Adult Patristic Studies

Delivered by Brian Ephrem Fitzgerald, Ph.D.

at Saint Philip's Antiochian Orthodox Church,

Souderton, PA,

between March 2002 and June 2006.

Topic: St. Polycarp of Smyrna: Bishop, Martyr, and Teacher of Apostolic Tradition

Time: Saturdays, 3, 10, 17 June, & 1 July 2006

File: In PDF format: polycarp_of_smyrna.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Saturday, 3 June: St. Polycarp of Smyrna: The Man and his Epistle

  • Saturday, 10 June: The Epistle to the Philippians: Exhortations unto Righteousness

  • Saturday, 17 June: The Martyrium Sancti Polycarpi: About the Text and its Theology

  • Saturday, 1 July: The Martyrium Sancti Polycarpi as Hagiography

Topic: The Shepherd of Hermas

Time: Saturdays, 14, 21 May, & 4, 11 June 2005

File: In PDF format: shepherd_of_hermas.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Saturday, 14 May: General Introduction

  • Saturday, 21 May: Penance and Repentance

  • Saturday, 4 June: Ethics

  • Saturday, 11 June: Ecclesiology

Topic: St. Gregory of Nyssa: On the Soul and the Resurrection

Time: Sundays, 2, 9, 16, & 23 May 2004

File: In PDF format: soul_and_resurrection.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Sunday, 2 May: General Introduction and "The Nature of the Soul"

  • Sunday, 9 May: The Soul after Death

  • Sunday, 16 May: The Soul's Origin - The Soul's Destiny

  • Sunday, 23 May: Faith and Reason - St. Gregory's Theological Method

Topic: St. Basil the Great: On the Holy Spirit

Time: Sundays, 16, 23 & 30 November 2003

File: In PDF format: On_the_Holy_Spirit.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Sunday, 16 November: Who is St. Basil the Great and what is "On the Holy Spirit"

  • Sunday, 23 November: The Holy Trinity and the Divinity of the Holy Spirit

  • Sunday, 30 November: St. Basil's Sources and Methods in Theology

Topic: St. Athanasius the Great: The Redemptive Plan in On the Incarnation

Time: Sundays, 30 March, 6 & 13 April 2003

File: In PDF format: redemptive_plan.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Sunday, 30 March: General Introduction and "The Divine Dilemma"

  • Sunday, 6 April: Christ the Incarnate Teacher and Redeemer

  • Sunday, 13 April: Christ the Word and Life Incarnate

Topic: St. Ephrem of Nisibis: God's Self-Revelation as seen in the Hymns on Paradise

Time: Sundays, 17 November, 1 & 8 December 2002

File: In PDF format: paradise_hymns.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Sunday, 17 November: Biographical Introduction and "The Garment of Words"

  • Sunday, 1 December: God's Two Witnesses: Holy Scripture and Nature

  • Sunday, 8 December: Hiddenness and Revelation

Topic: St. John Chrysostom on Wealth and Virtue

Time: Sundays, 3, 10, 17, & 24 March 2002

File: In PDF format: wealth_and_virtue.pdf (Download from attachments below)

Contents:

• • Sunday, 3 March: Lazarus and the Rich Man as Exemplars for our Salvation

  • Sunday, 10 March: The Proper Evaluation of one's Life

  • Sunday, 17 March: The Meaning and Use of Wealth

  • Sunday, 24 March: Open Discussion of the Six Homilies