True goodness is not softness—it is the stern love that disciplines. Clement of Alexandria insists that God’s justice and goodness are one, for correction and compassion spring from the same divine heart. The Word prunes, not to wound, but to make the soul bear fruit.Augustine’s pastoral letter recounts how fear of God purifies false devotion. He reminds us that worship without holiness is idolatry in disguise. When the people of Hippo turned from drunken feasts to psalms and prayer, joy became obedience, and discipline became delight.Aquinas brings these themes together: to fear God is not to dread His nature but to revere His righteousness. Fear’s object is evil, not good—but holy fear guards the good from being lost. What begins as trembling ends in trust.Readings: Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, Book 1, Chapter 8 – “Against Those Who Think that What Is Just Is Not Good” Augustine, Letter 29 (A.D. 395) – “The Abolition of a Drunken Festival” Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 42, Article 1 – “Whether the Object of Fear Is Good or Evil”Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#Clement #Augustine #Aquinas #ChurchFathers #Justice #FearOfGod #ThroughTheChurchFathers
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Through the Church Fathers: November 11
The early Christian vision of goodness is richer than mere kindness—it is moral harmony born of divine love. Clement of Alexandria rebukes those who see the justice of God as cruelty, showing that correction is itself a form of mercy. The Instructor’s sternness is the surgeon’s hand that heals the soul.Augustine, in his letter to Alypius, writes of reforming his people’s hearts by abolishing a drunken festival. He replaces riot with reverence, teaching that Christian joy must be sober and spiritual. His pastoral courage becomes a mirror for the Church’s sanctification.Aquinas explains that fear’s true object is not good, but evil—the loss of good being evil’s shadow. Fear, rightly ordered, leads the soul away from sin and toward its highest love. To fear the Lord is to recognize both His holiness and our dependence on Him.Readings: Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, Book 1, Chapter 8 – “Against Those Who Think that What Is Just Is Not Good” Augustine, Letter 29 (A.D. 395) – “The Abolition of a Drunken Festival” Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 42, Article 1 – “Whether the Object of Fear Is Good or Evil”Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#Clement #Augustine #SummaTheologica #ChurchFathers #Fear #DivineGoodness #Theology
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Through the Church Fathers: November 10
Clement saw divine training — paideia — as the process of growing from fear to wisdom. The goal was never to terrify but to teach. Augustine knew this too, warning that the world’s pleasures can drown the soul more swiftly than pain ever could. He pleads with Licentius to listen to the voice that calls him out of bondage. Aquinas closes our week with a profound balance: fear is not opposed to love but perfected by it. To fear God rightly is to fear losing Him. Thus even our trembling becomes holy, for it preserves our communion with the One who drives out all lesser fears (1 John 4:18).Readings: Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, Book 1, Chapter 7 Augustine, Letter 26 (conclusion) Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 41, Article 4Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#ClementOfAlexandria #Augustine #SummaTheologica #FearAndLove #ChurchFathers
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Through the Church Fathers: November 9
Clement’s Christ is not a tyrant but a teacher — one who disciplines by love. For him, obedience is not loss of freedom but its birth. Augustine echoes this beautifully in his letter to Licentius, warning that the “bonds of this world” may glitter, yet they enslave. True liberty lies in the “sweet bonds” of wisdom, the gentle mastery of Christ. Aquinas agrees that fear, when ordered by reason, perfects us: we flee from evil not as slaves, but as children who dread displeasing the Father who loves them. The yoke of Christ is light precisely because it is love’s own harness (Matthew 11:29–30).Readings: Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, Book 1, Chapter 6 Augustine, Letter 26 (continued) Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 41, Article 3Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#ClementOfAlexandria #Augustine #SummaTheologica #FreedomInChrist #FearOfTheLord
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Through the Church Fathers: November 8
In today’s reading, Clement reminds us that the instinct to preserve life — even in the smallest creature — reflects divine design. Everything God made strives to endure because it was created for goodness. Augustine’s Letter 26 takes that same truth inward: he pleads with his friend Licentius to shake off the false freedoms of worldly ambition and submit to the easy yoke of Christ. Aquinas explains that even fear has its rightful place — for God Himself has planted in every being a natural dread of destruction, a reflection of His will that life should not perish. To fear rightly, then, is to love rightly — for only what is loved can be lost (John 3:16).Readings: Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, Book 1, Chapter 5 (Conclusion) Augustine, Letter 26 (to Licentius) Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1–2, Question 41, Article 2Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#ClementOfAlexandria #Augustine #SummaTheologica #NaturalLaw #FearAndFaith
Join Through the Church Fathers, a year-long journey into the writings of the early Church Fathers, thoughtfully curated by C. Michael Patton. Each episode features daily readings from key figures like Clement, Augustine, and Aquinas, accompanied by insightful commentary to help you engage with the foundational truths of the Christian faith.Join Our Community: Read along and engage with others on this journey through the Church Fathers. Visit our website.Support the Podcast: Help sustain this work and gain access to exclusive content by supporting C. Michael Patton on Patreon at patreon.com/cmichaelpatton.Dive Deeper into Theology: Explore high-quality courses taught by the world’s greatest scholars at Credo Courses. Visit credocourses.com.Let’s journey through the wisdom of the Church Fathers together—daily inspiration to deepen your faith and understanding of the Christian tradition.
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