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This is not really an Orthodox concept.
[[Image:Church Fathers 1076.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Church Fathers, a miniature from Svyatoslav's Miscellany (1076 - anonymous author)]]{{Spirituality}}
The '''Church Fathers''' or '''Fathers of the Church''' are influential [[theologian]]s and writers in the Church, particularly those of the first five centuries of Christian history. The term specifically refers to writers and teachers of the Church, not [[saint]]s in general; usually it is not meant to include the [[New Testament]] authors.
Though the [[Roman Catholic Church]] regards the 8th century St. [[John of Damascus]] to be the last of the Church Fathers, the [[Orthodox Church]] does not consider the age of Church Fathers to be over at all and it includes later influential writers in the term.
==Further reading==
*[http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/christian-history.html Apostolic Fathers] at [http://www.iclnet.org Internet Christian Library]
*[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/ Early Christian writings] at [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/ earlychristianwritings.com]
*[http://www2.evansville.edu/ecoleweb/documents.html Early Church Documents] compiled by the [http://www2.evansville.edu/ecoleweb/ The Ecole Initiative]
*[http://bible.crosswalk.com/History/AD/EarlyChurchFathers/ Early Church Fathers] at [http://www.crosswalk.com/ crosswalk.com]
[[Category:Church Fathers]]
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[[ro:Sfinţii Părinţi]]