Church Father Books

  • Thread starter Thread starter Madaglan
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Madaglan

Guest
I am already read through the works of the Apostolic Fathers and works about them. Many of these works are in single and easy-to-afford books. However, I am now more interested in reading the Pre-Nicaean works in full by Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Cyprian of Carthage, Clement of Alexandria, etc. I know that these works are available online at newadvent.org, but does anyone know where I can find the works of these Pre-Nicaean authors in a single volume? I’ve checked on amazon.com, most of the books I found there deal specifically with just one or two works by each Father. If there is a good anthology for these Fathers, I suppose I could settle for that. Any ideas?
 
You could try your local library.

If you wish to purchase a set of books, one of the cheapest these days is www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=30823&event=CFN. This is a reprint of an 1885 Protestant translation and some of the accompanying notes are especially anti-Catholic. This 10-volume set contains:
Volume 1: Apostolic Fathers, Justin Martyr, Inrenaeus
Volume 2: Hermas, Tatian, Athenagoras, Theophilus, Clement of Alexandria
Volume 3: Tertullian
Volume 4: Tertullian (IV), Minucius Felix, Commodian, Origen
Volume 5: Hippolytus, Cyprian, Caius, Novatian, Appendix
Volume 6: Gregory Thaumaturgus, Dionysius the Great, Julius Africanus, Anatolius and Minor Writers, Methodius, Arnobius
Volume 7: Lactantius, Venantius, Asterius, Victorinus, Dionysius, Apostolic Teaching and Constitutions, Homily, and Liturgies
Volume 8: Twelve Patriarchs, Excerpts and Epistles, The Clementina, Aprocryphal Gospels and Acts, Syriac Documents
Volume 9: Gospel of Peter, Diatessaron, Testament of Abra- ham, Epistles of Clement, Origen and Miscellaneous Works
Volume 10: Bibliography, General Index, Annotated Index of Authors and Works
 
If you just want a collection of selected passages from Pre-Nicene Christian writers, there is William A. Jurgens’ book, The Faith of the Early Fathers, Volume 1 (The Liturgical Press: 1970). However, most of the selected passages are very short, usually only a sentence or a paragraph long, and appear to have been chosen because of their support of Catholic doctrines. It has a great doctrinal index in the back.
 
The volumes sold on Christianbook.com seem to be a great buy. However, I’m worried that the translation might be overly biased in favor of evangelical positions. Do you think the translation is a problem in this volume?
 
40.png
Madaglan:
The volumes sold on Christianbook.com seem to be a great buy. However, I’m worried that the translation might be overly biased in favor of evangelical positions. Do you think the translation is a problem in this volume?
Click to expand...
There are some customer reviews of this set of books at Amazon.com. They will give you an idea of some of its limitations.

There is bias in any translation.

The translators (Roberts and Donaldson) were Protestants (Presbyterians, I believe) writing for Protestants in the 1860s so their translation will have a Protestant bias. It only makes sense that, if a word can legitimately translated several ways, you will choose the way that favored your personal outlook. With regard to this particular translation, the text itself seems to be ok but the introductions and footnotes are hostile to the Catholic Church so ignore those parts and let the texts speak for themselves. If you compare this translation with one done by Catholics, such as found in William A. Jurgens’ 3-volume set, The Faith of the Early Fathers, you will probably get a better sense of the original Greek and Latin.
 
Originally Quoted by Todd Easton:
Click to expand...
There are some customer reviews of this set of books at Amazon.com. They will give you an idea of some of its limitations.
Click to expand...
There is bias in any translation.
Click to expand...
The translators (Roberts and Donaldson) were Protestants (Presbyterians, I believe) writing for Protestants in the 1860s so their translation will have a Protestant bias. It only makes sense that, if a word can legitimately translated several ways, you will choose the way that favored your personal outlook. With regard to this particular translation, the text itself seems to be ok but the introductions and footnotes are hostile to the Catholic Church so ignore those parts and let the texts speak for themselves. If you compare this translation with one done by Catholics, such as found in William A. Jurgens’ 3-volume set, The Faith of the Early Fathers, you will probably get a better sense of the original Greek and Latin.
Click to expand...
Yes, thank you for your help. I have purchased the 10-volume set online and hope to be getting it in shortly. If I come across verses in the text itself that appears anti-Catholic, I can always compare it with the texts on New Advent. Later!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top