Patrology

All Christian writers, orthodox and heretical, up to Gregory the Great (d. 604), or Isidore of Seville (d. 636) in the West and to John Damascene (d. 749) in the East are considered Fathers of the Church according to Quasten (Patrology (B143, v. 1., p. I). Actually the dates vary with almost each authority, but authors after the ninth century are usually not termed Fathers. Patristical writings are important sources of Christian theology and philosophy for both Catholics and Protestants.

The most important patristical reference works are the texts themselves. These have been published in several monumental collections, the most complete but unsatisfactory of which is that by Abbe Jacques Migne (B169-B173). Numbering nearly 400 volumes, this series contains the same kinds of typographical errors found in his Encyclopedie theologique (A122).

In 1953, however, the first volume of a projected replacement for Migne appeared: Corpus Christianorum: Series Latina (B158-B162); and in 1977 the first volume of the Series Graeca (B158) was published. Edited by the Benedictine monks of St. Peter's Abbey, Belgium, these series promise to be the most accurate and complete of the many collections attempted throughout the history of the Church.

There are many fine guides to the literature of the Fathers among which Quasten's (B143) and Altaner's (B135) stand out for their reference value and recency.

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