Church Fathers
Ancient doctrinal authorities
The Church Fathers are the influential Christian theologians and writers of the early centuries of Christianity, from roughly the first through eighth centuries.
Their writings established foundational doctrines on topics like the Trinity, original sin, and scriptural interpretation.
The term includes figures such as Augustine, Ambrose, Jerome, and the Cappadocian Fathers: Augustine is among the most cited of the Church Fathers. (Lowercase church fathers appears in less formal contexts.)
- creedsFormal declarations of faith
- TrinityGodhead as three persons
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
- theologyStudy of the divine
- early ChristianityFaith's founding centuries
Athanasius · Augustine of Hippo · original sin · Nicene Creed · Arian controversy · ecclesiology · Council of Nicaea · Christology · homilies · Jerome · Latin · apologists · doctrine · heresy · scripture · Greek · exegesis · monastery
church, fathers, Cappadocian Fathers, Desert Fathers, Doctor of the Church, Church, patristic