Universalistic Hints and Themes in the Apostolic Fathers

Evidence for Early Second Century Apokatastasis

Introduction

My aim in this study is not to prove that the apostolic fathers (i.e., the earliest extant orthodox Christian sources outside of the New Testament) were all universalists. At best, such a thesis would be an oversimplification, and at worst, it would be simply inaccurate. Instead, my goal is a much more modest one: namely, to highlight the st…