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Apostolic Fathers, The: Greek Texts and English Translations

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Michael Holmes has updated the brilliant J.B. Lightfoot/J.R. Harmer translation of the Apostolic Fathers for the 21st century scholar and interested reader. The works which are included are: 1 Clement, II Clement (correctly labeled here as "An Ancient Christian Sermon"), the Letters of Ignatius (the seven genuine letters in the so-called middle recension), the Shepherd of Hermas, the Letter of Polycarp, the Martyrdom of Polycarp, the Didache, The Epistle to Diognetus, The Epistle of Barnabas, and the numerous fragments of Papias. The critical Greek text is of course also included (with textual variants) in this edition, and so is the Latin when the text only survives as such.

For each book there are helpful footnotes, textual variants, introductory material, and a bibliography. There is a subject/author index, a scripture and non-canonical literature quotation section, and a few maps for those who wish to know, for instance, where exactly Ignatius' letter to the Trallians would have been read. Michael Holmes has also updated the translation and Greek texts based on recent findings and textual discoveries.

Overall, "The Apostolic Fathers" is a fine resource for the Patristic scholar. However the works are also useful for the non-scholar who wants to read about the infant, developing, and persecuted Church. As the title suggests, these writers lived close to the Apostolic Age; some (Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp) even probably knew an apostle or two. Their writings, theology, and ethics are important clues into developing Christian Orthodoxy. The affordable one-volume price, the modern translation, and updated Greek text render this book superior to the other translations of the Apostolic Fathers available, including Staniforth's, Lake's, and volume one of the Ante-Nicene Fathers (however the other editions certainly still have great value; the ANF set has the longer recension of Ignatius' letters, which the Holmes edition lacks). If you wish to begin a study of Christianity and Christian history, after reading the New Testament, start with these texts.

If you have a serious interest in early church literature, this book must be part of your library. Holmes builds nicely on his earlier work in the field and, at the same time, makes an invaluable contribution to the church by making such accurate translations of these ancient documents available to us today. Well done!

I love the format/layout! The greek text is full page on the left side, and the english translation is full page on the bottom, including references in the footnotes, pointing you to scripture reference! Very handy and easy to work with!

I thoroughly enjoyed re-reading "The Apostolic Fathers," and was surprised how much I learned from the exercise. It had been over 30 years since I read these texts, so,understandably, I entered the venture in a doubtful mood. What did I learn? The texts contain numerous references to unknown scriptures not contained in the official canon, e.g., "I am only steam from a pot," (First Clement). Each of the writings reflects the dramatic differences that characterized christian congregations. This is critical to appreciate the wide variances of christian beliefs, practices, and organization in the first century and a half. From Ignatius of Antioch's letters one can see a bishop struggle to unify the obvious conflicting tensions that enlivened his own faith and that of the early churh. One looks in vain in these documents, some of which preceeded the canonical gospels, for structures and dogmas commonly accepted in today's versions of christianity. If fact, if anything, these texts reveal the early christians as what today we would call "fundamentalists." I found the Greek, presented across the page from the English translation, of especial value, since they contain words and phrases repeated in later historical contexts with obvious different applications. While some of the writings may be tedious to the modern reader, perseverance is rewarded with a deeper understanding of the use of language and rhetoric by the leaders of the nascent church.

I have only used small sections of this book so far but it is a fantastic resource. It contains up-to-date critical information about the texts themselves and any historical information about authorship, dating, etc. I did notice that the translator tends to make things gender inclusive that are definitely not so. I am generally in favor of this as many Greek words use masculine nouns to refer to a mixed gender grouping, but this translator translated gender specific words (such as aner)to include everyone. That makes the translations a little less useful for academic work. Nevertheless, it is an excellent resource for anyone with a working knowledge of Koine Greek and an interest in 1st and 2nd century Christianity.

This book contains the works of the early church fathers who helped build the foundations of what would later become the worlds largest religion. The development of the church between the apostles and latter church fathers such as Augustine or Gregory of Nazianzus is often overlooked by those studying the early church. This collection focuses mainly upon writers that occurred within the first or second century after the apostles. The epistles and books range from the solid and orthodox works of Clement to the obscure and mystical Shepherd of Hermas. Many of these works were originally included in the canon of Scripture, and it is interesting when first exposed to them to try to discern why they didnt make the cut later in church history. Another interesting question that arises from these readings is whether or not the writers were inspired, and also how much of this teaching can we take as true and authoritative. A prevalent theme in some of the works is apostolic succession, a theory that the Catholic church later latched onto in order to justify many of its questionable actions. Other theological disputes are discussed such as the allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures or the meanings of visions of the final judgement. Overall the book presents several primary sources of early theological doctrines from one of the most important (but often overlooked) eras in the history of the church.