Saints and Heroes to the End of the Middle Ages

by George Hodges

An excellent introduction to the history of the church through portraits of twenty of the most important saints and heroes of the faith from the third century A.D. to the time of the Reformation. Includes Cyprian, Athanasius, Ambrose, Chrysostom, Jerome, Augustine, Benedict, Gregory the Great, Columba, Charlemagne, Hildebrand, Anselm, Bernard, Becket, Langton, Dominic, Francis, Wycliffe, Hus, and Savonarola. Suitable for ages 11 and up.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, History, Biography, Classics, Medieval

342 pages, Paperback

First published December 4, 1911

About the author

George Hodges (1856–1919) was an American Episcopal theologian, born at Rome, N. Y., and educated at Hamilton College (A.B., 1877; A.M., 1882; LL.D., 1912). He served at Calvary Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1881 to 1894.[1] In 1893 he helped establish the Kingsley Association in Pittsburgh, an organization dedicated to helping immigrant workers.[2] Afterward, he became the dean of the Episcopal Theological School at Cambridge, Massachusetts. "The high esteem in which his religious messages are held by the reading public"[3] resulted in a number his books being reissued as a second edition in 1914.

Reviews

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This introduced us to some figures in church history we weren’t as familiar with. The chapters are fairly short and incorporate church history as well as small biographies of various saints. It did make me want to do a deeper dive on some of them!

[Tana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great stories about various saints which give great insight into how the church grew and changed over time. Very readable yet enjoyable for both children and adults.

[Rosie Gearhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficult to follow at times without having some more background knowledge. Not a strong enough narrative to make the stories memorable. They all kind of run together after a while. I’d like to find a more engaging book on medieval Church history for my kids to read, but, until I do, this will be the one I hand to them when they study the Middle Ages.

[Amanda Kastner-Guzzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting

This was so easy to read and so enlightening. I learned about our beginning and why things are the way they are. Loved it

[A Hoppy Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Lillianna Bliss]

I had a hard time keeping them straight, there were so many similar names haha, but overall I think this is a good overview! Not sure why I didn't finish the last chapter sooner hah.

CWs: martyrs, torture, illness, etc.