After reading the Bible, I wondered about what happened next. Thankfully, a number of writings from the early Christians were compiled into two collections back in the nineteenth century. These collections are called the "Ante-Nicene Fathers" and the "Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers," and they are available online to the public on different websites. However, they comprise well over 10,000 pages of content subdivided into 37 volumes. This book is an attempt to gather historical information from the writings to create one historical narrative. The works that were of great use were the Church histories of Eusebius of Caesarea, Socrates Scholasticus, and Sozomen. While much of the content of these histories was compiled into one history, this book was not restricted to their works alone. Much content was taken from several of the other writers within the 37 volumes mentioned above. Some information was also taken from other writings outside of the 37 volumes. Most of the language used in this book was taken directly from the translated sources. Even so, some edits were made and a few phrases or sentences added in an attempt to allow the content to flow more smoothly. Regarding the pre-Nicene era, the content is a mix of history and some of the writings of the early Christians, which are embedded into the history. As for the fourth and fifth centuries, information is provided on some of the Church councils, including the Council of Nicaea. Ultimately, this book presents a historical narrative that covers the period of about 33 A.D. to about 519 A.D.
