'25 SUMMER READING LIST, #7 - "GETTING TO KNOW THE CHURCH FATHERS" BY BRYAN LITFIN

How many of you get excited by studying church history? Does it seem to be dealing with dry historical figures that don't really fit in with modern life? Here's a book that will help you appreciate the development and the individuals who influenced that development.

If you can read the small, light print on the bar above the author's name, you'll see this is the second edition. I've read both editions. The first one deals with Ignatius, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Perpetua, Origen, Athanasius, John Chrysostom, Augustine, and Cyril of Alexandria. The second edition adds Ephram the Syrian and St. Patrick of Ireland. 

Each chapter gives a biography of the subject and some description of what was going on at the time. This is followed by five or so questions, reading recommendations, and an excerpt of their writings. The questions make this ideal for a group study - I've used this in that setting twice.

 

"YOU'RE RETURNING TO THE PEOPLE WHO KIDNAPPED YOU TO WITNESS TO THEM?" - A LOOK AT ST. PATRICK OF IRELAND

Stained-glass window of St. Patrick from Saint Patrick Catholic Church, Junction City, Ohio

 Ladies and gentlemen, let's picture this scenario. A young man tells his parents he's leaving to be a missionary. Not just that, but he's not expecting to return. Add to that the fact this young man had been kidnapped by foreigners and served as a slave for six years before escaping and returning home. One last thing - the region he's going to as a missionary is the place he was held captive.

Let the above be your picture of the gentleman whose day is celebrated on March 17th. 

Bryan Litfin added two historical figures when he released the second edition of Getting To Know The Church Fathers: An Evangelical Introduction. One, Ephrem the Syrian (who we looked at a few days ago) represented Christianity's expansion eastward; the westward move is represented by Patrick of Ireland.

Patrick is one of those people we have to really study to distinguish the reality from legend. He didn't make the job easy by leaving only two writings (his autobiography and a letter to a tyrant claiming to be a Christian). But here are a couple of things to keep in mind (besides what I mentioned in the first paragraph):

1. He learned how to adapt his evangelism to the region he was in. Paul set the model of going to urban areas and preaching the gospel. Patrick may have done it if there were large urban areas in Ireland. There wasn't, so Patrick's witnessing had to be revised to reach a more rural, agricultural environment. And he succeeded.
2. The British Isles and beyond were impacted by those Patrick converted. One of those was Columba, who came to Iona, Scotland. (True, it's fiction, but a novel that deals with Columba which I highly recommend is The Keeper Of The Stone by Donna Fletcher Crow - click here for my review of that book.) 

Patrick is the final church father Litfin dealt with. I'll wrap up this series with tomorrow's blog.

By the way, I chose to use a font called "Irish Grover" for today's blog.