25 writings: Recommended resources

 Books

Irenaeus, Against Heresies (c. 175–185) [#21] Henry Chadwick, The Early Church (1993), also helpful for writers up through Cyril; CH 80


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 • Apostolic Tradition (c. 200?) On the Apostolic Tradition, ed. Alistair Stewart-Sykes (2015); Apostolic Tradition website (Hotlinks to all websites appear in the online version of this issue.)

 • Athanasius, On the Incarnation (c. 319) [#9]; Life of Antony (c. 356–362); Peter Leithart, Athanasius (2011); CH 64, 80; C. S. Lewis introduction to On the Incarnation reprinted online

The Nicene Creed (325, revised 381) [#7] Mark Noll, Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity (3rd ed., 2012), which is also excellent on Benedict, Luther, and Wesley; CH 51, 85

The Apostles’ Creed (390 or earlier) [#26] Alister McGrath, I Believe: Exploring the Apostles’ Creed (1998)

Augustine, Confessions (c. 398) [#1]; City of God (413–426) [#4]; On Christian Teaching (397, 426) [#18]; On the Trinity (c. 400–428) [#19] Peter Brown, Augustine of Hippo (1969); CH 12, 67; Augustine of Hippo website 

Cyril, On the Unity of Christ (440) On the Unity of Christ, ed. John Anthony McGuckin (2015)

Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy (524–525) John Marenbon, Boethius (2003)

Benedict, Rule (c. 540s) [#11] Esther de Waal, with introduction by Kathleen Norris, Seeking God (2001); CH 93; Order of St. Benedict website

Pope Gregory I (Gregory the Great), Pastoral Rule (c. 591) [#24] R. A. Markus, Gregory the Great and His World (1997)

Anselm, Why God Became Man (c. 1095–1098) [#17] R. W. Southern, Saint Anselm: A Portrait in a Landscape (1992)

Bernard of Clairvaux, Sermons on the Song of Songs (begun 1136) G. R. Evans, Bernard of Clairvaux (2000); CH 24

Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae (1265–1274) [#2] Michael Dauphinais and Matthew Levering, Knowing the Love of Christ: An Introduction to the Theology of St. Thomas Aquinas (2002); CH 73; Thomistica website

Dante Alighieri, Divine Comedy (c. 1308–1320) [#16] Rod Dreher, How Dante Can Save Your Life: The Life-Changing Wisdom of History’s Greatest Poem (2015); CH 70

Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love (1395) Grace Jantzen, Julian of Norwich: Mystic and Theologian (2nd ed., 2000) 

Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ (c. 1418–1427) [#10] Paul Chilcote, The Imitation of Christ: Selections Annotated and Explained (2012)

Martin Luther, 95 Theses (1517) [#5]; Freedom of a Christian (1520) [#14]; Lectures on Romans (c. 1515–16) [#25] Roland Bainton, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther (1950); CH 34, 39, 115

John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (1559) [#3] Bernard Cottret, Calvin: A Biography (2000); CH 12; The Meeter Center for Calvin Studies website

Book of Common Prayer (1549) [#12] The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer (2006); CH 48; The Book of Common Prayer website 

John Foxe, Actes and Monuments (Foxe’s Book of Martyrs) (1563) J. F. Mozley, John Foxe and His Book (1940); The Acts and Monuments Online website 

Teresa of Ávila, The Interior Castle (1577) Cathleen Medwick, Teresa of Ávila: The Progress of a Soul (1999)

John of the Cross, Dark Night of the Soul (c. 1578) Richard Hardy, John of the Cross: Man and Mystic (2004)

Westminster Confession (1646) [#20] Chad Van Dixhoorn, Confessing the Faith: A Readers’ Guide to the Westminster Confession of Faith (2014)

John Bunyan, Pilgrim’s Progress (1678) [#6] Cambridge Companion to Bunyan, ed. Anne Dunan-Page (2010); CH 11; John Bunyan Society website

Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections (1746) [#23] George Marsden, Jonathan Edwards: A Life (2004); CH 8, 77; Jonathan Edwards Center website

John Wesley, A Plain Account of Christian Perfection (1777) [#22] Richard Heitzenrater, Wesley and the People Called Methodists (2013, 2nd ed.); CH 2, 69; Center for Studies in the Wesleyan Tradition website

Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) Joan Hedrick, Harriet Beecher Stowe: A Life (1994);

CH 33; Harriet Beecher Stowe Center website

Thérèse of Lisieux, The Story of a Soul (1898) Guy Gaucher, The Story of a Life: St. Thérèse of Lisieux (1993); Society of the Little Flower website

Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics (1932–1967) [#15] Eberhard Busch, Karl Barth: His Life from Letters and Autobiographical Texts (English translation 1976); CH 65; Karl Barth Foundation website

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (1937) [#13] Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy (2011); CH 32

Thomas Merton, The Seven Storey Mountain (1948) Michael Mott, The Seven Mountains of Thomas Merton (1984); Thomas Merton Center website

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (1952) [#8] Justin Phillips, C. S. Lewis in a Time of War: The World War II Broadcasts that Riveted a Nation and Became the Classic Mere Christianity (2002); CH 7, 65, 88, 113; Wade Center website

Catherine Marshall, Beyond Ourselves (1961) The Best of Catherine Marshall, ed. Leonard LeSourd (1993)

Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail (1963) Stephen Oates, Let the Trumpet Sound:

The Life of Martin Luther King, Jr. (1982); CH 65; King Center website


Vision Video has DVDs about

• The Apostles’ Creed (The Apostles’ Creed)

• Augustine (A Voice for All Generations; Restless Heart)

• Luther (Martin Luther, Here I Stand; Luther: His Life, His Path, His Legacy; This Changed Everything [releasing in late 2016])

• Calvin (Zwingli and Calvin; Johannes Calvin)

• Bunyan (Journey of a Pilgrim; Dangerous Journey; Pilgrim’s Progress [live-action and animated versions])

• Edwards (Great Awakening)

• Wesley (A Heart Transformed Can Change the World; Encounters with John Wesley)

• Stowe (Josiah Henson: The Real Uncle Tom)

• Thérèse of Lisieux (Thérèse)

• Bonhoeffer (Memories and Perspectives; Hanged on a Twisted Cross; Agent of Grace)

• Lewis (C. S. Lewis Through the Shadowlands; Affectionately Yours—Screwtape; The Shortest Way Home; Through a Lens Darkly; Life of C. S. Lewis)

• Marshall (Christy; A Man Called Peter)

Also, the Pioneers of the Spirit series discusses Augustine, Dante, Julian, and Teresa of Ávila; People of Faith treats Edwards, Stowe, and King; and the Torchlighters series for kids dramatizes the lives of Augustine, Luther (coming in 2016), Bunyan, and Wesley. C H


This article is from Christian History magazine #116 Twenty-Five Writings that Changed the Church and the World. Read it in context here!

By the editors

[Christian History originally published this article in Christian History Issue #116 in 2015]

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