RESOURCES FOR THE STUDY OF CHURCH HISTORY

Compilations of Original Texts (in translation)

Barry, Colman J., ed. Readings in Church History. (Originally in 3 vols). Westminster: Newman, 1960.

Bettenson, Henry and Chris Maunder, eds. Documents of the Church. 3^rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.

Leith, John H., ed. Creeds of the Churches. Louisville: Knox, 1963, reprint 1982.

McGrath, Alister E., ed. The Christian Theology Reader. Oxford: Blackwell., 1995.

Neuner, Josef and Jacques Dupuis, eds. The Christian Faith: Doctrinal Documents of the Catholic Church. New York: Alba House, 2001.

Histories of the Christian Theological Tradition

Congar, Yves M.-J. A History of Theology. Trans. and ed. Hunter Guthrie. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968.

De Lubac, Henri. Medieval Exegesis: The Four Senses of Scripture. 2 vols. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1998, 2000.

González, Justo. A History of Christian Thought. 3 vols. Revised ed. Nashville: Abingdon, 1988.

Kelly, J. N. D. Early Christian Doctrines. 5^th ed. New York: Continuum, 2000.

Nichols, Aiden. The Shape of Catholic Theology: An Introduction to Its Sources, Principles, and History. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1991.

Pelikan, Jaroslav. The Christian Tradition. 5 vols. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1971-.

Placher, William C. A History of Christian Theology: An Introduction. Louisville, KY: Westminster, 1983.

Ramsey, Boniface. Beginning to Read the Fathers. New York: Paulist Press, 1985.

Wilken, Robert Louis. The Spirit of Early Christian Thought: Seeking the Face of God. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003.

Histories of the Church

Bennett, Rod. Four Witnesses: The Early Church in Her Own Words. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2002.

Carroll, Warren H. The Founding of Christendom. A History of Christianity, vol. 1. Front Royal, VA: Christendom Press, 1985-2005. The titles of the remaining individual volumes follow: The Building of Christendom (vol. 2); The Glory of Christendom (vol. 3); The Cleaving of Christendom (vol. 4); The Revolution against Christendom (vol. 5).

Chadwick, Owen, ed. The Penguin History of the Church. 7 vols. London: Penguin, 1990.

Davis, Leo Donald. The First Seven Ecumenical Councils (325-787): Their History and Theology. Collegeville MN: Liturgical Press, 1983.

Daniélou, Jean, and Henri Marrou. The First Six Hundred Years. Trans. Vincent Cronin. The Christian Centuries, vol. 1. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1964.

Daniel-Rops, Henri. History of the Church of Christ. 17 vols. New York: Image, 1967.

Frend, W.H.C. The Rise of Christianity. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984.

Johnson, Paul. A History of Christianity. New York: Atheneum, 1976. Although not unbiased, at 556 pages, this remarkable and fast-paced volume presents a solid and informative overview of (mainly western) Chrisitan history.

Moczar, Diane. Ten Dates Every Catholic Should Know: The Divine Surprises and Chastisements that Shaped the Church and Changed the World. Manchester, NH: Sophia Institute, 2005.

Schreck, Alan. The Compact History of the Catholic Church. Cincinnati, OH: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 1995.

Hughes, Philip. A History of the Church. 3 vols. Revised ed. New York: Sheed and Ward, 1952.

Handy References

Benedetto, Robert, ed. The New Westminster Dictionary of Church History, vol. 1, The Early, Medieval, and Reformation Eras. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2008.

Cross, F.L., and E.A. Livingstone, eds. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997. 

Dopp, Siegmar, and Wilhelm Geerlings, eds. Dictionary of Early Christian Literature. Trans. Matthew O'Connell. New York: Crossroad, 2000.

Drobner, Hubertus R. The Fathers of the Church: A Comprehensive Introduction. Trans. Siegrried S. Schatzmann. Peabody MA: Hendrickson, 2007.