1 of 45

Patrology, Part 2

Servants Preparation Curriculum

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

1

2 of 45

Patrology, Patristic Fathers

Objectives:

  1. To review the criteria of The Church Fathers and the importance behind studying The Church Fathers’ lives and teachings
  2. To study a few examples of Church Fathers from the East
  3. To see a few examples of Church Fathers from the West

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

2

3 of 45

Summary of The Previous Lecture

  • What is Patrology?

​

  • Who, When and Why?

​

  • Classifications of the Church Fathers

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

3

4 of 45

The Criteria of The Church Fathers

  • The Church Fathers should have the following:

​

  • Orthodoxy of Doctrine
    • Concerning The Faith of The Church, The Holy Trinity, The Nature of Christ, The Sacraments, The Liturgies, etc.
  • Holiness
    • Asceticism, austerity and endurance of pain and persecution in acknowledging Christ

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

4

5 of 45

The Criteria of The Church Fathers Cont.

  • The Church Fathers should have the following:

​

  • Antiquity
    • Coptic Orthodox Church = 5th Century
    • Catholic Church = 7th Century (The death of St. Gregory the Great in 604 AD)
    • Eastern Orthodox Church = 8th Century (The death of St. John of Damascus in 749 AD)
  • Approval by The Church

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

5

6 of 45

Why Study Patristics?

  • An early source of teachings
  • Obtain a clear understanding of Christianity and Its Dogma
  • Reliable and accurate Biblical interpretations
  • Examples of the spiritual life

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

6

7 of 45

The Patristic Times

  • Different Classifications:
    • 451 AD for The Oriental Orthodox Churches
      • Ethiopian, Coptic, Armenian, Syrian, Indian, and Eritrean Churches
    • 750 AD, The death of St. John of Damascus in the East
      • Russia, Serbia, Romania, and Bulgaria, the Catholicosate of Georgia, and the churches of Cyprus, Greece, Poland, Albania, and the Czech Lands, and Slovakia
    • 604 AD, The death of St. Gregory the Great in the West
      • Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Protestant Church

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

7

8 of 45

Examples of Church Fathers

Church Fathers from the East

  • Didymus the Blind
  • Saint John Chrysostom

​

Church Fathers from the West

  • Saint Ambrose
  • Saint Augustine

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

8

9 of 45

Examples of Church Fathers Cont.

  • Saint John Chrysostom

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

9

10 of 45

How to Study The Life of a Church Father

  • Life
  • Titles
  • Writings and Quotes
  • Spiritual Benefits

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

10

11 of 45

St. John Chrysostom

Life

  • He was born in 347 AD in Antioch
  • He died in 407 AD in exile
  • His father died early in his life
  • His mother, Anthusa, a 20-year old widow, dedicated her life to bringing him up in the Christian life
  • He received an excellent education and became a lawyer
  • He was known for his eloquence and preaching

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

11

12 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He was spiritually influenced by his mother, his studies of scriptures, his best friend, St. Basil, and Bishop Meletius of Antioch
  • He longed for the monastic life, but his mother was against it
  • He was ordained a deacon in 381 AD and then a priest in 386 AD in Antioch
  • He was ordained as Bishop of Constantinople in 397 AD

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

12

13 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Life Cont.

  • Thousands would attend his sermons and would cry
  • Very often, his sermons were interrupted by applause and he would stop the audience saying, "What is your applause to me? Correcting your lives and turning to God — that is my best praise from you"

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

13

14 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He supported the oppressed and the poor
  • He made enemies with other clergy members and the empress who oppressed a widow, had extravagant parties, and exiled him

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

14

15 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Titles

  • Eastern Church Father
  • Pope of Constantinople
  • Was given the title Chrysostom which means golden-mouth

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

15

16 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Writings

  • On the Priesthood = 6 Books
  • The responsibility of the ministry
  • Exalts priests
  • How to discern the call
  • How to preach
  • Purity of the priests

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

16

17 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Writings Cont.

  • On Wealth and Poverty = 7 Sermons
  • How can the rich enjoy while the poor starve
  • The rich must understand that God gave them money so they can help the poor and widows

​

  • This is why he made many enemies among the clergy and the empress!

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

17

18 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Writings Cont.

  • Letters to a young widow
  • Helping her through her grief
  • Biblical Commentaries
  • Homilies on Martyrs

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

18

19 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Quotes

“If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice”

​

“Not to share our own wealth with the poor is theft from the poor and deprivation of their means of life; we do not possess our own wealth, but theirs”

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

19

20 of 45

St. John Chrysostom Cont.

Quotes Cont.

“Have you sinned? Come to Church. Tell God, ‘I have sinned.’ I do not demand anything else of you than this. Holy Scripture states, ‘Be the first one to tell of your transgressions, so you may be justified.’ Admit the sin to annul it. This requires neither labor nor a circuit of words, nor monetary expenditure, nor anything else whatsoever such as these. Say one word, think carefully about the sin and say, ‘I have sinned’”

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

20

21 of 45

Didymus the Blind

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

21

22 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Life

  • He was born in 313 AD
  • He died in 398 AD
  • He lost his sight at the age of 4

​

  • Where do you think he will end up in this situation?
  • He learned to write by means of wooden tablets in which the characters were engraved

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

22

23 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He learned Mathematics and Philosophy
  • He became familiar with Scripture and almost knew them all by heart
  • He attracted people by his teachings and holy lifestyle
  • Saint Athanasies appointed him as the head of the theological school at 50 years old

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

23

24 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He was visited by Saint Anthony multiple times
  • Some of his students turn out to be great saints like Gregory of Nazianzus and St. Jerome
  • He was not part of the clergy

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

24

25 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Titles

  • St. Jerome called him his magister, praised his teachings, and testified to his influence
  • He was also called a prophet and an apostolic man

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

25

26 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Writings

  • On The Trinity
  • One Essence and Three Hypostases
  • On The Holy Spirit
  • Biblical Commentaries

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

26

27 of 45

Didymus the Blind Cont.

Quotes

“To know goodness is not sufficient to reach blessedness if one does not put goodness into practice with works. Piety towards God is actually the beginning of knowledge”

​

“The well-cultivated soul has the Logos as its King”

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

27

28 of 45

St. Ambrose

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

28

29 of 45

St. Ambrose Cont.

Life

  • He was born in 340 AD in Germany
  • He died in 397 AD
  • His father died while he was young
  • He went to Rome with his mother

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

29

30 of 45

St. Ambrose Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He studied law and worked as a Governor in The Council in Milan
  • He was ordained as Bishop of Milan in 374 AD without being baptized
  • He donated all of his land and gave his money to the poor
  • He studied the Scripture
  • He guided Saint Augustine to repentance

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

30

31 of 45

St. Ambrose Cont.

Titles

  • Bishop of Milan
  • A Bishop of The Poor
  • The Famous Preacher
  • The Doctor of the Church along St. Augustine, St. Jerome, and St. Gregory the Great

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

31

32 of 45

St. Ambrose Cont.

Writings

  • Many letters discussing Dogma
  • On the Death of Satyrus, his brother
  • Concerning Repentance
  • On The Holy Spirit
  • Biblical Commentaries

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

32

33 of 45

St. Ambrose Cont.

Quotes

“It is not enough just to wish well; we must also do well”

​

“No one heals himself by wounding another”

​

“If you have two shirts in your closet, one belongs to you and the other to the man with no shirt”

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

33

34 of 45

St. Augustine

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

34

35 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Life

  • He was born in 354 AD at Thagaste in Numidia, Algeria
  • He died in 430 AD
  • His father was a pagan
  • He grew up as Christian by the influence of his mother, St. Monica
  • At 19 years old, he abandoned the Christian faith due to philosophical influences

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

35

36 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Life Cont.

  • He partially found solutions to his puzzles in Manichaeism
  • That is when he led a very evil life, in which he lived unlawfully with a woman from whom he had a son

​

  • Due to the power of the prayers of his mother, and his earlier upbringing, he returned to Christianity after his encounter with St. Ambrose in Milan

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

36

37 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Life Cont.

  • In 391 AD he was ordained a priest in Hippo Regius
  • He became a famous preacher and was noted for combating the Manichaean religion, to which he had formerly adhered
  • In 396 AD he became Bishop of Hippo and he then died in 430 AD

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

37

38 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Titles

  • Doctor of The Church
  • Bishop of Hippo

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

38

39 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Writings

  • He wrote 232 books
  • “Confessions” is considered a classic in Christian autobiography and outlines his sinful youth and his reconversion to Christianity
  • He writes about how much he regrets having led a sinful and immoral life and regrets for following the Manichaean religion
  • St. Augustine was involved in a battle against Pelagianism which denied The Original Sin and fall of humanity

​

  • Biblical Commentaries
  • Writings about the dogma

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

39

40 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Quotes

“For love is the beauty of the soul”

​

“There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future”

​

“To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement”

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

40

41 of 45

St. Augustine Cont.

Quotes Cont.

“Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe”

​

“Patience is the companion of wisdom”

​

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

41

42 of 45

Spiritual Benefits

Quotes Cont.

  • The importance of the parents and friends
  • Your past can never stop you from being closer to God
  • Give to the poor
  • Standing by the oppressed
  • You can do anything through Christ who strengthens you
  • The love of God and dedicating your life to him

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

42

43 of 45

Patrology, Patristic Fathers

Objectives:

  1. To review the criteria of The Church Fathers and the importance behind studying The Church Fathers’ lives and teachings
  2. To study a few examples of Church Fathers from the East
  3. To see a few examples of Church Fathers from the West

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

43

44 of 45

Review Questions

  1. What is the criteria of a Church Father?
  2. What do we learn from studying the life of The Church Fathers?
  3. List some examples of Eastern and Western Church Fathers
  4. What quotes stood out to you?

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

44

45 of 45

Memorization Verses

  1. “Remember those who [a]rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct” (Hebrews 13:7)

​

  • “as you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children” (1 Thessalonians 2:11)

Lecture X, Servants Preparation Curriculum

45