Modern English Translations of Early Christian Writings My personal favorite: the anonymous Letter to Diognetus, which is the oldest overall account of Christianity in existence. The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians: The apostles appointed Polycarp as a supervisor. His apostolic spirit is palpable in his text. He presents a sermon on the resurrection to the Christians in Philippi and ends by exhorting them to live like Christ himself. Other important examples include the Apostolic Fathers, who were early leaders of the church. They wrote under the name "apostle", but there is no evidence that they ever met Jesus face-to-face. However, we know about them from other people so they must have been influential figures in the early church. Their letters are valuable sources of information regarding early Christianity. The New Testament itself is the greatest source of information about Christianity in its earliest days. Written by various authors over an extended period of time (most likely between 50 and 150 AD), it contains descriptions of beliefs and practices that are very similar to those of today's Christians. This means that it can be an excellent guide for understanding what early Christians believed and how they lived their lives. Early Christian writings besides the New Testament also contain some myths and legends about Jesus' life that appear in different forms in many books. For example, there is a story about a man named Justin who was martyred around A.D. 165.