Category Archives: Church Fathers

Origen’s Neo-Platonism

Posted on February 10, 2016 by christopher fisher

Origen was an early merger of Neo-Platonism and Christian theology. In his writings, he represents creation as a departion from God. God is immutable and changeless. God, therefore, is not to be thought of as being either a body or … Continue reading →

Posted in Church Fathers, History, Platonism | 1 Comment

angels or gods

Posted on June 7, 2015 by christopher fisher

Early anti-Christian Platonist Porphyry argues that Christians do not much differ from the pagans who believe in many gods because Christians believe in angels. As God rules over the angels, the pagans hold to a similar hierarchy. Porphyry does not … Continue reading →

Posted in Church Fathers, History | 5 Comments

movie review – Killing Jesus

Posted on March 30, 2015 by christopher fisher

Killing Jesus is a TV-movie adaptation of Bill O’Reilly’s work of the same name. The purpose of this movie seems to be to build a more historical portrait of Jesus, rather than the influx of spiritually focused TV films. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Church Fathers, History, Jesus | Leave a comment

the development of predestination in augustine

Posted on October 18, 2014 by christopher fisher

From Augustine, Manichaeism and the Good by Kam-lun E. Lee (dissertation for the Saint Paul University, 1996): Augustine’s development of the idea of predestination reveals the Manichaean concept of the Good [the Summum Bonum] at work in three ways: on … Continue reading →

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augustine on the platonists

Posted on January 15, 2014 by christopher fisher

In City of God, Augustine has entire book dedicated to his love affair with the Platonists. From Book VIII: Let all those philosophers, then, give place, as we have said, to the Platonists… These philosophers, then, whom we see not … Continue reading →

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augustine and his infatuation with the platonists

Posted on January 15, 2014 by christopher fisher

I have wrote before that Augustine only converted to Christianity after his mentor explained to him that the Bible could be taken figuratively and the Platonists were correct in their philosophy. Here are Augustine’s own words: Confessions, Book 6: 6. … Continue reading →

Posted in Augustine, Calvinism, Church Fathers, Church History, God, Immutablility, Theology | 1 Comment

eusebius on the canon of the Bible

Posted on November 17, 2013 by christopher fisher

Eusebius (260-340AD) is one of the oldest sources listing out books considered as accepted as the New Testament. There is a mysterious fragment (Muratorian fragment), which also lists out books (notably not listing James, 1 Peter, and 2 Peter). But … Continue reading →

Posted in Bible, Church Fathers, Church History, History, Textual Criticism | 1 Comment

Biblical interpretation

Posted on November 2, 2013 by christopher fisher

During a recent interview with Economist Russ Roberts, Emily Oster was recounting a debate she had with a doctor on the relative harms of various activities for pregnant ladies. She insisted that the data should lead us to the conclusions … Continue reading →

Posted in Augustine, Bible, Church Fathers, Theology | 3 Comments

john cassian on literalism

Posted on October 30, 2013 by christopher fisher

John Cassian actually provides an interesting example of a “literal” reading of the Bible that is taken to absurd extent. Apparently there were some monks who misinterpreted Jesus’ command to “take up your cross”: whosoever takes not up his cross … Continue reading →

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john cassian on anthropomorphism

Posted on October 30, 2013 by christopher fisher

The Calvinist modus operandi is to start with a priory (preconceived ideas) on the attributes of God and then interpret the text of the Bible in light of those concepts. Augustine actually admits to this in his Confessions (chapter 12). … Continue reading →

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