Ancient Wisdom - 5 Minutes in Church History with Stephen Nichols

Summary3 min read

Episode Overview: "Ancient Wisdom"

In this episode of 5 Minutes in Church History, host Stephen Nichols launches a special August reading series by spotlighting the classic work On the Incarnation by the church father Athanasius. Nichols encourages listeners to invest in reading ancient Christian texts, particularly Athanasius’s seminal defense of the doctrine of the Incarnation. The episode weaves in the insights of C.S. Lewis, who wrote a celebrated preface to a modern edition of On the Incarnation, and distills Athanasius’s core arguments about why God became man.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Value of Reading Ancient Books

C.S. Lewis on Ancient Texts (00:35):
- Nichols introduces Lewis's renowned preface, which advocates for reading primary ancient works over modern summaries or interpretations.
- Quote (Lewis via Nichols, 00:45):
  “There is a strange idea abroad that in every subject, the ancient books should be read only by the professionals and that the amateurs should content himself with the modern books.”
- Lewis laments that students often avoid foundational sources (e.g., Plato, Athanasius) in favor of newer, less engaging commentaries.
- Suggests a rule: read an ancient book for every modern one, or at least one for every three modern reads (01:30).

2. C.S. Lewis on Athanasius: "Athanasius Contra Mundum"

Nichols shares Lewis’s admiration for Athanasius’s stand for Trinitarian doctrine, even as much of the world drifted toward Arianism (02:00).
Quote (Lewis via Nichols, 02:23):
“It is his glory that he did not move with the times. It is his reward that he now remains when those times, as all times do, have passed away.”
Athanasius’s faithfulness is compared to the spirit of Lewis’s own nation, standing against the world for what is true.

3. The Three Arguments in On the Incarnation

Nichols succinctly breaks down Athanasius’s core reasons for the Incarnation (03:05):

a) Life and Death

Humanity is “dead in sin, and… helpless.”
Key insight: God’s goodness would not allow His creatures to remain in this state; hence, “the Word became flesh… so that we who are dead could become alive.”

b) Knowledge and Ignorance

Refers to Jesus’s declaration in the Gospel of John: He has come to make the Father known.
“We all have partial knowledge of God in the witness… of his creation, but we don’t have the knowledge of redemption apart from the incarnate Word.”

c) The Resurrection of the Body

Jesus’s true humanity and real physical resurrection is essential.
“He is the first fruits of the resurrection, the reason and the proof that we will also rise from the dead.”

4. Athanasius’s Defense and Conclusion

After presenting his case, Athanasius addresses and refutes objections against the Incarnation.
Nichols closes with praise for this enduring work and its relevance for modern believers (04:40).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Beach Reading (00:12):
“You’ll likely be the only person at the beach with that book, but I’m telling you, it’s worth it.” — Stephen Nichols
On Modern vs. Ancient Authors (01:05):
“That modern author is likely to be ten times more boring than the original text.” — C.S. Lewis (via Nichols)
On Athanasius’s Legacy (02:25):
“It is his glory that he did not move with the times. It is his reward that he now remains when those times... have passed away.” — C.S. Lewis (via Nichols)

Important Timestamps

00:07 – Nichols introduces the series and recommends On the Incarnation as essential August reading.
00:35 – C.S. Lewis’s rationale for reading ancient books.
02:00 – “Athanasius contra mundum,” Athanasius’s stand for orthodoxy.
03:05 – The threefold argument of On the Incarnation (life & death, knowledge & ignorance, resurrection).
04:40 – Nichols summarizes Athanasius’s book and ties together Lewis’s and Athanasius’s wisdom.

Episode Tone & Language

Nichols’s tone is accessible and encouraging, blending scholarly insight with warmth and wittiness. The episode is both informative and inviting, ideal for listeners new to ancient Christian writers and those looking for spiritual “beach reading” with substance.

Summary

This concise episode intertwines C.S. Lewis’s wisdom about the enduring value of ancient Christian texts with Athanasius’s profound theological arguments on the necessity of the Incarnation. Nichols’s presentation makes church history approachable and relevant, urging listeners to bridge their faith with the deep roots of the Christian past.

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Transcript1 lines

[00:08]
A
Welcome back to another episode of Five Minutes in Church History. On this episode, we are beginning a series of looking at four books. It's August and there's still time to get in your beach reading. And so the first book is an ancient book. It's by Athanasius, and it's called on the Incarnation. You'll likely be the only person at the beach with that book, but I'm telling you, it's worth it. Now find an edition that has Luke Lewis preface for one of the published translations. Lewis wrote a preface, and that preface has come to stand on its own as a piece of literature. He begins the preface by saying, there is a strange idea abroad that in every subject, the ancient books should be read only by the professionals and that the amateurs should content himself with the modern books. He says he learned this as a professor of English and a student would encounter Platonism and they wouldn't go. They wouldn't even think of, Lewis says, going to a shelf in the library and pulling off a book by Plato. Instead, they'll read some modern author. And Lewis says, and that modern author is likely to be 10 times more boring than the original text. Lewis points out that this is especially true in theology, reading a lot of the modern books. Rather than going back to the classic authors and to the ancient authors such as Athanasius, Lewis gives what he calls a good rule, and that is that every time you read a new book, you don't allow yourself to read another new book until you read an ancient book in between. And he does make a concession. How about Go3 modern books and then read an ancient book? Well, that's Lewis's preface about ancient books. Let's look at what Lewis has to say about the author of this ancient book. And the author, of course, is Athanasius. Lewis tells us his epigraph is Athanasius contra Mundum Athanasius against the world. We are proud that our own country, he says, speaking of Britain, of course, has more than once stood against the world. Athanasius did the same. He stood for the trinitarian doctrine, whole and undefiled, when it looked as if all the civilized world was slipping back from Christianity into the religion of Arius, into one of those sensible synthetic religions which are so strongly recommended today and which then, as now, included among their devotees many highly cultivated clergymen. It is his glory that he did not move with the times. It is his reward that he now remains when those times, as all times do, have passed away. Well, that's Athanasius, the author. And what about his book? Well, as you turn to on the Incarnation, you find that Athanasius makes three arguments. The first argument is regarding life and death. Athanasius says, and of course, he begins with Scripture and begins with the human condition. As all of us are dead in sin, and as being dead in sin, we of course are helpless. There's really nothing we can do about it. And then Athanasius says it would not be in the goodness of God, would not reflect the goodness of God to leave us in that state. Hence, the God man, the Word became flesh. God became man so that we who are dead could become alive. So that's the first reason. The second, Athanasius says, is knowledge and ignorance. Do you remember what Jesus says towards the end of his earthly life in the Gospel of John? He says that he has come to make the Father known. We all have partial knowledge of God in the witness, the testimony of his creation, but we don't have the knowledge of redemption apart from the incarnate Word. The third argument is the resurrection of the body. Jesus really died because he was truly human. He really rose again because he had a real body. And he he is the first fruits of the resurrection, the reason and the proof that we will also rise from the dead and our resurrection. Then he deals with arguments against the Incarnation and shows how they break down. And then he concludes his book. Well, that's Athanasius on the Incarnation, throwing in a little CS Lewis and his preface. And I'm Steve Nichols, and thanks for joining us for five minutes in church history.