A PANORAMIC VIEW OF PATRISTICS IN THE FIRST SIX CENTURIES

WITH AN OVERVIEW OF SELECTED COPTIC ORTHODOX FATHERS AND AUTHORS OF THE MIDDLE AGES

By: Fr. Tadros Y. Malaty, Bishoy Boshra Behnam

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

The first six centuries of Christianity were colorful ones indeed. The early Church, as an extension of the Apostolic age, represents the living Bible which is practiced daily; it reveals biblical and heavenly thought. She also manifests her dogma, order, economy, and behavior as the bride of Christ and His ambassador in the world. The Church lived bearing the features of her crucified Christ, gladly and joyfully accepting persecution. These first six centuries were also characterized by councils, controversy, and heresy in the sincere quest for an understanding of the true faith. The efforts and struggles of the Church Fathers in both the East and the West, resulted in the development of theological terminology and shaped Christian doctrine; and thus, their writings are an invaluable source of knowledge. But who were the greatest Christian thinkers and authors? When did they live? What events affected their lives? What beliefs did they hold? What did they write about? What heresies did they combat? Who was condemned? What councils were convened and why? This book originated with questions like these in mind. Much has been written in the field of Patristic literature, but in order to learn about Patrology and to gain a complete picture of any given topic or event, one is required to search though numerous books and wade through endless volumes and chapters. For this reason, A Panoramic View of Patristics was designed. With the aim of informing both the learner and expert on the subject of Patrology, this book draws on information from a select collection of well-known patristic sources, and combines the details into one concise, yet comprehensive resource. This is an exciting trip through six centuries of Church history at your fingertips. Over 200 prominent Church Fathers is featured along with a short biography and details of his writings. And to give the reader a taste of the works of the Fathers, over 180 inspiring excerpts are quoted from Patristic writings. Among other reasons, many of the early centuries sought to articulate their beliefs on the person of Christ, and from this arose numerous heresies. The reader is provided with a thorough outline of these heresies and their condemnations; as well as “A Concise Chronological Table of Heresies Appearing in the First Six Centuries” if a briefer overview is desired. Other features that make A Panoramic View of Patristics an indispensable resource, is a special chapter on “Selected Coptic Orthodox Fathers and Authors of the Middle Ages,” and a chapter titled “Monophysite Vs Miaphysite” which sets out to eliminate the long held misconceptions surrounding the term ‘monophysite.’ Quite simply, through this work, the reader will acquire a panoramic view of Patristics at a quick glance. Note: The book encompasses a large number of large tables, so the content is more readable in landscape view on tablets or larger phones