As advertised, an attempt to introduce Evangelical Christians to the stories of many of the church fathers: Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Perpetua, Origen, Athanasius, Ephrem, John Chrysostom, Augustine, Cyril, and Patrick.

The author's goal is to familiarize Evangelicals with what should be a common heritage. He attempts to make the work accessible; in providing historical context and explanations he does well, but some of the justifications and applications are very ideological in nature. Ignatius moved away from elders as shepherds to a bishop system; it can be stated without being justified or defended. The description of Augustine vs. Pelagius is reduced to a caricature.

If one is looking for an accessible introduction to some of the early Christians, there is some good information here. Be careful about conclusions.

**-galley received as part of early review program ( )

Excellent introduction to the early church fathers. Many misconceptions about them were put to rest. Litfin gives both the good and the bad about them. In most part, the early church fathers were true believers trying to make sense of a new belief system and making things right, theologically and doctrinally speaking. This, especially amidst many heresies that were popping up during this time. If it were not for some of these early theologians, who knows where Christianity would be today. It seems the two primary issues that these early church fathers were facing were: persecution and heresy. What a surreal time to live.

The only negative about this book is that I wish the author spent a bit more time on the facts of these early church fathers, the way they lived, and how they lived out their faith. It seems more time was spent on their theological beliefs rather than their lives. In most part, it was a balanced view, but I really wanted to get to know these early church fathers in a more personal and intimate way. This was done very welll with Augustine and Perpetua, but not so much with the others.

I highly recommend this book to Christians who want to understand what the early church fathers believed, how they lived their lives, and how it shaped what many of us believe today. With that, we owe a great debt of gratitude to our spiritual ancestors. ( )

Great introduction to the early church fathers and the early theology of the church. Written in an engaging way that doesn't put you to sleep with high handed "scholar" language. ( )

Bryan Litfin, associate professor of theology at Moody Bible Institute has written a fascinating and helpful book titled Getting to Know the Church Fathers. It slowly dawned on me as I worked my way through this book that the title must have been very deliberately chosen, for it is quite apt. By the time you read any of the brief biographies of these early church fathers (and a couple of mothers as well), you get the feeling that you are somehow connected to them and, more importantly, you have seen a glimpse of their personalities - in short, you are getting to know them. Far from just explaining their theology, Litfin actually introduces us to them. The sensation is not unlike when, at a social event, your friend introduces a newcomer with the words “George here rowed at Chicago too” or “Mary is also a bookstore owner”.

Each of the 10 chapters typically opens with an anecdote or scene from modern life which is then linked to the personage under consideration. For example, Tertullian is introduced through a long excerpt from the actual diary of a 19th century cowboy eating dust on a cattle drive. Here’s how Litfin explains the connection:
I want to suggest that in many ways the two men were cut from the same cloth. Both possessed a kind of dogged determination in the face of adversity; both refused to shrink from challenge; both were audacious in what they dared to attempt. Tertullian lived in a time when his “herd” was not safely corralled, and so was exposed to danger from all sides. Instead of backing down, Tertullian rode into the fray with a rebel yell and both guns blazing.

Tertullian the cowboy! How can we ever confuse him with some staid, dull theologian again?

After the chapter’s introduction comes a summary of life events and discussion of the context in which the specific historic figure’s theology was shaped. This forms the bulk of each chapter. Litfin then provides his “reflections on” the church father. In keeping with the subtitle of the book, “an Evangelical Introduction”, the reflections segment is a sort of summarizing and synthesis of why this Father is important to evangelicals today.

Litfin follows with “provocative questions” which could serve nicely in a group discussion session making this an excellent book for an adult Sunday School class or book club. Next comes one of this bibliophile’s favorite parts of each chapter, “Good Books to Dig Deeper”, a briefly annotated bibliography. Finally each chapter concludes with excerpts from the writings of the featured Father in the section labeled “a taste of”.

The excellent introduction contains an explanation of who the church fathers were and discusses several fallacies concerning them. In answering the question “why study the church fathers” the author not only invites us to plunge into the pages of his book, but to embark on a fascinating exploration of our spiritual ancestors. Litfin provides a brief time line and a map in the introduction, but I would have liked to have seen more visual materials included within each chapter. Reproductions of bits of manuscripts, artwork from the period, and graphical presentation of related data might have counteracted the occasional tendency to doze off during my late-night readings.

This book is very approachable by the lay reader who knows little about Church history. Dr. Litfin has succeeded in helping us “realize that the opening actors in the Christian drama were flesh-and-blood people who lived their lives in God’s presence just as we do today.”

This review is from my blog at http://signsoflifebooks.com/blog/2008/03/do-you-know-me/ ( )

http://evepheso.wordpress.com/2007/11/26/book-review-getting-to-know-the-church-... ( )