http://ancientfaith.com/podcasts/afdocumentaries/wheaton_and_the_fathers
Wheaton and the Fathers
January 16, 2010 Length: 40:05
Wheaton College, the epicenter of Evangelical Protestantism, has just opened a Center for Early Christian Studies that will immerse students in the fields of Patristics, the Ecumenical Councils, and early Christian literature. This audio documentary, exclusive to AFR, explores the reasons for the sudden Evangelical interest in the Church Fathers, as well as the potential ramifications of this interest.
Wheaton and the Fathers
January 16, 2010 Length: 40:05
Wheaton College, the epicenter of Evangelical Protestantism, has just opened a Center for Early Christian Studies that will immerse students in the fields of Patristics, the Ecumenical Councils, and early Christian literature. This audio documentary, exclusive to AFR, explores the reasons for the sudden Evangelical interest in the Church Fathers, as well as the potential ramifications of this interest.
Well, there may be the worry that some of the students and faculty) will turn to either the Vatican or the Faner, since Evangelical scholarship in patristics has long been a weak sister, and a lot will probably have to be learned from the Romanists and Phanariots.
ReplyDeleteHowever, many have observed that Jean Calvin himself was a very astute commentator on the Church Fathers, especially Augustine of Hippo and Cyprian of Carthage. Indeed, some of the ideas for the Presbyterian form of government (election of clergy by their peers AND the laity) were built out of statements from Cyprian.
BTW, I've read the Loeb Classical Library editions of the Apostolic Fathers and Eusebius not too long ago. I treasure Augustine's _City of God_ and _Confessions_; and I know I'm not the only Evangelical/Reformed Christian who's had something of a soft spot for Augustine.
As long as we remember that the Word of God is found in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, and not in some mythical "consensus of the First Five Centuries" [forgive me, conservative Anglican friends], I see no danger in the study of patristics, and would indeed welcome it.
While we're at it, I've also read Tractates Pirqe Avot, Sanhedrin,and Pesahin of the Talmud Bavli--and even the Qur'an. I've also read through some of Confucius and Lao Zi (and in the Classical Chinese originals, no less). Yet I still remain a Christian; not a Romanist, Phanariot, Rabbinist, Muslim, Confucian, or Daoist. I simply believe that we can't pretend to close ourselves off from the world we are called to evangelize.
We simply must let the Scriptures stand in judgment of ALL words of men, no matter how holy or ancient.