We Believe in One God (Ancient Christian Doctrine) [Hardcover]

Gerald L. Bray (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0830825312 | ISBN-13: 978-0830825318 | Publication Date: May 18, 2009

"We believe in one God, the Father." The opening clause of the Nicene Creed can be summed up in a single word--monotheism. In the early centuries of the church, this striking doctrine stood starkly against a cultural background of multiple deities and spiritual powers. While it clearly builds on its Jewish heritage, calling God "Father" anticipates the Father-Son relationship in the Godhead that early Christians knew and robustly upheld. The first article of the Nicene Creed also presupposes that there is an objective body of teaching that Christians are expected to confess as their faith. This idea seems normal and natural to us, but it was a novelty in the ancient world. Neither Judaism nor any pagan religion or philosophy could claim to have a closely defined set of beliefs that everyone adhering to it was expected to profess publicly and defend against all comers. While this article on God the Father is the shortest and arguably oldest portion of the Creed, it fully sets forth the fundamental understanding of God as creator and originator of all that is. This commentary in its selection of texts from the early church highlights the common understanding of the One God in three Persons, elucidating the church's understanding of divine attributes and trinitarian relations.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

About the Series: This exciting five-volume series follows up on the acclaimed Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture to provide patristic commentary on the Nicene Creed. The series renders primary Greek, Latin, Coptic and Syriac source material from the church fathers in lucid English translation (some here for the first time) and gives readers unparalleled insight into the history and substance of what the early church believed. Including biographical sketches, a timeline of ancient Christian sources, indexes, bibliographies and keys to original language sources as well as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed in Greek, Latin and English (ICET version), this series illuminates key theological essentials in the light of classic and consensual Christian faith and makes an excellent resource for preaching and teaching.

About the Author

Gerald L. Bray (Ph.D., La Sorbonne) is a professor at Beeson Divinity School of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, and director of research at Latimer Trust. He has written and edited a number of books on different theological subjects. A priest of the Church of England, Bray has also edited the post-Reformation Anglican canons.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 201 pages
• Publisher: IVP Academic (May 18, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830825312
• ISBN-13: 978-0830825318
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #802,459 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Patristic Commentary on the Nicene Creed, July 19, 2009

By 

Brandon Wason (Atlanta, Georgia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: We Believe in One God (Ancient Christian Doctrine) (Hardcover)

The major topics that Bray highlights in this volume are drawn from the first article of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. He addresses faith and scripture, the nature of God, God as Father, God as almighty, God as creator, creation itself, and things seen and unseen. The first article is the shortest and most likely the oldest article of the Creed. With that being the case, Bray traces much of the theology from this section back to the earliest Christian writers. Of course, since the later patristic authors tended develop their theology more thoroughly, they are often cited as well. The book is a little short when compared to the volumes in the sister series (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture), but it also covers a very short portion of text.

While selecting sources for the patristic commentary, Bray sought to choose texts that not only represented the early Christian doctrine, but ones that were also valuable to spiritual formation of the modern reader. The main goal of the book is to "foster the edification of Christian believers" (xli), although Bray also notes that the book should prove helpful to scholars and others less interested with that goal. The book follows the trajectory of the "classical church fathers" and so voices from other forms of Christianity at the time are omitted--which is not surprising because it is a commentary on the Nicene Creed.

The sampling of texts used in the commentary are easy to navigate and the selections are generally very relevant. The selections are also nicely footnoted with pointers to source material, cross references, and explanatory notes. Unfortunately, there aren't notes on the translation of the Greek and Latin texts themselves, and those interested in the original languages will have to consult other editions. The commentary functions as a hybrid between a concordance of topics pertaining to the Nicene Creed and an anthology of primary sources of patristic authors. It's definitely a useful volume to locate sources on the theology of the writers known as the Church Fathers. I see this this book as a helpful starting place for further inquiry.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Introduction to the Treasures of the Church Fathers, June 5, 2009

By 

Paul T. McCain "Paul T. McCain" (St. Louis, Missouri) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: We Believe in One God (Ancient Christian Doctrine) (Hardcover)

I'm absolutely delighted to see that the tremendous Ancient Christian Commentary series is now being harvested for this new five volume series on Ancient Christian Doctrine. It is heartening to see that Christians who, in the past, have been somewhat dubious about the fathers of the early church, and for that matter the whole notion of "creeds" are returning once more to the ancient roots of the Christian Faith. This series of books offers key quotes from the main thinkers in the patristic era of the Christian Church, identified in this series as starting in 95 a.d. and continuing to 750 a.m. These five volumes, beginning with this first volume, walks through the Nicene Creed, phrase by phrase, and offers the insight of the church fathers, "allow us to think with the church" as Timothy George notes well on the back slip cover.

The volumes are a tad slim for my tastes, but one could argue that to provide more than is here would overwhelm and intimidate. These are nicely presented texts, that will, God willing, open a door on the ancient church fathers and provide many with their refreshingly insightful comments on the core truths of the Christian faith.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for Serious Students of Church Doctrine, August 17, 2009

By 

Joel L. Watts "Joel Watts" (Charleston, WV) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: We Believe in One God (Ancient Christian Doctrine) (Hardcover)

As a followup to the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture series, InterVarsity Press has issued a series on what many consider the most important creed formulated by Church councils - the Niceno-Constantinoplitan. (Compared to the Nicene Creed of 325, it does had major additions developed after the serious Arian controversies in the 4th century.) For the editors, this Creed is a binding tool of ecumenicalism which is shared by Catholic, Orthodox and most Protestants alike, so it is only natural that any series on ancient Christian doctrine which is meant to solidify what is consider orthodox focus on this creed.

In the chapters, the reader finds a consistent voice supported by mainstream theologians of the period, from the close of canon to the 8th century. One of the benefits/detractions is that the Editor uses only those writers who can be interpreted in the orthodox light, and only their orthodox writings. While this is acceptable if the intent is to issue a commentary on the creed, the reader may want to obtain other books for a history of the development of the Creed of 381.

Each chapter, as given below, opens with the the stanza in Greek, Latin, and English with the phrase to be supported in bold. The Editor then goes on to give a historical context of the particular phrase. This is followed by an overview which essentially is a summary, complete with references to the Fathers, of the forthcoming commentary. This overview is creedal in of itself in that it is short sentences from the various writers which you are about to read.

The chapters themselves are made up of short sayings by various authors including those who ended their Christian life less orthodox than one would like to believe, such as Tatian and Tertullian. The translation of these texts range from old texts modified slightly to new texts, never before translated, but done so for this work with a dynamic equivalency. The fact that this series uses never before translated works makes it a valuable resource to have.

This volume in particular deals exclusively with the first stanza, or article, of the Creed of 381, which is arguably the oldest section, and longest surviving (virtually unchanged from the days if Irenaeus) part of the creed. The chapters of the book are organized around each clause of the first line of the creed, as follows:

*
We Believe
*
In One God
*
The Father
*
The Almighty
*
Maker
*
Of Heaven and Earth
*
Of All That Is, Seen
*
And Unseen

Finally, the quality of the book is outstanding. It is a nicely designed hardback with a beautifully designed dust jacket. The print is readable, with the different authors clearly separated by bold print. The additional material includes a Scriptural Index, an outline, and a source for the authors used.

The main goal of the book is to "foster the edification of Christian believers" (xli), and with this volume, that goal should easily be accomplished.