical formulas.

The ﬁrst Acts of the Martyrs.

LITURGICAL FORMULAS AND CANONICAL LEGISLATION

Her eschatological nature and life.

THE APOSTLES’ CREED

the Messiah proved suﬃcient, especially for converts from Judaism.