The Writings of the Apostolic Fathers (T&t Clark Biblical Studies)

The Writings of the Apostolic Fathers refer to a group of miscellaneous Christian writings produced in the first and second centuries. The authors of these writings were considered by seventeenth century scholars to be the next generation of Apostles and as a result were named The Apostolic Fathers. Perceived by many scholars to be the most important collection of post-New Testament writings, a number of these texts were in fact considered for the Canon of the New Testament but later rejected. Their obvious significance stems from the fact that they are the first Christian writings produced outside the New Testament Canon and as such contain an essential insight into the development of the early Christian Church and Christian thinking. Much Christian Doctrine came, not from the New Testament, but from the writings produced by the early church and in particular the writings of the Apostolic Fathers. Therefore, these texts are crucial to an understanding of the shaping of Christian thought and Christian doctrine. This volume will provide readers with an overview of each of the eleven texts, together with a general introduction. Communicating the best recent scholarship to a broad audience, each chapter offers a treatment of the most controversial aspects of each text and discusses the theology of each of the writings in order to orient readers to the development of Christian thinking in the second century. Each article ends with a carefully chosen select bibliography to enable further reading. Preface Abbreviations List of Contributors Chapter 1 CONTENTS THE ApOSTOLIC FATHERS AND THE STRUGGLE FOR CHRISTIAN IDENTITY Helmut Koester Chapter 2 THE DIDACHE Jonathan A. Draper Chapter 3 1 CLEMENT: AN INTRODUCTION Andrew Gregory Chapter 4 2 CLEMENT AND THE MEANING OF THE CHRISTIAN HOMILY Paul Parvis Chapter 5 THE FRAGMENTS OF PAPIAS Charles E. Hill Chapter 6 THE ApOLOGY OF QUADRATUS Paul Foster Chapter 7 THE SHEPHERD OF HERMAS Joseph Verheyden Chapter 8 THE EPISTLE OF BARNABAS James Carleton Paget Chapter 9 THE EPISTLES OF IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH Paul Foster Chapter 1 0 POLYCARP OF SMYRNA, EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS Michael Holmes Chapter 1 1 THE MARTYRDOM OF POLYCARP Sara Parvis Chapter 1 2 THE EPISTLE TO DJOGNETUS Paul Foster INDEX