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The Purpose Of The Pastoral Office As Taught By The Church Fathers, Augsburg Confession V, And The Contemporary Age, D Lee Cullen Jr.

Master of Sacred Theology Seminar Papers

This paper will seek to identify the basic understanding of those Church Fathers who spoke most directly to this topic, namely, Ignatius of Antioch, Gregory of Nazianzus, St. John Chrysostom, and Gregory the Great. The rationale for the selection of these Fathers is twofold. Firstly, their proximity and place in what we identify as the era of the Early Church. Ignatius of Antioch stands closest to the Apostolic Age while Gregory the Great provides the other bookend, standing at the end of what is commonly accepted as the era of the Early Church. Secondly, this wall provide a reasonable expectation …