The Faith of Catholics: on Certain Points of Controversy, Confirmed by Scripture and Attested by the Fathers of the First Five Centuries of the Church Volume 1

The Faith Of Catholics: On Certain Points Of Controversy, Confirmed By Scripture And Attested By The Fathers Of The First Five Centuries Of The Church by James Waterworth presents a comprehensive Catholic apologetic on ecclesiology, apostolic succession, and the Roman primacy. Spanning patristic to early medieval contexts, the work argues that the Church is holy, universal, and the one true body of Christ, sustained by apostolic succession and continuity with the original apostles. Scripture is treated as authoritative only when interpreted within the Church’s Tradition and the unwritten Apostolic Tradition that safeguards doctrinal integrity. The text asserts that the canon of Scripture was formed by ecclesial authority through councils and the consensus of the churches, with Africa and Rome playing decisive roles. It emphasizes that the Church, not private individuals, is the authentic Expositor of Scripture, and that the teaching office of bishops under the Roman see preserves unity and truth. The book cites early Fathers (Ignatius, Irenaeus, Cyprian, Tertullian, Origen, Clement of Alexandria, Athanasius, Jerome, Augustine, Leo the Great, Hilary, Cyril, Pachomius, among others) and ecumenical councils (Nicene, Constantinople, Ephesus, Chalcedon) to demonstrate continuity of faith and discipline. It defends the Church’s infallibility in matters of faith and morals defined by apostolic tradition and councils, while distinguishing between doctrinal substance and non-doctrinal discipline. Thus, the work presents a sustained, polemical defense of Catholic ecclesiology grounded in Scripture, Tradition, and apostolic succession.