In this volume, a world-renowned scholar of early Christianity updates and expands her classic survey of the writers and writings of the golden age of Greek patristic theology. This reliable guide to Christian literature from the late third century to the mid fifth century is more accessible than specialized works on individual authors but more informative than coverage provided by general histories and reference works. The second edition has been revised throughout for use by a new generation of students and scholars and includes a new chapter and updated bibliographies.

A historical and theological re-evaluation of the polemical writings of Athanasius of Alexandria (bishop 328-73), who would become known to later Christian generations as a saint and a champion of orthodoxy, and as the defender of the original Nicene Creed of 325 against the `Arian heresy'. For much of his own lifetime, however, Athanasius was an extremely controversial figure, and his writings, although highly influential on modern interpretations of the fourth-century Church and the so-called `Arian Controversy', display bias and distortion . David M. Gwynn examines Athanasius' polemic in detail, and in particular his construction of those he condemns as `Arian' as a single `heretical party', 'the Eusebians'. Gwynn argues that Athanasius' image of the Church polarized between his own `orthodoxy' and the `Arianism' of the `Eusebians' is a polemical construct, which has seriously impaired our knowledge of the development of Christianity in the crucial period in which the Later Roman Empire became ever increasingly a Christian empire.

This work examines the extant primary sources of the Christian doctrine of God from the First Ecumenical Council at Nicea to the Second Ecumenical Council at Constantinople.
"A great work. . . . As a resource book, this study of Arianism could not be bettered. It is thorough and comprehensive, a lasting work of scholarship and as such a fitting memorial to its author."--Expository Times

The first part of Nicaea and its Legacy offers a narrative of the fourth-century trinitarian controversy. It does not assume that the controversy begins with Arius, but with tensions among existing theological strategies. Lewis Ayres argues that, just as we cannot speak of one `Arian'theology, so we cannot speak of one `Nicene' theology either, in 325 or in 381. The second part of the book offers an account of the theological practices and assumptions within which pro-Nicene theologians assumed their short formulae and creeds were to be understood. Ayres also argues that thereis no fundamental division between eastern and western trinitarian theologies at the end of the fourth century. The last section of the book challenges modern post-Hegelian trinitarian theology to engage with Nicaea more deeply.

This remarkable four-volume set assembles the principal creeds and confessions of the Christian Church, from biblical times to the present and from all over the globe, and places them in their historical and theological context. An introductory volume, Credo, by eminent church historian Jaroslav Pelikan, surveys the history of these creeds, delves into the meaning and purpose of creeds, and probes the issues and controversies that spawn new creeds, as well as the origins of new religious movements within Christianity. The set includes over 225 texts, with translations from many languages. Pelikan and Hotchkiss provide a brief introduction to each creed and confession, as well as commentary and notes identifying its biblical and other sources. A massive and unique comparative index serves as a comprehensive guide, doctrine by doctrine, to all the creeds and confessions. And a CD-ROM, which contains all the translated texts in their original languages, is also included.

The shape and course which Christian thought has taken over its history is largely due to the contributions of individuals and communities in the second and third centuries. Bringing together a remarkable team of distinguished scholars, The Routledge Companion to Early Christian Thought is the ideal companion for those seeking to understand the way in which Early Christian thought developed within its broader cultural milieu and was communicated through its literature, especially as it was directed toward theological concerns. Divided into three parts, the Companion: asks how Christianity's development was impacted by its interaction with cultural, philosophical, and religious elements within the broader context of the second and third centuries. examines the way in which Early Christian thought was manifest in key individuals and literature in these centuries. analyses Early Christian thought as it was directed toward theological concerns such as God, Christ, Redemption, Scripture, and the community and its worship.