The Four Witnesses by Rod Bennett is an excellent book that discusses the lives and writings of four of the earliest Fathers of the Church: Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr and Irenaeus of Lyon.

Videos I do as we read this book vary in content. In some, I give a summary of what we are reading highlighting some points I think are key. In other videos, I expand on a certain topic referred to in our readings that I think is important to more deeply understand.

Video Introduction to the book

Week 1: Introduction to the Church Fathers

Week 2: Clement of Rome and Peter

Week 3: Primacy of Peter and the Pope

Week 4: Summary Conclusion of Chapter 1 — Clement of Rome

Week 5: Chapter 2 — Ignatius of Antioch, Part I

Week 6: Ignatius and Apostolic Succession

[Handouts for the various quotations I mention in week 6 video can be found here.]

Week 7: No video for this week [continue reading Ch. 2 on Ignatius of Antioch!]

Week 8: Summary Conclusion of Chapter 2 — Ignatius of Antioch

[Handouts for the quotations I mention in the week 8 video can be found here.]

Week 9: No video [Start reading Chapter 3 on Justin Martyr!]

Week 10: Justin Martyr — Part I

Week 11: No video [Continue reading Chapter 3 on Justin Martyr]

Week 12: Summary Conclusion of Chapter Three — Justin Martyr

Week 13: Irenaeus of Lyon – Part I

Week 14: No video [Continue reading Chapter 4 on Irenaeus]

Week 15: Irenaeus of Lyon – Part II

Week 16: Irenaeus of Lyon – Part III

[In my videos, I do not summarize the epilogue which is Rod Bennett discussing his conversion story. This is excellent and worth the read! Another highlight of the book but not discussed in my videos is the appendix he provides at the end of the book. A wonderful resource!]