PLAY (Right-click to Download)St. Ignatius was Patriarch of Antioch at the beginning of the second century. He wrote a number of letters concerning the Church and its struggle with Gnosticism while on his journey through Western Asia Minor on his way to martyrdom in about 117AD.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) St. Justin the Philosopher (130-165AD) was a Samaritan follower of Plato's philosophy who converted to Christianity in the early second century and became a Christian Philosopher in Rome. While many of his works are lost, his two surviving Apologies or defenses of Christianity show both what many educated Romans came to admire in Christianity and the early Christian outlook on the paganism and philosophy of the Roman world. Justin's work also includes descriptions of early Christian worship in the period following the Apostles.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) St. Irenaeus (130-202AD) was a disciple of Polycarp in Smyrna, the disciple of the Apostle John. In his struggles with Gnosticism as bishop of Lyons in Gaul, Irenaeus defined the Church by its unity, universality, and continuation of the Apostolic Faith in its scriptures, creed, and preaching

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Clement of Alexandria (150-215AD) was a philosopher who converted to Christianity and ran a school for converts in Alexandria, Egypt. He wrote an extensive handbook on Christian life as well as works on the Christian view of Paganism and philosophy.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Tertullian of Carthage (160-220AD) was a second century Roman lawyer who converted to Christianity in North Africa . Tertullian wrote extensively about Christian life and faith. He later left the Church to join the rigorist Montanists, and his writings reflect his transition from Orthodoxy to sectarianism.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Origen of Alexandria (185-254AD) was a zealous and well educated Christian youth who became an instructor of Christian converts during the persecution that killed his father. He was a leading Biblical scholar and Spiritual writer. Unfortunately, while attempting to refute Gnosticsm, his theology was influenced by the Gnostic presupposition that the world was evil.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Cyprian of Carthage 200-258 AD Bishop of Carthage during the Decian Persecution. Participated in penance and rebaptism controversies.
PLAY (Right-click to Download) Diocletian's Persecution 303-313 AD was a severe and lengthy persecution of Christianity in the Roman Empire ending with the conversion of the Emperor Constantine.
PLAY (Right-click to Download) Donatism 313AD -> was the controversy between rival hierarchies in North Africa based on the question of whether personal sins invalidate sacraments.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Monasticism in the 4th-5th Centuries surveys monastic literature, types of monasticism, struggle with Gnosticism, conflict between Theophilus and Evagrian’ Origenism, Gregory of Nyssa.


The Definition of Trinitarian and Christological Doctrine

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 1st Ecumenical Council-Nicea 325 AD and the struggle with Arianism, Athanasius, and the controversy over the term “homoousios”.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 2nd Ecumenical Council-Constantinople 381 AD St. Basil the Great and the doctrine of three hypostases in the Trinity.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 3rd Ecumenical Council-431 AD Conflict between Nestorius and Cyril of Alexandria over the term “Theotokos” and the question of who was born of Mary.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 4th Ecumenical Council-450 AD Condemnation of Eutychianism. 2 natures doctrine of Leo’s Tome. Monophysite schism.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 5th Ecumenical Council-553 AD and the Emperor Justinian Completion of integration of Chalcedon and Cyril of Alexandria’s theology.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) 6th Ecumenical Council-681 AD reaffirms two natural energies and two natural wills of Christ taught by Pope Leo and Maximus the Confessor against the Emperor Heraclius’ Church reunion efforts using Monoenergism and Monothelatism.

Western divergence from the Orthodox Tradition

PLAY (Right-click to Download) St. Augustine of Hippo 385-430 AD Educated convert from Manicheeism who became the founder of a distinct Western theology. Philosophical doctrine of Trinity leading to Filioque, Doctrine of original sin and Pelagian controversy leading to Predestinationism and displacement of ascetic theology.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) The Origins of the Celtic Church 1 of 2, The Churches in Scotland and Ireland arose during the fifth and sixth century flowering of monasticism and produced many important Orthodox monastic saints.
PLAY (Right-click to Download) The Origins of the Celtic Church 2 of 2

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Iconoclasm and 7th Ecumenical Council 787 AD 1 of 2 The doctrine of Iconoclasm and the opposition by St. John of Damascus. Iconoclasm’s effect on the Byzantine Empire and the Papacy.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Iconoclasm and 7th Ecumenical Council 787 AD 2 of 2

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Filioque, St. Photios and the Council of 879 AD The Emperor Charlemagne and the Filioque, SS. Cyril and Methodius and mission to the Slavs, St. Photius and Council of Constantinople in 879AD condemn the Filioque.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) The Papal Revolution 1046-1518, The Papal Revolution transformed Western Christianity gradually replacing consenus with monarchy and introducing secular rule into the Church.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Scholasticism and St. Gregory Palamas 11th-14th Century.  Scholasticism resulted from the introduction into Christian thought of Aristotle's view of God and man's relationship to the spiritual world. While Scholasticism was largely defeated in the East through the work of Gregory Palamas, it became dominant in the West.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Unionism at end of Byzantine Empire. The Council of Florence in 1439 in the context of unionism in the late Byzantine Empire as a response to political weakness following the Crusader conquest of Constantinople in 1204AD.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) After The Fall of Constantinople 1453. Historical developments in Byzantium, Europe and Russia after the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) The Protestant Reformation 1516-> Martin Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, Anabaptists, Anglicanism, leading to modern Protestantism.

Orthodoxy in Russia and the Modern Period

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Kievan Period 9-13th Century, Conversion of Russia and development of Kievan Church, Alexander Nevsky.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Mongel Conquest and Rise of Moscow 14th-15th Century, Division of Russia by Mongol conquest. Rivalry of Moscow and Lithuania. Sergius of Radonezh, Hesychast Monastic Movement. Rise of Moscow – Third Rome.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Ivan the Terrible and Peter Moghila 16th-17th Century, Ivan the Terrible’ conflict with Metropolitan Phillip. Peter Moghila and westernization of Russian service books in Western Russia.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Old Believer Schism 17th Century, Bishop Nikon changes service books. Maxim the Greek, Old Believer schism.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Peter the Great 17th-18th Century, Westernization of Russia and theological education and persecution of the Church.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Russia 18-19th Centuries, Enlightenment and Romantic influences. Revival of Hesychasm.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Ottoman Empire 18-19th Centuries, The Church under Turkish rule. Nationalist independence movements.

PLAY (Right-click to Download) Orthodoxy in America, The Alaskan Mission. St. Tikhon, Conversion of Uniates,. Revolution and disintegration of united missionary Church. Immigrant churches. Transition to English and re-emergence of a Pan-Orthodox mission.