The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were early and influential theologians, eminent Christian teachers and great bishops. Their scholarly works were used as a precedent for centuries to come. The term is used of writers and teachers of the Church, not necessarily "saints", though most are honoured as saints in the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Anglican Churches, as well as in some other Christian groups; notably, the heretics Origen and Tertullian are generally reckoned as Church Fathers.

The earliest Church Fathers, (within two generations of the Twelve apostles of Christ) are usually called the Apostolic Fathers since they were taught directly by the twelve. Important Apostolic Fathers include Clement of Rome,Ignatius of Antioch and Polycarp of Smyrna. In addition, the Didache and Shepherd of Hermas are usually placed among the writings of the Apostolic Fathers although their authors are unknown; like the works of Clement, Ignatius and Polycarp, they were first written in Koine Greek.

Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included Peter, James, and John.

The very first Christians (the Twelve Apostles and the 120 Disciples at Pentecost, etc), were all Jews or Jewish proselytes, either by birth or conversion, referred to by historians as the Jewish Christians. Paul of Tarsus, after his conversion, claimed the title of "Apostle to the Gentiles". Paul's influence on Christian thinking is said to be more significant than any other New Testament writer. By the end of the 1st century, Christianity began to be recognized internally and externally as a separate religion from Rabbinic Judaism which itself was refined and developed further in the centuries after the destruction of the Second Jerusalem Temple.

As shown by the numerous quotations in the New Testament books and other Christian writings of the 1st centuries, early Christians generally used and revered the Jewish Bible as Scripture, mostly in the Greek (Septuagint) or Aramaic (Targum) translations. As the New Testament canon developed, the Letters of Paul, the Canonical Gospels and various other works were also recognized as scripture to be read in church. Paul's letters, especially Romans, established a theology based on Christ rather than on the Mosaic Law, but most Christian denominations today still consider the "moral prescriptions" of the Mosaic Law, such as the Ten Commandments, Great Commandment, and Golden Rule, to be relevant. Early Christians demonstrated a wide range of beliefs and practices, many of which were later rejected as heretical.

Winkie Pratney (born 3 August 1944) is a youth communicator, Christian apologist, evangelist, and writer from Auckland, New Zealand. With a mostly teenaged audience, Pratney speaks world wide to over 500,000 annually in churches, universities, high-schools, and Christian-oriented festivals.

Pratney's leadership seminars encourage young people to live a Christian lifestyle. He also facilitates training seminars in conjunction with other Christian organizations such as Campus Life, Champions For Christ, Operation Mobilization, Masters Commission, Youth With A Mission, Young Life, Youth Alive, and Teen Challenge. Pratney also conducts leadership training for youth workers in Europe, North America and the Pacific, and has been involved as an advisor and consultant to church, civic, educational, government and social welfare leaders on the needs and problems of today's teenagers.

Pratney is the author of several books including the most recent Youth Aflame: Manual for Discipleship and Ultimate CORE: Church on the Radical Edge and is one of the primary contributors, along with Dr. Tamara Winslow (www.tamarawinslow.com) and Steve Hill (www.stevehill.org), of the Revival Study Bible. Youth With A Mission, one of Pratney's affiliations, has opened the Winkie Pratney Revival Library at its Lindale, Texas location. The library houses the biographies and works of Christian revival leaders John Wesley, Charles Finney and William and Catherine Booth, among others.