Apostolic Fathers: An Essential Guide/The Apostolic Fathers and the New Testament, The

Trinity Journal, Fall 2007 by MaGee, Gregory S

Clayton N. Jefford. The Apostolic Fathers: An Essential Guide. Nashville: Abingdon, 2005.133 pp. $15.00.

Clayton N. Jefford. The Apostolic Fathers and the New Testament. Peabody: Hendrickson, 2006. xii 267 pp. $19.95.

Clayton N. Jefford adds to his growing contribution to the study of the Apostolic Fathers (AF) with two new works. An Essential Guide begins with two chapters of general introduction to the texts and their historical context. Chapter 3 covers the use of the OT and NT in the AF. The fourth chapter surveys theological contributions from the AF in the areas of God, church, future, unity, and salvation. In ch. 5, Jefford takes a closer look at ecclesiological emphases in the AF. Chapter 6 looks at the legacy of the AF in subsequent generations and is followed by a short concluding chapter. Throughout, Jefford recognizes within the AF a diversity of perspectives that together testify to a formative yet unsettled period in Christian thought.

In The Apostolic Fathers and the New Testament, the accent is placed on the AF texts, with the NT writings standing more in the background. Chapter 1 presents options for date and authorship of the various AF works. The second chapter examines some of the genres (letter, homdy, martyrology, apocalypse) and forms (saying parable, miracle story, creed, hymn/prayer) of the AF texts. In ch. 3 Jefford discusses how apocalyptic themes, vice and virtue lists, household codes, and "two ways" passages contribute to the shaping of Christian ethics. Chapter 4 looks at how different parts of the NT are reflected in the AF. Here Jefford identifies shared themes and trajectories of thought more than quotations and allusions to the NT in the AF. In chs. 5 and 6 Jefford delves into the broader questions of how early Christianity perceived its relationship to Judaism and the Roman world. Chapter 7 attempts to situate the AF texts within the geographical and historical development of the early Christian movement. The final chapter offers brief concluding remarks on the value of the AF to NT research.

In both books, Jefford eschews treating each AF text independently in favor of covering the texts multiple times from different angles. The benefits of this approach are that important overarching themes in early Christianity are highlighted and texts are understood in relation to one another. The weaknesses are that the same points surface repeatedly in different chapters and the overall flow of discourse in each individual text is never fully explored.

Jefford is appropriately cautious in taking firm positions on date, authorship, and geographic setting for the AF texts. His sensitivity to the geographical context of Christianity's expansion reflects strides made in early Christian studies in recent decades. Jefford traces the distinct contours of Christianity in places such as Alexandria, Palestine, Antioch, Asia Minor, Corinth, and Rome.

Some scholars will contest Jefford's historical assessment of certain NT texts. He holds a relatively low view of the historical reliability of John's Gospel and Acts, and he operates under the assumption that Colossians, Ephesians, 2 Thessalonians, and the Pastoral Epistles were written after Paul's lifetime. The resulting historical reconstruction of early Christianity inevitably shapes Jefford's interpretation of individual texts in the NT and AF.

By adopting a sociohistorical perspective, Jefford positions himself as an impartial observer of early Christianity. One significant drawback to this somewhat detached approach is that it risks trivializing the rich theology and practice of the early church. For example, Jefford attributes the incorporation of apocalyptic themes in Christian literature to the simple desire of motivating people to pursue ethical behavior.

Jefford's more recent work is the stronger of the two. An Essential Guide too often presents general ideas without specific citations from the AF or reference to secondary literature. The Apostolic Fathers and the New Testament, in contrast, is marked by consistent interaction with primary and secondary sources. The later work also has the advantage of greater space in which to develop its material. Although both books are designed for a reader interested in early Christianity in general or the AF corpus in particular, The Apostolic Fathers and the New Testament is more successful in helping readers engage substantially with these topics.

Gregory S. MaGee

Trinity Evangelical Divinity School