The earliest writings of the church fathers

[rat]

I came across this site:
http://ccel.org/ccel/richardson/fathers.toc.html
which has some of the very early writings of the church fathers, and I'm really amazed at how well preserved the teachings of modern Orthodoxy are.

Quotes like "Your fasts must not be identical with those of the hypocrites. They fast on Mondays and Thursdays; but you should fast Wednesdays and Fridays." http://ccel.org/ccel/richardson/fathers.viii.i.iii.html

I guess I really shouldn't be surprised, as that is what Orthodoxy is, the maintenance of tradition. What I would like is a recommendation for a book containing the earliest recognized teachings of the fathers, so that I might have something to show people who are hung up on the idea of sola scriptura that there are authentic extra-biblical sources in which one can see the foundation of the modern church being laid.

Thanks for your help!

[Mor Ephrem]

There is a book titled Early Christian Writings put out by Penguin. You can almost always find it in any decent bookstore. It has the writings of some of the Apostolic Fathers like SS. Ignatius and Clement, as well as the Didache (which you quoted). It might be what you are looking for.

[gphadraig]

The Didache was a subject of a BBC Radio 4 programme yesterday. It was trailed as being a document that might undermine the "Church" and our understanding of Christianity.

The lead personality interviewed was an Anglican incumbent, the Revd Alan Garrow. I listened for the whole 30 minutes and could not reconcile the trail with the reality of any threat to our present day understanding of the Church.

If you are a 'Christian' and pro choice, then you have a major problem. If you reject fasting you have a major problem. Fasting is for Wednesday and Friday, not simply a matter of, "Oh, its Friday so its fish again.

Certainly using the links above you will not have missed anything save the hype of the programme makers..........

[Mykael]

What I would like is a recommendation for a book containing the earliest recognized teachings of the fathers, so that I might have something to show people who are hung up on the idea of sola scriptura that there are authentic extra-biblical sources in which one can see the foundation of the modern church being laid.

Thanks for your help!

Here is the best resource available on the ante-nicene, nicene, and post-nicene Fathers up to the seventh Ecumenical council. Roughly the first eighthundred years of the Church.

http://www.light-n-life.com/shopping/or ... um=EARL195

Ask for their calaloge they had the whole set on sale for $199.00

the lowly Mykael

[Anastasios]

Yeah but you can get all of that for free online at http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/ and besides the translations are archaic and hard to understand. Catholic University's Ancient Christian Writers series is much better.

For a compendium of beliefs, that you can use to track down writings, I might suggest "A Dictionary of Early Christian Beliefs"

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 8?v=glance

Anastasios

[Aristokles]

The Didache was a subject of a BBC Radio 4 programme yesterday. It was trailed as being a document that might undermine the "Church" and our understanding of Christianity.

So, you are saying that it is their understanding that would be in jeopardy? ...Good, should be.
Thanks for the reminder; I tend to forget sometimes that the otherodox are another religion.

Demetri

[icxn]

Check this page: http://www.philthompson.net/index2.html

Especially the library section.

icxn