Definition of "patristic" [pa•tris•tic]

• Of or relating to the fathers of the early Christian church or their writings. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Though the term patristic belongs to the whole period here under consideration, as contrasted with the term scholastic applied to the Middle Ages, it may nevertheless be restricted to the period we are now describing."
• "Fourth, the idea of patristic authority (auctoritas patrum or auctoritas sanctorum) juxtaposed the notion of authorization (the inspiration of the Fathers by Holy Scripture), the notion of persuasion apart from or prior to rational demonstration, the notion of personal expertise in the juristic formulation of a canonical faith, and the anthropological reverence for the elders (auctoritas maiorum as the respect due the fathers of a Christian doctrinal tradition)."
• ""The Mass is very ritualistic, filled with scriptural and what we would call 'patristic' allusions.""