Champions of the Faith
Three "A's" of Advent
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Three early church fathers will come to visit your advent worship services and will personally speak to worshippers of their life and teachings. You will be drawn into a deeper understanding of the origins of the teachings of the church. Our guests will be Athanasius, Ambrose, and Augustine. Their spiritual struggles and writings to uphold the orthodox teachings of the Christian Church will enrich and enliven your Christmas preparations.
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About the Book
Champions of the Faith presents three Advent worship services with homilies based on the life and teachings of Athanasius, Ambrose, and Augustine. Through these homilies, you will meet these three champions of faith as if they lived today.
About the Author
While pursuing a Master’s of Sacred Theology at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis during the 1990s, Gordon Beck grew fond of the lives and teachings of early church fathers of the fourth and fifth centuries. Their willingness to search Scriptures to rebut the heresies of their day and their ability to craft their arguments by using classical philosophical terminology drove Mr. Beck to develop three Advent worship services based on the lives and teachings of St. Athanasius, St. Ambrose, and St. Augustine. The author challenges the worshipper who participates in these services to think through the Incarnation of the Word in flesh in the way these fathers approached this saving event.
He completed a Master’s in Philosophy and Literature at the New School University in New York in the early 1970s. This was beneficial in understanding the thought systems of these church fathers. He has also secured an MDiv from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis and has served parishes across the United states in the Bronx, New York; San Diego, California; Des Peres, Missouri; Redding, California; Vandalia, Missouri; Virginia Beach, Virginia; Clarence, New York; Wilmington, North Carolina; Marshfield, Missouri; and Black Jack, Missouri. He has also taught theology at the Lutheran Seminary in Obot Idim, Nigeria.
He is married to Sally, who has worked as an artist for Creative Communication for the Parish in Fenton, Missouri. They have three grown children: Andy, Gretchen, and Sarah, all of whom have taught on the college level.
Mr. Beck enjoys writing poetry, swimming, golfing, and foreign travel.