[1]<\/a>. If not on the legal plane, however, the legitimacy of the intervention of the Church of Rome was certainly recognized at least on the pastoral level. The letter is also interesting for the philosophical themes present in its text, as well as the biblical “flavor” that permeates it.<\/p>\nHomily of Pseudo-Clement<\/strong>. In the manuscript tradition of 1Clem, exactly in three manuscripts, after the First Epistle to the Corinthians<\/em> mentioned above, we find this text, called in two of the three manuscripts \u201cSecond Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians.\u201d The text appears to be an ancient homily, probably baptismal, but of Eastern origin (Egypt, Syria), dating back to the mid-2nd century. \u201cIt is the oldest Christian sermon that has reached us, addressed to neophytes, whose simple and sober tone reveals a writer devoid of literary aspirations\u201d (DELL\u2019OSSO, 2011, p.213).<\/p>\nLetters of Ignatius of Antioch<\/strong>. The discussion around these letters was, at its time, enormous. Ignatius was the bishop of Antioch between the 1st and 2nd centuries (traditionally his death is dated to the year 107, under Emperor Trajan). The antiquity and, therefore, the authority of these letters are of enormous importance because they provide us with precise indications about the structure and organization of the Church in his time. Particularly impressive is the monarchical episcopacy, where the bishop is the guarantor of the Church’s unity; the bishop-presbyter-deacon structure of the ministerial order; and also the centrality of the mystery of Christ, with insistence on the reality of the incarnation against the evident opposing docetist positions. Also noteworthy is the spirituality of martyrdom linked to a famous Eucharistic image. The fact that the corpus<\/em> of his letters has reached us in a complex way favored the positions of those who, contrary to recognizing such ecclesiastical hierarchical organization in the 1st-2nd centuries, denied the authenticity of the letters, considering them much later. \u201cTo this day, skepticism has been fueled by the complicated history of the text, in which textual criticism soon intertwined with theological issues and was influenced and sometimes even guided by confessional choices, becoming increasingly a vehicle for literary criticism not always free from biases regarding the content\u201d (PROSTMEIER, 2006, p.490). Today there is a fairly general consensus in recognizing the authenticity of the seven letters that Ignatius wrote during his deportation to Rome, where he was to be judged and killed, writing them as if it were a \u201ctravel diary written by the martyr designatus<\/em>, to use an expression of Tertullian\u201d (QUACQUARELLI, 1991, p.97).<\/em> These letters are To the Ephesians<\/em>, To the Magnesians<\/em> (that is, to the community of Magnesia on the Meander, today in the Province of Aydin, Turkey), To the Trallians<\/em> (that is, to the community of Tralles, today Aydin, Turkey), To the Romans<\/em>, To the Philadelphians<\/em> (that is, to the community of Philadelphia, today Ala\u015fehir, Turkey), To the Smyrnaeans<\/em> (from Smyrna, today Izmir, Turkey), To Polycarp<\/em>.<\/p>\nEpistle to the Philippians<\/em><\/strong> by<\/strong> Polycarp of Smyrna<\/strong>. Having the community of Philippi requested from Polycarp a copy of the letters of Ignatius, which he possessed, the bishop of Smyrna sent them accompanied by a letter of his own, which today, contrary to previous hypotheses, is considered unique and not a fusion of a letter with a note (chapter 13). The letter is important as it speaks precisely about the mentioned letters of Ignatius. Taking advantage of the circumstance, Polycarp exhorts the Christians of Philippi in matters of daily morality and encourages them to resist docetist temptations. It must have been written not long after Ignatius’s death.<\/p>\nMartyrdom of Polycarp<\/strong>. According to Irenaeus, Polycarp would have known the apostle John. However, it seems that the bishop of Lyon confused the apostle with a homonymous presbyter, a contemporary of Polycarp, mentioned by Papias of Hierapolis (DELL\u2019OSSO, 2011, p.131). After his death, many communities requested news about the martyrdom of the elderly bishop (he died at 86 years of age), who enjoyed great authority. The text, which in itself would be a letter, inaugurates (cf. LONGOBARDO, 2007, p.143) the literary genre of martyrdom and uses for the first time the term \u201cmartyr,\u201d in the sense in which it would be known especially from the persecutions of the mid-3rd century. In the Martyrdom of Polycarp<\/em>, we find almost all the elements that would serve as the basis for the cult and spirituality of the martyrs.<\/p>\nEpistle of Barnabas<\/strong> (or Pseudo-Barnabas<\/strong>).<\/em> We find this important text listed right after the Apocalypse in the famous Codex Sinaiticus<\/em>, a 4th-century manuscript that contains the oldest complete copy of the New Testament, thus among the books considered inspired. Some internal evidence leads us to date the writing to the first half of the 2nd century, perhaps in the Alexandrian context, but without excluding the possibility of Palestine or Syria. It is certainly not authored by Paul’s companion and collaborator, which is why it is also referred to today as Pseudo-Barnabas. Although the form is of the epistolary genre, the text is actually a true treatise, where for the first time\u2014as far as we know\u2014the issue of the relationship between Christianity and Judaism is addressed. The first part is written from a strongly critical perspective of Judaism, from which it clearly distances itself; in the second part, there is a parenetic catechesis, following the classic image of the two ways. As with all works of polemic with Judaism from this period, or in the Syriac literature of the 4th century, such as in Aphrahat and Ephrem of Nisibis, it would be a grave mistake to read these texts as “anti-Semitism<\/em> ante litteram<\/em>.” The fiercest disputes often occur among brothers. And in these texts, we witness the development of a new understanding and the process of affirming a new identity due to adherence to the experience of what happened with Jesus, for which differentiation from Jewish origins brought about not insignificant tensions on both sides. We fully agree with C. Dell’Osso when he says that Pseudo-Barnabas is \u201cthe outcome of that reflective effort that the emerging Christian movement was making in search of the reasons for its difference from Judaism, or in search of Christian identity in relation to the Jewish matrix\u201d (2011, p.178).<\/p>\nThe Shepherd<\/em> of Hermas<\/strong>. This text, compared to the others that belong to the corpus<\/em> of the Apostolic Fathers, is certainly the most difficult to situate within the framework. The author is said to be Hermas, brother of Pope Pius (140\u2013155), according to the information from the Muratorian Canon<\/em>. Origen, on the other hand, raises the hypothesis that the author of The Shepherd<\/em> is the Hermas greeted by Paul in Romans 16:14. The text was also considered to be formed by varied material, which underwent several revisions and would have received its current form around the middle of the 2nd century. The writing is clearly divided into three parts that seemed independent to some, to the point of hypothesizing several authors organized by a final editor. Others, on the contrary, lean towards a global unity, which is now the prevailing position among scholars. The work is structured in 5 visions<\/em>, 12 commandments<\/em>, and 10 parables<\/em>. The numbers, obviously, are not casual, and there is evidence of the author’s positive intention to use exactly these strongly symbolic figures. For some, it is an apocalypse; for others, a book of allegories. Certainly, it was written in a time of crisis, and its call to conversion is perfectly in line with what is expected in such a moment, hoping for a better future.<\/p>\nThe community where The Shepherd<\/em> emerges is Roman, and this text is very interesting for the history and understanding of the development of penitential discipline. It is inferred that it is a community that lost its initial fervor and, therefore, from a moral point of view, the deterioration is evident. Faced with this, a rigorist<\/em> temptation arises, according to which baptism was the last opportunity to receive forgiveness of sins, and there was no possibility of forgiving those committed after the bath of regeneration; and a more open and understanding stance that sought to find an additional chance for those who had fallen after baptism. This tension was constant in the Roman and North African communities, as shown by the cases of Pope Callistus and his rigorist opponent, the author of Elenchos<\/em> (formerly considered to be Hippolytus of Rome, but since works of certainly diverse authors were attributed to that name, it is now preferred to refer to them in this way), in Rome between the 1st and 2nd centuries; or the controversies over the lapsi<\/em> after the persecutions of Decius and Valerian in the second half of the 3rd century, where Cyprian of Carthage and Pope Cornelius represented the line of mercy, the latter against Novatian, probably an exponent of the same rigorist line, minority but powerful, present in Rome since the time of Hermas. The Shepherd<\/em> tends to recognize only one opportunity for repentance after baptism, while at the same time urging serious conversion in view of the imminent end.<\/p>\nOf all the texts of the Apostolic Fathers, The Shepherd<\/em> is perhaps the one most distant from us in terms of language, due to its forest of images and allegories. However, it is not devoid of quite interesting aspects, especially in light of the recent magisterium of Pope Francis. A. Quacquarelli wrote about forty years ago: \u201cIt is a continuous teaching that concerns simplicity, sincerity, chastity, the indissolubility of marriage, the charity of forgiving the guilty spouse, but not the recidivist, second marriages after widowhood\u201d (1991, p.240).<\/p>\nDidache<\/em><\/strong>. This text, fundamental for the history of liturgy, ecclesiastical discipline, Christian morality, and doctrine, was discovered in 1863 in Constantinople, within a codex from 1056. The materials that compose it probably date from the same period when the Synoptics were written, although the current text is certainly editorial, but not beyond the 1st century, and the area of composition is believed to be Syria. What is the Didache<\/em>? Didache<\/em> means “doctrine,” and in the text discovered in Constantinople, the work has two titles, perhaps added by a scribe: “Doctrine of the Twelve Apostles” and “Doctrine of the Lord to the Nations through the Twelve Apostles.” It is “a kind of rule for the Christian community” (LONGOBARDO, 2007, p.145). It is “a catechetical genre influenced by the evangelical style (…), a manual, perhaps one of many, that then circulated through the community (…), an anthology of precepts with reflections and exhortations that could give the impression of a collection of notes” (QUACQUARELLI, 1991, p.25). Precisely because of its antiquity, it is of extraordinary interest for the history of liturgy (especially for the celebration of the Eucharist) and for the study of the organization of the Church in its earliest days. In the part of moral instruction, we find the doctrine of the two ways, as we saw in Pseudo-Barnabas. Some authors believe that, since the same doctrine is found in the writings of Qumran, the common matrix of such ethics could be found in Jewish wisdom literature; others note that the image of the two paths is classical in the ancient world (cf. DELL\u2019OSSO, 2011, p.16). Be that as it may, the text is extremely precious, as it “roots itself in the deepest layers of Christian origins, where the tradition about Jesus is still alive and flowing, where the connection with Jewish spirituality, ethics, and liturgy is still vital, and where the direct echo of the proto-Christian Eucharist<\/em> and the proclamation of Christian prophets still resonates\u201d (cf. DELL\u2019OSSO, 2011, p.16).<\/p>\nPapias of Hierapolis<\/strong>. In the collections of the Apostolic Fathers, as we mentioned, since 1765, there also appear some fragments of the Exposition of the Sayings of the Lord<\/em>, a work by Papias, bishop of Hierapolis (today its remains are located near Pamukkale, Turkey). According to Irenaeus of Lyons, Papias would have been a disciple of the apostle John and a companion of Polycarp. Eusebius of Caesarea, however, places him as a disciple of another John, a presbyter different from the apostle. Therefore, Papias would belong to the generation that was instructed by those who knew the apostles but not by the apostles themselves. The date of composition of his work is considered to be the first half of the 2nd century, perhaps between the years 125-130 (cf. DELL\u2019OSSO, 2011, p.159). Papias’s testimony is important for his references to the origins of the Gospel of Matthew (which would have been written in Hebrew) and Mark (which would have originated from Peter’s preaching), but also because it reveals the importance of the oral tradition of Jesus’ teachings, which were transmitted through the “presbyters”.<\/p>\nTo Diognetus<\/strong>. This text is called so because of the name found in the only manuscript that contained it, discovered in Constantinople in 1436 and unfortunately destroyed in Strasbourg during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Fortunately, two copies had been made shortly before. The text is not so much a letter as it is an apologetic work, located approximately at the end of the 2nd century and the beginning of the 3rd century. It is a presentation of Christianity to a character, probably fictitious, named Diognetus. The style is elevated, and the Greek language is excellent, which suggests that the author was a cultured person of high social environment. In the text, Christians are presented as people who live their daily lives like the rest of the men and women of their time, differing essentially by being persecuted and despised, and by responding to this with meekness and bearing witness to love for all, without distinction. With a famous image (chapter 6), the author establishes a suggestive parallel: Christians are to the world what the soul is to the body. He then goes on to describe some points of the theological vision of Christians, ending with a parenetic exhortation to conversion. This text has often been used to speak of the Christian laity and, especially after Vatican II, indicated as an instrument of inspiration for the formation of Catholic laity maturity.<\/p>\nMassimo Pampaloni S.J.<\/em><\/p>\n4 Bibliographical References<\/strong><\/p>\nFor scientific work:<\/strong><\/p>\nTo do scientific work on the Apostolic Fathers, the most widely used critical edition today is the latest edition of FUNK, F. X.; BIHLMEYER, K.; WHITTAKER, M. Die Apostolischen V\u00e4ter<\/em>. T\u00fcbingen, 1992.<\/p>\nFor particular works (except for Papias and the Homily of Pseudo-Clement), there is a critical edition in the Sources Chr\u00e9tiennes<\/em> collection, which can be used effectively. For the Didache<\/em>, SC 248, Paris, 1978; for the First Epistle to the Corinthians<\/em> by Clement, SC 167, Paris, 1971; for the letters of Ignatius of Antioch, the Epistle to the Philippians<\/em> by Polycarp, and the Martyrdom of Polycarp<\/em>, SC 10, Paris, 1958; for the Epistle of Pseudo-Barnabas<\/em>, SC 172, Paris, 1971; for The Shepherd<\/em> of Hermas, SC 53, Paris, 1958; for To Diognetus<\/em>, SC 33, Paris, 1965.<\/p>\nFor a general presentation of each particular work:<\/strong><\/p>\n– The classic Patrologies:<\/p>\n
ALTANER, B.; STUIBER, A. Patrology: Life, Works, and Doctrine of the Church Fathers<\/em>. S\u00e3o Paulo: Paulinas, 2010.<\/p>\nDROBNER, H. Patrology Manual<\/em>. Petr\u00f3polis: Vozes, 2008.<\/p>\nQUASTEN, J. Patrolog\u00eda I:<\/em> hasta el Concilio de Nicea. v. I. Madrid: Biblioteca de Autores Cristianos, 1978.<\/p>\n– A useful dictionary:<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 BERARDINO, A. DI (org.). Patristic Dictionary and Christian Antiquities<\/em>. Petr\u00f3polis: Vozes, 2002.<\/p>\nBibliography cited in the text:<\/strong><\/p>\nALTANER, B. Patrology<\/em>. Genoa, 1968.<\/p>\nDELL\u2019OSSO, C. (ed). I Padri Apostolici<\/em>, Testi patristici 5. Rome: Citt\u00e0 Nuova, 2011.<\/p>\nDROBNER, H. R. Patrology<\/em>. Casale Monferrato, 1998.<\/p>\nEHRMAN, B. D. (ed). The Apostolic Fathers<\/em>. v I. Cambridge \u2013 London: Loeb Classical Library, 2003.<\/p>\nLONGOBARDO, L. Apostolica, literature \u2013 Apostolic Fathers. In: BERARDINO, A. DI (ed). Patristic Literature<\/em>. Cinisello Balsamo, 2007. p.140-8.<\/p>\nPROSTMEIER, F. R. Ignatius of Antioch. In: DOPP, S.; GEERLINGS, W. (eds). Dictionary of Ancient Christian Literature<\/em>. Rome, 2006. p. 489-92.<\/p>\nQUACQUARELLI, A. (ed). I Padri Apostolici<\/em>, Testi patristici 5. Rome, 1991.<\/p>\nQUASTEN, J. Patrology I<\/em>. Genoa-Milan, 1980. Reprint: 2009.<\/p>\nVISOGN\u00c0, G. (ed). Didach\u00e8<\/em>. Teaching of the Apostles. Milan, 2000.<\/p>\n[1]<\/a> The author of the thesis on the letter as fraternal correction is E. CATTANEO, La Prima Clementis<\/em> as a case of correptio fraterna<\/em>. In P. LUISIER. Studi su Clemente Romano<\/em>. 2003, OCA (268), 83-105.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Summary 1 Introduction 1.1 Who are the Apostolic Fathers 1.2 Formation of the collection 1.3 Nature of the collection 2 General Characteristics 3 Brief presentation of each particular work 4 Bibliographical references 1 Introduction 1.1 Who are the Apostolic Fathers The expression Apostolic Fathers today refers to a corpus of writings from the 1st and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-history-of-theology-and-christianity"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3388"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3389,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3388\/revisions\/3389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teologicalatinoamericana.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}