AD300 – AD600

The Patristic Age

According to tradition, our Lord promised St. Gertrude that 1000 souls would be released from purgatory each time it is said devoutly.

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in

union with the masses said throughout the world today,

for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners

everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within

my family. Amen.

Great and holy leaders who aroseTo lead the ChurchExplain the faithMeet the challenges posed by heresy

2 groupsLatin/WestGreek/East

IMPORTANT: closeness to the time of the Apostles and their writings is a reference point for Church teachingWhat particular value does this serve for us

today?

The Church Fathers

4 common characteristicsAntiquity (old…bearded men…)

In the East, prior to St. John Damascene (d.749)In the West, pr ior to St. Isidore of Seville (d.636)

Orthodoxy (in doctrine)Holiness (Sanctity)Notoriety (Church Approval)

The Church Fathers

Alexander of Alexandria [S]

Alexander of Lycopolis Ambrose (340-397) [S]

[D] Aphrahat/Aphraates (c.

280-367) Archelaus Aristides the

Philosopher Arnobius Athanasius [S] [D] Athenagoras Augustine of Hippo [S]

[D] Bardesanes (154-222) Barnabas [S] Basil the Great [S] [D] Caius Clement of Alexandria

[S] Clement of Rome [S] Commodianus

Cyprian of Carthage [S]

Cyril of Jerusalem [S] [D]

Dionysius of Rome [S] Dionysius the Great Ephraim the Syrian

(306-373) [S] [D] Eusebius of Caesarea

(c. 265-c. 340) Gennadius of

Marseilles Gregory the Great,

Pope (c. 540-604) [S] [D]

Gregory Nazianzen [S] [D]

Gregory of Nyssa [S] Gregory Thaumaturgus

[S] Hermas, The Pastor (or

"The Shepherd") Hilary of Poitiers [S]

[D]

Hippolytus [S] Ignatius of Antioch [S] Irenaeus of Lyons [S] Jerome [S] [D] John of Damascus [S]

[D] John Cassian (c. 360-c.

435) John Chrysostom [S]

[D] Julius Africanus Justin Martyr [S] Lactantius Leo the Great, Pope (c.

395-461) [S] [D] Malchion Mar Jacob (452-521) Mathetes Methodius Minucius Felix Moses of Chorene (c.

400-c. 490) Novatian

Origen Pamphilus [S] Papias [S] Peter of Alexandria [S] Polycarp [S] Rufinus Socrates Scholasticus

(c. 379-c. 450) Sozomen (c. 375-c.

447) Sulpitius Severus (c.

363-c. 420) Tatian Tertullian Theodoret  Theodotus  Theophilus  Venantius  Victorinus [S]  Vincent of Lérins (d. c.

450) [S]

The Church Fathers

Church Fathers: “the Elite 8”Western Fathers

St. AmbroseSt. JeromeSt. AugustineSt. Gregory the

Great

Eastern FathersSt. AthanasiusSt. Basil the GreatSt. John ChrysostomSt. Gregory of

Nazianzus

Timeline…

These Fathers of the Church are also Doctors of the ChurchDOCTOR OF THE CHURCH – title given to

certain saints whose writing or preaching is outstanding for guiding the faithful in all periods of the ChurchFrom Modern Catholic Dictionary, John Hardon, S.J.

Sts. Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine of Hippo, and Gregory the Great proclaimed by Pope Boniface VIII (9.20.1295)

Sts. Athanasius, Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus, and John Chrysostom proclaimed by Pope St. Pius V (1568)

35 Saints in all have been proclaimed Doctors…can you name some?

The Elite 8 – Doctors of the Church

St. Athanasius St. Ephraem the Syrian St. Hilary of Poitiers St. Cyril of Jerusalem St. Gregory of Nazianzus St. Basil the Great St. Ambrose St. John Chrysostom St. Jerome St. Augustine St. Cyril of Alexandria St. Peter Chrysologous St. Leo the Great St. Gregory the Great St. Isidore of Seville St. John of Damascus St. Bede the Venerable St. Peter Damian

St. Anselm St. Bernard of Clairvaux St. Anthony of Padua St. Albert the Great St. Bonaventure St. Thomas Aquinas St. Catherine of Siena St. Teresa of Avila St. Peter Canisius St. John of the Cross St. Robert Bellarmine St. Lawrence of Brindisi St. Francis de Sales St. Alphonsus Ligouri St. Therese of Lisieux St. John of Avila St. Hildegard of Bingen

Doctors of the Church

Antiquity: AD345-420Orthodoxy

DOCTOR OF SACRED SCRIPTUREGreatest of early Christians to use Scripture in

defense of the Faith and to offer their idea of what comprises Scripture

St. Jerome, Priest

HolinessLived a strictly ascetical life

Spent his last years in a monastery in BethlehemSpent much time in study, especially language

& ScriptureA cantankerous & passionate curmudgeon:

referred to St. Augustine as the “peon of north Africa.”Sarcastic, easily made enemies, argumentative

NotorietyLived in many parts of Roman empireLearned Greek & Hebrew & translated SS from

these sources into Latin (The Vulgate)

St. Jerome, Priest

Antiquity: AD340 – 397Orthodoxy in doctrine

PASTORAL DOCTORZealous defender of the Faith (esp. against

Arianism)Considered an exemplary pastorExcommunicated Emperor Theodosius for

slaughtering 7,000 people in ThessalonikaAfter public penance, the emperor was pardoned

Writings on: the divinity of Jesus Christ, the Sacraments of Initiation, Virginity, Widowhood

St. Ambrose of Milan, Bishop

HolinessOnly a Catechumen when elected bishop by

popular acclaim in 374.Notoriety

Aristocratic parents; well-raised and educatedGovernor of Milan; when elected bishop he

fled, but was brought back to Milan, baptized & ordained a bishop

St. Ambrose of Milan, Bishop

St. Augustine of Hippo: BackgroundFather is pagan; mother is St.

MonicaUnbaptized as a child, spent many

years in heresy & immoralityAt 18, became a Manichaean

Rejected it b/c of inconsistencies & failure to answer important questions

Major conversion at about 33 b/c…Prayers of his mother, St. MonicaPreaching of Abp. Ambrose of

MilanAttraction to Neo-PlatonismReading of St. Paul (Bible Bingo)

“Tolle et lege” – Romans13:13-14

Antiquity – AD354 -430Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR OF GRACEBishop of Hippo (N. Africa)

Incredible preacher – trained in rhetoricPROLIFIC WRITER; major works:

City of God – written as the Roman Empire is collapsing

Confessions – his, not other peoples…Christian Doctrine – how to teach the Catholic

FaithAND A TON OF OTHER WORKS!!!

St. Augustine of Hippo, Bishop

HolinessSpent much of his efforts in fighting heresy.

Manichaeism, Donatism, Pelagianism** - consider his life…

Notoriety – his writings made him famous throughout the Roman EmpireConfessions marked the beginning of an

entirely new genre of literature – a biography written in the first person

Thomas Aquinas refers to him as “The Theologian” in his Summa Theologia

St. Augustine of Hippo, Bishop

Antiquity – AD540-604Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR OF HYMNOLOGYSignificant Writings:

The PASTORAL RULEMoral Reflections on JobDialogues (emphasizes the 4 last things, especially

Purgatory!)Gregorian Chant

St. Gregory the Great, Pope

HolinessElected Pope by unanimous decision

3 Sept 590; lots of work to do…Notoriety

Trained & gifted in many waysMusic, administration, leadership, reformer, writer,

preacher, and enforcer of disciplineHeld many offices

Prefect of Rome, Roman senator, missionary, deacon, monk, abbot, papal nuncio, Pope

Two aunts were canonized

St. Gregory the Great, Pope

Antiquity: ~AD297-373Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR OF ORTHODOXYWell-educated in: Greek literature, philosophy,

rhetoric, law, Christian doctrine“a principal instrument after the Apostles by

which the sacred truths of Christianity have been conveyed and secured to the world” – Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman

Writings: Life of St. Anthony of the Desert, everything you could imagine about Arius…, On the Incarnation

St. Athanasius, Bishop

HolinessShortly after Nicaea (325), became Bishop of Alexandria

(328) where he was pressured by heretical bishops & even the emperorThey attacked his character & accused him of various heinous

crimes6 times he is exiled from Alexandria

The “Great Escape” – “he was headed up river; you are very close to him”

Energizer bunny – indefatiguable energy – kept going & fighting against Arianism!

NotorietyDisciple of St. Anthony of the DesertAthanasius attended Council of Nicaea (AD325) as a

deaconAthanasius vs. Arius!

St. Athanasius, Bishop

St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory of Nyssa and St. Gregory of NazianzusFrom…Cappadocia! (modern-day Turkey)

Two brothers (Gregory of Nyssa and Basil) and their friend Gregory of Nazianzus

The “Cappadocian Fathers”

Two brothers (Gregory of Nyssa and Basil) and their friend Gregory of NazianzusSt. Basil the Great (c.330-379)St. Gregory of Nazianzus (329/30-389/90)St. Gregory of Nyssa (ca.330-ca.395)

St. Gregory of Nazianzus & St. Basil were BFFWritings influenced Council of Constantinople

(381)Defending the divinity of Christ and the Holy Spirit.

The “Cappadocian Fathers”

Antiquity: AD330 – 379Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR OF MONASTICISMWorked tirelessly for rights of clergy, needs of

poor, & education of the Christian faithfulWritings on the Holy Spirit, a Monastic Rule

(St. Basil’s Rule), and the prayers & hymns for a Divine Liturgy (Eastern term for the Holy Mass) now commonly used during Lent in the East

St. Basil the Great, Bishop

HolinessAlso known for his monastic rule and an Eastern

Liturgy that is attributed to him.St. Basil’s Byzantine Liturgy – basis for Eucharistic

Prayer IV (Eastern Liturgy – verbose, litanies, threes) (Roman Liturgy – sober, simple, processions, etc.)

NotorietyIn only 5 years of monastic life, he became

known as Father of Eastern MonasticismAt 40, elected Bishop of Caesarea

Very intelligent, holy & a good administratorArian heresy had long been gaining force and

not only was Caesarea under attack, but Basil was under attack by the Emperor

St. Basil the Great, Bishop

Antiquity – AD329/30–389/90Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR OF THEOLOGIANSWritings: On the Holy Spirit

HolinessKnown as ‘The Theologian’

St. Gregory of Nazianzus, Bishop

NotorietyStarted as Bishop of Sasima in

CappadociaElevated to Archbishop of

Constantinople and defended the true Faith at Council of Constantinople (AD381)NOT a good administratorShortly after, resigned as archbishop to live out his

days as a monk

St. Gregory of Nazianzus, Bishop

Antiquity – AD347–407Orthodoxy in doctrine

DOCTOR of the EUCHARISTAgainst his wishes he was named Archbishop

of Constantinople (ABC) in AD398 Preached against moral laxity of his day, including the

imperial familyWritings: many homilies, full commentaries on

the New Testament, letters to friends … and some who were not friends, On the Priesthood

St. John Chrysostom, Bishop

HolinessBaptized at 22 & became a hermitDied in AD407 in exile on a “death march”

NotorietyOrdained in AD386 by the Bishop of Antioch,

whom he served under for 12 years Could apply the lessons of Sacred Scripture to real-world

situations with which people were dealingReceived the name Chrysostom which means

“golden-mouthed” b/c of his preachingExiled 3 times by Emperess Eudoxia for his

fearless preaching against her court of Constantinople30 years after he died traveling during exile,

Eudoxia’s son, Emperor Theodosius II, had his coffin dug up, laid his face on it and asked that his parents’ ignorance and recklessness be forgiven by the Saint!

St. John Chrysostom, Bishop

Are they relevant today?