Through the Church Fathers: May 1...

Through the Church Fathers: May 11

Through the Church Fathers by C. Michael Patton
S2 · E130
May 11, 2026
08:39

Episode notes

Podcast Description

In this episode we confront the emptiness of pagan culture and philosophy. Tatian exposes the absurdity of Greek theater, the contradictions and vanities of the philosophers, and the futility of their borrowed wisdom, calling Greeks to abandon empty traditions and follow the Word of God. Augustine shows that evil is not a substance but a perversion of the will turned away from the Supreme Good. Thomas Aquinas explains how the will naturally inclines toward the good yet remains free in its choice among particular goods, never forced or necessitated to any single option.

Today’s Readings: Tatian — Address to the Greeks, Chapters 24–26

Augustine of Hippo — The Confessions, Book 7, Chapter 16 (Section 22)

Thomas Aquinas — Summa Theologica, Part 1, Question 10 (Articles 1–3 Combined)

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Keywords

Apostolic Fathers
Thomas Aquinas
Scholasticism
Through the Church Fathers in a Year
Augustine
C Michael Patton
Theology
Church History
Tatian