Athanasius: Battle on Ten Fronts
Essay / On This Day by Fred Sanders on May 2, 2009 Athanasius of Alexandria (born around 293, died on this day, May 2, 373) stands out from the great crowd of witnesses that make up the early history of the church. If you’d like to begin reading the church fathers but don’t know where to start, consider starting with Athanasius. Anybody who understands the work of Athanasius in its context understands the most important things that happened in the early patristic period (that is, from about the passing of the apostles to the arrival of Augustine of Hippo). He was involved in all of the most decisive conflicts of the age, and he shaped Christianity in numerous ways. Here are ten battles Athanasius fought and won: 1. He defended Christianity against paganism. One of his earliest books is Against the Pagans , which is a classic piece of patristic apologetics. He begins by asserting that it is not irrational to follow Christ, and then turns ...