The Singing-Masters: Church Fathers from Greek East and Latin West

by Fr. Aidan Nichols O.P.

"I . . . find these Fathers to be, in words of William Butler Yeats, 'singing-masters of my soul'. Anyone who prays through the year the Office of Readings in the Roman Liturgy of the Hours will understand why."
— Fr. Aidan Nichols , From the Introduction The Singing-Masters , written by the author of Rome and the Eastern Churches , is a passionate, personalized account of the theological achievement of eighteen of the Church Fathers. Ten come from the Greek Irenaeus , Origen , Athanasius , Gregory of Nyssa , Gregory of Nazianzus , Basil the Great , Cyril of Alexandria , Denys the Areopagite , Maximus the Confessor , and John Damascene . Eight come from the Latin Tertullian , Cyprian , Ambrose , Jerome , Augustine , Leo the Great , Gregory the Great , and Bede the Venerable . The Fathers chosen here are those who have been especially authoritative for Catholic doctrine or particularly influential in Church life. While giving a dramatic, humanized account of patristic thought, colored by biographical detail, Aidan Nichols, O.P., draws the reader into a serious discussion of the Fathers' complex theological doctrines. The Singing-Masters offers a holistic and loving introduction to the figures who most shaped Christian thought, both in the East and in the West.

Genres: Christianity

343 pages, Paperback

Published February 25, 2023

Reviews

[Brother Gregory Rice, SOLT · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rich and full introduction to, really, the whole Patristic era of the Church, encompassing as it does 6-8 Father's of each east and west. Wide in its scope of figures, full in its range of detail and information, compelling and immediately relevant in its writing, there is something of the Church's whole heritage here. It moves with tremendous pace and captures the key concepts of each father, bringing a dazzling sense of wealth.

[Pablo Rodriguez · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just could not get into this book. I'm a moderately sophisticated reader, but this book made me stop every few sentences and try to figure out what the author was saying. I don't like to have struggle understanding every single paragraph.