The Church Fathers & Sacred Tradition

The Church Fathers (Patristics) are the primary witnesses to apostolic Tradition and the founders of classical Christian theology. From the Apostolic Fathers (St. Clement, St. Ignatius of Antioch, St. Polycarp) to the Golden Age of the Fathers (St. Athanasius, St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil), this pathway traces how early Christians defended orthodoxy against heresy and articulated Catholic dogma.

For Catholics wishing to understand the historical continuity of Catholic belief, lovers of Church history, and apologists defending the Catholic Church's ancient apostolic origins.

• Recognize the Apostolic Fathers and their witness to the Catholic hierarchy, Eucharist, and liturgy in the 1st and 2nd centuries.
• Understand how early Ecumenical Councils (Nicaea, Constantinople, Ephesus, Chalcedon) formulated dogmatic Creeds.
• Examine Patristic biblical exegesis and the development of Marian dogma.
• Trace the historical reality of Catholic doctrines (Real Presence, Papal Primacy, Baptismal Regeneration) in early Christian writings.
• Refute common historical myths regarding the origins of Catholic doctrine.

To anchor personal faith in the unbroken apostolic Tradition of the Catholic Church, gaining inspiration from the courage and scholarship of the Church Fathers.

Divided into five historical modules:

1. The Apostolic Fathers (1st–2nd Century)
2. Apologists & The Defense of Orthodoxy
3. The Golden Age of Eastern Patristics
4. The Golden Age of Western Patristics
5. The Early Ecumenical Councils & Creeds

Learners will quote key Patristic texts, understand the historical emergence of Catholic dogma, and appreciate the apostolic lineage of the Catholic episcopate.

Complete one lesson every 3 days, reviewing Patristic excerpts. Total estimated duration: 12 hours over 5 weeks.

• CCC 74–95: The Transmission of Divine Revelation & Tradition

• Dei Verbum (Second Vatican Council, 1965)
• Patres Ecclesiae (Pope John Paul II, 1980)