the Christian Church Fathers with texts to 155 AD/CE
Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2016 1:17 am
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Clement of Rome d.99
Papias of
Hierapolis [near Pamukkale, in the River Menderes* valley, Denizli Province, southwest Turkey] f. 95-120
As an aside -
Ignatius d.~117 AD/CE
the 7 letters of Ignatius
Polycarp of Smyrna [now İzmir, coastal western Turkey] (69-155 AD/CE)
The epistles of Ignatius include one to Polycarp (and one to the Smyrnians)
the Martydom of Polycarp - which takes the form of a circular letter from the church of Smyrna to the churches of Pontus - is from part of the collection of writings Roman Catholics and some Protestants term "The Apostolic Fathers" to emphasize their particular 'closeness to the apostles' in Church traditions [wikipedia]
Marcion of Sinope (c. 85 – c. 160) taught by Cerdo? (in Rome?)
Justin Martyr (100–165)
Melito of Sardis [near Smyrna] (d. 180) - a contemporary of Polycarp, Polycrates, & probably Apollinaris Claudius
[wiki]Melito's canon[/wiki] - the protocanonicals minus Esther ie. books of the OT that came to be considered canonical during the formational period of Christianity; &
Fragments of Melito of Sardis, the philosopher -
Tatian (c.120 – c.180 AD/CE)
Theophilus of Antioch (d. 181)
Others -
I may edit or add to this
Clement of Rome d.99
Clement is known for an epistle to the church in Corinth - 1 Clement - (c. 96), in which he asserts the apostolic authority of the bishops/presbyters as rulers of the church.[2] The epistle mentions episkopoi (overseers, bishops) or presbyteroi (elders, presbyters) as the upper class of minister, served by the deacons, but, since it does not mention himself, it gives no indication of the title or titles used for Clement in Rome. It has been cited as the first work to establish Roman primacy, but most scholars see the epistle as more fraternal than authoritative.Starting in the 3rd and 4th century,[2] tradition has identified him as the Clement that Paul mentioned in Philippians 4:3, a fellow laborer in Christ.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Clement_I#Life
Papias of
Hierapolis [near Pamukkale, in the River Menderes* valley, Denizli Province, southwest Turkey] f. 95-120As an aside -
- * the word "meander" is used to describe a winding pattern, after the river: its classical name "Maeander" became, and still is, proverbial.[7]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BCy% ... eres_River
in Classical Greece (and in later Greek thought) the name of the river had become a common noun meaning anything convoluted and winding, such as decorative patterns or speech and ideas, as well as the geomorphological feature. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meander#Origin_of_term
- no mention of Jesus in them, tho' there are 4 mentions of Christ'
mentions John/s, Mark, & Matthew; but not Luke or Paul. Also Peter, James, Phillip, Thomas, Judas, Aristion, Revelation, himself(3rd person?)
Ignatius d.~117 AD/CE
the 7 letters of Ignatius
Polycarp of Smyrna [now İzmir, coastal western Turkey] (69-155 AD/CE)
It is recorded by Irenaeus, who heard him speak in his youth, and by Tertullian,[4] that he had been a disciple of John the Apostle.[5][6] Saint Jerome wrote that Polycarp was a disciple of John and that John had ordained him bishop of Smyrna - Irenaeus's Adversus Haereses.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polycarp
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/polycarp.htmlLetter to the Phillippians [~110-140 AD/CE] (first recorded by Irenaeus of Lyons (according to wikipedia)) in which Polycarp refutes the Gnostics’ argument that God’s incarnation in, and the death and Resurrection of, Christ were all imaginary phenomena of purely moral or mythological significance ... he repeatedly quote from Paul’s writings, and he stresses the personal importance of Paul as a primary authority of the Christian church
.... at that time Paul had been adopted as a primary authority by the Gnostic heretics. Polycarp, in response, reclaimed Paul as a treasured figure of the orthodox church. It is thus apparently partly due to Polycarp that Paul, the disputed apostle, became a theologically respectable part of the Christian church’s tradition ....
According to certain scholars, Polycarp may even have composed or directly influenced some of the letters traditionally ascribed to 'St. Paul', the so-called Pastoral Letters (I and II Timothy, Titus). These letters possess a 2nd-century vocabulary and style that are characteristic of Polycarp.tradition.http://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Polycarp
The epistles of Ignatius include one to Polycarp (and one to the Smyrnians)
the Martydom of Polycarp - which takes the form of a circular letter from the church of Smyrna to the churches of Pontus - is from part of the collection of writings Roman Catholics and some Protestants term "The Apostolic Fathers" to emphasize their particular 'closeness to the apostles' in Church traditions [wikipedia]
Marcion of Sinope (c. 85 – c. 160) taught by Cerdo? (in Rome?)
- The 'Marcion canon' -
- ten(?) parts of Luke, or 'Ur-Lukas'; aka the 'Evangelion'|'Euangelion'; or the 'Gospel of the Lord';
- ten Pauline epistles1; the 'Apostolikon',
- a Marcionite pseudo-Paul 'epistle to the Alexandrians', &
- an 'epistle to the Laodiceans'
Marcion also wrote a work called the Antithesis which also has not survived, other than being reconstructed.
Justin Martyr (100–165)
born at Flavia Neapolis (today Nablus) in Samaria into a pagan family, and defined himself as a Gentile ... In the opening of the Dialogue,[9] Justin describes his early education, stating that his initial studies left him unsatisfied due to their failure to provide a belief system that would provide theological and metaphysical inspiration to their young pupil. He says he tried first the school of a Stoic philosopher, who was unable to explain God's being to him. He then attended a Peripatetic philosopher but was put off because the philosopher was too eager for his fee. Then he went to hear a Pythagorean philosopher who demanded that he first learn music, astronomy, and geometry, which he did not wish to do. Subsequently, he adopted Platonism after encountering a Platonist thinker who had recently settled in his city ... Some time afterwards, he chanced upon an old man, possibly a Syrian Christian ... Moved by the aged man's argument, Justin renounced both his former religious faith and his philosophical background, choosing instead to re-dedicate his life to the service of the Divine. His newfound convictions were only bolstered by the ascetic lives of the early Christians and the heroic example of the martyrs, whose piety convinced him of the moral and spiritual superiority of Christian doctrine. As a result, he thenceforth decided that the only option for him was to travel throughout the land, spreading the knowledge of Christianity as the "true philosophy." His conversion is commonly assumed to have taken place at Ephesus[11][12] though it may have occurred anywhere on the road from Judaea to Rome.[13]
He then adopted the dress of a philosopher himself and traveled about teaching. During the reign of Antoninus Pius (138-161), he arrived in Rome and started his own school. Tatian was one of his pupils.[14] In the reign of Marcus Aurelius, after disputing with the cynic philosopher Crescens, he was denounced by the latter to the authorities, according to Tatian (Address to the Greeks 19) and Eusebius (HE IV 16.7-8). Justin was tried, together with six companions, by Junius Rusticus, who was urban prefect from 163-167, and was beheaded.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Martyr
regarded as the foremost interpreter of the theory of the Logos in the 2nd century.[2] ...
Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and a dialogue did survive. The First Apology, his most well known text, passionately defends the morality of the Christian life, and provides various ethical and philosophical arguments to convince the Roman emperor, Antoninus, to abandon the persecution of the fledgling sect. Further, he also indicates, as St Augustine did regarding the "true religion" that predated Christianity,[6] that the "seeds of Christianity" (manifestations of the Logos acting in history) actually predated Christ's incarnation. This notion allows him to claim many historical Greek philosophers (including Socrates and Plato), in whose works he was well studied, as unknowing Christians.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Martyr
Melito of Sardis [near Smyrna] (d. 180) - a contemporary of Polycarp, Polycrates, & probably
Apollinaris Claudius[wiki]Melito's canon[/wiki] - the protocanonicals minus Esther ie. books of the OT that came to be considered canonical during the formational period of Christianity; &
Fragments of Melito of Sardis, the philosopher -
Melito may have been the immediate successor of the "angel" (or "apostle") of the church of Sardis, to whom our Great High Priest addressed one of the apocalyptic messages.
Tatian (c.120 – c.180 AD/CE)
- the Diatesseron
Theophilus of Antioch (d. 181)
- Apology to Autolycus in 3 Books; 1st mention of notion of the Trinity, but no mention of Jesus Christ
Others -
- Simon Magus; unknown dates(?); Gitta, Samaria. a convert to Christianity; supposedly baptised by Philip the Evangelist,
- via Alexandria to Rome
confrontation with Peter is recorded in Acts 8:9–24
- via Alexandria to Rome
- Cerdo fl. 138AD; a Syrian Gnostic; -> Rome. A follower of Simon Magus; a 'Simonian'
- a contemporary of Pope Hyginus (significance?). Taught Marcion(?) Expelled.
- [wiki]Menander_(gnostic)[/wiki] (taught the Alexandrian Basilides; listed below) (Josephus's Apion 1 has 'Menander the Ephesian', early 2ndC BC)
- Basilides ...
- Polycrates_of_Ephesus (fl. c.130–196)
- best known for his letter addressed to the Roman Bishop Victor who was attempting to find a consensus about the proper date to celebrate Easter re Quartodecimanism.
- Pope Hyginus (died c. 142)
I may edit or add to this
