2.-The Patristic Period - The

The Patristic PeriodThe beginnings of the early church.

The Patristic Period (c. 100-450)

Notable Theologians During the Patristic Period

Heretics During the Patristic Period

Various Theological Developments During the Patristic Period

Short Study – the Bible and Tradition

Short Studies: Christological Controversies:

Arianism

Apollinarianism

Nestorianism

Short Study: The Trinity

Short Study: The Donatist Controversy

Short Study – The Pelagian Controversy

Short Study: Faith and Philosophy

The Patristic Period

The Patristic Period is a vital point in the history of

Christianity since it contexturalizes the early Christian information

from the time of the death of the last Apostle (John) (which runs

roughly about 100 A.D. to the Middle Ages (451 A.D. and the

council of Chalcedon). It describes the cohesion between

Judaism and Christianity and various theological points being

sorted out. Most denominations find this period of church history

vitally important on a similar scale. From Roman Catholicism to

the Reformed Churches following Zwingli and Calvin, many basic

Christian concepts are birthed during this age, which, for good

reason, the church would continue to believe for all time as

orthodox over and against all heretical sectaries.

During the first two hundred years of this era the church

was under persecution from various Roman emperors. It was

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heightened and at its worse with Diocletian (303 A.D.) who even

persecuted his own wife and daughter for being Christians.

Christianity became legalized as a religion in the era of

Constantine (321 A.D.) which was the opposite side of the

spectrum in relation to previous persecution.

Various cities and geographical areas became of chief

importance. The city of Alexandria emerged as a center of

Christian theological education. The city of Antioch also became

a leading center of Christian thought. Western North Africa gave

birth to such men as Tertullian, Cyprian of Carthage, and

Augustine of Hippo.

The Patristic period is filled with theological importance

on the development of Christian doctrine. Many of the debates

of this time are housed in both theological and philosophical

issues. Without a helpful understanding of both of these

disciplines, the student of historical theology will find the patristic

period difficult to comprehend cohesively. This period is

characterized by immense doctrinal diversity and the age of

“flux.” Many scholars refer to this age when the early church

fathers are noted, however, it would be more appropriate to

deem them the “early church children” who had begun working

out Christian theology. Also, there was a major division in the

church in terms of language. The eastern Greek-speaking and

the western Latin-speaking church had both political and linguistic

barriers to overcome.

Overview of Key Theologians During the Patristic Period

Justin Martyr (c. 100-165) is one of the greatest

Christian Apologists writing against paganism. He provided

history with an early example of a theologian who attempted to

relate the Gospel to the outlook of Greek philosophy. Irenaeus

of Lyons (c. 130-200) probably a native of Asia Minor, was

elected bishop of the southern French city of Lyons around 178.

He is chiefly noted for his major writing adversus haereses

(Against the Heresies) that defended the Christian faith against

Gnosticism. Clement of Alexandria (c. 150-215) was a leading

Alexandrian writer with a concern to explore the relationship

between Christian thought and Greek philosophy. Tertullian (c.

160-255) was a major figure in early Latin theology who

produced a series of significant controversial and apologetic

writings. He is noted for his ability to coin new Latin terms to

translate the emerging theological vocabulary of the Greek-

speaking eastern church. Origen (c. 185-254) was a leading

representative of the Alexandrian school of theology, especially

noted for his allegorical exposition of Scripture, and his use of

Platonic ideas in theology, particularly Christology. The originals

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of many of his works, which were written in Greek, have been

lost, with the result that some are known only in Latin translations

of questionable reliability. Cyprian of Carthage (died 258) was a

Roman Rhetorician of considerable skill who was converted to

Christianity around 246, and elected bishop of the North African

city of Carthage in 248. He was martyred in that city in 258. His

writings focus primarily on the unity of the Church, and the role of

its bishops in maintaining orthodoxy and order. Athanasius (c.

296-373) was one of the most significant defenders of orthodox

Christology during the period of the Arian controversy. Elected

as a bishop of Alexandria in 328, he was deposed on account of

his opposition to Arianism. Although he was widely supported in

the West, his views were only finally recognized at the Council of

Constantinople (381) after his death. Gregory of Nazianzus (c.

329-389), also known as Gregory Nazianzen, is remembered for

his Five Theological Orations written around 380, and a

compilation of extracts from the writings of Origen called

Philokalia. He also wrote defensively on the orthodox doctrine

of the Trinity. Basel of Caesarea (c. 330-379) also known as

“Basil the Great” was based on Cappadocia, in modern Turkey.

He is remembered for his writings on the Trinity, especially the

distinctive role of the Holy Spirit. He was elected bishop in

Caesarea in 370. Gregory of Nyssa (c. 330-395), one of the

Cappadocian fathers, is especially noted for his vigorous defense

of the doctrine of the Trinity and the incarnation during the fourth

century. Augustine of Hippo (c. 354-430) is widely regarded as

the most influential Latin patristic writer. He was converted to

Christianity at the northern Italian city of Milan in the summer of

386. He returned to North Africa, and was made bishop of Hippo

in 395. He was involved in two major controversies – the

Donatist controversy, focusing on the church and sacraments,

and the Pelagian controversy, focusing on grace and sin. He

also made substantial contributions to the development of the

doctrine of the Trinity, and the Christian understanding of

history. Cyril of Alexandria (died around 444) was a significant

writer who was appointed patriarch of Alexandria in 412. He

was involved with the controversy over the Christological views

of Nestorius, and produced major refutations and defenses of the

orthodox position on the two natures of Christ. Vincent of Lerins

(died before 450) was a French theologian who settled on the

island of Lerins. He is particularly noted for his emphasis on the

role of tradition in guarding against innovations in the doctrine of

the church, and is credited with the “Vincentian canon.”

Overview of Key Heretics During the Patristic Period

Origen may be considered a heretic on various


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theological positions. His exegesis was often dubious and fell

into the allegorical interpretation instead of the literal which

exposes his many theological errors. However, for now, a

notation should be made that many scholars place Origen in both

camps: as a key theologian and as a heretic depending upon the

issues discussed. Arius (c. 250-336) was the originator of

Arianism, a heretical Christological teaching which refused to

concede the full divinity of Christ. Little is known of his life, and

little has survived of his writings. His views are mainly found in

the writings of his adversaries during the controversy (with the

exception of a letter to Eusebius of Nicomedia which survived).

Apollinarius of Laodicea (c. 310-390) was a vigorous defender of

orthodoxy against Arianism, but unfortunately, his view fell into

the other extreme. His Christological heresy was an

overreaction to Arianism that melded the nature of the Logos as

the soul of the person of Christ. His views were criticized and

condemned as heresy at the Council of Constantinople in 381

A.D. Theodore of Mopsuestia (c. 350-428) was a leading

representative of the Antiochene school, noted especially for his

exegetical work. Following Apollinarius, Theodore taught that the

Logos assumed a human nature but made this a mix so that the

humanity shared in the divinity. He was condemned as a heretic

at the Council of Ephesus in 431 A.D. and Constantinople in 553

A.D. Nestorius (died c. 451) was a major representative of the

Antiochene school of theology, who became a patriarch of

Constantinople in 428. His vigorous emphasis on the humanity of

Christ wound him up in denying his divinity. His is one of the

greatest heretics of the church in denying the divinity of Christ

and making Jesus simply a great teacher anointed by God. He

vigorously denied the use of the term theotokos or God bearer

as a designation of Mary (an accepted theological term).

Pelagius (c. 354) was a British theologian who was active at

Rome in the final decade of the fourth, and first decade of the

fifth, centuries. No reliable information exists concerning the date

of his birth or death. Pelagius was a moral reformer who denied

total depravity and embraced free will to the extent that he

denied that men are affected by the fall of Adam. This brought

him into conflict with the orthodox theologian Augustine.

Augustine wrote vigorously against him in his Anti-Pelagian

writings, and Pelagius has been known through history as one of

the greatest heretics of the church for denying the that the fall

was imputed to all of Adam’s progeny.

Key Theological Developments During the Patristic Period

Christian theology, from its inception, appealed to

Scripture and was grounded in Scripture. How, though, does


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one define “Scripture?” The term “canonical” was used to

described what would be included in the Scriptures. These are

Scriptural-writings that define a limited number that are accepted

as God’s Word by the church. For the writers of the New

Testament the term “Scriptures” referred mainly to the Old

Testament Scriptures. Tertullian declared that alongside of the

Old Testament were the evangelicae et apostolicae litterae –

evangelical and apostolic writings. Agreement was finally made

at a later time as to what books should be included. Athanasius,

in 367 A.D., circulated his 39th Festal Letter which included the

27 books of the New Testament Christians have in their Bible

today. How did these books come together as authoritative?

The principle used is of recognition, not imposition. The church

does not create the canon, rather, they acknowledge, conserve

and receive it.

How does tradition coincide with Scripture? During the

early years many doctrines were espoused that seemed to rest

on the Scriptures, but were in fact a deviation of Christian truth.

In a context where cultic groups were distorting the truth, and

appeal to tradition became important. The word “tradition”

means “handed down.” Irenaeus called it the regula fide, or rule

of faith. This rule of faith was faithfully preserved by the

apostolic church, and is found in the Scriptures. Tradition came

to mean, then, “a traditional interpretation of Scripture.” In this

way, the rule of faith was that which was commonly accepted by

the church as one that received the truth of the Scriptures and

formulated a statement, creed or confession about those truths

(such as the Apostle’s Creed). The English word “creed” comes

from the Latin credo meaning “I believe.” Later statements of

faith were known as confessions, such as the Westminster

Confession of Faith. These are the basics of Christian belief

that every Christian should be able to accept and be bound by.

A creed differs from a confession in that it is a universal

statement of the most simplistic truths of the Christian faith.

The Apostle’s Creed is the most familiar creed of the

Christian church. It is divided into three sections dealing with

God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The Nicene Creed is a

longer version that highlights material in the relationship between

Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

The two natures of Christ was also a large controversial

subject during the Patristic period. The conclusion was that

Jesus Christ was of the same substance of God, described in

the term homoousios (of one substance). Two schools had

two opinions on this: the Alexandrian School placed emphasis on

the divinity of Christ, and the Antiochene school placed an

emphasis on the humanity of Christ. The debates surrounded

the Arian controversy of determining whether Jesus was God, or


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a created being. Arius taught that Christ was a created being.

The Council of Nicea (c. 325) was convened by Constantine and

settled the Arian controversy by affirming that Jesus was

homoousios with the Father (i.e. of the same substance).

After the controversy over the divinity of Christ was

settled, the doctrine of the Trinity naturally came to pass since

this was all intertwined. The basic idea behind the Trinity is that

there are three persons within the Godhead – Father, Son and

Holy Spirit, and that these three are to be regarded as equally

divine and of equal status. Athanasius and Basil of Caesarea

wrote vigorously on this subject defending orthodoxy. The

Eastern Cappadocian fathers (Gregory Nazianzen, Basel and

Gregory of Nyssa) also wrote in defending this doctrine.

The doctrine of the church (ecclesiology) also rose as an

important subject, especially concerning its holiness. The

Donatists argued that the church was a body of saints where

sinners had no place. This became particularly important when

persecution broke out in that the Donatists did not want to allow

back into the church defectors who recanted and then recanted

of their recantation because of that persecution. The Donatists

argued for their exclusion from the church. Augustine, otherwise,

stated that the church must remain a mixed body of individuals –

saints and sinners. The validity of the churches’ holiness did not

depend upon the holiness of the members, but the person of

Jesus Christ.

The doctrines of grace also came to the forefront in the

writings of Augustine over the heresy propagated by Pelagius, a

British monk who believed that Adam’s sin did not affect any of

his progeny. So forceful was Augustine’s pen against Pelagius

that he became known as the “doctor of grace.” Pelagius taught

that the resources of salvation were within humanity, where

Augustine taught that they were in Christ Jesus alone. The ethos

of Pelagianism could be summed up as “salvation by merit,”

whereas Augustine taught “salvation by grace,” following

Ephesians 2:8-10. The Council of Carthage (c. 418) resolved to

uphold the doctrines of grace and condemned Pelagianism in

uncompromising terms.

Short Study – the Bible and Tradition

Who decides what is an orthodox interpretation of

Scripture, and who decides what is not? From its earliest times

Christianity was spread through the oral transmission of

teaching. This “tradition” indicates the basic elements of

Christian truth. Some say that Matthew, Mark and Luke are

based on collections of material which were transmistted orally

before they were finally set down in writing. Some scholars say


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that Mark’s Gospel seems to be the source used for Matthew

and Luke, retaining about 90% in each of those gospels. There

is also material common both to Matthew and Luke that runs

about 200 verses in length and is referred to as the “Q” source.

There is no evidence that “Q” was a gospel itself, or that it

existed as a separate written source. There is material found in

Matthew alone called “M”, and material found only in Luke called

“L”.

Some Gnostic writers believed that a secret oral

tradition was handed down through the apostles and that it was

found in “veiled” form in the Bible. Only certain people who knew

how to read the Bible in “this way” could see and understand it.

The church defended the Bible against this position by

traditionally interpreting Scripture within the community of faith.

This is what tradition has come to mean. Tradition, in this sense,

is not an addition of another source along side the Bible, but

rather it is the basic teaching of Scripture called the “single-

source theory.” Irenaeus argued, in his Against Heresies, that

the living Christian community possessed a tradition of

interpreting the Scriptures that was denied by heretics. By their

historical succession from the apostles, the bishops, pastors and

teachers ensure that their congregations remain faithful to their

teachings and interpretations. Tertullian also makes this same

point where he says that orthodoxy depends upon remaining

historically continuous with and theologically dependent upon the

apostles. The heretics, in contrast, cannot demonstrate any

such continuity. Tertullian says, “if the Lord Jesus Christ sent out

the apostles to preach, no preachers other than those which are

appointed by Christ are to be received.” He rebukes the heretics

saying, “let them unfold the order of their bishops, showing that

there is a succession from the beginning, so that the first bishop

had as his precursor and predecessor an apostle or some

apostolic man who was associated wit the apostles.” Vincent of

Lerins finds the “rule” in what has come to be known as the

consensus fidelium – “the consensus of the faithful.” By the end

of the Patristic period, the idea of interpreting the Bible within the

living tradition of the Christian church was seen as an essential

antidote to heresy, and had become part of the accepted way of

doing theology.

Short Studies: Christological Controversies – Arianism,

Apollinarianism, and Nestorianism

The debate on the divinity of Christ was mainly

conducted in the eastern church. Augustine, for example, never

wrote anything extensive on Christology. It would be the Eastern

Church to rival this heresy. Two early viewpoints of a


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Christological heresy was Ebonitism which regarded Jesus as an

ordinary human being, and Doceticism (coming from the Greek

work dokeo which means to seem or think) teaching that Jesus

only seemed human but was not. Subordinationism also came

into play, and was advocated by Origen who taught that the

Logos must be regarded as subordinate to the Father. But of all

the heretical positions espoused, Arianism was the most

comprehensive and the worst.

Arius taught that the Father existed before the Son. This

places the Father and Son on a different level and why Arius

believed the Son was a created being. The Son outranks other

created beings, but is created nonetheless. Arius stresses the

unknowability of God to creatures, so for him, it is impossible

that Christ knew God in any real sense. Arius also said that the

Scriptures that “seem” to point to Christ’s divinity really are just

“honorific”. They are simply there to elevate Jesus a little more

than most men. The term “Son” then, is a metaphor, a term of

honor, to underscore the rank of the Son against other creatures.

In contrast to Arius, Athanasius wrote vigorously for the

truth. Athanasius said if Christ is a creature, then He is a

creature just like every other creature no matter how much

sugar-coating Arius wants to place on him. Also, no creature

could save another creature, which would overthrow salvation in

its entirety. But Christians worship and pray to Christ, which

would overthrow the commandments if denied. Thus, Athanasius

attacked both the theological and practical ideas Arius was

attempting to overthrow. The syllogism that was used by the

church for so long against Arius (besides the Scriptural authority)

was the following: 1) No creature can redeem another creature.

2) According to Arius, Jesus Christ is a creature. 3) Therefore,

according to Arius, Jesus Christ cannot redeem humanity.

Others have simplified the syllogism this way: 1) Only God can

save. 2) Jesus Christ saves. 3) Therefore Jesus Christ is God.

The debate, then, came to an end at the Council of

Constantinople in c. 381 declaring that Christ “was of the same

substance” as the Father.

Later, Apollinarius taught that the Logos assumed the

human nature of Christ as its soul. This meant that the Logos

dwelt in the person of Jesus but was not the person of Jesus.

The Logos, in this way, was contaminated by the weakness of

the human flesh. The Logos, though, animates the soul and the

human mind, but the human nature is incomplete without it. As a

result, Christ cannot be said to be totally human. The divine

nature assumed the human yet mixed with it. Gregory of

Nazianzus fought this heresy in stating that Jesus is both perfect

God and perfect human being. If Jesus is only partly human,

then salvation would be impossible.


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In the Antiochene Christological school there arose a

problem with a man named Nestorius. In this school the

problems were not necessarily theological but moral. They

believed that human beings were fallen and in need of

redemption. The only person able to redeem humanity was God

who was incarnate in Jesus Christ. But a dispute arose over the

term theotokos, or God-bearer for Mary. Jesus Christ is God.

Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ. Therefore, Mary is the mother

of God. Nestorius could not comprehend this in a theologically

acceptable manner. He thought, for example, Jesus Christ

suffered on the cross. Jesus Christ is God. Therefore God

suffered on the cross. This would then place a huge theological

problem on the immutability of God, and other issues. By the

time Nestorius cam on the scene, the theotokos term was

actually accepted in a proper theological context. Nestorius,

though, completely separated the humanity and divinity of Christ

as a human person and a divine Son. Thus, Christ became

schizophrenic. Cyril of Alexandria championed for the truth of the

hypostatic union and wrote extensively against Nestorius.

Nestorius was condemned officially as a heretic of the church by

the Council of Chalcedon.

Short Study: The Trinity

Through the debates surrounding Christology, the

doctrine of the Trinity was the next large doctrinal matter to

explore. Jesus Christ was seen as being of the same substance

of the Father (homoousios). If Jesus Christ were God, though,

would that mean there were two Gods – one visible and one

invisible? Irenaeus used the term “economy of the Godhead” to

distinguish the proper roles between Father, Son and Holy

Spirit. There are distinct, but related roles of the Father, Son

and Holy Spirit. The doctrine itself is grounded directly in the

complex human experience of redemption in Christ, and is

concerned with the explanation of this experience.

The Eastern Church emphasized the distinct individuality

of the three persons, or hypostases of the God head, and

stressed that both the Son and the Spirit derived from the

Father. The term between the relationship with the Father and

the Son is “begotten.” The Western church began with the unity

of God and interpreted the relationship between the three in

terms of their function. Thus, the Eastern Church’s ideas could

be taken as if there were three different agents doing three

different things. The Western Church would have seen the work

of the Godhead as a unified whole. They pressed the idea that

the Godhead is a “community of being” in which each person,

while maintaining their distinctive identity, penetrates the others


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and is penetrated by them. This is called, more technically,

perichoresis. Augustine formulated much of the Western

Churches’ ideas here and argued, biblically, for the Godhead as

seen in Genesis 1:3 – God, the Word, and the Spirit – active in

creation.

Modalism came into play (a term used of Adolph von

Harnack) to describe a Trinitarian heresy associated with Noetus

and Praxeas in the second century, and Sabellius in the third

century. These writers believed that God revealed Himself in

three different ways – like three masks used at different times.

The Cappadocians played a pivotal role in establishing

the deity of the Holy Spirit over and against the Trinitarian

heresies emerging. The Council of Constantinople formally

accepted this decision in 381 A.D. The formulae expressed by

them and the creed was “one substance (ousia) in three persons

(hypostaeis).” The Father is distinguished by fatherhood, the

Son by sonship and the Holy Spirit by the ability to sanctify the

church. The Father is ingenerate (not being begotten), the Son

is begotten (derived from the Father), and the Spirit is being sent

or proceeding (spirated). Augustine moved further than these

men saying the Holy Spirit is a sort of glue, binding the Father

and Son together and is a central part of Augustine’s theology.

His work On the Trinity is one of the most helpful works of this

era on the distinguishing nature of the Godhead.

The Nicene Creed brought a great amount of stability to

the doctrine of the Trinity as it was finally formulated. One of the

most important issues was the notation made on the Holy Spirit

proceeding from the Father and the Son – something commonly

accepted and routinely spoken of well into the ninth century. The

Western Church used the term filioque which meant that the Holy

Spirit had a double procession, from the Father and the Son.

This was not accepted by the Eastern Church who attempted to

tie the Holy Spirit solely proceeding from the Father. This

debate was a large cause of the division between the Eastern

Church and the Western Church that occurred in 1054.

The Eastern Church used the imagery of the Father

speaking the Word, and the breath carrying the Word, both

which originate with the Father. They attempted to keep the

Father as the sole authority for the Godhead’s being. Augustine,

on the other hand, saw the Spirit proceeding from the Son as

well – as said in John 20:22 where Christ tells the disciples to

“receive the Holy Spirit.” The Council of Lyons attempted to

reconcile this by stating that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the

Father and the Son, yet not as from two origins but from one and

the same together.

Short Study: The Donatist Controversy


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Under the persecution of Diocletian (284-313) individuals

in the Christian church had to make a decision as to whether they

would give into an edict addressed in 303 A.D. stating that all

Christian books should be burned. Those who handed over their

books were called traditores. This was an early form of the

worst kind of schism. The Donatists, then, stated that the church

must be kept pure from sinners who would deny the faith, and

stated an early form of Baptist ideology that says the church

should only be made of the regenerate elect. The Donatists

went further, though, and said sinners had no place in the church

at all. Cyprian began to write on this subject and said that

schism is unjustified on any account. Those ministers who enact

any kind of schism lose all rights to preach and administer the

sacraments in the office of the minister. By passing outside the

sphere of the church, they have lost all their authority. Any who

were ordained must be seen as invalidly ordained, and any who

were baptized must be seen as unbaptized. He argues that

there is only one church, and all Christians must be members of

that one church stemming from the apostles. Cyprian did say

that any pastor who lapses into apostasy and is schismatic, upon

repentance, should be set back in the grace of Christ by his

fellow brothers. The Donatists, however, would do no such

thing. As a result, the Donatists thought that the entire system of

the Church had become corrupted because the church was

allowing schismatics back into the church after they had

apostatized. Augustine refuted them demonstrating that the

church is made up of sinners and saints, and that holiness is not

something intrinsic in saints, but comes from Christ. Christ, then,

affects the holiness of the church, not the saints of the church.

The Donatists, then, became schismatic – the very thing they

thought they were trying to reject. Augustine demonstrated to

the Donatists that every minister must have his authority through

Christ, through the apostles, and their successors. Otherwise

one partakes of schism.

Short Study – The Pelagian Controversy

At the beginning of the fifth century one of the greatest

heretics of the church emerged – Pelagius. Pelagius is known on

the historical scene as a blue-eyed British monk, with the

surname of Morgan, who’s fame emerged from Rome in the

beginning of the fifth century. He studied the Greek theology,

especially that of the Antiochian school, and early showed great

zeal for the improvement of himself and of the world. However,

he taught deviant doctrinal points on the freedom of the will, the

understanding of sin, of grace, and of the grounds for


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justification.

Augustine taught that the will was active under the

umbrella of the sovereignty of God. It is active in its own

desires, which, before the fall was disposed to either holiness or

evil, though it had not been corrupted yet, and after the fall as

wholly corrupted and evil in every desire. Pelagius taught that

men were not affected by the fall of Adam, but only become

sinners after they sin. Pelagius also taught that there was no

need for divine grace (in the way Augustine taught) for every

command given in the Bible was something that God wanted me

to obey, and that demonstrated they could obey it apart form

any divine help. It is always possible for human beings to

discharge their obligations before both man and God. Humanity,

then, is born sinless, and only becomes corrupted by choosing to

sin over choosing to do good – two equally possible choices.

Grace, for Augustine, was the sovereign mercy of God

given to wicked men through the mediation of Jesus Christ and

the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit. For Pelagius it was

simply the human ability of reason. Pelagius also said that grace

can be seen in the moral commands of God and the moral

example of Jesus Christ. Grace simply informs us of what must

be done. Humanity, then, is justified on the basis or merit.

Augustine taught that justification was based on divine grace that

must be placed in us by the power of God. Pelagius rejected

this and saw that men must do good before God because the

commands of God argue that men have the ability to do what

God commands. Augustine, however, as his prayer indicates,

did not believe this at all: “God, command what Thou wilt, but

grant to us what Thou commandest.” The council of Ephesus

condemned Pelagius as a heretic in 431 A.D. for non-Christian

views of sin, grace, justification and the freedom of the will.

Short Study: Faith and Philosophy

One of the most important questions that the early

church worked through was the relationship of Christianity to

philosophy. There is no doubt that the apostle Paul met,

debated, and preached before philosophers (Acts 17:18). When

he spoke on Mars Hill to the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers he

built his impromptu sermon around basic beliefs of Stoic

philosophy. What he did was appeal to the god whom they

followed without knowing who He was, and that Paul was going

to reveal this God to them as the Great and All-powerful God of

the Universe. Classical philosophy can be seen, then, in some

way and to some degree, as preparing the way for the coming of

Christian revelation.

As a result of the impact of already existing philosophical


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systems that had some truth to them but were riddled with error,

men like Justin Martyr and Clement of Alexandria adopted

methods of incorporating philosophical ideas into presentation

against various non-Christian views of ultimate reality. Jesus

Christ is the divine Logos from which all true wisdom comes.

Anything that is good and true in philosophy can be used by the

Christian because it represents that which is true and good as

truth. Tertullian, on the other hand, wanted to create a dividing

wall between philosophy and Christianity since most of what is

espoused in philosophy is heresy. Gnosticism is one of many

examples which Tertullian used as an example of how philosophy

goes awry. (However, some scholars believe that Gnosticism is

really anti-intellectual and non-philosophical.) Augustine,

championing the use of philosophy, says that there is no reason

why a Christian would not want to use what is good about

philosophy since all truth is God’s truth. Christian theology

should use that which is true in every form since it is true. This

methodology was seen at its greatest height in the scholasticism

of medieval Christianity, and further reformed by many reformed

theologians of the Reformation and Post-Reformation era.

Email Dr. C. Matthew McMahon (Curriculum Vitae and Bio): © A Puritan's Mind, All Rights Reserved, 1998-2009Any part of this website may be duplicated in printed form for purposes of personal study, church study, or community evangelism. No part of this site may beduplicated without expressed permission of the author for other purposes. We simply ask for the courtesy of an email if you are going to distribute or duplicate theinformation for purposes beyond what is mentioned. If you would like to post a link on your website or blog to the articles here please do so freely. Linking to thissite is welcomed.

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2.-The Patristic Period - The

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