The Complete Works of the First Fathers of the Church gathers a formative body of early Christian writing: pastoral epistles, martyrial exhortations, apologies, theological treatises, biblical interpretation, ecclesiastical histories, and visionary instruction. Spanning the generations from the apostolic age to late antiquity, it records Christianity's emergence within Jewish, Greek, and Roman intellectual worlds. Particularly compelling are its defenses of Christian belief before pagan cr...

This text serves as a theological treatise defending the practice of venerating icons in Eastern Christianity. It outlines the belief in the Holy Trinity, the divinity of Christ, and the significance of the saints, arguing that icons are not idols but representations that aid in worship and remembrance. The author emphasizes the continuity of tradition from the early Church and the teachings of the Church Fathers, asserting that the veneration of icons is essential for understanding the in...

This historical account explores the tumultuous leadership of the Church in Constantinople, focusing on the succession of patriarchs and the controversies surrounding their appointments. It highlights key figures such as Chrysostom, Theophilus, and various emperors who influenced ecclesiastical decisions. The narrative emphasizes the impact of political machinations and heretical movements on the Church's unity, illustrating how the struggle for orthodoxy often led to schisms and conflicts...

"The Sacred Writings Of ..." provides you with the essential works among the Early Christian writings. The volumes cover the beginning of Christianity until before the promulgation of the Nicene Creed at the First Council of Nicaea. Methodius had a very comprehensive philosophical education, and was an important theologian as well as a prolific and polished author. Chronologically, his works can only be assigned in a general way to the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth centu...

THE DIFFICULTY AND EXCELLENCE OF VIRGINITY; THE STUDY OF DOCTRINE NECESSARY FOR VIRGINS. Virginity is something supernaturally great, wonderful, and glorious; and, to speak plainly and in accordance with the Holy Scriptures, this best and noblest manner of life alone is the root(6) of immortality, and also its flower and first-fruits; and for this reason the Lord promises that those shall enter into the kingdom of heaven who have made themselves eunuchs, in that passage(7) of the Gospels i...

St. John Chrysostom was born in the year 349 AD in Antioch. His father died soon after his birth and he was raised by his deeply pious mother. Under her influence St. John became devout as well, and took to studying scripture under the guidance of the bishop of Antioch who would later be the one to baptize him.St. John was drawn to become a monk, and when he mother died he withdrew to the wilderness. There he wrote a number of works on the ascetic life. After a number of years he w...

Athanasius was born in Egypt to a Christian family sometime around 295 AD. He was given a good education by his parents, and in his youth, the local bishop, recognizing his talents, took him on as his aide. As a result he would get the chance to be present at Nicaea for the first Ecumenical council of the church.These works cover the full span of his life, beginning before 319 AD, when he wrote his famous, 'On the Incarnation of the Word'. At the time there were a number of differe...

The Ante-Nicene Period (literally meaning "before Nicaea") in the history of early Christianity was the era following the Apostolic Age of the first century to the First Council of Nicaea in 325. During this period the orthodoxy (right belief) of the faith developed. The authors of the faith are known as the church fathers. They not only defined the faith but wrote against various heresies.Some of the unorthodox beliefs were:Gnosticism (2nd to 4th centuries) – reliance on r...

The Philokalia is a collection of texts written between the fourth and the fifteenth centuries by spiritual masters of the Orthodox Christian tradition.First published in Greek in 1782, then translated into Slavonic and later into Russian, The Philokalia has exercised an influence in the recent history of the Orthodox Church far greater than that of any book apart from the Bible. It is concerned with themes of universal importance: how man may develop his...

The Didache was possibly written around 65 - 80 A.D. and is supposed to be what the twelve apostles taught to the Gentiles concerning life and death, church order, fasting, baptism, prayer, etc. There is debate as to its authenticity.In the Babel of conflicting opinions, it is best to notice first the obvious internal phenomena. The first part of the Teaching (now distinguished as chaps. i.-vi.) sets forth the duty of the Christian; in chaps. vii.-x., xiv., we find a directory for ...

Regarded by some as the greatest genius of the early Christian church, Origen of Alexandria was a third century scholar, ascetic and theologian. He was a prolific writer of approximately 2,000 treatises in multiple branches of theology, including textual criticism, biblical exegesis and hermeneutics and spirituality. His treatise ‘On the First Principles’ systematically lays out the principles of Christian theology and became the foundation for later theological writings; while the treatis...

The Orthodox Prayer Book has the most extensive database of Orthodox Prayers available in one book.