Bücher veröffentlicht von Dalcassian Publishing Company

Æthelwold of Winchester is among the most famous Anglo-Saxon saints. During his lifetime he was the Bishop of Winchester and stood as one of the leaders of the tenth-century monastic reform movement with the English church, along with his peers, St. Dunstan and St. Oswald of Worcester. He remains as one of the major figure of the Anglo-Catholic Church and Church of England. St. Aethelwold also stands as one of the primary catalyst for the revival of the English intellectual tradition, which had been in a state of perennial disrepair during the chaos of the Viking era, but was fully restored under royal patronage through the assistance of St. Aethelwold.

The Council of Shahapivan is the first surviving council of the Armenian Church, and has survived in various ecclesiastical sources. Convened in the year 444, after three consecutive councils in the city of Ashtishat, the Armenian clergy under Catholicos Hovsep I met in the township of Shahapivan (province of Ayrarat). Among those present was the governor, Vasak Siuni, and General Commander of the Army, Vartan Mamikonian. The purpose of the council was audit the functions of the clergy, and prohibit activities endangering the authority and integrity of the newly-established church.

This sixth ecumenical gathering of the Persian church at the Sassanian capital of Seleucia-Ctesiphon was related directly to the question of the authority of the Catholicos over other bishops in the Persian church, the acceptance of the Councils of Nicaea I, and Constantinople I, and the security of the bishops from illegitimate entanglements in the Persian state and pagan practices. While long forgotten by western scholars, it represents the first effort of the Church of the East to address Christological concerns raised during Roman councils in the empire.

The Council of Florence, held in 1437-1441, sought to heal the East-West schism that was present in the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Papal political leverage afforded Eugenius IV the opportunity offer military aide to the deteriorating Roman Empire in exchange for ecclesiastical submission to the authority of Rome. The Emperor John VIII, and his delegates agreed, and a union was declared. Similarly, the heads of the Coptic, Ethiopian, and Armenian churches, also sent delegates to this convocation, perhaps the last council to truly call itself "ecumenical". In accord, they also signed bulls of Union with Rome, some of which remain in effect, some of which have been nullified in the subsequent centuries.

Bessarion (sometimes with the prenomen John of Basil), the famous Greek Orthodox bishop who involved himself in ecumenical dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church composed this work of apologetics, following the failed union of churches at the Council of Florence. He attempts to report on and display the common doctrinal ground that is at the root of East-West Christian dialogue to his fellow Greek bishops, many of whom were living in exile, or under Turkish domination. His primary opponent in this text is the Byzantine scholar Gregory Palamas, who firmly denied the validity of the Latin filoque.

This work, by the Carthaginian bishop, Capreolus, dictates some of the concerns and trepidations that the church in North Africa had during the time of the Ecumenical council at Ephesus. Since the African church's luminary, St. Augustine of Hippo (d. 430), had passed a few years prior, there is a gap in the historic record of how the African bishops perceived Imperial ordinances and the political fiasco that was the tenure of Nestorius as patriarch of Constantinople.

The Apophthegmata (a collection of sayings) is a work long attributed to the Egyptian desert father, St. Macarius the Great, although it is almost certainly composed by one of his monastic disciples at Scetis. It contains 41 short saying, composed in remembrance of the old abbot. Most of these saying are imploring his listeners on the necessity of humility and the observance of virtue in daily life. Some autobiographical material is included in this work as well, giving some context into the origin and early life of St. Macarius. This work is derived from the surviving Latin text, which is included, as well as the English translation of this work.

This a collection of the councils of the Frankish & Visigothic realms that have surviving documents relating to their canons. This includes: 5th Council of Orleans (549 AD), Council of Auch (551 AD), 5th Council of Arles (554 AD), 3rd Council of Paris (557 AD), 1st Council of Braga (561 AD), 2nd Council of Lyon (567 AD), Council of Tours (567 AD), 3rd Council of Braga (572 AD), 1st Council of Mâcon (583 AD), 3rd Council of Lyon (583 AD), 2nd Council of Mâcon (585 AD), 1st Council of Auxerre (585 AD), 3rd Council of Toledo (589 AD), 1st Council of Narbonne (589 AD), 2nd Council of Caesaraugusta (592 AD), Council of Barcelona (599 AD), and Council of Tarragona (615 AD).

Refutations is the magnum opus of the Armenian bishop, Eznik of Kolb. In his work he lays out his argument regarding the nature and the presence of evil in the world, in contrast to the moral postulate of the Latin clergyman St. Augustine of Hippo. Eznik also refuses the Persian state religion, with a special emphasis on the issue of Zurvanism. This carries over as well on the argument levied against all dualistic thought, and against the Marcionist heresy in particular.

This work, by the 5th century Syriac father St. Jacob of Serug, expands on the tradition that St. Thomas the Apostle built a palace in India for king Gondophares. This tradition is found elsewhere, in texts like the Acts of Thomas, as well as in the Ramban Pattu, which all account part of this legend. This texts by St. Jacob appears to be independent of the two aforementioned traditions, as it disagrees with some of the details of their account. This text is available for the first time in the English language, being originally composed in the Classical Syriac tongue.

Isaiah, the 5th century desert father, grants his insight into the operations of his monastery, granting a brief list of rules and directives for the future upkeep of monastic discipline in this document. It is his only surviving work, and is preserved here in both the original Latin text, as well as in a contemporary English translation.

The Holy Roman Emperor, Lothair I, composed two letters to Pope Nicolaus I, and his successor, Pope Adrian II, regarding the nature of his rule over the Frankish realm, and the relationship that his administration would have with the Papal Curia. There is some debate regarding the nature of episcopal appointments in these letters, an issue which would be a continual point of conflict until the last days of the empire.

St. Orsisius, successor to St. Pachomius, on the island monastery of Tabenna, elected to offer some of his own advise for the Christian life and the workings of the monastic community. His wisdom is collected here in this extended volume relating to maintaining monastic discipline. However, unlike the more common set of orders and rules that are set forth by monastic leaders, this work is not one of strict legal codes. St. Orsisius offers advise to his successors on the pure practical and interpersonal relationships that need to be fostered within the common. He does this by offering the importance of Christian charity, and remembering the salience of apostolic teaching.

St. Didymas the Blind is one of the most famous Coptic theologians of the early Church, while he is famously regarded as a student of Origen, his own work remains within the orthodox realm. Regrettably, many of his works have been lost to time, as they were not copied for future generations of student. His friend, St. Jerome, was able to make a Latin translation of this work from its original Greek. His work emphasizes the presence of personhood of the Holy Ghost in the Christian Trinity, looking to clarify the orthodox position in the face of perennial confusion that existed amongst his peers and the laity.

The apostle Bartholomew is long remembered for the gruesome nature of his martyrdom. It is an image popularized by Renaissance art, and famed for its brutality. However, the legends that surrounds the life, ministry, and death of this apostle are varied. All accounts name Armenia as the region of his death, and as the founder of the church in that nation. Yet, there is still considerable mystery to his activity. This text contains three different account regarding his life, all from different time periods and cultures. The Greek account grants few details, and was likely composed in North Mesopotamia by a Nestorian author in the 6th century. The Arabic account if likely from the 7th or 8th century and is also terse. The Armenian account is the version that is by far the most complete and detailed. It is here published in its unabridged form in English for the first time.

Theophastus is a Socratic dialogue about the nature, constitution, and procession of the human soul. It is framed as taking place between three men, discussing questions that were common to the school of late Neoplatonism. Aeneas of Gaza offers this conversation as being informed by his own orthodox Christian faith, and includes the importance in revelatory knowledge, in additional to the classical position of Greek logic. He is one of the earliest writers to incorporate both of these traditions and foreshadows the medieval scholastic movement by some six centuries.

This extended work is intended to address the claims made by Theodore, the bishop of Mopsuestia, who allegedly was the counselor and defender of Nestorius, Archbishop of Constantinople. St. Cyril, along with many other of the church fathers, claim that the Nestorian heresy originates with Theodore and his claims about the divinity of Christ, and by extension, his mother the Theotokos. Theodore, during his lifetime, was regarded as an orthodox Christian churchman, who guarded against the Arianist camp, but was later condemned formally four years later at the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus. This work by St. Cyril is likely dated to that period between his death and the assembly of the council in Anatolia.

The letters of Nestorius are a brief collection of writings, given from the pen of the famous heresiarch, about his controversial Christological position. His efforts would come to a head in 431-433, with his removal from the patriarchy of Constantinople and his expulsion to Egypt. These letters are a rare glimpse into his mind when he was attempting to clarity the position that would eventually be deemed heretical by the Council of Ephesus.

The Armenian text of Geography according to Ptolemy, which has recently been attributed to the churchman, Ananias of Shirak, is a sentinel work from Armenian antiquity. It remains out primary authority on both the Armenian geo-political worldview, and also the historical geography of the middle-east in general. The Greek sources which Ananias is claiming to draw from, Pappus of Alexandria, and Ptolemy himself, are clearly augmented from his own, now lost, native Armenian sources. He also appear to have Persian sources readily available to him, from the libraries of the Sassanian Empire.

St. Isaac of Nineveh, in this very brief volume, discusses four separate subjects. This compilation of his works includes: The Essential Property of Virtues, The Different Stages of Knowledge and Faith, Hymn of the Monks during Night Vigils, and Thoughts. These four works explore the moral and interpersonal message of the Christian Gospel and how they relate to the life of faith.

The Life of Saint Mary the Harlot is later attributed to St. Ephrem the Syrian, deacon of the church in Edessa and was likely written towards the end of his life, though there have been claims against Ephrem's authorship. The text itself appears to have originally been composed in Syriac, and would circulate through Christendom under its Latin and Greek translation. It contains sixteen chapters about the life of the Syriac orphan, Mary and her uncle Abraham. The text concludes with a prayer, as it surviving in Latin, allegedly composed by St. Ephrem.

Attached is the surviving correspondence of St. Paulinus II, Patriarch of Aquileia, and a significant member of the Carolingian court of the Emperor Charlemagne. His letters records the Frankish church's political alliance with Leo III and all future popes of Rome. He also encourages the king to observe the necessary noblesse oblige when it comes to the ongoing welfare of his subjects, the church, as well as the realm in general.

The Virtuous Life is a set of directive put forward by St. Isaac about how the Christian might be able to observe virtue on a regular basis. This is broken down into six books detailing how to avoid the near occasion of sin and observe strength against the power of human temptation. St. Isaac discusses this in terms of being cognizant of your own thoughts and attempting to developing an advanced sense of an observing ego.

This is a collection of one hundred points of advise that was given by the 5th century Greek church father St. John of Karpathos to a collection of monks in the east. It is unclear if this is in fact 'India' in the proper modern sense, or just within the Persian Empire. However, St. John appears to be interested in offering them direction to controlling their desires, observing Christian virtue, and holding some community discipline for the various monks submitting to the abbot.

This fifth council at the Persian city of Seleucia was completed to end the internal split in the church by its two previous Catholicos. Additional, Mar Aba and his collection of bishops are interested in ending the anarchy that was associated with the previous decade of ecclesiastical anarchy caused by the Persian schism. Under the direction of the Persian Shah Khosraw, the council declared the total authority of the Catholicos over all domains within the Persian state and beyond its political frontiers. Curiously, there is no mentioned to any Christological concerns which were a major feature of most councils of the Roman State.

This is a relatively late account by the Syriac Patriarch of Antioch regarding the state of the church in Georgia. Its historic value for that reason is limited, as it does not grant much information about the antiquity of the ancient church in Iberia. However, it does serve as a reasonable travel log for the state of Christians in Ottoman Iberia during the 17th century. Our author appears to be concerned about the state of the church given the persecution that was levied upon it by Turkish authorities, and recounts that he feels additional attention needs to be paid for its future restoration.

St. Evargius Ponticus clarifies the utility of Christian prayer in one hundred and fifty-three points in this short document. Unlike many of his contemporary peers, his audience appears to be both for lay readers and for monastics as well. He structures his argument around the proposition that prayer is a necessary function of daily life, and granting it structure and discipline can only help the faithful in their attempt to approach the Lord.

Goscelin of Saint-Bertin composed this biography of St. Augustine in the 11th century, drawing upon older Anglo-Saxon source of the famous churchman's life. It is the magnum opus a life of Goscelin, and recounts the life and ecclesiastical career of the founder of the Anglo-Saxon church. Much of its content has been cited throughout the centuries as a primary source of St. Augustine's life and theological legacy.

Radegund was a Thuringian princess and Frankish queen of the Merovingian dynasty. She is also remembered as an early Frankish saint of the Catholic Church. Among other accomplishments, she founded the major Abbey of the Holy Cross at Poitiers and Jesus College of Cambridge University. Her biography is told her by the Latin poet St. Venantius Fortunatus, then a hymnographer at the court of the Frankish kings.