The Trinitarian Controversy (Sources of Early Christian Thought)

Very informative, easy to understand. Condenses so much data in so few pages, a fantastic work. Definitely recommend for a comprehensive understanding of the fundamental causes for this controversy.

A fascinating look through the eyes of those that were fighting the battles of the day. Arius was one self-righteous dude and it shows in his writings.

Why read perplexing modern commentaries on primary sources that spends ten pages on one line when you can be perplexed by reading them yourself? It is better to dabble in the fount than the bubbling brook thousands of miles away. A few of Arius, Athanasius, Gregory of Nazianus, and Augustine’s works pack this 180 page book. Read, get confused, read again, hopefully learn a little, read a third time, and be confused even more. That is the vicious cycle of studying the Church Fathers.cf. sooholee.wordpress

I highly suggest this book if you are looking into the Faith and Fathers of the Church. An in-depth read that is worthy of scholarly work.

The present rating is related to the title of the book which IMO is sort of misleading, or confusing at its best.The book is advertised as “The Trinitarian Controversy (Sources of Early Christian Thought) (English, Latin and Ancient Greek Edition)”.In the “Features & details Product information” section, under ‘language’, it says “English, Latin, Ancient Greek”.Based on such a fancy title and description one would expect to read the statements on the Trinity from patristic writings,— pro & con, in their original languages —mostly Latin and Greek— translated to English. However the sources in the book are given in plain English. No Latin and no Greek source texts.Perhaps the vendor should re-phrase its advertisement of this book in order not to create confusing expectations.

This was required for a theology class that I took. I was not familiar with the trinitarian controversy or any of the historical figures involved prior to the class. This was a very difficult read for me, largely due to this lack of history or understanding of the conflict. This was a poor choice for the class structure as we were instructed to do the reading prior to the corresponding lecture, which made it even more difficult to understand. I would not recommend this unless you have enough background knowledge about the subject to understand each of the figures involved. That said, once I did have that back ground, it was interesting to go back and review a few of the letters.

Give a bunch of Christians thinkers of this era, trying to argue for the trinity or against, not most detail, but it give you taste of the time. I think it worth your time to read. It is not that long and if your into theology it is fun read.

If you are looking for a collection of letters surrounding the Trinitarian Controversy from circa the 4th century, then this is the book for you. If you are looking for an exposition on the topic, then this is not the book for you.