The Apostolic Tradition - by Nathan P Chase & Maxwell E Johnson (Paperback)

About the Book

"In recent years, a number of new witnesses to the so-called Apostolic Tradition have been discovered or freshly edited for the first time. Based on these new witnesses, as well as new secondary literature, the translations and commentary provided in this book updates and challenges earlier and more recent studies with special regard to liturgical practices"--

Book Synopsis

2026 Catholic Media Association Third Place Award, History of Theology, Church Fathers and Mothers

Renowned liturgical scholars offer, for the first time anywhere, English translations and commentary of new witnesses to the Apostolic Tradition.

In recent years, a number of new witnesses to the so-called Apostolic Tradition have been discovered or freshly edited for the first time. Among them is a new, recently discovered Ethiopic version of the Apostolic Tradition contained in the Aksumite Collection edited by Alessandro Bausi. Also, the Arabic version of the Clementine Octateuch, while known for some time, has only recently been edited by Martin Lüstraeten, allowing scholars access to this important witness. Each of these witnesses provides valuable insights into the origins and development of the Apostolic Tradition.

Based on these new witnesses, as well as new secondary literature, the translations and commentary provided in this book updates and challenges earlier and more recent studies with special regard to liturgical practices. In addition, English translations of these witnesses are provided for the first time anywhere. Revisiting an earlier claim held by J. M. Hanssens, SJ, this study also argues that the final redaction of the text likely occurred within an Egyptian orbit.

Review Quotes

"The work by Nathan Chase and Maxwell E. Johnson is a comprehensive and carefully researched study that offers a detailed analysis of sources related to the Apostolic Tradition, demonstrating the fluid development of the document and making a significant contribution to the study of the early Christian liturgy."
Catholic Media Association

-- (6/29/2026 12:00:00 AM)

"A document of enormous complexity, the Apostolic Tradition has long been considered one of the most important sources for the study of early Christian liturgy. With a new commentary that takes into account hitherto untranslated manuscripts from Ethiopic and Arabic, Nathan Chase and Maxwell Johnson have made a valuable contribution to the study of this ancient source. They demonstrate a likely Egyptian provenance of its earliest layers and the slow and complex development of this work of this church order as 'living literature'. It is a work of extraordinary scholarship that should be included on the shelf of every serious scholar of Christian antiquity."
John F. Baldovin, SJ, Boston College, Clough School of Theology and Ministry
-- (12/23/2024 12:00:00 AM)

"The Apostolic Tradition is a key source for our understanding of the early development of the liturgy, but with its many witnesses and their complex redactional processes interpretation of the text can be bewildering. Chase and Johnson do liturgical historians a great service in this excellent piece of scholarship; not only by introducing readers to two new sources but also by their careful reassessment of the scholarly consensus in light of them. The clearly presented English translations of the newly discovered Ethiopic and Arabic versions--together with a detailed commentary on ordination, initiation, Eucharist, and daily prayer--in The Apostolic Tradition will provide an essential starting point for all future research on early Christian liturgy."
Juliette J. Day, university lecturer and docent in church history, Helsinki University
-- (11/25/2024 12:00:00 AM)

"This timely and thorough study revisits the elusive Apostolic Tradition once associated with Hippolytus, discussing the implications of the Ethiopic Aksumite evidence as well as Arabic witnesses. An Asiatic rather than Roman origin is agreed upon now by most scholars, and Johnson and Chase mount a compelling argument for an Egyptian provenance. Discussing this composite work in themes rather than chapters makes this study easier to follow than previous studies, and it will be a crucial book for early Christian liturgy."
Bryan D. Spinks, Bishop F. Percy Goddard Professor Emeritus of Liturgical Studies and Pastoral Theology, Yale Divinity School and Yale Institute of Sacred Music
-- (10/31/2024 12:00:00 AM)

"The Apostolic Tradition remains a key document for the early history of liturgy and ecclesiastical institutions. Formerly unknown testimonies have changed the state of research. With English translations and profound investigations, this volume provides comprehensive information on all liturgical topics and a solid basis for any future study."
Professor Dr. Harald Buchinger, Chair of Liturgical Studies, Faculty of Catholic Theology, University of Regensburg, Germany
-- (12/10/2024 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

Nathan P. Chase (1990-2025) was assistant professor of liturgical and sacramental theology at Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis, Missouri. He contributed articles to the field of liturgical studies, including pieces on liturgy in the early Church, initiation, the Eucharist, inculturation, and the Western Non-Roman Rites, particularly the Hispano-Mozarabic tradition. With Maxwell E. Johnson, he co-authored The Apostolic Tradition: Its Origins, Development, and Liturgical Practices (Liturgical Press, 2025), and The Origins of the Canons of Hippolytus (Liturgical Press, 2024). He was the author of The Homiliae Toletanae and the Theology of Lent and Easter (Peeters, 2020) and The Anaphoral Tradition in the 'Barcelona Papyrus' (Brepols, 2023).

Maxwell E. Johnson is emeritus professor of liturgy at the University of Notre Dame and a retired presbyter in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. His numerous publications are on the origins and development of early Christian liturgy, contemporary rites, and current ecumenical and theological questions in both East and West. He is the author and/or editor of more than twenty-five books and over one hundred essays and articles. He is also a former president of the North American Academy of Liturgy, a member of the Society of Oriental Liturgy, a member of Societas Liturgica, and a member of the scientific advisory board for the journal Ecclesia Orans. He has received the Berakah Award from the North American Academy of Liturgy and the Christus Rex Award from the Liturgical Studies Institute at Valparaiso University.