Through the Church Fathers
Join Through the Church Fathers, a year-long journey into the writings of the early Church Fathers, thoughtfully curated by C. Michael Patton. Each episode features daily readings from key figures like Clement, Augustine, and Aquinas, accompanied by insightful commentary to help you engage with the foundational truths of the Christian faith. The podcast also offers a community for reading along and supporting the work through Patreon.
Episodes
Through the Church Fathers: November 16
True eloquence in teaching consists in making clear what was obscure, and a wooden key that opens the lock is better than a golden one that does not. Augustine recalls Cicero’s three aims of the orator—to teach, to delight, and to persuade—and insists that teaching is the necessity. The hearer must be moved as well as instructed, for practical truth is useless unless the will is subdued to practic
Through the Church Fathers: July 30
Today’s readings press us toward evidence, attention, and wise action. Tertullian continues Against Marcion by arguing that a god with nothing to show for himself is no god at all; the Creator is known through His works, while Marcion’s supposed higher god has no creation, no witness, and no worthy ground for faith. Augustine then reflects on learning as a gathering of the mind, showing that thoug
Through the Church Fathers: October 24
A man can learn the rules of argument and still miss the truth they serve, and a word can name what has no shape of its own. Augustine warns the studious not to mistake dialectic, rhetoric, or the science of number for the secret of a happy life. The rules are true, and number was discovered rather than invented, but the man who will not trace that truth back to God may be learned and still not wi
Through the Church Fathers: October 23
A valid argument can still land on a false conclusion, and a true opinion can be joined by a bad one. Augustine draws that line in On Christian Doctrine, then turns it on definition and eloquence: the rules stay true even when poets, heretics, or a clever speaker put them to a false use. In the Confessions he looks further back, at the earth that was invisible and formless, and at the darkness on
Through the Church Fathers: October 22
Today we move from reasoning, to creation, to disciplined Christian life. In On Christian Doctrine, Augustine explains why Christians should know something of the mechanical arts and especially logic: reasoning can help us understand Scripture, but it must never become an exercise in sophistry, and the laws of logic are not human inventions but realities we discover in the order God has made. In C
Through the Church Fathers: October 21
Olympiads and consuls are not baptism, but they can keep a reader from making Christ forty-six years old because the temple took forty-six years to build. Augustine will use profane history that way, and he will let Ambrose use it to unmask the slander that Jesus learned His words from Plato. Herbs that heal when drunk are one thing; herbs that heal when hung on the neck are another. The stars may
Through the Church Fathers: October 20
Letters, coins, and the names of months are not pacts with demons. They are agreements men make so they can live together. Augustine will take what is necessary for intercourse and reading, and leave the theatre’s private code and the luxury that feeds on lies. What men have found by investigating the past and the order of providence is another class again. The Confessions then shuts the vain ques
Through the Church Fathers: October 19
A true omen would still be a bad friendship. Augustine will not spare divination because Samuel’s ghost spoke truly, or because a spirit in Acts said the apostles’ names. If it happens, do not hearken. Signs like that mean what a prior pact has taught them to mean—like X to a Greek and to a Latin—and the observer’s own hunger writes the lexicon. The Confessions then turns from scattered signs to a
Through the Church Fathers: October 18
The stars keep their courses. They do not keep our lives. Augustine will let a man chart a birthday and still refuse to sell him to Mars. Jacob’s hand was on Esau’s heel. The chart could not tell them apart. The Scriptures could. The Confessions then names what time does to a soul: life is a distraction (distentio), scattered among many things, until the Mediator gathers it toward the One—not to w
Through the Church Fathers: October 17
Truth is not pagan property. Augustine will take music, letters, even a heathen report about the Muses, and then refuse the idols, the amulets, and the fear that mice in the boots mean tomorrow’s ruin. Cato already knew the difference. The Confessions then recites a psalm. Before the first line, attention holds the whole. As the lines are said, memory lengthens and expectation shortens, until the
Through the Church Fathers: October 16
Forty days, ten strings, a hundred and fifty-three fish: Augustine will not let a reader shrug at numbers as decoration. They are one of the keys that open figures—and music is another, even if the nine Muses were only three artists and three kinds of sound. The Confessions then names the three acts by which the mind handles what is not there: it expects, it considers, it remembers. A long future
Through the Church Fathers: October 15
Unknown words stop a reader. Augustine’s remedy is not guesswork: ask a speaker of the tongue, learn the tongue, compare translators, and correct the copies before you interpret them. He prefers the Itala among Latin versions and the Septuagint among the Greek, and he will use Hebrew names—Siloam, Zion, Jordan—because things as well as words unlock figures. The Confessions then finds where the mea
Through the Church Fathers: October 14
A translator can turn “swift” into “sharp” and never notice he has left the writer behind. Augustine says that is not an obscure reading. It is a false one—and false texts are to be corrected, not interpreted. Greek and Hebrew, or a tighter Latin, exist so the sense can be recovered; a solecism that still tells the truth may be endured, but an idiom that makes God’s folly sound wiser as men must b
Through the Church Fathers: October 13
First read the plain places. Then let them light the dark ones. Augustine will not let a man hunt figures before he knows the books, or treat an ox as only an ox when the apostle has already said what the ox means. Hebrew and Greek are not ornaments. They are the remedy when Latin translators multiply. Two renderings of Isaiah can both tell the truth: without faith you will not understand; without
Through the Church Fathers: October 12
Fear of God is the first step; wisdom is the last. Between them nAugustine sets a climb that ends in a single eye—one that will not put neighbor, or self, before the truth. Then he comes back down to the third step and names the books: the canon judged by the churches, forty-four of the Old, and the New from the four Gospels to John’s Revelation. The Confessions still cannot say what time is, only
Through the Church Fathers: October 11
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionScripture left one language so that it could enter every language. Readers hunt the mind of the writers only to find the will of God. Then the dark places arrive. Augustine will not call them accidents. Pride is worn down by toil; the mind that finds too easily grows dull. The plain texts feed hunger. The obscure ones wake appetite. Almost nothing buried in figu
Through the Church Fathers: October 10
Smoke means fire whether anyone meant it to. A word means fire only because someone meant to say so. Augustine opens Book 2 of On Christian Doctrine by turning from things to signs: natural and conventional, nod and trumpet, sacrament and speech—and then writing, born because sound dies on the air, divided at Babel because men would not share the chief place. The Confessions will not let the sun o
Through the Church Fathers: October 9
If the reading builds up love of God and neighbor, Augustine will not call the mistake a lie—but he still wants the man back on the road. Love of one’s own opinion can turn the reader against Scripture; and if faith totters, love grows cold. Faith and hope will one day give way to sight. Love will not. The Confessions then prays over the ordinary mystery we all speak without understanding: how lon
Through the Church Fathers: October 8
God does not use us the way we use a road. He uses us for our good, because He is good—and the holy man, like the holy angel, will not let us make camp in him. On Christian Doctrine sums the whole discussion of things: Scripture ends in love of the Good to be enjoyed, and love of the neighbor who can enjoy that Good with us. Christ is the way; He will not detain us on the way. The Confessions then
Through the Church Fathers: October 7
Who is my neighbor? Augustine will not let the word shrink. Enemy, stranger, even the holy angels who have shown us mercy—and Christ Himself under the figure of the man who stopped on the road. God does not enjoy us as if He needed our glitter. He uses us for our good, that we may enjoy Him, and one another in Him. The Confessions then corrects our speech about time: there are not past and future
Through the Church Fathers: October 6
The two great commandments do not forget the self. Augustine says we already love our own life the way the beasts do; what had to be commanded is God above us and the neighbor beside us—and then the whole current of that love, even love of enemies, is to run toward the one Good no one who finds Him will regret. The Confessions leaves the prophets in God’s hand: He to whom nothing is future somehow
Through the Church Fathers: October 5
No one hates his own flesh—not even the man who starves it. Augustine says the war is not against the body, but against a habit that has grown into it; the spirit wants a better peace, not a missing limb. Then he turns from the body to the morning sky. Dawn is present. Sunrise is not. We do not see future things. We see what already is, and from those signs we speak of what is not yet.### Today’s
Through the Church Fathers: October 4
Augustine will not let us enjoy one another as if a human life were the happy ending. In On Christian Doctrine God alone is to be enjoyed; neighbor, self, and even the body are to be loved for His sake, and the soul that lords it over its equals has already begun to hate itself. Then in The Confessions he hunts the past and the future and finds them only as present: childhood is gone, yet its imag
Through the Church Fathers: October 3
The Word did not empty Himself into sound and vanish. Augustine says the thought stays whole while it becomes speech—and so the Divine Word became flesh without change of nature, healer and medicine in one. Pride had wounded us; humility bound the wound. On Christian Doctrine then follows that medicine all the way home: resurrection and judgment, a Church purged by affliction, keys that bind and l
Through the Church Fathers: October 2
Men already know, even when they worship the wrong things, that God is that than which nothing greater can be thought—and Augustine will not stop until that God is unchangeable Wisdom, then the Way who came in flesh. On Christian Doctrine takes us from the name “God” to the Incarnation: Wisdom was already our home, and still made Himself the road home. The Confessions then asks how we measure time
Through the Church Fathers: October 1
Augustine opens On Christian Doctrine by splitting the whole work of Christian teaching in two: find what Scripture means, then give that meaning away—and he will not let the Church rest in the world as if the road were home. The same mind then turns inward in The Confessions and takes the present apart until “now” has no space left at all. Aquinas gathers the day with a quieter virtue: modesty, t
Through the Church Fathers: September 29
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionHow do we distinguish the true voice of Scripture from those who twist it, and how do we hold both firm judgment and restrained passion in the same heart? In today’s readings, Vincent of Lérins shows that heretics always appeal to the Bible, wrapping their errors in its language the way a wolf puts on sheep’s clothing, and he gives the Church the rule of univers
Through the Church Fathers: September 28
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionWhat happens when even the most gifted teachers fall into error? In these chapters of the Commonitory, Vincent of Lérins holds up Tertullian as a sobering example and then lays down the marks of a true Catholic: one who loves the Church more than any individual teacher and guards the sacred deposit without addition or alteration. He insists that real progress in
Through the Church Fathers: September 27
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionHow carefully must the Church confess the unity of Christ’s Person from the very moment of His conception? In these chapters of the Commonitory, Vincent of Lérins defends the title Theotokos—Mother of God—and sets the Catholic faith against the errors of Photinus, Apollinaris, and Nestorius. He then turns to the sobering example of Origen, whose extraordinary gi
Through the Church Fathers: September 26
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionHow does the Church confess one Christ in two natures without falling into the errors that divide Him or diminish Him? In these chapters of the Commonitory, Vincent of Lérins carefully sets forth the Catholic faith against Photinus, Apollinaris, and Nestorius, showing that the Church worships one Godhead in the Trinity and confesses one Christ who is truly God a
Through the Church Fathers: September 25
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionPaul’s warning still stands for every age: if anyone preaches a gospel other than the one already received, let him be accursed. In these chapters of the Commonitory, Vincent of Lérins presses the point home—neither time, nor place, nor the reputation of a teacher can justify altering the faith once delivered. He shows why God sometimes permits even distinguishe
Through the Church Fathers: September 24
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionWhen novelty rises in the Church, what must we do? Vincent of Lérins shows us the steadfast example of Pope Stephen, who answered the push for rebaptism with a simple rule: “Let there be no innovation—only what has been handed down.” In these chapters he defends the ancient faith against the danger of new teachings, warning that even gifted and persuasive error
Through the Church Fathers: September 23
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionHow do we hold the faith when new teachings press in from every side? Vincent of Lérins gives us a clear and enduring rule: what has been believed everywhere, always, and by all. In these opening chapters of the Commonitory, he shows why Scripture must be read with the Church, why novelty is dangerous, and how the ancient faith once rescued the Church from the s
Through the Church Fathers: September 22
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionTemperance is the virtue that keeps the strongest bodily desires under the rule of reason. In these questions from Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, he shows why the pleasures of food, drink, and sexual union need a special virtue to moderate them. Temperance is a cardinal virtue because these desires most powerfully resist the good of the soul. Intemperance ex
Through the Church Fathers: September 21
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionTemperance is the virtue that keeps the strongest bodily desires under the rule of reason. In this question from Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, he shows why the pleasures of food, drink, and sexual union need a special virtue to moderate them. Temperance is a cardinal virtue because these desires most powerfully resist the good of the soul. It does not destr
Through the Church Fathers: September 20
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionThe Christian life requires more than a good beginning. In these questions from Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, he shows how patience preserves the soul under present hardship, how perseverance carries a good work to its proper end, and how the gift of fortitude strengthens us beyond ordinary human measure by the Holy Spirit. Softness abandons the work too so
Through the Church Fathers: September 19
Today’s Readings Podcast DescriptionPatience and perseverance strengthen the soul for the long work of the Christian life. In these questions from Thomas Aquinas’s Summa Theologica, he shows that patience preserves us from being disordered by present hardship, while perseverance enables us to continue a good work until it is rightly completed. Softness abandons the task too soon; stubbornness refu
Through the Church Fathers: September 18
Vindication, the eternal Word, and the wise use of great resources come together in today’s readings. Athanasius presents further evidence that the charges against him had collapsed: Constantine condemns the Meletians for accusing him of murdering men who were still alive, Arsenius seeks peace and communion with the Catholic Church, and John is praised for abandoning division and reconciling with
Through the Church Fathers: September 17
Here is the podcast description for the latest three readings:False testimony, the mystery of creation, and the danger of distorted greatness come together in today’s readings. Athanasius records how Ischyras admitted that the accusations against him had been forced and fabricated, while the supposed murder victim Arsenius was eventually discovered alive, exposing the conspiracy and disgracing tho
Through the Church Fathers: September 16
False accusations, creation, and greatness of soul come together in today’s readings. Athanasius recounts how Eusebius and the Meletians manufactured charges against him, only to see those accusations collapse before Constantine, who then condemned factionalism, envy, and ambition within the Church while affirming Athanasius as a man of God. Augustine turns to the mystery of creation and asks how
Through the Church Fathers: September 15
False accusations, the search for truth, and the discipline of courage come together in today’s readings. Athanasius preserves the remarkable recantation of Ursacius and Valens, who admit that their charges against him were fabricated, renounce Arianism, and seek communion with the man they had helped condemn. He then begins tracing the controversy back to its roots in the Meletian schism and the
Through the Church Fathers: September 14
Restoration, desire, and faithful witness stand at the center of today’s readings. Athanasius recounts the imperial and ecclesiastical acts that restored him to Alexandria, erased the decrees issued against him, reunited him with the Church, and even brought former accusers to repentance. Augustine prays that the hidden things of Scripture may be opened to him, declaring that his deepest desire is
Through the Church Fathers: September 13
Exile, longing, and courage come together in today’s readings. Athanasius recounts the imperial letters that finally summoned him home after persecution and exile, followed by Julius of Rome’s joyful announcement to the church at Alexandria that their bishop was returning vindicated by the judgment of the council. Augustine then prays for time, purity, and humility as he turns to the hidden depths
Through the Church Fathers: September 12
When the Church faces slander, doctrinal corruption, and disorder, truth must be defended clearly—but confession, worship, and justice must also begin in the heart. Athanasius records the judgment of the Council of Sardica, which declared him and other falsely accused bishops innocent, condemned those who had seized their churches, and called bishops throughout the world to stand together against
Through the Church Fathers: September 11
When Lies, Fear, and Money Take ControlWhat happens when false accusations control the Church, fear makes us want to run away, and money quietly takes control of the heart? In today’s readings, Athanasius exposes a campaign of slander in which fabricated evidence, undeserved titles, political intimidation, and threats were used to silence orthodox bishops and condemn innocent men. Augustine then t
Through the Church Fathers: September 10
Today's readings all point to one central truth: everything depends on Jesus Christ. The Council of Sardica reminds us that truth ultimately triumphs over slander. The Arians could spread accusations from a distance, but when confronted with witnesses and evidence, they fled rather than defend their claims. Augustine then directs our attention away from every false mediator to the one true Mediato
Through the Church Fathers: September 8
Truth, peace, and ordinary kindness all belong together in the Christian life. In today's readings, Athanasius recounts how the false charge that he had murdered Arsenius collapsed when Arsenius appeared alive, and the council urged the Alexandrian church to receive Athanasius back with joy while honoring those who had suffered for the faith. Augustine then searches for rest beyond the visible wor
Through the Church Fathers: September 7
Today's readings all expose the same subtle danger: the temptation to care more about appearances than reality. Athanasius recounts how the Council of Sardica vindicated him, not through political influence or intimidation, but by insisting on open evidence, fair procedure, and the truth. Augustine then turns the searchlight inward, confessing that even the desire to reject pride can itself become
Through the Church Fathers: September 6
Conflict in the Church rarely begins with doctrine alone—it often grows from pride, reputation, and the desire to be proven right. In today's readings, Athanasius closes Julius's defense by pleading for the restoration of peace through justice, insisting that accusations be heard fairly, the apostolic canons be honored, and churches be reunited under their rightful shepherds. Augustine continues h
Through the Church Fathers: September 5
The desire for approval can quietly shape our lives in ways we scarcely recognize. In today's readings, Athanasius argues that the true test of justice is not political power or public accusation but whether the Church follows the apostolic canons with fairness and integrity. Augustine continues his searching examination of the heart, confessing that although he loves truth more than praise, he st
Through the Church FathersL September 3
What do we owe to the truth — about doctrine, about ourselves, and about the praise we receive from others? Today's three readings approach that question from remarkably different angles. Athanasius, writing in the voice of Julius of Rome, presses the Eusebians on the one contradiction they cannot escape: they claim to honor councils while systematically dismantling the one council that condemned
Through the Church Fathers: September 2
This section brings together three different voices addressing authority, humility, and justice. Athanasius records the letter of Julius of Rome, who sharply rebukes the Eusebians for refusing a council after they themselves had demanded one. Julius argues that those confident in the truth should welcome examination rather than fear it, and he exposes the inconsistency of men who appeal to church
Through the Church Fathers: September 1
Athanasius, Augustine, and Aquinas each confront a different form of spiritual disorder, yet all three readings point to the same need: a heart rightly ordered before God. Athanasius defends himself against false accusations and exposes the efforts of the Arians to gain power through slander, intimidation, and manipulation, reminding us that truth often suffers at the hands of those who seek influ
Through the Church Fathers: August 31
Through the Church FathersEvery generation must face the question of when submission becomes complicity. Today's readings place us inside that question with uncommon force. Athanasius writes from the eye of a storm — defending himself and his people against fabricated charges, exposing the political machinery behind theological persecution, and naming the Arian heresy as the true engine of violenc
Through the Church Fathers: August 31
Podcast DescriptionWhat happens when lies are repeated often enough, backed by power, and dressed up in the appearance of justice? Athanasius presses on with his relentless defense, dismantling one fabricated charge after another — the mysterious broken chalice, the false presbyter Ischyras, and the rigged “investigation” that relied on enemies, heathens, and civil force while the accused was kept
Through the Church Fathers: August 29
Podcast DescriptionWhat does it look like to defend the truth when powerful enemies refuse to accept defeat? In this episode, Athanasius continues his fierce, point-by-point defense against false charges of murder and tyranny, exposing how his enemies manipulated councils, emperors, and public opinion in their attempt to silence him. Augustine confronts another subtle temptation — the restless cur
Through the Church Fathers: August 28
Podcast DescriptionWhat does it cost to defend the truth when powerful enemies will stop at nothing to silence you? In this episode, Athanasius continues his bold defense against relentless false accusations of murder, violence, and tyranny, exposing the conspiracy behind his repeated exiles while refusing to compromise the faith. Augustine turns inward with raw honesty, confessing how the beauty
Through the Church Fathers: August 26
Podcast DescriptionWhat does it mean to truly know and worship the one true God? In this episode, Hippolytus of Rome delivers a powerful defense of the incarnation and the distinction of the Persons in the Trinity, refuting the modalist error of Noetus with clarity and passion. Augustine continues his transparent self-examination, confessing how the beauty of sacred music can lift the soul to God
Through the Church Fathers: August 27
Podcast DescriptionWhat does it cost to stand for truth when powerful forces want you silenced? This episode opens with Athanasius of Alexandria fiercely defending himself against relentless false accusations, showing how he was repeatedly condemned, exiled, and attacked — yet refused to abandon the truth that Christ is fully God. Augustine then turns inward, confessing the dangerous allurements o
Through the Church Fathers: August 25
Podcast DescriptionWhat does it truly mean to worship the one true God? Today Hippolytus of Rome delivers a powerful defense of the Trinity against the modalist heresy of Noetus, showing how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct yet one in power and economy. Augustine continues his raw self-examination, confessing how the beauty of sacred music can elevate the soul to God while also tempti
Through the Church Fathers: August 24
Podcast DescriptionToday we confront one of the most persistent dangers in Christian history: the temptation to reshape God into something more comfortable for human understanding. Hippolytus vigorously refutes the modalist heresy of Noetus, who collapsed the Father and the Son into one person, while Augustine wrestles honestly with how sacred music can both elevate the soul toward God and subtly
Through the Church Fathers: August 23
A false teacher from Smyrna claimed that the Father and the Son were not distinct persons at all, forcing the early Church to confront one of the most important questions in Christian theology: Who exactly is Jesus Christ? In today’s readings, Hippolytus of Rome begins his powerful refutation of Noetus, arguing that while God is one, the Father and the Son must not be confused with one another. Au
Through the Church Fathers: August 22
Podcast SummaryHow should Christians respond to error, temptation, and commitment? In today’s readings, Tertullian concludes The Prescription against Heretics by arguing that heresy survives by tearing down the truth rather than building upon it. He warns that false teachers often appeal to signs, wonders, and impressive personalities, yet Christ and the apostles already warned the Church that suc
Through the Church Fathers: August 21
Podcast SummaryWhat does it mean to promise something to God? In today’s reading, Tertullian warns that heresy begins when people reshape Scripture to fit their own ideas rather than submitting themselves to the faith once delivered by the apostles. He argues that false teachers either cut away parts of Scripture or twist its meaning, creating doctrines that depart from the truth while still claim
Through the Church Fathers: August 20
Today's readings revolve around a common theme: recognizing what truly belongs to God. Tertullian argues that truth is not discovered through novelty but received through faithful transmission. The apostles handed the faith to the Church, and the Church preserved it through the regula fidei—the rule of faith. Heresies, however persuasive they may appear, ultimately reveal themselves by departing f
Through the Church Fathers: August 18
Today’s readings center on the battle for truth, purity, and rightly ordered desire. Tertullian argues that truth always comes before its counterfeit, reminding us that the apostolic faith existed long before the later innovations of the heretics and that every false doctrine is ultimately a corruption of something first delivered by Christ and His apostles. Augustine turns inward, confessing his
Through the Church Fathers: August 17
Today's readings explore three different aspects of the Christian life that ultimately converge in the same place: dependence upon God. Tertullian defends the public and apostolic nature of the Christian faith, arguing that the apostles concealed no secret doctrine but openly delivered the truth to the whole Church. Augustine reflects on the troubling persistence of sinful images in dreams, wrestl
Through the Church Fathers: August 15
The apostles did not hand down a hidden gospel, Augustine confesses that the entire human life is a battlefield of temptation, and Aquinas explains that true devotion is not merely emotion but the willing offering of oneself to God. In Tertullian’s Prescription Against Heretics, the unity of apostolic doctrine is defended against those who claimed secret teachings beyond the public faith once deli
Through the Church Fathers: August 15
Podcast DescriptionWhat is the sure foundation of Christian truth, and how should we rightly worship God? Today we hear three voices from the Church’s history speak with clarity and power. Tertullian insists that the apostles faithfully transmitted one unchanging rule of faith through the churches they founded, and that all doctrine must be tested against this apostolic tradition. Augustine pours
Through the Church Fathers: August 14
Podcast DescriptionWhat is the proper limit of seeking after truth, and how do we live justly before God and neighbor? Today we hear three voices address the dangers of restless curiosity, the joy of resting in God’s presence, and the full demands of justice that go beyond merely avoiding evil. Tertullian warns that endless seeking outside the rule of faith leads to heresy and spiritual confusion.
Through the Church Fathers: August 13
Tertullian argues that Christians must not wander endlessly through speculation and novelty, but must seek the truth until they find what Christ and the apostles taught and then hold fast to it. He fiercely rejects the idea that philosophy or endless inquiry should reshape the faith, insisting instead that the “rule of faith” delivered by the Church is fixed and sufficient. Augustine then turns in
Through the Church Fathers: August 12
Tertullian launches a fierce attack against the philosophical roots of heresy, arguing that pagan speculation and endless curiosity corrupt the simplicity of apostolic Christianity. He asks the famous question, “What indeed has Athens to do with Jerusalem?” and insists that believers must seek the truth until they find Christ and then hold fast to what has been delivered rather than endlessly chas
Through the Church Fathers: August 11
Podcast DescriptionIn a world quick to speak and slow to listen, three voices from the early Church and medieval period confront the dangers of false teaching, the human love of deception, and the destructive power of sinful speech. Today we explore how heresies divide the Church, why people resist truth even while craving happiness, and why careless words—especially reviling and backbiting—can in
Through the Church Fathers: August 10
Tertullian opens Prescription Against Heretics by arguing that heresies should not shock Christians, because Scripture itself foretold that false teaching would arise as a testing and proving of genuine faith. He warns believers not to judge truth by the apparent success or popularity of heresy, nor by the fall of respected leaders, but by perseverance in the apostolic faith itself. Augustine then
Through the Curch Fathers: August 9
Tertullian defends marriage against Marcion’s attack on the goodness of creation, arguing that chastity only has meaning when marriage itself is honored as a good gift of God. Augustine then defines the happy life not as the pursuit of earthly pleasures, but as rejoicing in God himself, insisting that every human longing for happiness ultimately points toward the Creator. Finally, Aquinas examines
Through the Church Fathers: August 8
Tertullian confronts the danger of a god who never judges, arguing that a god without justice ultimately destroys morality, discipline, and even the meaning of salvation itself. Augustine then turns inward, reflecting on why every human being longs for happiness and joy, recognizing that all people pursue the same end even while seeking it in radically different ways. Finally, Aquinas examines how
Through the Church Fathers: August 7
Today’s readings move through memory, divine justice, and the right use of earthly things. Tertullian argues that God cannot be reduced to mere passive goodness stripped of judgment, emotion, and justice. A god who forbids evil yet never punishes it, he says, would ultimately permit the very evil he claims to oppose. Augustine then reflects on the mystery of happiness and memory, asking how we can
Through the Church FathersL: August 6
Today’s readings explore what it means for God’s goodness and human justice to be truly complete. Tertullian continues his assault on Marcion’s theology by arguing that a god who saves only a few—and even then saves only their souls while abandoning the body—cannot be called perfectly good. Augustine then reflects on the strange experience of remembering what we had forgotten, showing how memory s
Through the Church Fathers: August 5
Today’s readings explore memory, goodness, and justice from three different angles, yet all arrive at the same question: what does it mean for something to be truly right? Augustine reflects on how lost things can only be found if they remain somehow preserved within memory, leading him to marvel at the mysterious depths of the human mind and its longing for God. Aquinas then turns to justice in h
Through the Church Fathers: August 4
You’re right — that podcast should have used Tertullian, not Augustine 17–20 as the main reading. Here’s the corrected version based on the right three readings.Today’s readings press into the nature of God, the mystery of memory, and the demands of justice. Tertullian challenges Marcion’s idea of a supposedly “better” god by arguing that true divine goodness cannot appear late, selectively, or pa
