List of Church Fathers

The following is a list of Christian Church Fathers. Roman Catholics generally regard the Patristic period to have closed with the death of John of Damascus, a Doctor of the Church, in 749. However, Orthodox Christians believe that the Patristic period is ongoing. Therefore, the list is split into two tables.

Until John of Damascus

Church Father	Date of death	Notes
Adrian the monk of Antioch	5th Century (estimate)[1]	wrote a manual on the Antiochene method of Scriptural exegesis[2]
Alexander of Alexandria[3]	326 or 328
Alexander of Lycopolis	4th century
Ambrose of Milan	397	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Western Church; strongly opposed Arianism
Amphilochius of Iconium[2][3]	403 or earlier
Ananias of Shirak[3][4]	685	wrote a work on Christmas and one on Easter
Anastasius Sinaita[2][3]	7th century
Andrew of Caesarea[2]	637	commented on the Apocalypse
Andrew of Crete[3]	712, 726, or 740	author of the 250-strophe Great Canon
Anthony the Great[2]	356
Aphraates	345	Mesopotamian bishop who authored 23 homilies[2]
Apollinaris of Hierapolis	between 177-180
Apollinaris of Laodicea	382
Apollonius of Ephesus	210
Archelaus (bishop of Carrhae)	3rd century (early)	supposedly a bishop of Carchar who wrote against Manichaeism
Aristides the Athenian[2][3]	134
Aristo of Pella[2]	160
Arnobius[2]	330	author of Against the Heathen
Arsenius the Great	445
Apringius of Beja	6th century	commented on the Apocalypse[5]
Asterius of Amasea[3]	410	wrote sermons on morality including topics like divorce and covetousness, and the parables of Jesus Christ
Athanasius	373	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church
Athenagoras of Athens[2]	190	wrote in defense of the resurrection of the dead[3]
Atticus[2]	420s
Augustine of Hippo	430	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Western Church (Doctor Gratiae)
Aurelius Prudentius[2][3]	413	commented on the Psalms[6]
Ausonius	395
Avitus of Vienne[2]	518	author of the five-book poem De spiritualis historiae gestis; converted King Sigismund; combated Arianism
Barnabas[3]	061	wrote a single Epistle
Barsanuphius of Palestine	540
Basil the Great of Caesarea	379	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church and one of the Three Holy Hierarchs; father of monachism
Bede[2]	735	Doctor of the Church and author of Ecclesiastical History of the English People
Benedict of Nursia[2][3]	547	best known for the Rule of St Benedict
Boethius[3]	520s	author of Consolation of Philosophy
Braulio of Zaragoza	651	commented on the Psalms[6]
Caesarius of Arles[2]	542	commented on the Apocalypse
Caius	3rd century
Cassiodorus[2][3]	585
Chromatius[3]	407	wrote sermons on the Gospel of Matthew
Clement of Alexandria	215
Clement of Rome	099
Coelius Sedulius[2]	5th century
Columba of Iona[2][3]	597
Commodianus	3rd century
Cyprian of Carthage[2]	258
Cyril of Alexandria	444	Doctor of the Church (Doctor Incarnationis) combated the Nestorian heresy
Cyril of Jerusalem	386	Doctor of the Church who wrote thorough instructions to catechumens and baptized Christians[2]
Pope Damasus I	384
Didymus the Blind[2]	398	teacher of Jerome and Rufinus; follower of Origen; opponent of Arianism and the Macedonian heresy; works condemned at the Fifth Ecumenical Council and the Sixth Ecumenical Council
Diodore of Tarsus[2]	390
Dionysius of Corinth[2]	2nd century
Pope Dionysius of Rome[2]	268	combated Sabellianism
Dionysius the Areopagite	96	Writings attributed to him are thought to have been faked by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite.
Pope Dionysius the Great of Alexandria	265
Ephrem the Syrian	373	Doctor of the Church
Epiphanius of Salamis	403	friend of Jerome who strongly opposed Origenism and wrote a history of heresies
Eucherius of Lyon[2][3]	449
Eugippius[4]	535
Eusebius of Caesarea	339
Eusebius of Emesa	360	commented on Genesis[7]
Eusebius of Vercelli[2]	371
Firmilian[2]	269
Fulgentius of Ruspe	527 or 533
Gaius Marius Victorinus	4th century	combated Arianism[2]
Gennadius of Massilia[2]	496
Pope Gregory I the Great	604	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Western Church and author of Dialogues
Gregory of Nazianzus	389	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church; one of three Orthodox saints honored with the title "The Theologian;" one of the Three Holy Hierarchs
Gregory of Nyssa	395
Gregory of Tours[3]	594
Gregory Thaumaturgus	270
Hegesippus of Palestine[2]	180	a Jewish convert who combated Gnosticism and Marcionism
Hermias[3]	3rd century
Hesychius of Jerusalem	5th century
Hilary of Poitiers	367	Doctor of the Church
Hippolytus of Rome[2][3]	235
Ignatius of Antioch	108
Irenaeus	2nd (end of) or beginning of 3rd century
Isaac of Nineveh	700	ascetic author of many spiritual homilies who commented on the Psalms[6] and contributed significantly to Syrian piety; was not Christologically Nestorian[8]
Isidore of Pelusium	450	author of 2000 letters dealing primarily with allegorical exegesis[2]
Isidore of Seville[2][3]	636	Doctor of the Church
Jacob of Serugh[4][6][9]	521	a.k.a. Mar Jacob
Jerome	420	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Western Church
John Cassian[2][9]	435
John Chrysostom	407	one of the Four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church and one of the Three Holy Hierarchs
John Climacus[9]	649
John of Damascus	749	Doctor of the Church and author of An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith and ascetic and exegetical writings and hymns; Peter Lombard based his Four Books of Sentences on the works of John of Damascus and Thomas Aquinas based his Summa Theologica on Peter Lombard's Sentences
Julianus Pomerius[2]	between 499-505	author of De Vita Contemplativa concerning Christian sanctity
Julius Firmicus Maternus	4th century
Justin Martyr	165
Juvencus[2]	4th century
Lactantius	325
Pope Leo I the Great	461	Doctor of the Church
Leontius of Byzantium[2]	543
Lucian of Antioch[2]	312
Lucifer[2]	370	combated Arianism and defended Athanasius at the Council of Milan in 354
Macarius of Alexandria[9]	395
Macarius of Egypt[9]	391
Malchion	3rd century?	played key role in the deposition of Paul of Samosata
Marcus Minucius Felix[2][9]	250	author of Octavianus
Marius Mercator	451	made a compilation on Nestorianism and another on Pelagianism[2]
Martin of Braga	580	commented on the Psalms[6]
Martin of Tours[9]	397
Mathetes	2nd century?	author of an Epistle to Diognetus
Maximus of Turin[2]	465
Maximus the Confessor[2][9]	662
Meletius of Antioch[9]	381
Melito of Sardis	180	author of an important sermon called On Pascha about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Methodius of Olympus[2][9]	311	combated Origenism
Moses of Chorene	490	author of A History of Armenia
Nectarius of Constantinople[9]	397
Nicetas of Remesiana	414	the patron saint of Romania commented on the Psalms[6]
Nilus of Sinai	430
Nonnus	5th century
Novatian[2]	258	commented on the Psalms[6]
Oecumenius	6th century	author of the first extant Greek commentary on the Apocalypse[5]
Optatus	4th century	combated Donatism[2]
Origen of Alexandria	254	posthumously anathematized at Fifth Ecumenical Council (533)
Orosius[2]	418
Pachomius[2][9]	348	Father of Christian cenobitic monasticism
Pacian of Barcelona[9]	391	combated Novatianism
Palladius of Helenopolis[2][9]	420s
Pamphilus of Caesarea	309
Pantaenus	200	first to make the Catechetical school of Alexandria famous[2]
Papias[9]	163	disciple of John the Evangelist and Ariston[2]
Patrick[9]	5th century
Paulinus of Nola[9]	431
Peter Chrysologus	450	Doctor of the Church
Pope Peter of Alexandria	311
Philip the priest	5th Century (dates uncertain)	Acquaintance of Jerome,[10] commented on the Book of Job
Philoxenus of Hierapolis[4]	6th century	author of 13 ascetic discourses who combated Nestorianism, Manichaeism, and Marcionism
Poemen	450	commented on the Psalms[6]
Polycarp	156	Wrote a single Epistle to the Philippians
Proclus of Constantinople	440s
Prohaeresius[2]	368
Prosper of Aquitaine[2]	455
Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite	6th century	author of The Divine Names, The Mystical Theology, The Celestial Hierarchy, The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, and the non-extant Theological Outlines; quoted extensively in the Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas
Quadratus of Athens[2]	129	wrote a non-extant apology to Emperor Hadrian
Rabbula[4][11]	435	ascetic and energetic bishop of Edessa and ally of Cyril of Alexandria who opposed the heretical teachings of Nestorius
Romanos the Melodist[11]	556
Sahdona	649	commented on the Psalms[6]
Salvian[2][11]	490s	Gallic author of On the government of God
Severian of Gabala	between 408 and 425	commented on Genesis[7] and the First and Second Epistle to the Corinthians
Severus of Antioch[4][11]	538
Sextus Julius Africanus[2][9]	240
Sidonius Apollinaris[2][11]	489
Socrates of Constantinople	439
Sophronius[11]	638
Sozomen	450
Sulpicius Severus[11]	425	disciple and biographer of Martin of Tours and author of an Ecclesiastical History[2]
Synesius of Syrene[2][11]	414
Tatian	185
Tertullian	240	died a Montanist, First of the Latin Fathers
Theodore of Mopsuestia[2]	428	commented on Acts of the Apostles and the First and Second Epistle to the Corinthians
Theodoret of Cyrus	458	continuator of Eusebius of Caesarea[2]
Theodotus of Ancyra	5th century
Theophilus of Antioch[2]	Between 183-185	first writer known to have used the term Trinity to describe the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit
Theotimos	407
Tichonius	390	commented on the Apocalypse; his seven principles of interpretation from his Book of Rules inspired Augustine of Hippo [5]
Tyrannius Rufinus	410	friend of Jerome and continuator of Eusebius of Caesarea[2] who commented on the Psalms[6]
Valerian of Cimiez	460	commented on the Psalms[6]
Venantius Fortunatus	600 or 609	wrote a poem on Easter
Victor of Antioch	5th century (late) to early 6th century	contemporary of John Chrysostom,[12] commented on the Gospel of Mark[2]
Victorinus of Pettau	303	author of On the Creation of the World and a Commentary on the Apocalypse of the Blessed John
Vincent of Lérins	450
Zeno of Verona	371
Pope Zephyrinus	217	commented on the Psalms

After John of Damascus

Church Father	Date of death	Notes
Athanasius the Athonite[3]	1003
Gregory Palamas[13]	1359	Pillar of Orthodoxy and defender of Hesychasm
Ishodad of Merv	9th century	commented on the Book of Job
Innocent of Alaska	1879	his The Way Into the Kingdom of Heaven is often used as an Orthodox catechism[3]
Mark of Ephesus[9]	1444	Pillar of Orthodoxy
Nicholas Cabasilas[9]	1391
Photius the Great[9][13]	893	Pillar of Orthodoxy and author of Bibliotheca
Symeon Metaphrastes[11]	10th century
Symeon the New Theologian[13]	1022	one of three Orthodox saints honored with the title "The Theologian"
Theodore the Studite	826
Theophan the Recluse[11]	1894

See also

• Ante-Nicene Fathers (book)
• Apostolic Fathers
• Cappadocian Fathers
• Church Fathers
• Desert Fathers
• Doctors of the Church
• List of early Christian writers
• Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers
• Patristics
• Patrologia Graeca
• Patrologia Latina
• Patrologia Orientalis
• Three Holy Hierarchs

Notes and references

1. Martens, Peter W. (2013-04-01). "Adrian's Introduction to the Divine Scriptures and Greco-Roman Rhetorical Theory on Style". The Journal of Religion. 93 (2): 197–217. doi:10.1086/669208. ISSN 0022-4189.
2. Chapman, John (1909), Fathers of the Church, I, New York: Robert Appleton Company, retrieved 2008-01-29
3. Steenberg, M.C. (2008), The Patristics Master List, Page 1 (A-I), retrieved 2008-01-29
4. Pearse, Roger (2007), Early Church Fathers: Additional Texts, retrieved 2008-01-29
5. Weinrich, William C. (2005), Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: New Testament, VIII: Revelation
6. Wesselschmidt, Quentin F. (2007), Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: Old Testament, VIII: Psalms 51-150
7. Sheridan, Mark (2002), Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: Old Testament, II: Genesis 12-50
8. Arendzen, J.P. (1910), Isaac of Nineveh, VIII, New York: Robert Appleton Company, retrieved 2008-01-31
9. Steenberg, M.C. (2008), The Patristics Master List, Page 2 (J-P), retrieved 2008-01-29
10. Vicchio, Stephen J. (2006-10-04). Job in the Medieval World. Wipf and Stock Publishers. ISBN 9781597525336.
11. Steenberg, M.C. (2008), The Patristics Master List, Page 3 (Q-Z), retrieved 2008-01-29
12. "Victor of Antioch from the McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia". McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia Online. Retrieved 2019-06-18.
13. Azkoul, Dr. Fr. Michael, Who Is A Church Father?, archived from the original on October 26, 2009, retrieved 2008-01-30

External links

• Fathers of the Church (Catholic Encyclopedia)
• Monachos Patristics Master List
• Writings of Church Fathers from NewAdvent