Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student's Introduction, 2nd ed.

by Clayton N. Jefford

Publisher:

Baker Academic

, 2012

Overview

The Apostolic Fathers is a critically important collection of texts for studying the first century of Christian history. Here a leading expert on the Apostolic Fathers offers an accessible, up-to-date introduction and companion to these diverse and fascinating writings. This work is easy to use and affordable, yet offers a thorough overview for students and others approaching these writings for the first time. It explains the context and significance of each document and points to further reading. This new edition of a well-received text has been updated throughout and includes a new chapter on the fragments of Papias.

Discover how the Apostolic Fathers contributed to Christianity’s the growth and expansion in the first and second century. In the Logos edition, Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction, 2nd ed. is easily searchable. Scripture passages are tagged to appear on mouseover, and all cross-references link to the other resources in your digital library, making this collection even more powerful and even easier to access than ever before. With Logos’ advanced features, you can perform comprehensive searches by topic or Scripture reference—finding, for example, every mention of “unity” or “Mark 13.”

Key Features

• Provides a companion to the writings of the Apostolic Fathers
• Explains the context and significance of each writing
• Includes a comprehensive introduction to the Apostolic Fathers

Contents

Top Highlights

“The dates for the Apostolic Fathers are uncertain in most cases, yet it seems that the final form of each text falls sometime between AD 90 and the end of the second century.” (Page xx)

“The Apostolic Fathers are significant for yet another reason. Before the broader church agreed on a single, authoritative collection of writings—the canon—that ultimately became the scriptures of Christianity, many of the writings in the Apostolic Fathers were considered to have the authority of scripture.” (Page xxii)

“It was only through accident, for example, that the text of the Didache was rediscovered in the archives of a library in 1883, while that of the Letter to Diognetus was identified among wrapping paper at a fish market in 1436.” (Page xix)

“The Letter to Diognetus, which is without question the most recent writing in the collection, was written as a defense for the Christian faith as Christianity began to spread throughout the Mediterranean world.” (Page xxi)

“J. B. Cotelier, a specialist in the field of patristics, used the Latin phrase patres aevi apostolici (in English translation, ‘fathers of the apostolic period’) as part of the title for his two-volume work on these early Christian writings.” (Page xvii)

Praise for the Print Edition

Clayton Jefford has a gift. Not once, but twice, he has taken a complicated, diverse, and hotly debated collection of ancient Christian texts and made them intelligible for a modern, uninitiated audience. But make no mistake. His revised and expanded handbook, a companion and tutor to have along as one reads the Apostolic Fathers, is not simplistic. Jefford condenses and construes the critical issues and literature in a manner that the beginning student will find advantageous, and the expert insightful. Every traveler needs a guide. For the Apostolic Fathers, your journey begins with Jefford.

—D. Jeffrey Bingham, chair and professor of theological studies, Dallas Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Title: Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction, 2nd ed.
• Author: Clayton N. Jefford
• Edition: 2nd
• Publisher: Baker
• Publication Date: 2012
• Pages: 224

About Clayton N. Jefford

Professor of Scripture, Saint Meinrad Theological Seminary.