Two Thousand Years of Catholic Writings

If you're looking for more up-to-date author and book links, this page from Dave Armstrong has many relevant links.

The Early Church (1-500)

Indexes

• Writings of Church Fathers/Doctors/Saints (at American University)
• Selected writings of the Apostolic Fathers (from UPenn Gopher)
• Documents from Early Church History (with brief descriptions; from ICLnet)
• Nicene Creed (various versions) (from NCSU)
• The Early Church Fathers (multi-volume set at CCEL)
• St. Pachomius Library (on the Orthodox Page)

Scripture (to c. 100)

The Didache (first or second century)

• The Didache, or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles (at american.edu)

Pope St. Clement of Rome (pope 92 - 101)

• First Epistle to the Corinthians (c. 96; at american.edu)

• Second Epistle (c. 150; at Penn)

St. Ignatius of Antioch (d. c. 107)

• Epistle to the Ephesians: at CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to the Magnesians: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to the Trallians: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to the Romans: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to the Philadelphians: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to the Smyrnaeans: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American
• Epistle to Polycarp: CCEL (short version), CCEL (long version), American, CCEL (Syriac version)
• Syriac Versions (at CCEL)

See this page at CCEL.

• Martyrdom (at CCEL)
• From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

St. Barnabas (letter c. 130)

• Epistle of Barnabas (c. 130; at American University)

St. Polycarp (c. 69 - c. 155)

• Epistle of Polycarp (c. 130)

• The Martyrdom of Polycarp (2nd century)

Papias (c. 70 - c. 150)

• Fragments (at CCEL)

St. Justin Martyr (c. 100 - c. 165)

• First Apology (at CCEL)
• Second Apology (at CCEL)
• Dialogue with Trypho, A Jew (at CCEL)

• Discourse to the Greeks (at CCEL)
• Hortatory Address to the Greeks (at CCEL)
• On the Sole Government of God (at CCEL)
• On the Resurrection: Fragments (at CCEL)
• Other Fragments (at CCEL)

• Martyrdom (at CCEL)
• From the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913

Hermas (2nd century)

• The Shepherd of Hermas: American, EWTN

Mathetes (2nd century)

• Epistle to Diognetus (c. 160; at CCEL)

Tatian the Syrian (2nd century)

• Address to the Greeks, and Fragments (at EWTN)

Athenagoras of Athens (late 2nd century)

• A Plea for the Christians (c. 177; at ETWN)
• On the Resurrection of the Dead (c. 177; at ETWN)

St. Irenaeus (late 2nd century)

• Against Heresies (at CCEL)
• Fragments (at CCEL)

• From the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913

Theophilus of Antioch (late 2nd century)

• To Autolycus (c. 180; at ETWN)

St. Perpetua (d. 203)

• The Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity (at Fordham)

Clement of Alexandria (c. 150 - c. 215)

• Exhortation to the Greeks (Protrepticus) (at EWTN)
• The Tutor (Paedagogus) (at EWTN)
• The Miscellanies (Stromata): I-II, III-V, VI-VIII (at EWTN)
• Fragments (at EWTN)
• Who is the Rich Man That Shall Be Saved? (at EWTN)

Tertullian (c. 155 - c. 220)

• Biographical page and writings at American University.
• More writings from "The Ante-Nicene Church Fathers" at CCEL

Minucius Felix (contemporary of Tertullian)

• Octavius (at CCEL)

Hippolytus of Rome (c. 170 - c. 236)

• The Refutation of All Heresies (at New Advent)
• The Extant Works and Fragments of Hippolytus: Exegetical (at New Advent)
• The Extant Works and Fragments of Hippolytus: Dogmatic and Historical (at CCEL)

Origen (184 - 254)

• De Principiis (at CCEL)
• A Letter to Africanus, on the History of Susanna (at CCEL)
• A Letter to Gregory (at CCEL)
• Against Celsus (at CCEL)

Pope St. Anterus (pope 235 - 236)

• Epistle on the Translation of Bishops and Episcopal Seats (at New Advent)

Pope St. Fabian (pope 236 - 250)

• Decrees (at New Advent)
• First Epistle (at New Advent)
• Second Epistle (at New Advent)
• Third Epistle (at New Advent)

St. Cyprian (c. 200 - 258)

Commodianus (fl. c. 240)

• The Instructions of Commodianus in Favour of Christian Discipline. Against the Gods of the Heathens (c. 240; at CCEL)

St. Athanasius (c. 295 - 373)

• On the Incarnation (c. 318; at CCEL)

St. Cyril of Jerusalem (c. 315 - c. 386)

• The Procatechesis or Prologue to the Catechetical Lectures (at ocf.org)
• First Catechetical Lecture (at ocf.org)
• Second Catechetical Lecture (at ocf.org)

St. Gregory of Nyssa (c. 335 - c. 394)

St. John Chrysostom (c. 346 - 407)

• Homilies on the Gospel of St. Matthew (at CCEL)
• Homilies on Acts and Romans (at CCEL)
• Homilies on Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colessians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, and Philemon (at CCEL)
• Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and Hebrews (at CCEL)

St. Jerome (c. 347 - 420)

• Vulgate Bible (at OBI Gopher)
• Letters and Selected Works (at CCEL)

St. Augustine of Hippo (354 - 430)

• Against the Epistle of Manichaeus Called Fundamental (from CCEL)
• Answer to the Letters of Petilian, the Donatist (from CCEL)
• Concerning the Nature of Good, Against the Manichaean (from CCEL)
• Confessions (at CCEL)
• De Dialectica (HTML at Penn)
• Enchiridion (Handbook on Faith, Hope, and Love) (HTML at CCEL)
• Letters (HTML at CCEL)
• On Baptism, Against the Donatists (from CCEL)
• On Christian Doctrine (from CCEL)
• Of the Morals of the Catholic Church (from CCEL)
• On The Morals of the Manichaeans (from CCEL)
• Reply to Faustus the Manichaean (from CCEL)
• A Treatise Concerning the Correction of the Donatists (from CCEL)
• Two Souls, Against the Manichaeans (391; from CCEL)

St. John Cassian (c. 360 - 435)

• The Conferences (at osb.org)
• The Institutes (at osb.org)

St. Patrick (c. 389 - 461)

• Confession of St. Patrick (from CCEL)

• Hymn on St. Patrick by Secundinus (in Ireland)

Pope St. Leo I ("the Great") (pope 440 - 461)

• Sermons (at New Advent)
• Letters (at New Advent)

Later Writings

St. Benedict (480 - 547)

• Rule of St. Benedict (at osb.org)

Cassiodorus (c. 490 - c. 585)

• Excerpts from Institutes (at Fordham)

Pope St. Gregory I ("the Great") (c. 540 - 604, became pope 590)

• Pastoral Rule (at New Advent)
• Register of Letters (at New Advent)
• Epistles (at New Advent)

Wulfstan II, Archbishop of York (d. 1023)

• Sermo Lupi ad Anglos (Sermon of the Wolf) (at fsu.edu)

St. Anselm of Canterbury (1033 - 1109)

• Basic Writings: Proslogium; Monologium; Gaunilon's on Behalf of the Fool; Cur Deus Homo (at CCEL)

St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 - 1153)

• On Loving God (HTML at CCEL)

St. Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225 - 1274)

• Of God and His Creatures (abridged translation of Summa Contra Gentiles)
• On Being and Essence (HTML at Fordham)
• On the Eternity of the World (HTML at Fordham)
• On the Principles of Nature (HTML at Toronto)
• Summa Theologica (HTML at knight.org)
  • See also A Companion to the Summa by Walter Farrell, OP

• Thomas Institute (in the Netherlands)
• The Aristotle archive at Notre Dame has a number of articles and books on Thomas Aquinas and Thomism.

Pope Boniface VIII (c. 1235 - 1303, became pope 1294)

John Tauler (c. 1300 - 1361)

• The Inner Way (at CCEL)

Blessed Henry Suso (c. 1300 - 1366)

• A Little Book of Eternal Wisdom (at CCEL)

Julian of Norwich (1343 - 1443)

• Revelations of Divine Love (1371; HTML at CCEL)

St. Catherine of Siena (1347 - 1380)

• The Dialogue of the Seraphic Virgin (HTML at CCEL)

Thomas à Kempis (c. 1380 - 1471)

• The Imitation of Christ (1418; HTML at CCEL)

Nicholas of Cusa (1401 - 1464)

• "Where is He That is Born King of the Jews?" (1456; tr. by L. Miller; HTML at SUNY Stony Brook)

St. Catherine of Genoa (1447 - 1510)

• Life and Doctrine of Saint Catherine of Genoa (HTML at CCEL)

Desiderius Erasmus (c. 1466 - 1536)

Pope Paul III (1468 - 1549, became pope 1534)

St. Ignatius of Loyola (1491 - 1556)

• Spiritual Exercises (HTML at CCEL)

St. Teresa of Avila (1515 - 1582)

• The Interior Castle (HTML at CCEL)
• The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus (HTML at CCEL)
• The Way of Perfection (HTML at CCEL)

• Lectio Divinia and the Practice of Teresian Prayer (in Austria)

St. John of the Cross (1542 - 1591)

• Ascent of Mount Carmel (HTML at CCEL)
• Dark Night of the Soul
  • Translated by E. Allison Peers (HTML at CCEL)
  • Translated by Kieran Kavanaugh, OCD and Otilio Rodriguez, OCD (HTML in Austria)
• The Living Flame of Love (HTML in Austria)
• Sayings of Light and Love (HTML in Austria)
• A Spiritual Canticle of the Soul and the Bridegroom Christ (HTML at CCEL)

St. Robert Bellarmine (1542 - 1621)

• De Laicis (The Treatise on Civil Government) (HTML at iea.com)
• The Temporal Power of the Pontiff (HTML at iea.com)

Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection, aka Nicholas Herman (1661 - 1691)

• The Practice of the Presence of God

Pope Benedict XIV (1675 - 1758, became pope 1740)

St. Alphonsus de Liguori (1696 - 1787)

• Uniformity with God's Will (HTML at CCEL)

Pope Gregory XVI (1765 - 1846, became pope 1831)

Pope Pius IX (1792 - 1878, became pope 1846)

Venerable John Henry Cardinal Newman (1801 - 1890, received into Catholic Church 1845)

Pope Leo XIII (1810 - 1903, became pope 1878)

St. Pius X (1835 - 1914, became pope 1903)

Pope Benedict XV (1854 - 1922, became pope 1914)

Pope Pius XI (1857 - 1939, became pope 1922)

Hilaire Belloc (1870 - 1953)

• Survivals and New Arrivals (1929; at EWTN)
• The Great Heresies (1930; at EWTN)

Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson (1871 - 1914, received into Catholic Church 1903)

• Papers of a Pariah (1907)

G. K. Chesterton (1874 - 1936, received into Catholic Church 1922)

• Heretics (1905; Gutenberg text)
• Orthodoxy (1908; at CCEL)
• Additional writings (on various topics; courtesy On-Line Books Page)

Pope Pius XII (1876 - 1958, became pope 1939)

Blessed Titus Brandsma (1881 - 1942)

Pope John XXIII (1881 - 1963, became pope 1958)

Jacques Maritain (1882 - 1973)

• Reflections on America (1958)
• Transcriptions of Jacques Maritain Papers

• Jacques Maritain Center (at Notre Dame)

St. Teresa Benedicta (aka Edith Stein), OCD (1891 - 1942)

• The Hidden Life: Hagiographic Essays, Meditations, Spiritual Texts (in Austria)

Florent E. Franke (1895 - 1993)

• Hail, Mary! Six Thousand Titles and Praises of Our Lady (1983)

Pope Paul VI (1897 - 1978, became pope 1963)

Dorothy Day (1897 - 1980, received into Catholic Church 1927)

• Dorothy Day Library on the Web (at the Catholic Worker)

Walter Farrell, O.P. (1901 - 1953)

• A Companion to the Summa (1938-1942)

John Courtney Murray (1904 - 1967)

• Religious Liberty: Catholic Struggles With Pluralism (1993 collection)

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)

Thomas Merton (1915 - 1968)

• Two talks reprinted in the 1995 edition of Eberhard Arnold's Why We Live in Community:
  • Building Community on God's Love (1968)
  • Community, Politics, and Contemplation (1968)

Pope John Paul II (born 1920, became pope 1978)

Augustine Ichiro Okumura, OCD (born 1923)

• Awakening to Prayer (1994)

Thomas J. Reese, SJ (born 1945)

• Archbishop: Inside the Power Structure of the American Catholic Church (1989)
• Episcopal Conferences: Historical, Canonical, and Theological Studies (1989)

Terrye Newkirk (born 1946)

• The Mantle of Elijah : The Martyrs of Compiègne as Prophets of the Modern Age

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