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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.

201–300

The Third Century

1 work

c. 246

Latin

To Donatus

Ad Donatum

Cyprian of Carthage · c. 210–258

A convert's account of his own change, set against a bleak survey of the world he left — the arena, the courts, the marriage market — written in the ornate style he soon abandoned.

Early Church · LetterRead elsewhere

901–1000

The Tenth Century

2 works

c. 934–936

Latin

The Preliminaries

Praeloquia

Ratherius of Verona · c. 887–974

Written in prison after being deposed, a survey of the duties of every rank of society — kings, soldiers, merchants, the poor, the rich — with a good deal of self-examination mixed in.

Western · EthicsRead elsewhere

c. 994–996

Latin

The Apologetic

Abbo of Fleury · c. 945–1004

A defence of monastic exemption from episcopal control, arguing from canon law that monasteries answer to Rome and describing the three orders of Christian society.

Western · PolemicRead elsewhere

1001–1100

The Eleventh Century

1 work

c. 1075–1078

Greek

The Strategikon

Kekaumenos · 11th century

Advice from a provincial soldier to his sons: trust no one, avoid the capital, do not lend money to friends, and be very careful whom you invite into your house.

Byzantine · HandbookRead elsewhere

1201–1300

The Thirteenth Century

1 work

c. 1263–1277

Latin

On the Formation of Preachers

Humbert of Romans · c. 1200–1277

How to preach to every conceivable audience — sailors, students, lepers, the recently bereaved, women of ill repute, people at a funeral — with material for each.

Dominican · HandbookRead elsewhere

1301–1400

The Fourteenth Century

1 work

c. 1370–1400

Old French

The Chronicles

Jean Froissart · c. 1337–c. 1405

A chronicle of the Hundred Years' War by a cleric who travelled to interview participants, including the peasant risings, the plague, and the schism as they were experienced.

Western · ChronicleRead elsewhere

1501–1600

The Sixteenth Century

2 works

1550

Latin

On the Kingdom of Christ

De Regno Christi

Martin Bucer · 1491–1551

A programme for a Christian commonwealth presented to Edward VI — poor relief, education, marriage law, and the reform of worship — written in English exile.

Reformed · Political theoryRead elsewhere

1593

Ge'ez

The History of the Galla

Bahrey · 16th century

An Ethiopian monk's account of the Oromo migrations, asking why a people with no king or fortress could defeat a Christian empire, and answering that its own society was too unequal to fight.

Ethiopian · HistoryRead elsewhere