Apostolic Fathers

The term Apostolic Fathers refers both to a group of early Christian writers (the first among the Church Fathers) and to a particular collection of their writings.

The most common lists of these writings usually include most or all of the following:

• The Epistle to Diognetus
• The First Epistle of Clement
• The Second Epistle of Clement
• The Didache
• The Epistle of Barnabas
• Seven short Epistles of Ignatius of Antioch (the longer forms of these Epistles, and those beyond the seven, are widely considered later emendations and forgeries)
• The Epistle of Polycarp
• The Martyrdom of Polycarp
• The Shepherd of Hermas