Abstract:
One day a pious Christian woman approached Augustine after he
had been preaching to his flock in Hippo. She bore a dead child in
her arms. "Baptize him," she said, "so that he will have new life."
How, indeed, did Christian men and women in the first seven
centuries of the church understand the faith? How was the faith
taught and held in the minds of the people? The above incident
illustrates the tremendous task the church faced in passing on the
true faith. How, must Augustine have groaned, not to kill the
spirit of faith in this woman, and yet to guide her in correct
belief? This seminar is an introduction to a vast body of literature
of which few students of Church History are aware. It consists of
explanations or interpretations of the creed for the people. The
texts take us to the heart of the church's mission to teach the
faith and to interprete it for its time and its place.
