The Spirit Of Early Christian Thought by Wilken

The Spirit Of Early Christian Thought: Seeking the Face of God

by Robert Louis Wilken

Product Details
Paperback: 321 pages with post material
Publisher: Yale University Press

Point: The era of the early Church fathers was not an age of darkness, nor even a stepping stone on the path of faith. These men were deep thinkers who sought to know God.

Path: The author traces a variety of topics through the Fathers in order to expose their beliefs.

Sources: He cites many of the fathers but focuses on Origen (3rd century), Gregory of Nyssa (4th century), Augustine (5th century), and Maximus the Confessor (7th century).

Agreement: This is a helpful survey on the early Church and her thoughts.

Disagreement: The author comes from a Catholic background so there is obvious factors which he stresses. The composition was not as easy to read as Ferguson’s “Early Christians Speak.”

Personal App: I need to read Augustine’s “City of God.”  The early Church fathers did not possess a refined understanding of everything we have today, but we do not possess near the devotion they had.

Stars: 3.5 out of 5

It would be worth another read. I would recommend Ferguson first.