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The Library

Forty Centuries of Christian Writing

1774 works catalogued century by century, from the literature the Bible was written among to the present — each with a note on what it is, why it lasted, and where to read it.

601–700

The Seventh Century

1 work

c. 670–690

Syriac

The Ascetical Homilies

Isaac of Nineveh · 7th century

Homilies on solitude, tears, humility, and the merciful heart that burns for the whole creation — including the argument that even hell is the working of love.

Church of the East · HomiliesRead elsewhere

1401–1500

The Fifteenth Century

1 work

1498

Latin

Meditation on Psalm 51

Infelix Ego

Girolamo Savonarola · 1452–1498

Written in prison after torture and days before his execution: a meditation on mercy that finds no ground of hope in itself and rests entirely on grace.

Dominican · DevotionalPsalmsRead elsewhere

1601–1700

The Seventeenth Century

1 work

preached 1615–1631; published 1640

English

The Sermons

John Donne · 1572–1631

One hundred and sixty sermons from St Paul's, on death, resurrection, and mercy, delivered by a former poet and courtier who had come late to orders.

Anglican · HomiliesRead elsewhere