Exploring Early Christianity Student Conference

Jared R. Lee, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Rehearing Nicaea: The 325 Creed as an Exegetical Synthesis of Divine Dialogue

This paper contends that the Nicene Creed of 325 is not a summary of general exegetical themes but the result of interpreting specific passages of divine dialogue, a synthesis of biblical conversations between the Father and the Son that form the heart of Christian faith. It extends the hermeneutical reading of Nicaea advanced by Khaled Anatolios, John Behr, and Lewis Ayres and challenges Adolf von Harnack’s claim that the Creed reflects the Hellenization of Christianity. A comparison of Athanasius’s prosopological readings of Psalm 2, Psalm 110, and John 17 with the Creed’s wording makes clear that Nicaea’s language arose from the Church’s hearing of these divine dialogues. It argues that Nicaea’s confession that the Son is “begotten, not made, of one essence with the Father” arises directly from those scriptural dialogues, gathering their language into a single statement of faith. In this light, the Creed becomes an act of biblical interpretation through which the Church learns to hear the Word speaking with the Father in the Spirit. Recovering this exegetical logic offers the Church today a model for hearing again the triune conversation revealed in Scripture.

Ilia Korchagin, Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary
Unity in Tension: Athanasius and the Shape of the Church Amid Institutional Upheaval

The serial exiles of Athanasius of Alexandria (c. 296–373) forced him to articulate an operative ecclesiology disentangled from institutional support and imperial sponsorship. This paper analyses Athanasius’s construction of ecclesial identity in the midst of Arian contestation, asking how he conceived of unity when the outward structures of the episcopate were compromised. Through analysis of Apologia Contra Arianos, Apologia de Fuga, Festal Letters, and later historiographical witnesses, the study argues that Athanasius held together a monastic instinct toward anachōrēsis (withdrawal from impiety, exemplified in his Life of Anthony) with a strong commitment to koinōnia (communion with the catholic Church). Furthermore, his typological appeal to the Exodus and his directives to the faithful demonstrate how he framed orthodoxy as both separation from heresy and solidarity within the suffering Church to which he returned several times. Situating these strategies within the post-Constantinian struggle over the relationship between Church and empire, the paper contends that Athanasius anticipates later distinctions between the visible and invisible Church. He emerges not only as a defender of orthodoxy but as a theologian of ecclesial endurance whose model of unity proves resilient amid institutional upheaval.

Matthew Waddell, Heritage Bible College
The Apologetic Efficacy of Eternal Generation: On the Use of

Nicene Christology for the Commendation of the Faith
In the wake of modernity, many challenges have been raised against the classical doctrine of the Trinitarian relations – particularly God the Son’s being eternally begotten of God the Father – articulated officially at the First Council of Nicaea (325), refined in a more definitive manner at the First Council of Constantinople (381). Though a wide return to Nicaea and its theology is warranted for myriad reasons, in this paper I will argue specifically that Protestant Christians at large must retrieve a Nicene-loyal apologetic. Our present strategies for engagement with non-Trinitarian religious traditions require creedal bolstering, as numerous contemporary models of the Son’s relation to the Father – proposed by certain popular apologists – are notably ahistorical and theologically deficient. A few of these even border on heterodoxy. These models, while appealing to some, ultimately sacrifice far too much (e.g. stringent biblical monotheism) for little gain (palatability or consistency with a preconceived philosophical system), and do not suffice for commending the whole self-revelation of the Triune God to unbelievers. Thus, for the sake of apologetic effectiveness we must return to the fullness of the truth, incomprehensible as it may be. We must profess with Nicaea the biblical doctrine of the Son’s filiation. While tracing out an argument for a “Nicene-loyal” apologetic, particularly in the realm of Christological debates, I will also interact with modern Islamic arguments against the Son’s consubstantiality with the Father and against his personal property of begottenness. I hope to demonstrate that many of Islam’s most notorious arguments do not hold up underneath the weight of Nicaea, and are actually directed at inferior constructions of Christology from recent years. Summarily, this paper will serve to advance the conversation surrounding the relation between apologetics and historical theology, advocating for an apologetics that is ultimately responsive and subservient to the Great Tradition of biblical interpretation, typified in the timeless Creed of Nicaea.

Su-Yuan Yang, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto
The Role and Nature of the Devil in Augustine’s Creation Theology

Drawing from Augustine’s later writings, I argue that neither the role nor the nature of the devil can be treated as a direct opposition to the triune God. That is, the relation between the evil angels and God the Trinity is not one of absolute contrast. This paper begins with a brief discussion on how Augustine firmly rejected Manichean material dualism after his conversion to the Catholic faith, thereby lending support to my argument. Further, De Genesi ad litteram and Enarrationes in Psalmos will be primarily utilized to examine Augustine’s understanding of the devil. The devil was created simultaneously with all other creatures; however, due to his own avarice and pride, he became evil in the first place. The name ‘angel’ represents their function as God’s messengers. As Augustine suggests, without God’s permission, the devil cannot tempt humanity. In fact, the devil is mocked whenever he tries to cause harm. The devil is allowed to act evilly, but God intends to reveal divine grace and love through these actions. In this regard, I further imply that Augustine’s creation theology may contribute to the contemporary discussion of a non-contrastive relation between creator and creation, as developed by Katherine Tanner.

Hosea Sheen, Oxford University
Pythagorean Harmony in Augustine’s De Trinitate IV

In Book IV of De Trinitate, Augustine advances a quite technical and arcane argument about the harmony (coaptationem) between the two deaths of humanity and the one death of Christ, followed by a detailed numerological discussion of the significance of the number six in the Scriptures. Several scholars (e.g., Bochet 2007, Scully 2013) have pointed out the apparent Pythagorean logic of this passage, particularly the aspect of the many being joined into the one. However, an investigation into the specific nature of “what Greeks call harmonia” (4.1.4) illuminates even more interesting aspects of Augustine’s argument. From Pythagorean literature, such as that of Nicomachus of Gerasa, we learn the definition of harmonia specifically as the coincidence of proportional opposites. From this definition, some of the subtler points of Augustine’s argument becomes clear, such as the relationship between soul and body, that between Christ’s two natures, and the character of human salvation and union within the totus Christus. Moreover, this also helps to make sense of the function of Augustine’s numerological reflection on six in the middle of this argument.

Vasili Antoniades, Boston College
Faustus, Augustine, and the Authentic Christian Cult of Saints

In Contra Faustum, Augustine records several of Faustus’ accusations against the Christian cult of saints. Faustus writes “The sacrifices you change into love-feasts, the idols into martyrs, to whom you pray as they do to their idols. You appease the shades of the departed with wine and food”. Augustine’s response to Faustus, almost exclusively consists of proving that even though Christians honor and venerate the martyrs, to God alone do they offer true worship. While developing a nuanced and robust theology of the cult of saints, Augustine completely ignores the three charges of continuity between Christian and pagan praxis that Faustus leveled against the cult of saints; that of the love feast, the martyrs themselves, and offerings to the dead. This paper will argue that Augustine’s response to Faustus is essentially an idealized version of the cultus, and that Faustus’ accusations, rather than being a polemical invention, reflects an intimate knowledge of the late fourth century Christian cultus. When Faustus’ charges are viewed in light of fourth Christian century graffiti, poetry and even complaints regarding the cult of saints, a picture of the cult of saints emerges which is quite different than the one  Augustine paints.

Alice Candy, Saint Paul University
Macrina’s Origin Story: Considering the Girlhood of a Holy Woman

 The opening chapters of the Life of Macrina in which Gregory of Nyssa provides an account of the girlhood of his sister, Macrina the Younger, reveal bits and pieces of information about this holy woman’s early years. While often overlooked in scholarship, the glimpses we get of this period of Macrina’s life suggest that she was determined to seek God from an early age and foreshadow later events. From this foundation, the whole trajectory of her life was oriented towards union with God. Indeed, it could even be said that Macrina is Gregory’s “theological statement” about eschatological unity with God,1 and it seems that Macrina’s life also took on a mystagogical meaning for Gregory.2 While it is important to consider the impact of Gregory’s adherence to certain literary conventions regarding accounts of the lives of holy people, some scholars suggest that key features of Macrina’s life and spiritual outlook nonetheless shine through. If this is true, what observations can be made from her early years about the ‘symptoms’ of future holiness? This paper therefore considers the evidence we have about Macrina’s girlhood and explores what it might reveal about how Gregory understands her life of faith to have unfolded.

Reanna Lingley, Redeemer University
Widowhood as Authority: Marcella and Paula and the Transmission of Christian Knowledge in Late Antiquity

Widowhood in early Christianity was a socially and religiously recognized status with established expectations. Widows were generally expected to live modestly, remain dependent on family or church support, and focus on private devotion and charitable works. At the same time, biblical teaching acknowledged widows as figures of piety whose moral authority could be publicly recognized. For widows of prominent social standing, this recognition could extend to autonomy, control over property, and the ability to devote time to religious and intellectual pursuits. Building on this framework, this paper examines how two prominent widows, Marcella of Rome and Paula of Bethlehem, instructed, mentored, and guided the next generation of Christian women. Marcella’s household and Paula’s monastic establishment functioned as spaces for reading, discussion, and memorization, transmitting Scripture and ascetic practice through oral instruction and lived example. Their networks extended across generations, linking Marcella to Paula and Paula to her daughter Eustochium, and influencing figures such as Jerome of Stridon. Drawing on primary sources, including Jerome’s letters and the Vita Paulae, this study explores how these widows hosted mentoring communities, transmitted scriptural knowledge, and established monastic networks, highlighting how widowhood provided a framework for intergenerational transmission of knowledge and the shaping of intellectual and religious life in the patristic Christian world.

Karim Guirguis, Trinity College, Toronto
Sahidic Euchologia: A Patristic Reading of MONB.VE

In the twelfth-century, a canon by Gabriel II ibn Turaik, the 70th Coptic patriarch prohibits the use of liturgies other than the three of, St. Basil, St. Gregory (the Theologian), and St. Cyril (of Alexandria). For this reason, Bohairic Coptic Euchologions do not include other Eucharistic liturgies. However, looking at Sahidic Euchologia, which tend to be older, several Eucharistic liturgies that fell out of use can be found. One significantly important Euchologion is MONB.VE, otherwise known as “The Great Euchologion” or the “Euchologion of the White Monastery.” This Euchologion includes many different Eucharistic liturgies (along with some other liturgical texts) that fell out of use. This paper will examine text of this Euchologion in light of some key significant patristic texts that can highlight some of the theological themes. Authors such as Evagrius, Gregory of Nyssa, and Athanasius will be presented, after which key texts from the Euchologion will be read, using these patristics texts as its “hermeneutic lens.” Other modern authors such as David Fagerberg, and Fr. Aiden Kavanagh will also be brought into conversation to mediate these patristic texts with a broader liturgical theology.

Michael St. Marie, Westminster Theological Seminary
Peace Making in the Worship and Life of the Early Church

This paper will examine the liturgies and catechisms where people were formed to live gospel centered lives. There has been much study done on the Early Church and Patristic views on violence in military contexts, and to a lesser extent participation in state violence. However, the role of peace making in interpersonal contexts has not been addressed as heavily. I argue that peace making was a central aspect of Christian life and was one of the aspects of the Church that attracted people to it. The Didascalia shows the centrality of peace making in the liturgy, and the formal process of peace making that the church had. Many different writings speak to Christian’s opposition to killing, particularly the Divine Institutes of Lactantius and Justin Martyr’s First Apology. This breadth of writers demonstrates how important the concept of peace was in the earliest days of the Church.

Hunter Coates, Boston College
The Fourth Gospel and Probable Gnostic Origins: John as an Early Gnostic Tractate.

Several commentators in recent years have become attuned to the Gnostic elements of the Fourth Gospel. The harsh condemnation of the Jewish God of Israel in Jn 8:44, Jesus’ explicit claim to unity with his Heavenly Father in Jn 10:30 and Jn 17:21, the mention of a “ruler of this world” in Jn 12:31, claims of self-deification in Jn 10:24–39 and Jn 17:21–23, among other factors have all been argued as stemming from Gnostic theological sensibilities. Yet few are keen to state outright that the gospel is Gnostic. Other commentators have noticed the deceptive speech profile of the Johannine Jesus, that other characters continually “misunderstand” him. The dialogue between Jesus and his brothers in Jn 7:1–10, as well as the earlier conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus in Jn 3:3 and other episodes in the gospel, have been argued to portray a deceptive Jesus. These arguments are examined and supplemented with a crucial missing piece of the puzzle: The theological similarities between the depiction of a deceptive Jesus and demiurge in second- to third-century Gnostic texts and the gospel’s depiction of a deceptive Jesus and demiurge. This article argues that considering this factor in tandem with additional overlooked data from Gnostic texts and the gospel makes a cumulative case that the Fourth Gospel is of Gnostic origin. It concludes that recognizing this probable origin can shed new light on long-held debates about the gospel’s authorship and dating.

Tessa Brubaker, Biola University
From Polemic to Poetry: The Cappadocians and St. Ephrem on Divine Unknowability

In The Luminous Eye, S. Brock calls for further comparative studies of St. Ephrem and the Cappadocian Fathers. In this paper, I take up his call by examining the conceptual overlap between the views of St. Ephrem and the Cappadocians on divine unknowability. I first offer a brief historical assessment of fourth century Christianity in both the Cappadocians’ and St. Ephrem’s geographical and theological contexts, as well as the likelihood, or lack thereof, of direct interaction between Ephrem and the Cappadocians. Given the doubtful nature of a historical relationship, I take the approach of textual analysis to compare the conceptual relationship. I argue that the Cappadocians and St. Ephrem share a foundational belief in an “ontological chasm” between Creator and creation that implicates their epistemology and informs the limitations they place around theological inquiry. I also identify similarities between their theology of names, as well as their exegetical practices. I conclude by analyzing how the thinkers’ differences in literary form complicate the degree of consistency that can be identified between their theologies.

Olivia Fox, McMaster Divinity College 
Between Awe and Love: St. Ephrem’s Use of Poetry as Theology

St. Ephrem was a fourth-century theologian whose work was done primarily through hymns and poems and from whom the present-day Church can learn much about effective theological engagement. Ephrem proposes to us that as created beings we are incapable of fully understanding the essence of God, and that any attempt to deduce more than has been revealed to us has the paradoxical effect of limiting our understanding and furthering us from God. Ephrem’s use of poetry serves to illuminate the nature and character of God while guarding against the dangers of literalism. This paper seeks to explore Ephrem’s theological framework and to demonstrate the value of poetry as an effective means of engaging divine revelation in light of that framework.

Jessica White, Boston College
Who Do You Say that ‘ἐγώ Εἰμι?’: A Comparative Analysis of Eusebius of Caesarea’s and Athanasius’ Exegesis of Exodus 3

For the ancient interpreter, scriptural hermeneutics were inseparable from their theological convictions. In this paper, I will analyze how the relationship between the Father and the Son functions for Eusebius and Athanasius as the determining (and departing) principle of their exegesis of Old Testament theophanies. By comparing their interpretation of the “ὁ ὤν” in Exodus 3, I will argue that Eusebius’ exegesis of biblical theophanies revolves around his maxim that the Father cannot engage directly with creation because of his impassibility and ultimate transcendence. The Son, thus, becomes the instrument through which the Unbegotten Father engages with creation and any theophanic revelation of God can occur only through the Son. Although Eusebius does not directly define the Son as subordinate, his exegesis of Scripture depicts a de facto subordinate function of the Son to the Father that Athanasius will challenge. Athanasius believes that theophanies testify to the consubstantiality of the Father and the Son. Hence, his exegesis recognizes that their unity of roles stems from their shared essence. In this way, Athanasius presents a ‘Nicene’ hermeneutic that paved the way for later Trinitarian exegesis of biblical theophanies.

Jegan Ganesan, Regent College
Reacquainting with the Cosmic Christ: Principles of Worship from Maximos to the Worship Leader

In an age of constantly advancing technology and an ever-changing cultural milieu, the topic of music within the Protestant church has been a source of often violent division. Against the backdrop of pervasive scientism, music often falls victim to the desacralization that is present in many low church evangelical spaces. Furthermore, in our attempt to make accessible and relativize God to our circumstances, we often fail to recognize His absolute transcendence. As a result, Sunday morning worship has descended from the heights of sacramentality to depths of the purely material, and similarly the liturgy has been reduced to a mere order of service. To combat this problem of desacralization, this paper engages with Maximos the Confessor because his work features themes of transcendence, creaturely movement, aesthetics, deification and, ultimately leads to a thicker definition of worship often missing in evangelical spaces. The Ambigua in particular, will serve as the main text of consideration with his other works included as appropriate. The objective of this paper is to bring language and awareness of the Cosmic Liturgy and the Cosmic Church so that the evangelical worship leader may lead their congregation to participate in the timeless worship of the Cosmic Christ.

Andrew Roushdy, University of Thessaloniki
A Palamite Reading of ‘Mater Populi Fidelis’: A Palamite Defense of the Latin Marian Titles of ‘Co-Redemptrix’ and ‘Mediatrix of All-Graces.’

On November 4th, 2025, the Vatican released Mater Populi Fidelis. Of note is the Vatican’s avoidance of the Marian titles “Co-Redemptrix” and “Mediatrix of All-Graces.” This paper argues that St. Gregory Palamas can be read as offering robust theological support for the Marian titles “Co-Redemptrix” and “Mediatrix of All Graces,” understood in a way fully consistent with Christ’s unique role as Redeemer and Mediator. Drawing on Palamas’ Marian homilies and his broader metaphysical framework—especially the distinction between divine essence and uncreated energies—I show that Palamas presents Mary as the unique personal locus where the union of the created and uncreated first occurs, and thus as integral to the entire economy of salvation. His repeated description of Mary as synaitios (“co-cause”) of our salvation, as the “boundary of the created and uncreated,” and as the first and fullest participant in divine energies provides conceptual grounding for a non-competitive, Christocentric articulation of both titles. In Palamas, “co-redemption” names her indispensable, freely offered cooperation in the Incarnation, while “mediation” refers to the fact that all deifying grace—being the energies of the Incarnate Logos—passes through the humanity He received from her. Properly understood, these titles express rather than obscure Christ’s primacy. Palamas therefore provides a distinctive Eastern theological rationale for affirming them in an ontological, participatory, and non-rivalrous sense.

John Engelman, Regent University
Theotokos and the Trinity: Assessing the Trinitarian Implications of Theotokos and the Appropriateness of Christokos

Based on the writings of both Cyril and Nestorius, the paper will assess the possibility that Christokos is an appropriate term for trinitarian reasons apart from the Christological objections of Cyril. This would include examining whether Theotokos is a problematic term in relation to the eternality and infinitude of the Godhead and whether, taken apart from the problematic belief in a hard division between the humanity and divinity of Jesus, a legitimate and perhaps even necessary argument can be made that Christokos is a more appropriate term for Mary.

Gareth Harker, McMaster Divinity College
“Sanctification” Through Eucharist: An Exploration of Irenaeus’ Concept of ‘Nourishment’ in the Apostolic Preaching

This paper explores how Irenaeus understood Christian spiritual growth, emphasizing that believers are ‘nourished’ spiritually and physically through participation in the Eucharist within the church. It argues that Irenaeus’ concepts of “recapitulation” and “nourishment” parallel later theological ideas of justification and sanctification, showing that, for Irenaeus, growth in holiness is a continuous process rooted in communion with God, especially as experienced in the Eucharist. For Irenaeus, because of his belief in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ contra his gnostic opponents, Eucharistic nourishment is essential for believers’ progress toward Godlikeness and glorification, integrating both bodily and spiritual dimensions of Christian life. The paper concludes with a brief exploration of what this might mean for 21st century Christian theology and praxis.

Rebecca Wason, McMaster Divinity College
Evil, Demons, and the Shadow: Tertullian’s Demonology and Jung’s Theory of Shadow Projection

The relationship between theological understandings of evil and psychological understandings of the unconscious remains an area of significant interdisciplinary potential. This paper explores how Tertullian’s demonology, emerging from the second- and early third-century North African Christian milieu, offers categories that can be placed in constructive dialogue with Carl Gustav Jung’s analytical psychology, particularly his concept of the shadow and the mechanisms of projection. While Tertullian famously presents demons as external spiritual entities influencing cognition, emotion, and behavior, this paper argues that his descriptions exhibit striking parallels with the internal psychological processes articulated by Jung nearly eighteen centuries later. The first section provides a close reading of Tertullian’s Apology, De Anima, and Adversus Marcionem, highlighting how Tertullian understands demonic influence: demons exploit human vulnerability, obscure moral clarity, disrupt relational harmony, and distort human perception. The second section analyzes how the externalization of evil serves a psychological function in both ancient and contemporary contexts. The third section explores implications for contemporary Christian counseling. The paper concludes by proposing a symbolic-real integrative model: one that neither collapses the demonic entirely into psychological categories nor treats all experiences as literal spiritual invasion.

Kai Tissari, McGill University
Justin Martyr’s apologetics and early Christian ‘historical consciousness’

Justin Martyr’s innovative approach to the defence of Christianity (both in the 1st & 2nd Apology as well as his Dialogue with Trypho) attempts to bridge the gap between hristianity and the Hellenistic world by offering a reinterpretation of key aspects of Hellenistic cosmology and history through a Christian lens. Justin consciously dissects the classical tradition by framing pagan religion as demonically inspired while identifying certain figures in the pre-Christian past, like Socrates, as having possessed a part of divine reason (logos) and even prefiguring Christ. This cosmological polemic and typological re-interpretation offers a glimpse into the early construction of a Christian historical narrative distinct from the Jewish or Hellenistic worlds into which Christianity was born. The purpose of this paper is to determine what Justin Martyr’s reading of non-canonical history can say about an early Christian approach to the construction and interpretation of history and an early Christian ‘historical consciousness’ more generally. This will be achieved by summarizing the potential origins and context for Justin’s historical apologetic, followed by an analysis of his argument for its representation of a Christian ‘historical consciousness’ in the 2nd century, and finally exploring the significance of his approach for the early Christian tradition

Charlotte McNamee, Boston College
An Oppositional Legacy: Tracing Origenian Influence in Opposing Views within the Arian Controversy Leading up to Nicaea

Considering how the public theological claims of both Arius and Alexander intensified to the point of an imperially ordered council, initial engagement with the theological development of the controversy might not consider how such oppositional claims could emerge from a shared source of formation. However, the assertions of both men as recorded in their correspondence leading up to the Council of Nicaea each contain evidence of Origenian thought. In this paper, I argue that, through evaluation of primary text material, Arius and Alexander each adopt a partial Origenian hermeneutic in their recorded theological conception of the Son to differing degrees. Arius and Alexander draw upon Origen’s teaching and push the boundaries of his theological construction to such extremes that they become new theological constructions in their own right.

Matthew W. Hudson, McMaster Divinity College
Indwelling Grace: Names for the Holy Spirit in Didymus the Blind’s De Spiritu Sancto

In his treatise De Spiritu Sancto, Didymus the Blind (c.313–398) defends the divinity of the Holy Spirit against rival exegetes. By making frequent reference to Scripture, he demonstrates not only that the Spirit is God, but that the works attributed to the Spirit require his divinity. Didymus notes several ways in which the Spirit is like God, rather than like creatures. His key point of argumentation is that the Spirit, who is not said to participate in divinity but is rather participated in by humans, communicates the qualities of divinity associated with the Son. This paper discusses the way Didymus, as he affirms the Spirit’s place as Creator rather than creature, seems to suggest numerous possible names for the Holy Spirit, including “the Spirit of Wisdom and Truth,” the “Knowledge of God,” and “the Grace of God.”

Megan Saad, University of Toronto, Trinity College
Alexandrian Christology, Deification, and the Miaphysite Nature of Christ in the “Symphony of Salvation”

This paper explores how Orthodox doctrines of miaphysis and deification are articulated and expressed in the Monday Theotokia, a Coptic hymn which anecdotally bears the title the “Symphony of Salvation.” This paper traces the theological and historical origins of the text of the Monday Theotokia within the broader Alexandrian patristic tradition, particularly in the line of Christological and soteriological thought developed by St. Athanasius and St. Cyril of Alexandria, as well as their contemporaries, prior to and during the time of the Council of Ephesus. Through examining how the Monday Theotokia espouses a miaphysite vision as central to the divine economy, this paper explores how the “Symphony of Salvation” not only expresses Orthodox soteriology in beautiful and poetic form, but also witnesses to the Alexandrian patristic literature in its proclamation of the theology that affirms the miaphysite reality of Christ and its implication for humanity’s salvation through reunion with God. In doing so, the “Symphony of Salvation” reveals how sound Christol-ogical teachings are not only embedded within the Church’s hymnological prose, but function as an anchor informing the foundation of the broader liturgical life of the Church.