Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: First Series, 14 Volumes [Hardcover]

Alexander Roberts (Editor), James Donaldson (Editor), Philip Schaff (Editor), Henry Wace (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1565630947 | ISBN-13: 978-1565630949 | Publication Date: June 1, 1994 | Edition: 2nd

Series I of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers consists of eight volumes of the writings of St. Augustine, the greatest and most influential of the early Church Fathers, and six volumes of the treatises and homilies of St. Chrysostom. The series is edited by the eminent church historian Philip Schaff (1819-1893), professor at Union Theological Seminary, New York.

Volume Titles:
Volume 1: Augustine: Prolegomena, Confessions, Letters
Volume 2: Augustine: City of God, Christian Doctrine
Volume 3: Augustine: On the Holy Trinity, Doctrinal Treatises, Moral Treatises
Volume 4: Augustine: Anti-Manichaean, Anti-Donatist Writings
Volume 5: Augustine: Anti-Pelagian Writings
Volume 6: Augustine: Sermon on the Mount, Harmony of the Gospels, Homilies on the Gospels
Volume 7: Augustine: Gospel of John, First Epistle of John, Soliliques
Volume 8: Augustine: Expositions on the Psalms
Volume 9: Chrysostom: On the Priesthood, Ascetic Treatises, Select Homilies and Letters, Homilies on the Statues
Volume 10: Chrysostom: Homilies on the Gospel of St. Matthew
Volume 11: Chrysostom: Homilies of the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistle to the Romans
Volume 12: Chrysostom: Homilies on Corinthians, 1st and 2nd
Volume 13: Chrysostom: Homilies on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, and Philemon
Volume 14: Chrysostom: Homilies on the Gospel of John, Hebrews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 8448 pages
• Publisher: Hendrickson Pub; 2nd edition (June 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565630947
• ISBN-13: 978-1565630949
• Product Dimensions: 14.3 x 10 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 33.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,283,878 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Basic Work for Early Christian Literature, August 22, 2008

By 

David M. Dougherty (Arkansas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: First Series, 14 Volumes (Hardcover)

As a layman I am less than qualified to critique this 14 volume set on its contents or translations, but hasten to say that the writings contained within are critical to have on one's shelf if interested in the history and development of Christianity. There is also a second series of 14 volumes that are equally important and I recommend purchasing them both.

The annotations and introductions to each item aid in contextualizing each work, but as another reviewer noted, betray a 19th century Protestant bias. That being said, they are still of great assistance.

My set is a reprint of the original American edition by Philip Schaff produced in 1886 and reprinted by Hendrickson Publishers in 1994. This is a fine edition with small but very readable type on good paper. Other editions are available, but this one is satisfactory in every respect.

These two 14 volume sets, 1st and 2nd Series, are the chief authorities for the doctrines and usages of the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches after the New Testament. They do not, however, contain the Patristic commentaries on the Old Testament included in the Oxford Library of the same time period, an omission that I do not miss. The Greek Fathers run from Eusebius to Photius, and the Latin Fathers from Ambrose to Gregory the Great. If these two series and the corresponding Ante-Nicene 10 volume set do not take the reader where he wants to go in Christian history, then I do not know what to recommend (with the exception of the Nag Hammadi Library by Robinson, of course.)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Standard Resource that needs to be Supplemented, December 14, 2011

By 

Quentin D. Stewart - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: First Series, 14 Volumes (Hardcover)

The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (NPNF) series has long been something of a standard reference work for those interested in the church fathers. The series was begun initially by men of the Oxford Movement in the 19th century in Britain, i.e., Anglicans seeking to revive the church fathers for their day and age in the Church of England. That would explain the "thees" and "thous." Seeking to discover the mind of the fathers the men of the Oxford Movement translated primarily fathers of the late fourth and early fifth centuries. That explains the emphasis on Augustine and Chrysostom in the first series of the NPNF series. Being Anglicans seeking to remain Anglican the series offers a host of anti-Catholic commentary that will offend almost every sensible Roman Catholic, but the real service of these translations is not the anti-Roman polemic, but the translations themselves and the renewed interest in the church fathers that we now see once again in our own day.

The series is by no means complete, neither for Augustine nor Chrysostom. Still, the price alone makes this series worth having, though it needs to be supplemented by works found in other patristic series such as The Fathers of the Church series published by Catholic University of America Press, and the more recent and much more readable translations of St. Augustine produced by New City Press.

Please know these volumes are also available on CD ROM and individually through Kindle.

9 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Homilies Of St John Chrysostom, June 14, 2000

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[e-mail] - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers: First Series, 14 Volumes (Hardcover)

I graded the work a five star only for the eloquance and mythodical, yet very neccessary thological literature that tends to bend the ear of anyone desiring to gain more knowledge into mystical and contemplative life. However, the print quality is less than stellar and the paper is cheap. Too bad! I purchased it for the content. So I had to put away the cheap ink and paper.