Athanasius of Alexandria: His Life and Impact

by Peter Barnes

From the Until his death in 373, Athanasius was the most formidable opponent of Arianism in the Roman Empire. Ultimately, for him, this fight was not a struggle for ecclesial power or even for the rightness of his theological position. It was a battle for the souls of men and women. Athanasius rightly knew that upon one’s view of Christ hung one’s eternal destiny. As he wrote to the bishops of Egypt in 356: “as therefore the struggle that is now set before us concerns all that we are , either to reject or to keep the faith, let us be zealous and resolve to guard what we have received, bearing in mind the confession that was written down at Nicaea.” And by God’s grace, his victory in that struggle has been of enormous blessing to the church ever since.

Genres: Church History

176 pages, Paperback

Published October 2, 2019

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. This entry is for the English playwright and screenwriter.

Reviews

[Amanda Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short and quick read about Athanasius and the surrounding time period he lived in, going over the political upheavals, various councils, and lasting impact of this important church father. It is written in an academic way (e.g. "Johnson says this, but Nelson disagrees and says this" kind of thing). While helpful to get the various perspectives of scholars, the writing style makes for a dry read.

[Hobart · Rating 3 out of 5]

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
---

As he wrote to the bishops of Egypt in 356: ‘as therefore the struggle that is now set before us concerns all that we are, either to reject or to keep the faith, let us be zealous and resolve to guard what we have received, bearing in mind the confession that was written down at Nicaea’. And by God’s grace, his victory in that struggle has been of enormous blessing to the church ever since.

THE SERIES
In case you hadn't read what I thought of the other books I've read in this series, let me start with the thumbnail description of the series I came up with:

I literally stumbled on this series, The Early Church Fathers, a few weeks ago and thought it sounded like a great idea. It looked kind of like a mix of Crossway's Theologians on the Christian Life and Oxford's Very Short Introductions (incidentally, that's what it ended up being).

WHAT'S ATHANASIUS OF ALEXANDRIA ABOUT?
In the first chapter, Barnes sketches out what life is like for Christians in Alexandria in the years immediately before Constantine, through the Great Persecution, then he turns the focus on to Athanasius' early years (and some of the competing theories as to what those were like).

He then spends four chapters reviewing the ecclesiastical movements surrounding the Arian conflict and related controversies. He discusses both the imperial moves, the various councils and reactions to them, and Athanasius' various exiles and restorations.

After the overview of his life, Barnes discusses his theology and major works, On the Incarnation of the Word of God and Against the Gentiles, before moving into his views on the Bible, Asceticism, and Spirituality. Barnes talks about critiques and challenges as well as the lasting influence of the Bishop of Alexandria.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT ATHANASIUS OF ALEXANDRIA?

Athanasius considered himself inadequate as a theological writer, and unpracticed in speech. He never entered the fray as a detached academic philosopher. He was first and foremost a Christian, and his declared aim was that a right understanding of theology might strengthen faith in Christ, that ‘you may have ever greater and stronger piety towards him’.

I'm trying not to turn on this series, but they're making it difficult for me (but I've read three of the five, so you know I'm going to finish them). It wasn't bad, don't get me wrong, but it didn't give me enough of what I came looking for and too much of things I didn't.

Let me try to explain.

Sixty-five percent of the book is the historical material—with an element of biographical material. So much of the history is dry and feels like he's just rattling off names without really explaining why we should care about the names. This is supposed to be an introduction to Athanasius, not a crash course in Fourth Century History. Yes, most of those names—and the historians who have theories about them—are those a student of Church History should be familiar with. But in this context, it felt like meaningless trivia. It's too much of this book—sure, it's a complicated period of history so it takes a lot of work to cover it, but that shouldn't be the emphasis of a book like this.

The last three chapters—about his works, his theology, his influence, and so on were great. If more of the book had been like that, I'd be singing a different tune. I did walk away feeling like I had a better understanding of Athanasius, but not as much of one as I'd hoped.

I think if my expectations were better, I'd have appreciated it more. Still, I did like it and did benefit from it, I expect others will, too.

[Benaiah Neetz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Few modern evangelicals are familiar with Athanasius of Alexandria, yet church history itself might have unfolded very differently without his life and witness—an unmistakable testament to the providence of God. This book does a thoughtful job showing just how central Athanasius was in the defense of Christian orthodoxy during one of the church’s most dangerous theological crises.

As the story unfolds, Athanasius begins to resemble an early version of Martin Luther—marked by boldness, conflict, and an unshakable conviction that the truth about Christ must never be compromised. Like Luther, he possessed a fierce courage, deep love for his people, and an unwavering commitment to the full deity of Jesus. While he may not have had the philosophical polish or literary elegance of Augustine of Hippo, Athanasius was a relentless fighter who persevered through incredible opposition and, humanly speaking, helped preserve Nicene orthodoxy when it stood on the brink of collapse.

One of the most striking elements of the book is the account of Athanasius’s five exiles and the repeated rise of Arian influence through imperial politics. Time and again, emperors and power brokers attempted to silence him, yet he returned again and again to defend the biblical confession of Christ. It is impossible to read these episodes without sensing the unmistakable hand of God at work. Had Athanasius fallen, history may have told a very different doctrinal story.

The primary weakness of the book, however, lies in its execution as an introductory work. Though it is intended for a general audience, the heavy use of scholarly citations, historical debates, and academic quotations often makes it feel more like a research paper than a smooth narrative biography. I read this with my wife, and we both felt that the constant references to what various historians think slowed the story and created unnecessary friction for a first-time reader of church history. For a true lay introduction, a more fluid storytelling approach would have served better.

Overall, this is still a valuable and informative portrait of one of the most important figures in Christian history. Athanasius clearly emerges as a man uniquely used by God at a critical moment for the church. While some other books in this series may be stronger introductions, I hope future works will present Athanasius’s life with the same theological seriousness but with a more accessible narrative style for the average reader.

[Chandler Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good and critical biography of Athanasius of Alexandria—the champion of Nicene orthodoxy. My precise rating for this book would probably be more like 3.5 stars. Barnes shows that Athanasius’s life was full of turmoil and difficulty as he contended for the full deity of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. He was a man who experienced 5 exiles in his lifetime due to political issues with Arians in power as well as rulers sympathetic to Nicene orthodoxy. Barnes also shows himself to be well read in scholarship on Athanasius as he exposes the reader to various interpretations of Athanasius’s motivations and theology. Yet, I do feel that Barnes can be somewhat inconclusive about what went down at certain points in the book. This is not too serious of an issue since Barnes is dealing with ultimately inconclusive aspects of the Alexandrian’s life. There is a fantastic chapter on the theology of Athanasius in which Barnes carefully and helpfully assess Athanasius’s teaching on the humanity and suffering of Jesus as the immutable and impassible God. Barnes also defends Athanasius against charges of Apollinarianism and charges of tyranny in imposing his teaching on the church. You also find out interest by things about the theologian’s life. For example, he believed that many proponents of “homoiusias” were actually teaching the same thing as proponents of “homoousias” since both groups believed that the Son was like the Father in every way. There is also interesting info here on the bizarre death of Arius. I also appreciated Barnes’s chapter on the asceticism and monasticism of Athanasius. Athanasius believed in the goodness of the created order even if he retreated from it. I do feel that Barnes himself imposes too much of a Hellenization Thesis on the Christian practice of asceticism.

There is also a helpful preface from Michael Haykin on reading and interpreting the church fathers, as well as a glossary on theological terminology and patristic figures that serves as a great reference. My biggest issues with this book are the dry and somewhat clunky writing style of the author, as well as Barnes’s evaluation of Eusebius of Caesarea as a pro-Arian theologian. I would still highly recommend the book!

[Neil McKinlay · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was good to read about the man and the mission in its historical context. This book very much helps us see how we arrived at the Christology we uphold today. Athanasius of Alexandria did the Lord’s Church a great service by taking his stand against the teachings of Arius. In today’s terms, it’s the difference between the Biblical Christ and that of those who deny His eternal deity. Barnes allows us to see our champion’s flaws which, thankfully, were far outweighed by his tenacity. Who would have thought that one letter in the Greek alphabet could have caused so much pain and suffering? Yes, there was a lot more to it than that. Barnes in this well researched and brief study keeps Church history interesting.

[Gavin Kinnaird · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Theologically, he (Athanasius) testified to the full deity of the Son and later to the full deity of the Spirit. Spiritually, he waged a lifelong war at considerable personal cost to himself to maintain his testimony to the biblical revelation God is triune and did so while maintaining his own humble walk with God. Pastorally, he preserved the unity and witness of most of the Alexandrian churches to this truth in most unpromising circumstances. Athanasius was a man remembered as one who lived contra mundum, but only because he lived first and foremost as a servant of and witness to the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ.’

[Raphael Mnkandhla · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book

He authors main goal is to show Athanasius' life and legacy and argue against the many negative narratives that authors have written concerning about him.

[Timothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful introduction into the life and theology of Athanasius.

[MR STEPHEN · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dense

Not an easy read, as Barnes pokes at one source after another without achieving any real clarity. The result is a picture as confused as the times it describes.