Foreword, by either Archbishop Demetrios Trakatellis, or by Dean Thomas Fitzgerald
Preface, Susan R. Holman
Part One: The New Testament Period
1. Injustice or God's will? Early Christian Explanations of Poverty--Steven J. Friesen
2. "Be not one who stretches out hands to receive but shuts them when it comes to giving:" Envisioning Christian Charity When Both Donors and Recipients are Poor--Denise Kimber Buell
3. James 2:2-7 in Early Christian Thought--Görge Hasselhoff
4. Wealth, Poverty, and the Value of the Person: Some notes on the Hymn of the Pearl and its early Christian context--Edward Moore
Part Two: Egypt in Late Antiquity
5. Widening the Eye of the Needle: Wealth and Poverty in the Works of Clement of Alexandria--Annewies van den Hoek
6. Care for the Poor, Fear of Poverty, and Love of Money: Evagrius Ponticus on the Monk's Economic Vulnerability--David Brakke
7. Wine for Widows: Papyrological Evidence for Christian Charity in Late Antique Egypt--Adam Serfass
8. Rich and Poor: Rhetorical Pairing in Sophronius of Jerusalem's Miracles of Ss. Cyrus and John--Susan R. Holman
Part Three: John Chrysostom, The Cappadocians, and Friends
9. This Sweetest Passage: Matthew 25:31−46 and assistance to the poor in the homilies of John Chrysostom--Rudolf Brändle
10. Poverty and Generosity towards the Poor in the Time of John Chrysostom--Wendy Mayer
11. Poverty and Wealth as Theater: John Chrysostom's Homilies on Lazarus and the Rich Man--Francine Cardman
12. Wealthy and Impoverished Widows in the writings of St. John Chrysostom--Efthalia Makris Walsh
13. The Background and the Nature of Patristic Philanthropy in the Early Byzantine Era--Demetrios J. Constantelos
Part Four: Wealth, Trade, and Profit in Early Byzantium
14. Gilding the Lily: A Patristic Defense of Liturgical Splendor--A. Edward Siecienski
15. Wealth, Stewardship and Charitable "Blessings" in Early Byzantine Monasticism--Daniel Caner
16. Trade, Profit, and Salvation in the Late Patristic and the Byzantine Period--Angeliki E. Laiou
Part Five: Patristic Studies for Today
17. St. Basil's Philanthropic Program and Modern Micro-lending Strategies for Economic Self-Actualization--Timothy Patitsas
18. The Use of Patristic Socio-Ethical Texts in Catholic Social Thought--Brian Matz

"This is a splendid book, a substantial contribution on a topic of perennial import for scholars of religion and theology. The essays collected here offer important reassessments of scholarship to date. They present fresh, vivid material and provide revised models through which to study, reflect upon, and respond to deprivation and surplus as realities in antiquity and in our own time. Practical, pragmatic considerations are interwoven with cultural, historical, and theological analyses. Excellent work throughout!"--Susan Ashbrook Harvey, professor of religious studies, Brown University

"The social obligations of the wealthy and the needs of the poor in the teachings and practices of early Christians are examined in these essays with rich insight, having much contemporary value. The authors remind us that for the patristic mind, virtue cannot be separated from piety and learning. To praise the living God as philanthrōpos and to recall his saving actions require also a genuine love for human persons, especially the poor."--Thomas FitzGerald, dean and professor of church history and historical theology, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology

"In this collection of essays, the reader will find insightful questions raised and conclusions made concerning the early Christian perspectives of need and surplus. It is refreshing to find careful attention paid to the kind of complexities that existed in the minds of those who wrote, directly or (mostly) indirectly, on these matters."--D. H. Williams, professor of religion in patristics and historical theology, Baylor University

"This volume is a rarity: a collection of conference papers that is both coherent and consistently excellent. Ably edited by Susan R. Holman, these essays explore a wide variety of texts and topics from diverse methodological perspectives, but they never lose sight of the primary theme of the book: the problem of poverty and the appropriate Christian response to it. The outstanding contributors deftly balance theological and rhetorical analysis with attention to social and economic contexts. The result is an essential contribution to the historical reconstruction of early Christian moral traditions and their theological retrieval today."--David G. Hunter, Cottrill-Rolfes Chair of Catholic Studies, The University of Kentucky