Gill on the Church Fathers

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JM

Puritan Board Doctor
"The school at Alexandria, from whence came several of the Christian doctors, as Panta-nus, Clemens, Origen, &c served very much to corrupt the simplicity of the gospel; for though mended the Platonic philosophy, it marred the Christian doctrine; and laid the foundation for Arianism and Pelagianism, which in after-times to greatly disturbed the church of God. As many of the fathers of the Christian church were originally Pagans, they were better skilled in demolishing Paganism, than in building up Christianity ; and indeed they set themselves more to destroy the one, than to illustrate and confirm the other: there was a purity in their lives, but a want of clearness, accuracy, and consistence in their doctrines : it would be endless to relate how much the Christian doctrine was obscured by the heretics that rose up in the latter part of the first century, and in the second, as well as after by Sabed lians, Photinians, Samosatenians, Arians, Eutychians, Nestorians, Macedonians, Pelagians, &c. though God was pleased to raise up instruments to stop their progress, and preserve the truth, and sometimes very eminent ones; as Athanasius against the Arians, and Austin against the Pelagians. The gospel in its simplicity, through the power of divine grace attending it, made its way into the gentile world, in these first centuries, with great success; and paganism decreased before it; and which in the times of Constantine received a fatal blow in the Roman Empire; and yet by degrees pagan rites and ceremonies were introduced into the Christian church ; and what with them, and error in doctrine, and other things concurring, made way for the man of sin to appear; and that mystery of iniquity, which had been secretly working from the times of the apostles, to shew its head openly; and brought in the darkness of popery upon almost all that bore the Christian name."

from the Introduction of A Complete Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity
 
"The school at Alexandria, from whence came several of the Christian doctors, as Panta-nus, Clemens, Origen, &c served very much to corrupt the simplicity of the gospel; for though mended the Platonic philosophy, it marred the Christian doctrine; and laid the foundation for Arianism and Pelagianism, which in after-times to greatly disturbed the church of God. As many of the fathers of the Christian church were originally Pagans, they were better skilled in demolishing Paganism, than in building up Christianity ; and indeed they set themselves more to destroy the one, than to illustrate and confirm the other: there was a purity in their lives, but a want of clearness, accuracy, and consistence in their doctrines : it would be endless to relate how much the Christian doctrine was obscured by the heretics that rose up in the latter part of the first century, and in the second, as well as after by Sabed lians, Photinians, Samosatenians, Arians, Eutychians, Nestorians, Macedonians, Pelagians, &c. though God was pleased to raise up instruments to stop their progress, and preserve the truth, and sometimes very eminent ones; as Athanasius against the Arians, and Austin against the Pelagians. The gospel in its simplicity, through the power of divine grace attending it, made its way into the gentile world, in these first centuries, with great success; and paganism decreased before it; and which in the times of Constantine received a fatal blow in the Roman Empire; and yet by degrees pagan rites and ceremonies were introduced into the Christian church ; and what with them, and error in doctrine, and other things concurring, made way for the man of sin to appear; and that mystery of iniquity, which had been secretly working from the times of the apostles, to shew its head openly; and brought in the darkness of popery upon almost all that bore the Christian name."

from the Introduction of A Complete Body of Doctrinal and Practical Divinity

It's a bit more complex than that. I don't think you can make a hard break between Origen and Athanasius, except on the eternality of God as Creator. Athanasius held to Platonic aspects as well. And while the school at Alexandria was very syngeristic, there is no historical evidence that they had any real contact with Pelagius and Co.

And if the church fathers brought popery on the lands, it raises the question why they didn't bring popery upon the Byzantine Empire.
 
It's a bit more complex than that. I don't think you can make a hard break between Origen and Athanasius, except on the eternality of God as Creator. Athanasius held to Platonic aspects as well. And while the school at Alexandria was very syngeristic, there is no historical evidence that they had any real contact with Pelagius and Co.

And if the church fathers brought popery on the lands, it raises the question why they didn't bring popery upon the Byzantine Empire.
It always is Bayou, it always is...
 
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