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 per ...
. The names derive from the combined forms of Latin ''pater'' and Greek ''patḗr'' (father). The period is generally considered to run from the end of
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
times or end of the
Apostolic Age
Christianity in the 1st century covers the formative history of Christianity from the start of the ministry of Jesus (–29 AD) to the death of the last of the Twelve Apostles () and is thus also known as the Apostolic Age. Early Christianity ...
() to either AD 451 (the date of the
Council of Chalcedon
The Council of Chalcedon (; la, Concilium Chalcedonense), ''Synodos tēs Chalkēdonos'' was the fourth ecumenical council of the Christian Church. It was convoked by the Roman emperor Marcian. The council convened in the city of Chalcedon, Bith ...
) or to the
Second Council of Nicaea
The Second Council of Nicaea is recognized as the last of the first seven ecumenical councils by the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. In addition, it is also recognized as such by the Old Catholics, the Anglican Communion, and ...
in 787.
Eras
The Church Fathers are generally divided into the
Ante-Nicene 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 pe ...
, those who lived and wrote before the Council of Nicaea (325) and the
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
''A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church'', usually known as the ''Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers'' (NPNF), is a set of books containing translations of early Christian writings into English. It was publi ...
, those who lived and wrote after 325. Also, the division of the Fathers into Greek and Latin writers is also common. Some of the most prominent Greek Fathers are
Justin Martyr
Justin Martyr ( el, Ἰουστῖνος ὁ μάρτυς, Ioustinos ho martys; c. AD 100 – c. AD 165), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and philosopher.
Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and ...
,
Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
,
Basil of Caesarea
Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Ca ...
,
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...
,
John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his homilies, preaching and public speaking, his denunciat ...
,
Cyril of Alexandria
Cyril of Alexandria ( grc, Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας; cop, Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲩ ⲁ̅ also ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376 – 444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444 ...
, and
Maximus the Confessor
Maximus the Confessor ( el, Μάξιμος ὁ Ὁμολογητής), also spelt Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople ( – 13 August 662), was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar.
In his earl ...
. Among the Latin Fathers are
Tertullian
Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...
,
Cyprian
Cyprian (; la, Thaschus Caecilius Cyprianus; 210 – 14 September 258 AD''The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite: Vol. IV.'' New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1975. p. 1406.) was a bishop of Carthage and an early Chri ...
,
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
,
Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...
of Milan,
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
, and
Gregory the Great
Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregori ...
.
There were also Church Fathers who wrote in languages other than Greek or Latin, such as
Coptic
Coptic may refer to:
Afro-Asia
* Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya
* Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century
* Coptic alphabet ...
,
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
, among others. Historically, Chalcedonian Christians have had less interest in these authors since the associated churches ended up rejecting the councils of Chalcedon (becoming
Oriental Orthodox
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 60 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches are part of the Nicene Christian tradition, and represent o ...
), or Ephesus (becoming the
Church of the East
The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
). Recently this has begun to change, with the cooling of tensions between these branches of Christianity and the Western and Byzantine ones. There are
Eastern Catholics
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of th ...
who follow Oriental rites while remaining in communion with Rome, and at least one organization argues that Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Christians now share the same faith.
Locations
The major locations of the early Church fathers were
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
,
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ ...
, and the area of western north Africa around
Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...
.
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
and
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
apologetics
Apologetics (from Greek , "speaking in defense") is the religious discipline of defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and discourse. Early Christian writers (c. 120–220) who defended their beliefs against critics and ...
(the 'defense' or 'explanation' of Christianity); and doctrinal discussions that sought to achieve consistency of faith, in particular within the Christianised Roman Empire. Following the scholar of Christianity
Alister McGrath
Alister Edgar McGrath (; born 1953) is a Northern Irish theologian, Anglican priest, intellectual historian, scientist, Christian apologist, and public intellectual. He currently holds the Andreas Idreos Professorship in Science and Religion in ...
(1998), several major areas of theology can be seen to have developed during the Patristic Period: the extent of the
New Testament canon
The canon of the New Testament is the set of books many modern Christians regard as divinely inspired and constituting the New Testament of the Christian Bible. For historical Christians, canonization was based on whether the material was from a ...
, the role of tradition, the fixing of the
ecumenical creeds
Ecumenical creeds is an umbrella term used in Lutheran tradition to refer to three creeds: the Nicene Creed, the Apostles' Creed and the Athanasian Creed. These creeds are also known as the catholic or universal creeds.
These creeds are accep ...
, the
two natures of Christ
In Christian theology, dyophysitism (Greek: δυοφυσιτισμός, from δυο (''dyo''), meaning "two" and φύσις (''physis''), meaning "nature") is the Christological position that two natures, divine and human, exist in the person of ...
, the doctrine of the
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
, the doctrine of the
Church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* Chris ...
, and the doctrine of
divine grace
Divine grace is a theological term present in many religions. It has been defined as the divine influence which operates in humans to regenerate and sanctify, to inspire virtuous impulses, and to impart strength to endure trial and resist temptati ...
.
Key persons
*
Clement of Rome
Pope Clement I ( la, Clemens Romanus; Greek: grc, Κλήμης Ῥώμης, Klēmēs Rōmēs) ( – 99 AD) was bishop of Rome in the late first century AD. He is listed by Irenaeus and Tertullian as the bishop of Rome, holding office from 88 AD t ...
() (Greek)
*
Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch (; Greek: Ἰγνάτιος Ἀντιοχείας, ''Ignátios Antiokheías''; died c. 108/140 AD), also known as Ignatius Theophorus (, ''Ignátios ho Theophóros'', lit. "the God-bearing"), was an early Christian writer ...
() (Greek)
*
Aristides the Athenian
Aristides the Athenian (also Saint Aristides or Marcianus Aristides; el, Ἀριστείδης Μαρκιανός) was a 2nd-century Christian Greek author who is primarily known as the author of the ''Apology of Aristides''. His feast day is A ...
(d. ~140) (Greek)
*
Polycarp of Smyrna
Polycarp (; el, Πολύκαρπος, ''Polýkarpos''; la, Polycarpus; AD 69 155) was a Christian bishop of Smyrna. According to the ''Martyrdom of Polycarp'', he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed ...
() (Greek)
*
Justin Martyr
Justin Martyr ( el, Ἰουστῖνος ὁ μάρτυς, Ioustinos ho martys; c. AD 100 – c. AD 165), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and philosopher.
Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and ...
Melito of Sardis
Melito of Sardis ( el, Μελίτων Σάρδεων ''Melítōn Sárdeōn''; died ) was the bishop of Sardis near Smyrna in western Anatolia, and a great authority in early Christianity. Melito held a foremost place in terms of bishops in Asia d ...
(d. 180) (Greek)
*
Theophilus of Antioch
:''There is also a Theophilus of Alexandria'' (c. 412 AD).
Theophilus ( el, Θεόφιλος ὁ Ἀντιοχεύς) was Patriarch of Antioch from 169 until 182. He succeeded Eros c. 169, and was succeeded by Maximus I c. 183, according to Henr ...
Irenaeus of Lyons
Irenaeus (; grc-gre, Εἰρηναῖος ''Eirēnaios''; c. 130 – c. 202 AD) was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the deve ...
() (Greek)
*
Clement of Alexandria
Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria ( grc , Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; – ), was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen and ...
() (Greek)
*
Tertullian
Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Hippolytus of Rome
Hippolytus of Rome (, ; c. 170 – c. 235 AD) was one of the most important second-third century Christian theologians, whose provenance, identity and corpus remain elusive to scholars and historians. Suggested communities include Rome, Palestin ...
() (Greek)
*
Julius Africanus
Sextus Julius Africanus (c. 160 – c. 240; Greek: Σέξτος Ἰούλιος ὁ Ἀφρικανός or ὁ Λίβυς) was a Christian traveler and historian of the late second and early third centuries. He is important chiefly because o ...
() (Greek-African)
*
Origen
Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...
() (Greek)
*
Marcus Minucius Felix
__NOTOC__
Marcus Minucius Felix (died c. 250 AD in Rome) was one of the earliest of the Latin Christian apologetics, apologists for Christianity.
Nothing is known of his personal history, and even the date at which he wrote can be only approximate ...
(d. ~250) (Latin)
*
Cyprian of Carthage
Cyprian (; la, Thaschus Caecilius Cyprianus; 210 – 14 September 258 AD''The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite: Vol. IV.'' New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1975. p. 1406.) was a bishop of Carthage and an early Christ ...
(d. 258) (Latin-African)
*
Pontius of Carthage
Pontius, or Pontius the Deacon, (died in the mid third century) was a Christian saint and Latin author from Carthage. He served as a deacon under Cyprian of Carthage (c. 200 –258) and wrote the ''Vita Cypriani'' ("Life of Cyprian") shortly af ...
(d. 259) (Latin-African)
*
Dionysius of Alexandria
Dionysius the Great ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξανδρείας) was the 14th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria from 28 December 248 until his death on 22 March 264. Most information known about him comes from his large surviving correspo ...
(d. 264) (Greek)
*
Dionysius of Rome
Pope Dionysius was the bishop of Rome from 22 July 259 to his death on 26 December 268. His task was to reorganize the Roman church, after the persecutions of Roman emperor, Emperor Valerian I and the edict of toleration by his successor Gallie ...
() (Greek)
*
Gregory Thaumaturgus
Gregory Thaumaturgus or Gregory the Miracle-Worker ( grc, Γρηγόριος ὁ Θαυματουργός, ''Grēgórios ho Thaumatourgós''; la, Gregorius Thaumaturgus; 213 – 270), also known as Gregory of Neocaesarea, was a Christi ...
() (Greek)
*
Anatolius of Laodicea
Anatolius of Laodicea (early 3rd century – July 3, 283), also known as Anatolios of Alexandria, became Bishop of Laodicea on the Mediterranean coast of Roman Syria in AD 268. He was not only one of the foremost scholars of his day in the physi ...
(d. 283) (Greek)
*
Victorinus of Pettau
Saint Victorinus of Pettau (also Ptuj or Poetovio; died 303 or 304) was an Early Christian ecclesiastical writer who flourished about 270, and who was martyred during the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian. A Bishop of Poetovio (modern Ptuj in ...
(d. 304) (Greek)
*
Pamphilus of Caesarea
Saint Pamphilus ( el, Πάμφιλος; latter half of the 3rd century – February 16, 309 AD), was a presbyter of Caesarea and chief among the biblical scholars of his generation. He was the friend and teacher of Eusebius of Caesarea, who ...
(d. 309) (Greek)
*
Methodius of Olympus
Saint Methodius of Olympus ( el, Μεθόδιος) (died c. 311) was an early Christian bishop, ecclesiastical author, and martyr. Today, he is honored as a saint and Church Father; the Catholic Church commemorates his feast on June 20.
Life
F ...
(died c. 311) (Greek)
*
Lactantius
Lucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius (c. 250 – c. 325) was an early Christian author who became an advisor to Roman emperor, Constantine I, guiding his Christian religious policy in its initial stages of emergence, and a tutor to his son Cr ...
Arnobius of Sicca
Arnobius (died c. 330) was an early Christian apologist of Berber origin during the reign of Diocletian (284–305).
According to Jerome's ''Chronicle,'' Arnobius, before his conversion, was a distinguished Numidian rhetorician at Sicca Veneri ...
(d. 330) (Latin-African)
*
Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christia ...
() (Greek)
*
Eusebius of Nicomedia
Eusebius of Nicomedia (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος; died 341) was an Arian priest who baptized Constantine the Great on his deathbed in 337. A fifth-century legend evolved that Pope Saint Sylvester I was the one to baptize Constantine, but this ...
(d. 342) (Greek)
*
Aphrahat
Aphrahat (c. 280–c. 345; syr, ܐܦܪܗܛ ''Ap̄rahaṭ'', ar, أفراهاط الحكيم, , grc, Ἀφραάτης, and Latin ''Aphraates'') was a Syriac Christian author of the third century from the Persian / Sasanian Empire who composed a ...
() (Syriac)
*
Pachomius the Great
Pachomius (; el, Παχώμιος ''Pakhomios''; ; c. 292 – 9 May 348 AD), also known as Saint Pachomius the Great, is generally recognized as the founder of Christian cenobitic monasticism. Coptic churches celebrate his feast day on 9 May, ...
() (Coptic)
*
Anthony the Great
Anthony the Great ( grc-gre, Ἀντώνιος ''Antṓnios''; ar, القديس أنطونيوس الكبير; la, Antonius; ; c. 12 January 251 – 17 January 356), was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is d ...
() (Coptic)
*
Hosius of Corduba
Hosius of Corduba (c. 256–359), also known as Osius or Ossius, was a bishop of Corduba (now Córdoba, Spain) and an important and prominent advocate for Homoousion Christianity in the Arian controversy that divided the early Christianity.
He p ...
() (Latin)
*
Eusebius of Emesa
Eusebius of Emesa (c. 300c. 360) was a learned ecclesiastic of the Greek church, and a pupil of Eusebius of Caesarea. He was born in Edessa (in today's southeastern Turkey) and became the bishop of Emesa (in today's Syria). The Latin form of his na ...
() (Greek)
*
Eustathius of Antioch
Eustathius of Antioch, sometimes surnamed the Great, was a Christian bishop and archbishop of Antioch in the 4th century. His feast day in the Eastern Orthodox Church is February 21.
Life
He was a native of Side in Pamphylia. About 320 he was bi ...
(d. 360) (Greek)
*
Potamius
__NOTOC__
Potamius (Greek: Ποτάμιος, 343–360 AD), also known as Potamius of Lisbon, was the first recorded bishop of the city of Lisbon. He was possibly born in Lisbon, given that Iberian communities at the time usually chose their own ...
(d. 360) (Latin)
*
Hilary of Poitiers
Hilary of Poitiers ( la, Hilarius Pictaviensis; ) was Bishop of Poitiers and a Doctor of the Church. He was sometimes referred to as the "Hammer of the Arians" () and the "Athanasius of the West". His name comes from the Latin word for happy or ...
() (Latin)
*
Eusebius of Vercelli
Eusebius of Vercelli (c. March 2, 283 – August 1, 371) was a bishop from Sardinia and is counted a saint. Along with Athanasius, he affirmed the divinity of Jesus against Arianism.
Biography
Eusebius was born in Sardinia, in 283. After his fathe ...
() (Latin)
*
Lucifer of Cagliari
Lucifer of Cagliari ( la, Lucifer Calaritanus, it, Lucifero da Cagliari; died 20 May 370 or 371) was a bishop of Cagliari in Sardinia known for his passionate opposition to Arianism. He is venerated as a Saint in Sardinia, though his status rem ...
(d. 371) (Latin)
*
Athanasius
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
() (Greek-Coptic)
*
Ephrem the Syrian
Ephrem the Syrian ( syc, ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ, Mār ʾAp̄rêm Sūryāyā, ; grc-koi, Ἐφραὶμ ὁ Σῦρος, Efrém o Sýros; la, Ephraem Syrus; am, ቅዱስ ኤፍሬም ሶርያዊ; ), also known as Saint Ephrem, Saint ...
() (Syriac)
*
Marcellus of Ancyra
Marcellus may refer to:
* Marcellus (name)
* Marcus Claudius Marcellus, Roman commander
Places
* Marcellus, Lot-et-Garonne, France
* Marcellus Township, Michigan
** Marcellus, Michigan, a village in Marcellus Township
** Marcellus Community Scho ...
(d. 374) (Greek)
*
Basil of Caesarea
Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Ca ...
( – 379) (Greek)
*
Zeno of Verona
Zeno of Verona ( it, Zenone da Verona; about 300 – 371 or 380) was either an early Christian Bishop of Verona or a martyr. He is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Orthodox Church.
Life and historicity
According to a Veronese au ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Apollinaris of Laodicea
Apollinaris the Younger, also known as Apollinaris of Laodicea and Apollinarius ( grc, Ἀπολινάριος; died 382) was a bishop of Laodicea in Syria. He is best known as a noted opponent of Arianism. Apollinaris's eagerness to emphasize th ...
(d. 382) (Greek)
*
Ambrosiaster
Ambrosiaster or Pseudo-Ambrose is the name given to the unknown author of a commentary on the epistles of Saint Paul, written some time between 366 and 384AD. This commentary was erroneously attributed for a long time to St. Ambrose, hence the na ...
(d. 384) (Latin)
*
Cyril of Jerusalem
Cyril of Jerusalem ( el, Κύριλλος Α΄ Ἱεροσολύμων, ''Kýrillos A Ierosolýmon''; la, Cyrillus Hierosolymitanus; 313 386 AD) was a theologian of the early Church. About the end of 350 AD he succeeded Maximus as Bishop of ...
() (Greek)
*
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...
() (Greek)
*
Ticonius Ticonius, also spelled Tyconius or Tychonius (active 370–390 AD) was one of the most important theologians of 4th-century North African Latin Christianity. He was a Donatist writer whose conception of the City of God influenced St. Augustine of H ...
(d. 390) (Latin-African)
*
Nemesius
Nemesius of Emesa ( grc-gre, Νεμέσιος Ἐμέσης; la, Nemesius Emesenus; fl. c. AD 390) was a Christian philosopher, and the author of a treatise ''Περὶ φύσεως ἀνθρώπου'' or ''De natura hominis'' ("On Human Nature"). ...
(d. 390) (Greek)
*
Diodorus of Tarsus
Diodore of Tarsus (Greek language, Greek Διόδωρος ὁ Ταρσεύς; died c. 390) was a Christianity, Christian bishop, a monastic reformer, and a Christian theologian, theologian. A strong supporter of the orthodoxy of First Council of ...
(d. 390) (Greek)
*
Pacian
Saint Pacian (''Pacianus'') ( ca, Sant Pacià) (c. 310–391 AD) was a bishop of Barcelona during the fourth century. He was bishop from about 365 AD to 391 AD, succeeding Praetextatus (''Pretextat''), who had attended a church council at Sardic ...
() (Latin)
*
Gregory of Elvira Gregory Baeticus (died c. 392) was the bishop of Elvira, in the province of Baetica, Spain.
Life
Gregory is first met with as Bishop of Elvira (Illiberis) in 375; he is mentioned in the Luciferian "Libellus precum ad Imperatores" as the defender ...
(d. 392) (Latin)
*
Phoebadius of Agen
Phoebadius of Agen (also, Phaebadius, Foegadius, or, in French, ''Phébade''; died ca. 392) was a Catholic bishop of the fourth century. At the Council of Ariminum in 359 and other councils, he was a supporter of First Council of Nicaea, Nicaean o ...
(d. 392) (Latin)
*
Gregory of Nyssa
Gregory of Nyssa, also known as Gregory Nyssen ( grc-gre, Γρηγόριος Νύσσης; c. 335 – c. 395), was Bishop of Nyssa in Cappadocia from 372 to 376 and from 378 until his death in 395. He is venerated as a saint in Catholici ...
() (Greek)
*
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours ( la, Sanctus Martinus Turonensis; 316/336 – 8 November 397), also known as Martin the Merciful, was the third bishop of Tours. He has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints in France, heralded as the ...
() (Latin)
*
Ambrose of Milan
Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promot ...
() (Latin)
*
Didymus the Blind
Didymus the Blind (alternatively spelled Dedimus or Didymous) (c. 313398) was a Christian theologian in the Church of Alexandria, where he taught for about half a century. He was a student of Origen, and, after the Second Council of Constantinopl ...
() (Greek)
*
Siricius
Pope Siricius (334 – 26 November 399) was the bishop of Rome from December 384 to his death. In response to inquiries from Bishop Himerius of Tarragona, Siricius issued the ''Directa'' decretal, containing decrees of baptism, church discipline ...
() (Latin)
*
Evagrius Ponticus
Evagrius Ponticus ( grc-gre, Εὐάγριος ὁ Ποντικός, Georgian: ევაგრე ქართველი), also called Evagrius the Solitary (345–399 AD), was a Christian monk and ascetic from Heraclea, a city on the coast of ...
() (Greek)
*
Gaius Marius Victorinus Gaius Marius Victorinus (also known as Victorinus Afer; fl. 4th century) was a Roman grammarian, rhetorician and Neoplatonic philosopher. Victorinus was African by birth and experienced the height of his career during the reign of Constantius II. H ...
(d. 400) (Latin-African)
*
Optatus
Saint Optatus, sometimes anglicized as St. Optate, was Bishop of Milevis, in Numidia, in the fourth century, remembered for his writings against Donatism.
Biography and context
Optatus was a convert, as we gather from St. Augustine: "Do we not s ...
(d. 400) (Latin-African)
* Publilius (d. 400) (Latin-African)
*
Rufinus the Syrian
Rufinus the Syrian or Rufinus of Syria ( fl. c. 400) was a Christian theologian, priest and author, generally identified as a Pelagian.Anastasius I (d. 401) (Latin)
*
Epiphanius of Salamis
Epiphanius of Salamis ( grc-gre, Ἐπιφάνιος; c. 310–320 – 403) was the bishop of Salamis, Cyprus, at the end of the 4th century. He is considered a saint and a Church Father by both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches. He gai ...
() (Greek)
*
Amphilochius of Iconium
Amphilochius of Iconium ( el, Ἀµφιλόχιος Ἰκονίου) was a Christian bishop of the fourth century, son of a Cappadocian family of distinction, born, perhaps at Caesara, ca. 339/340, died probably 394–403. His father was an emin ...
(d. 403) (Greek)
*
John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his homilies, preaching and public speaking, his denunciat ...
() (Greek)
*
Chromatius
Saint Chromatius (died 406/407 AD) was a bishop of Aquileia.
He was probably born at Aquileia, and grew up there.Gaudentius of Brescia
Saint Gaudentius ( it, San Gaudenzio di Brescia; died 410) was Bishop of Brescia from 387 until 410, and was a theologian and author of many letters and sermons. He was the successor of Saint Philastrius. Biography
Gaudentius had studied under P ...
Macarius Magnes
Macarius Magnes ( grc-gre, Μακάριος Μάγνης) is the author of an apology against a Neo-Platonic philosopher of the early part of the fourth century, contained in a manuscript of the fifteenth century discovered at Athens in 1867 and ed ...
(d. ~410) (Greek)
*
Tyrannius Rufinus
Tyrannius Rufinus, also called Rufinus of Aquileia (''Rufinus Aquileiensis'') or Rufinus of Concordia (344/345–411), anglicized as Tyrann Rufine, was a monk, historian, and theologian. He is best known as a translator of Greek patristic materia ...
Prudentius
Aurelius Prudentius Clemens () was a Roman citizen, Roman Christianity, Christian poet, born in the Roman Empire, Roman province of Tarraconensis (now Northern Spain) in 348.H. J. Rose, ''A Handbook of Classical Literature'' (1967) p. 508 He prob ...
() (Latin)
*
Nicetas of Remesiana
Nicetas (c. 335–414) was Bishop of Remesiana (present-day Bela Palanka, Serbia), which was then in the Roman province of Dacia Mediterranea.
Biography
Nicetas promoted Latin sacred music for use during the Eucharistic worship and reputedly co ...
() (Latin)
*
Synesius
Synesius (; el, Συνέσιος; c. 373 – c. 414), was a Greek bishop of Ptolemais in ancient Libya, a part of the Western Pentapolis of Cyrenaica after 410. He was born of wealthy parents at Balagrae (now Bayda, Libya) near Cyrene between ...
Sulpicius Severus
Sulpicius Severus (; c. 363 – c. 425) was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania in modern-day France. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours.
Life
Almost all that we know of Se ...
() (Latin)
*
Maruthas
Saint Maruthas or Marutha of Martyropolis was a Syrian monk who became bishop"The Armenian Life of Marutha of Maipherkat", Ralph Marcus, ''The Harvard Theological Review'', Vol. 25, No. 1 (Jan., 1932), 47. of Maypherkat in Mesopotamia ( Meiafa ...
(d. 420) (Syriac)
*
Martianus Capella
Martianus Minneus Felix Capella (fl. c. 410–420) was a jurist, polymath and Latin prose writer of late antiquity, one of the earliest developers of the system of the seven liberal arts that structured early medieval education. He was a nati ...
(d. 420) (Latin-African)
*
Paulinus the Deacon Paulinus the Deacon, also Paulinus of Milan was the notary of Ambrose of Milan, and his biographer. His work is the only life of Ambrose based on a contemporary account, and was written at the request of Augustine of Hippo; it is dated to 422 AD.
A ...
(d. ~422) (Latin)
*
Severian of Gabala Severian, Bishop of Gabala in Syria (* before 380; † after 408, but probably before 425), was a popular preacher in Constantinople from around 398/399 until 404. He became the enemy of John Chrysostom and helped condemn him at the Synod of the O ...
() (Greek)
*
Atticus of Constantinople
Atticus ( grc-gre, Ἀττικός; died 5 November 425) was the archbishop of Constantinople, succeeding Arsacius of Tarsus in March 406. He had been an opponent of John Chrysostom and helped Arsacius of Tarsus depose him, but later became a sup ...
(d. 425) (Greek)
*
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
() (Latin)
*
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Palladius of Galatia
Palladius of Galatia ( el, Παλλάδιος Γαλατίας) was a Christian chronicler and the bishop of Helenopolis in Bithynia. He was a devoted disciple of Saint John Chrysostom. He is best remembered for his work, the ''Lausiac History.' ...
() (Greek)
*
Nilus of Sinai
Saint Nilus the Elder of Sinai (also known as Neilos, Nilus of Sinai, Nilus of Ancyra; born 4th century; died 12 November 430 or 451) was one of the many disciples and stalwart defenders of St. John Chrysostom.
Life
A native of Constantinople, Nil ...
Philip of Side
Philip of Side or Philip Sidetes (''ca'' 380 - after 431), a historian of the early Christian church, was born at Side in Pamphylia. He wrote a Christian history of which fragments survive. For some detail he relied upon the well-known ''Historia E ...
() (Greek)
*
John Cassian
John Cassian, also known as John the Ascetic and John Cassian the Roman ( la, Ioannes Eremita Cassianus, ''Ioannus Cassianus'', or ''Ioannes Massiliensis''; – ), was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern c ...
() (Latin)
*
Rabbula
Rabbula ( la, Rabula) was a bishop of Edessa from 411 to August 435 AD, noteworthy for his opposition to the views of Theodore of Mopsuestia and Nestorius. However, his successor Ibas, who was in charge of the school of Edessa, reversed the offi ...
(d. 435) (Syriac)
*
Possidius
Possidius (5th century) was a friend of Augustine of Hippo who wrote a reliable biography and an ''indiculus'' or list of his works. He was bishop of Calama in the Roman province of Numidia.
Biography
The dates of his birth and death are unk ...
(d. 437) (Latin-African)
*
Isaac of Armenia
Isaac or Sahak of Armenia (354–439) was Catholicos (or Patriarch) of the Armenian Apostolic Church. He is sometimes known as "Isaac the Great," and as "Sahak the Parthian" (Armenian: Սահակ Պարթեւ, Sahak Parthew", Parthian: ''Sahak-i ...
() (Armenian)
*
Philostorgius
Philostorgius ( grc-gre, Φιλοστόργιος; 368 – c. 439 AD) was an Anomoean Church historian of the 4th and 5th centuries.
Very little information about his life is available. He was born in Borissus, Cappadocia to Eulampia and Cart ...
() (Greek)
*
Socrates Scholasticus
Socrates of Constantinople ( 380 – after 439), also known as Socrates Scholasticus ( grc-gre, Σωκράτης ὁ Σχολαστικός), was a 5th-century Greeks, Greek Christians, Christian church historian, a contemporary of Sozomen and Th ...
() (Greek)
*
Honoratus Antoninus Honoratus Antoninus was a bishop of Constantine (Cirta) in the Roman province of Africa. He was alive during the persecution of the Catholics by the Vandal king Gaiseric (who adhered to Arianism) in the 5th century, around the year 437.
He is th ...
(d. 440) (Latin-African)
*
Flavius Lucius Dexter Flavius Lucius Dexter (b. 368 AD - d. 444 AD) was a figure of the late fourth century, reported as a historian, and a friend of St Jerome. He was the son of St Pacian, an imperial office-holder, and dedicatee of a work of Jerome, the ''De Viris Ill ...
() (Latin)
*
Cyril of Alexandria
Cyril of Alexandria ( grc, Κύριλλος Ἀλεξανδρείας; cop, Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲩ ⲁ̅ also ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376 – 444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444 ...
() (Greek)
*
Eucherius of Lyon
Eucherius (c. 380c. 449) was a high-born and high-ranking ecclesiastic in the Christian church in Roman Gaul. He is remembered for his letters advocating extreme self-abnegation. From 439, he served as Archbishop of Lyon, and Henry Wace ranked h ...
() (Latin)
*
Hilary of Arles
Hilary of Arles, also known by his Latin name Hilarius (c. 403–449), was a bishop of Arles in Southern France. He is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, with his feast day celebrated on 5 May.
Life
In hi ...
() (Latin)
*
Poemen
Abba Poemen the Great (Greek: Ὁ Ἅγιος Ποιμήν; ποιμήν means "shepherd") (c. 340–450) was a Christian monk and early Desert Father who is the most quoted Abba (Father) in the ''Apophthegmata Patrum'' (''Sayings of the Desert Fa ...
() (Greek)
*
Peter Chrysologus
Peter Chrysologus ( el, Ἅγιος Πέτρος ὁ Χρυσολόγος, ''Petros Chrysologos'', "Peter the Golden-worded"; c. 380 – c. 450) was Bishop of Ravenna from about 433 until his death. He is known as the “Doctor of Homilies” for ...
() (Latin)
*
Eznik of Kolb
Eznik of Kolb ( hy, Եզնիկ Կողբացի, translit=Yeznik Koghbatsi), was an Armenian Christian writer of the 5th century.
Biography
Eznik was born in Koghb (modern-day Tuzluca, Turkey), located in a tributary valley of the Chorokh in ...
() (Armenian)
*
Sozomen
Salamanes Hermias Sozomenos ( grc-gre, Σαλαμάνης Ἑρμείας Σωζομενός; la, Sozomenus; c. 400 – c. 450 AD), also known as Sozomen, was a Roman lawyer and historian of the Christian Church.
Family and home
He was born arou ...
() (Greek)
*
Agathangelos
Agathangelos (in xcl, Ագաթանգեղոս Agatʿangełos, in Greek "bearer of good news" or angel, 5th century AD ) is the pseudonym of the author of a life of the first apostle of Armenia, Gregory the Illuminator, who died about 332.
He ...
(d. ~450) (Armenian)
*
Quodvultdeus
Quodvultdeus (Latin for "what God wills", died 450 AD) was a fifth-century Church Father and Bishop of Carthage who was exiled to Naples. He was known to have been living in Carthage around 407 and became a deacon in 421 AD. He corresponded wi ...
(d. 450) (Latin-African)
*
Vincent of Lérins
Vincent of Lérins ( la, Vincentius; died ) was a Gallic monk and author of early Christian writings. One example was the ''Commonitorium'', c.434, which offers guidance in the orthodox teaching of Christianity. Suspected of semipelagianism, ...
(d. 450) (Latin)
*
Isidore of Pelusium
Isidore of Pelusium ( grc-gre, Ἰσίδωρος ὁ Πηλουσιώτης, d. c.450) was born in Egypt to a prominent Alexandrian family. He became an ascetic, and moved to a mountain near the city of Pelusium, in the tradition of the Desert Fat ...
(d. 450) (Greek)
*
Marius Mercator Marius Mercator (born probably in Northern Africa about 390; died shortly after 451) was a Latin Christian ecclesiastical writer best known for his advocacy of Augustinianism, Augustinian theology during the Pelagianism, Pelagian controversy.
In 41 ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Salvian
Salvian (or Salvianus) was a Christian writer of the 5th century in Roman Gaul.
Personal life
Salvian's birthplace is uncertain, but some scholars have suggested Cologne or Trier some time between 400 and 405. He was educated at the school of Trie ...
() (Latin)
*
Prosper of Aquitaine
Prosper of Aquitaine ( la, Prosper Aquitanus; – AD), a Christian writer and disciple of Augustine of Hippo, was the first continuator of Jerome's Universal Chronicle.
Life
Prosper was a native of Aquitaine, and may have been educated at B ...
() (Latin)
*
Simeon Stylites
Simeon Stylites or Symeon the Stylite syc, ܫܡܥܘܢ ܕܐܣܛܘܢܐ ', Koine Greek ', ar, سمعان العمودي ' (c. 390 – 2 September 459) was a Syrian Christian ascetic, who achieved notability by living 37 years on a smal ...
() (Syriac)
*
Isaac of Antioch
Isaac of Antioch, 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 ...
(d. 460) (Syriac)
*
Arnobius the Younger Arnobius the Younger ( la, Arnobius Junior), Christian priest or bishop in Gaul, wrote from Rome around the year 460.''Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture'', Old Testament volume VII, edited by Craig A. Blaising and Carmen S. Harden
He is the ...
(d. 460) (Latín-African)
*
Patrick Patrick may refer to:
* Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name
* Patrick (surname), list of people with this name
People
* Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint
*Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick ...
Shenoute
Shenoute of Atripe, also known as Shenoute the Great or Saint Shenoute the Archimandrite (Coptic language, Coptic: ; (347-465 or 348-466) was the abbot of the White Monastery in Egypt. He is considered a saint by the Oriental Orthodox Churches, ...
() (Coptic)
*
Theodoret
Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus ( grc-gre, Θεοδώρητος Κύρρου; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivo ...
() (Greek)
*
Gennadius of Constantinople
Gennadius (Greek: Ἅγιος Γεννάδιος; d. 25 August 471) was the Patriarch of Constantinople from 458 until his death. Gennadius is known to have been a learned writer who followed the Antiochene school of literal exegesis, although f ...
(d. 471) (Greek)
*
Elishe
Yeghishe (, , AD 410 – 475; also spelled Eghishe or Ełišē, latinized Eliseus) was an Armenian historian from the time of late antiquity, best known as the author of ''History of Vardan and the Armenian War'', a history of a fifth-centu ...
Iakob Tsurtaveli
Jacob of Tsurtavi ( ka, იაკობ ცურტაველი, tr) also known as Jacob the Priest (იაკობ ხუცესი, Iakob Khutsesi) was the 5th-century Georgian religious writer and priest from Tsurtavi, then the major to ...
(d. ~483) (Georgian)
*
Victor Vitensis
Victor Vitensis (or Victor of Vita; born circa 430) was an African bishop of the Province of Byzacena (called Vitensis from his See of Vita). His importance rests on his ''Historia persecutionis Africanae Provinciae, temporibus Genserici et Huniri ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Vigilius of Thapsus
Vigilius of Thapsus (before 484) also known as Vigilius Tapsensis, Vigilius Afer, or Vergil of Tapso, was a 5th-century Bishop of Thapsus in the province Byzacium, in what is now Tunisia, and as well as a theological writer and polemicist.
After t ...
(d. 484) (Latin-African)
*
Diadochos of Photiki
Saint Diadochos of Photiki ( gr, Διάδοχος Φωτικής) was a fifth-century ascetic whose works are included in the ''Philokalia''.
Scholars have acknowledged his great influence on later Byzantine saints such as Maximos the Confessor, J ...
() (Greek)
*
Movses Khorenatsi
Movses Khorenatsi (ca. 410–490s AD; hy, Մովսէս Խորենացի, , also written as ''Movses Xorenac‘i'' and Moses of Khoren, Moses of Chorene, and Moses Chorenensis in Latin sources) was a prominent Armenian historian from the late an ...
() (Armenian)
*
Sidonius Apollinaris
Gaius Sollius Modestus Apollinaris Sidonius, better known as Sidonius Apollinaris (5 November of an unknown year, 430 – 481/490 AD), was a poet, diplomat, and bishop. Sidonius is "the single most important surviving author from 5th-century Gaul ...
() (Latin)
*
Auspicius of Toul
Auspicius of Toul ( la, Auspicius Tullensis; french: Auspice de Toul; d.c.490?) was a 5th-century bishop of Toul, the fifth of those recorded, and a saint of the Roman Catholic church. He was also a poet, known for iambic verse based on stress (r ...
(d. 490) (Latin)
*
Isaiah the Solitary
Isaiah the Solitary (? – 11 August 491), also known as Isaiah of Gaza, Isaias or Isaiah the Solitary, Abba Isaiah, or possibly also Isaiah of Scetis, was a Christian ascetic and monastic writer known from the ''Sayings of the Desert Fathers'' ...
(d. 491) (Greek)
*
Gelasius I
Pope Gelasius I was the bishop of Rome from 1 March 492 to his death on 19 November 496. Gelasius was a prolific author whose style placed him on the cusp between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages.The title of his biography by Walter Ullma ...
(d. 496) (Latin-African)
*
Gennadius of Massilia
Gennadius of Massilia (died c. 496), also known as Gennadius Scholasticus or Gennadius Massiliensis, was a 5th-century Christian priest and historian.
His best-known work is ''De Viris Illustribus'' ("Of Famous Men"), a biography of over 90 conte ...
(d. 496) (Latin)
*
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite (or Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite) was a Greek author, Christian theologian and Neoplatonic philosopher of the late 5th to early 6th century, who wrote a set of works known as the ''Corpus Areopagiticum'' or ...
() (Greek)
*
Nonnus
Nonnus of Panopolis ( grc-gre, Νόννος ὁ Πανοπολίτης, ''Nónnos ho Panopolítēs'', 5th century CE) was the most notable Greek epic poet of the Imperial Roman era. He was a native of Panopolis (Akhmim) in the Egyptian Thebai ...
(d. 500) (Greek)
*
Antipater of Bostra
Antipater of Bostra ( grc-gre, Ἀντίπατρος) was a Greek prelate who served as bishop of Bostra and was one of the foremost critics of Origen. He lived in the 5th century AD.
He was a pronounced opponent of Origen. Little is known of his ...
(d. 500) (Greek)
*
Narsai
Narsai (sometimes spelt ''Narsay'', ''Narseh'' or ''Narses''; syc, ܢܪܣܝ, ''Narsai'', name derived from Pahlavi ''Narsēh'' from Avestan ''Nairyō.saȵhō'', meaning 'potent utterance', the name of a yazata; ) was one of the foremost of Assy ...
() (Syriac)
*
Julianus Pomerius
Julianus Pomerius was a Christian priest in fifth century Gaul. He wrote five treatises, only one of which, ''De Vita Contemplativa'', survives. He was renowned in rhetoric and grammar and was friends with Ennodius and Ruricius.
He appears to hav ...
(d. 505) (Latin-African)
*
Ghazar Parpetsi
Ghazar Parpetsi ( hy, Ղազար Փարպեցի, translit=Łazar P῾arpec῾i) was a 5th to 6th century Armenian chronicler and historian. He had close ties with the powerful Mamikonian noble family and is most prominent for writing a history of ...
() (Armenian)
*
John Rufus
John Rufus, John of Beth Rufina (also spelled Ruphina), or John of Maiuma (born c. AD 450), was an anti-Chalcedonian priest of Antioch, a disciple of Peter the Iberian and an ecclesiastical historian who possibly served as the bishop of Maiuma. He ...
() (Greek)
*
Aeneas of Gaza
Aeneas of Gaza (d. ''c.'' 518) was a Neo-Platonic philosopher and a convert to Christianity who flourished towards the end of the fifth century. In a dialogue entitled ''Theophrastus,'' he alludes to Hierocles of Alexandria as his teacher, and in ...
(d. 518) (Greek)
*
Avitus of Vienne
Alcimus Ecdicius Avitus (c. 450 – February 5, 517/518 or 519) was a Latin poet and bishop of Vienne in Gaul. His fame rests in part on his poetry, but also on the role he played as secretary for the Burgundian kings.
Avitus was born of a promi ...
() (Latin)
*
Jacob of Serugh
Jacob of Sarug ( syr, ܝܥܩܘܒ ܣܪܘܓܝܐ, ''Yaʿquḇ Sruḡāyâ'', ; his toponym is also spelled ''Serug'' or ''Serugh''; la, Iacobus Sarugiensis; 451 – 29 November 521), also called Mar Jacob, was one of the foremost Syriac poet-theo ...
Philoxenus of Mabbug Philoxenus of Mabbug (Syriac: , ') (died 523), also known as Xenaias and Philoxenus of Hierapolis, was one of the most notable Syriac prose writers and a vehement champion of Miaphysitism.
Early life
He was born, probably in the third quarter of ...
(d. 523) (Syriac)
*
Boethius
Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, commonly known as Boethius (; Latin: ''Boetius''; 480 – 524 AD), was a Roman senator, consul, ''magister officiorum'', historian, and philosopher of the Early Middle Ages. He was a central figure in the tr ...
() (Latin)
*
Fulgentius Fulgentius is a Latin male given name which means "bright, brilliant". It may refer to:
*Fabius Planciades Fulgentius (5th–6th century), Latin grammarian
*Saint Fulgentius of Ruspe (5th–6th century), bishop of Ruspe, North Africa, possib ...
() (Latin-African)
*
Eugippius
Eugippius (circa 460 – circa 535, Castellum Lucullanum) was a disciple and the biographer of Saint Severinus of Noricum.
After the latter's death in 482, he took the remains to Naples and founded a monastery on the site of a 1st-century Roman ...
() (Latin)
*
Zacharias Rhetor
Zacharias of Mytilene (c. 465, Gaza – after 536), also known as Zacharias Scholasticus or Zacharias Rhetor, was a bishop and ecclesiastical historian.
Life
The life of Zacharias of Mytilene can be reconstructed only from a few scattered repo ...
() (Greek)
*
Severus of Antioch
Severus the Great of Antioch (Greek: Σεβῆρος; syr, ܣܘܝܪܝܘܣ ܕܐܢܛܝܘܟܝܐ), also known as Severus of Gaza or Crown of Syrians (Syriac: ܬܓܐ ܕܣܘܪܝܥܝܐ; Tagha d'Suryoye; Arabic: تاج السوريين; Taj al-Suriyyun ...
() (Greek)
*
Caesarius of Arles
Caesarius of Arles ( la, Caesarius Arelatensis; 468/470 27 August 542 AD), sometimes called "of Chalon" (''Cabillonensis'' or ''Cabellinensis'') from his birthplace Chalon-sur-Saône, was the foremost ecclesiastic of his generation in Merovingian ...
() (Latin)
*
Benedict of Nursia
Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Orient ...
() (Latin)
*
Fulgentius Ferrandus Fulgentius Ferrandus or Ferrand of Carthage (died 546/547) was a Christian theologian of the Roman province of Africa, modern day Tunisia.
Biography
Little is known of his early life. At the end of his life, he was a deacon of the Church of Cartha ...
(d. 547) (Latin-African)
*
Cosmas Indicopleustes
Cosmas Indicopleustes ( grc-x-koine, Κοσμᾶς Ἰνδικοπλεύστης, lit=Cosmas who sailed to India; also known as Cosmas the Monk) was a Greek merchant and later hermit from Alexandria of Egypt. He was a 6th-century traveller who ma ...
(d. 550) (Greek)
*
Primasius of Hadrumetum Primasius (died around 560) was bishop of Hadrumetum and primate of Byzacena, in Africa. One of the participants in the Three Chapters Controversy, his commentary on the Book of Revelation is of interest to modern scholars for its use of the lost co ...
(d. 560) (Latin-African)
*
Dorotheus of Gaza
Dorotheus of Gaza ( grc-gre, Δωρόθεος τῆς Γάζης ''Dorotheos tes Gazes''; 505 – 565 or 620,) or Abba Dorotheus, was a Christianity, Christian monk and abbot.
Life
He joined the monastery Abba Serid (or Abba Sveridus) near Gaza C ...
() (Greek)
*
John Philoponus
John Philoponus (Greek: ; ; c. 490 – c. 570), also known as John the Grammarian or John of Alexandria, was a Byzantine Greek philologist, Aristotelian commentator, Christian theologian and an author of a considerable number of philosophical tre ...
() (Greek)
*
Gildas
Gildas (Breton: ''Gweltaz''; c. 450/500 – c. 570) — also known as Gildas the Wise or ''Gildas Sapiens'' — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', which recounts ...
() (Latin)
*
Victor of Tunnuna Victor of Tunnuna (Latin ''Victor Tunnunensis'') (died 570) was Bishop of the North African town of Tunnuna and a chronicler from Late antiquity. He was also considered a martyr by Isidore of Seville.
What little information we have on his life ...
(d. 570) (Latin-African)
*
John Malalas
John Malalas ( el, , ''Iōánnēs Malálas''; – 578) was a Byzantine chronicler from Antioch (now Antakya, Turkey).
Life
Malalas was of Syrian descent, and he was a native speaker of Syriac who learned how to write in Greek later in ...
() (Greek)
*
Martin of Braga
Martin of Braga (in Latin ''Martinus Bracarensis'', in Portuguese, known as ''Martinho de Dume'' 520–580 AD) was an archbishop of Bracara Augusta in Gallaecia (now Braga in Portugal), a missionary, a monastic founder, and an ecclesiastical ...
() (Latin)
*
Peter III of Callinicum
Peter III of Callinicum ( la, Petrus Callinicus, syr, ܦܛܪܘܣ ܓ ܩܠܘܢܝܩܝܐ) was the Patriarch of Antioch and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 581 until his death in 591. He is commemorated as a saint by the Syriac Orthodox Chur ...
() (Syriac)
*
Gregory of Antioch
Gregory of Antioch was the Eastern Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch from 571 to 593.
Gregory began as a monk in the monastery of the Byzantines in Jerusalem, or so we learn from Evagrius Scholasticus. He was transferred by the emperor Justin II (56 ...
(d. 593) (Greek)
*
Evagrius Scholasticus
Evagrius Scholasticus ( el, Εὐάγριος Σχολαστικός) was a Syrian scholar and intellectual living in the 6th century AD, and an aide to the patriarch Gregory of Antioch. His surviving work, ''Ecclesiastical History'' (), compris ...
() (Greek)
*
Gregory of Tours
Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florenti ...
() (Latin)
*
John IV of Constantinople
John IV (died September 2, 595), also known as John Nesteutes (, Ioannes the Faster), was the 33rd bishop or Patriarch of Constantinople (April 11, 582 – 595). He was the first to assume the title '' Ecumenical Patriarch''. He is regarded as ...
(d. 595) (Greek)
*
David the Invincible
David the Invincible (or David the Philosopher) was a neoplatonist philosopher of the 6th century.
David was a pupil of Olympiodorus in Alexandria. His works, originally written in Greek, survive in medieval Armenian translation, and he was giv ...
Leander of Seville
Leander of Seville ( es, San Leandro de Sevilla; la, Sanctus Leandrus; 534 AD, in Cartagena – 13 March 600 or 601, in Seville) was the Bishop of Seville. He was instrumental in effecting the conversion of the Visigothic kings Hermengild and ...
() (Latin)
*
Gregory I Gregory I may refer to:
* Gregory the Illuminator (250s–330s), Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church in 288–325
* Gregory of Nazianzus (329–390), Patriarch Gregory I of Constantinople, in office 379–381
* Pope Gregory I (540–604), i ...
() (Latin)
*
Eulogius of Alexandria
Eulogius of Alexandria ( grc-gre, Εὐλόγιος) was Greek Patriarch of that see from about 580 to 608. He is regarded as a saint, with a feast day of September 13.
Life
Eulogius was first igumen of the monastery of the Mother of God in ...
(d. 608) (Greek)
*
Venantius Fortunatus
Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus ( 530 600/609 AD; french: Venance Fortunat), known as Saint Venantius Fortunatus (, ), was a Latin poet and hymnographer in the Merovingian Court, and a bishop of the Early Church who has been venerate ...
() (Latin)
*
Isidore of Seville
Isidore of Seville ( la, Isidorus Hispalensis; c. 560 – 4 April 636) was a Spanish scholar, theologian, and archbishop of Seville. He is widely regarded, in the words of 19th-century historian Montalembert, as "the last scholar of ...
() (Latin)
*
Gregory of Agrigento
Gregory (559–630) was the bishop of Agrigento from 590 until at least 603 and a correspondent of Pope Gregory I. He is the probable subject of two semi-legendary saint's lives and possible author of a commentary on '' Ecclesiastes'', although bo ...
() (Greek)
*
Theophylact Simocatta
Theophylact Simocatta (Byzantine Greek: Θεοφύλακτος Σιμοκάτ(τ)ης ''Theophýlaktos Simokát(t)ēs''; la, Theophylactus Simocatta) was an early seventh-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine historiographer, arguably ranking as th ...
() (Greek)
*
Andrew of Caesarea thumb
Andrew of Caesarea ( el, Ἀνδρέας Καισαρείας; AD 563–614) was a Greek theological writer and bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia. Karl Krumbacher assigned him to the first half of the sixth century. He is variously placed by ot ...
() (Latin)
*
Sophronius of Jerusalem
Sophronius ( grc-gre, Σωφρόνιος; ar, صفرونيوس; c. 560 – March 11, 638), called Sophronius the Sophist, was the Patriarch of Jerusalem from 634 until his death. He is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Ch ...
() (Greek)
*
John Climacus
John Climacus ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης τῆς Κλίμακος; la, Ioannes Climacus), also known as John of the Ladder, John Scholasticus and John Sinaites, was a 6th–7th-century Christianity, Christian monasticism, monk at the monastery ...
() (Greek)
*
Maximus the Confessor
Maximus the Confessor ( el, Μάξιμος ὁ Ὁμολογητής), also spelt Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople ( – 13 August 662), was a Christian monk, theologian, and scholar.
In his earl ...
(580–662) (Greek)
*
Anania Shirakatsi
Anania Shirakatsi ( hy, Անանիա Շիրակացի, ''Anania Širakac’i'', anglicized: Ananias of Shirak) was a 7th-century Armenian polymath and natural philosopher, author of extant works covering mathematics, astronomy, geography, chronol ...
() (Armenian)
*
Isaac of Nineveh
Isaac of Nineveh (; Arabic: إسحاق النينوي ''Ishaq an-Naynuwī''; grc-gre, Ἰσαὰκ Σῦρος; c. 613 – c. 700), also remembered as Saint Isaac the Syrian, Abba Isaac, Isaac Syrus and Isaac of Qatar, was a 7th-century Church o ...
(d. 700) (Syriac)
*
Jacob of Edessa
Jacob of Edessa (or James of Edessa) ( syr, ܝܥܩܘܒ ܐܘܪܗܝܐ, Yaʿqub Urhoyo) (c. 640 – 5 June 708) was Bishop of Edessa and prominent Syriac Christian writer in Classical Syriac language, also known as one of earliest Syriac grammaria ...
() (Syriac)
*
Bede the Venerable
Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...
(d. 735) (Latin)
*
John of Damascus
John of Damascus ( ar, يوحنا الدمشقي, Yūḥanna ad-Dimashqī; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Δαμασκηνός, Ioánnēs ho Damaskēnós, ; la, Ioannes Damascenus) or John Damascene was a Christian monk, priest, hymnographer, and a ...
(d. 749) (Greek)
Obstacles to 21st-century understanding
Alister McGrath
Alister Edgar McGrath (; born 1953) is a Northern Irish theologian, Anglican priest, intellectual historian, scientist, Christian apologist, and public intellectual. He currently holds the Andreas Idreos Professorship in Science and Religion in ...
notes four reasons why understanding patristics can be difficult in the early 21st-century:
# Some of the debates appear to have little relevance to the modern world
# the use of
classical philosophy
This page lists some links to ancient philosophy, namely philosophical thought extending as far as early post-classical history ().
Overview
Genuine philosophical thought, depending upon original individual insights, arose in many cultures ...
# the doctrinal diversity
# the divisions between East and West, i.e., Greek and Latin methods of theology, the extent of use of classical philosophy.
The terms neo-patristics and post-patristics refer to recent theologies according to which the Church Fathers must be reinterpreted or even critically tested in light of modern developments since their writings reflected that of a distant past. These theologies, however, are considered controversial or even dangerous by orthodox theologians.
Patrology vs. patristics
Some scholars, chiefly in Germany, distinguish patrologia from patristica.
Josef Fessler
Josef Fessler (1813–1872) was Roman Catholic Bishop of Sankt Pölten in Austria, a secretary of the First Vatican Council and an authority on patristics.
Biography and works
Josef Fessler was born on 2 December 1813, at Lochau near Bregenz i ...
, for instance, defines patrologia as the science which provides all that is necessary for the using of the works of the Fathers, dealing, therefore, with their authority, the criteria for judging their genuineness, the difficulties to be met within them, and the rules for their use. But Fessler's own ''Institutiones Patrologiae'' has a larger range, as have similar works entitled Patrologies, for example, that of
Otto Bardenhewer
Bertram Otto Bardenhewer (Mönchengladbach, 16 March 1851 – Munich, 23 March 1935) was a German Catholic patrologist. His ''Geschichte der altkirchlichen Literatur'' is a standard work, re-issued in 2008. For Bardenhewer, a patrologist was no ...
(tr. Shahan, Freiburg, 1908). Catholic writer Karl Keating argues that patrology is the study of the Early Fathers and their contemporaries as people, and the authenticity of the works attributed to them. Patristics, on the other hand, is the study of their thought.
On the other hand, Fessler describes patristica as that theological science by which all that concerns faith, morals, or discipline in the writings of the Fathers is collected and sorted. The lives and works of the Fathers are also described by a non-specialized science: literary history. These distinctions are not much observed, nor do they seem very necessary; they are nothing else than aspects of patristic study as it forms part of fundamental theology, of positive theology, and of literary history.
Availability of patristic texts
Most patristic texts are available in their original languages in
Jacques Paul Migne
Jacques Paul Migne (; 25 October 1800 – 24 October 1875) was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a ...
's two great patrologies, ''
Patrologia Latina
The ''Patrologia Latina'' (Latin for ''The Latin Patrology'') is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1841 and 1855, with indices published between ...
'' and ''
Patrologia Graeca
The ''Patrologia Graeca'' (or ''Patrologiae Cursus Completus, Series Graeca'') is an edited collection of writings by the Christian Church Fathers and various secular writers, in the Greek language. It consists of 161 volumes produced in 1857– ...
''. For Syriac and other Eastern languages the ''
Patrologia Orientalis
The ''Patrologia Orientalis'' is an attempt to create a comprehensive collection of the writings by eastern Church Fathers in Syriac, Armenian, Arabic, Coptic, Ge'ez, Georgian, and Slavonic, published with a Latin, English, Italian or mostly Fre ...
'' (''
Patrologia Syriaca
The ''Patrologia Orientalis'' is an attempt to create a comprehensive collection of the writings by eastern Church Fathers in Syriac, Armenian, Arabic, Coptic, Ge'ez, Georgian, and Slavonic, published with a Latin, English, Italian or mostly Fre ...
'' earlier) is less complete and can be largely supplemented by the ''
Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium The Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium is an important multilingual collection of Eastern Christian texts with over 600 volumes published since its foundation in 1903 by the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium and the Catholic Univer ...
''. Noted collections containing re-edited patristic texts (also discoveries and new attributions) are the
Corpus Christianorum The Corpus Christianorum (CC) is a major publishing undertaking of the Belgian publisher Brepols Publishers devoted to patristic and medieval Latin texts.
The principal series are the ''Series Graeca'' (CCSG), ''Series Latina'' (CCSL), and the ''Co ...
,
Sources Chrétiennes
Sources Chrétiennes ( French "Christian sources") is a bilingual collection of patristic texts founded in Lyon in 1942 by the Jesuits Jean Daniélou, Claude Mondésert, and Henri de Lubac. Citations to the series are commonly made by the letter ...
,
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum
The ''Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum'' (CSEL) is an academic series that publishes critical editions of Latin works by late-antique Christian authors.
Description
The CSEL publishes Latin writings of Christian authors from the tim ...
, and on a lesser scale
Oxford Early Christian Texts
''Oxford Early Christian Texts'' is the name of a series of books published by Oxford University Press which contain texts from early Christianity, early Christian writers in both their original Latin language, Latin and Greek language, Greek and i ...
,
Fontes Christiani {{italic title
''Fontes Christiani'' is a widely cited German bilingual collection of patristic and medieval Latin works with modern German translations. Published initially by Herder, a long-established German theological publisher beginning in 19 ...
, and
Études Augustiniennes Études is French for "studies". It is used as a name for several music or dance works, including:
* Études (Chopin), ''Études'' (Chopin), three sets of studies for the piano by Frédéric Chopin, composed between 1829 and 1839
* Études (Debussy) ...
.
English translations of patristic texts are readily available in a variety of collections. For example:
* ''The
Ante-Nicene 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 pe ...
: The Writings of the Fathers Down to A.D.325'' (Edinburgh: T&T Clark).
* ''A Select Library of the
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
''A Select Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church'', usually known as the ''Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers'' (NPNF), is a set of books containing translations of early Christian writings into English. It was publi ...
Augustinian Studies
''Augustinian Studies'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal devoted to the study of Augustine of Hippo. Its primary focus is the study of Augustine himself, as viewed from various theological, philosophical, and historical perspectives. Articles co ...
''
* ''
Church History (journal)
''Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture'' is a quarterly academic journal. It is published by the American Society of Church History and was established in 1932. It is abstracted and indexed in the ATLA Religion Database. The editor ...
''
* ''
The Journal of Ecclesiastical History
''The Journal of Ecclesiastical History'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Cambridge University Press. It was established in 1950 and covers all aspects of the history of the Christian Church. It deals with the church b ...
''
* ''
Journal of Early Christian Studies
The ''Journal of Early Christian Studies'' is an academic journal founded in 1993 and is the official publication of the North American Patristics Society. It is devoted to the study of patristics, that is Christianity in the ancient period of roug ...
''
* ''
Studia Patristica
''Studia Patristica'' is a peer-reviewed, academic book series established in 1957 and focused on the study of patristics.
History
The series is the official publication of the Oxford International Conference on Patristic Studies, which was firs ...
''
* ''
Vigiliae Christianae
''Vigiliae Christianae: A Review of Early Christian Life and Languages'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by Brill Publishers
Brill Academic Publishers (known as E. J. Brill, Koninklijke Brill, Brill ()) is a Dutch international ...
''
See also
*
Armenian studies
Armenian studies or Armenology ( hy, հայագիտություն, ) is a field of humanities covering Armenian history, language and culture. The emergence of modern Armenian studies is associated with the foundation of the Catholic Mechitarist o ...
*
Coptology
Coptology is the science of Coptic studies, the study of the Coptic language and Coptic literature.What is Cop ...
*
Early Christianity
Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish ...
Historiography of early Christianity
Historiography of early Christianity is the study of historical writings about early Christianity, which is the period before the First Council of Nicaea in 325. Historians have used a variety of sources and methods in exploring and describing Chri ...
*
Nag Hammadi library
The Nag Hammadi library (also known as the " Chenoboskion Manuscripts" and the "Gnostic Gospels") is a collection of early Christian and Gnostic texts discovered near the Upper Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi in 1945.
Thirteen leather-bound papyr ...
*
Papyrology
Papyrology is the study of manuscripts of ancient literature, correspondence, legal archives, etc., preserved on portable media from antiquity, the most common form of which is papyrus, the principal writing material in the ancient civilizations ...
*
Popular Patristics Series The Popular Patristics Series is a series of volumes of original English translations of mainly first millennium Christian texts published by St. Vladimir's Seminary Press. The aim of the series is "to provide readable and accurate translations of a ...
*
Syriac studies Syriac studies is the study of the Syriac language and Syriac Christianity. A specialist in Syriac studies is known as a Syriacist. Specifically, British, French, and German scholars of the 18th and 19th centuries who were involved in the study of ...
*
Women in the patristic age
The status of women in the patristic age, as defined by the Church Fathers, is a contentious issue within Christianity because some people believe that the patristic writers clearly sought to restrict the influence of women in civil society as well ...
**
List of Christian women of the patristic age
This is a list of Christian women in the patristic age who contributed to the development of the early Christian churches and communities. The list is roughly in chronological order of year when they lived or died. The patristic era is considere ...