# Connect your AI

Public, read-only source retrieval. No account or API key is required by this server. Your client provider may require its own account, paid plan, or workspace permission.

Server URL: https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp
Transport: Streamable HTTP (streamable-http).
Limits: 60 API, MCP, and markdown requests per IP address per 60-second fixed window, shared across both interfaces. On HTTP 429, wait the Retry-After seconds before retrying. Readers on the same network share the allowance.

## Claude Code

```sh
claude mcp add --transport http --scope project early-church-fathers https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp
claude mcp get early-church-fathers
```

Run the command from the project directory where you want this server. This adds project-scoped configuration. Start Claude Code and approve the project server when prompted. Open /mcp to inspect it. A human must approve tools when prompted. If this name already exists, inspect it before changing it.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

[Official Claude Code setup](https://code.claude.com/docs/en/mcp).

## Claude apps (web and desktop)

Open Customize > Connectors > Add > Custom > Web. Enter the name Early Church Fathers and copy this URL:

```text
https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp
```

Choose No sign in if asked. Add the connector, then enable it through the chat's + > Connectors menu. A human must complete these settings and approve tools. Workspace owners or an allowed role may need to enable custom connectors. Availability depends on the plan. Remote web connectors also work in Claude Desktop; do not put a remote URL in a local stdio server config.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

[Official Claude connector setup](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/11175166-get-started-with-custom-connectors-using-remote-mcp).

## ChatGPT

Open Plugins > + > Add custom MCP server. Name it Early Church Fathers and copy this URL:

```text
https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp
```

Choose No authentication, review the notice and checkbox, then Create as a plugin. Review the tools and install it. Start a new chat and select the plugin with @. A human must complete these steps and approve tools when prompted. Plan and workspace permissions govern availability; an administrator may need to publish or allow the plugin.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

[Official ChatGPT setup](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/12584461-connecting-custom-mcp-servers-in-chatgpt).

## Codex

```sh
codex mcp add early-church-fathers --url https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp
codex mcp get early-church-fathers
```

Or merge this table into ~/.codex/config.toml without replacing other configuration:

```toml
[mcp_servers.early-church-fathers]
url = "https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp"
```

Start a new Codex session and inspect /mcp. A human must approve tool access when prompted. No OAuth login is needed for this server.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

[Official Codex setup](https://developers.openai.com/codex/mcp).

## Cursor

Merge this into ~/.cursor/mcp.json for all projects or .cursor/mcp.json for this project. Preserve other servers:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "early-church-fathers": {
      "url": "https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

In Customize, enable the MCP server. Use Agent mode; a human must approve tools by default. A workspace allowlist may restrict the server.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

[Official Cursor MCP setup](https://prod.cursor.com/docs/mcp).

## Any MCP client

Use the client's remote Streamable HTTP configuration with URL https://mcp.earlychurchfathers.ai/mcp, authentication none, and no custom headers. There is no universal MCP client configuration file. Merge these values into that client's documented configuration and approve access when prompted.

Test: ask the client to call `search_passages` with `{"q":"Eucharist","author":"ignatius"}`. Expect `total: 5` and passage `anf01-v.vi.iv-1`, beginning "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist." Include the returned full citation. Tool approvals may require a human.

The server supports current protocol 2026-07-28 and legacy initialization with 2025-11-25. Discover tools with tools/list; do not guess inputs. [Official transport specification](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/specification/2026-07-28/basic/transports).

## No-install HTTPS API

An agent that cannot add MCP servers can call the public JSON API directly over HTTPS. No sign-in or API key is needed.

```sh
curl 'https://earlychurchfathers.ai/api/search?q=Eucharist&author=ignatius'
```

Trimmed real response (one of five results; fields omitted, passage text unchanged):

```json
{
  "query": "Eucharist",
  "total": 5,
  "page": 1,
  "page_size": 20,
  "results": [
    {
      "id": "anf01-v.vi.iv-1",
      "text": "Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist. For there is one flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, and one cup to [show forth[904]] the unity of His blood; one altar; as there is one bishop, along with the presbytery and deacons, my fellow-servants: that so, whatsoever ye do, ye may do it according to [the will of] God.",
      "citation": "Ignatius of Antioch, Epistle to the Philadelphians: Shorter and Longer Versions, Chapter IV.—Have but one Eucharist, etc. · Source block 1 (shorter and longer versions, source order) (ANF 1)",
      "source_type": "father",
      "scan_url": "https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01/Page_81.html"
    }
  ]
}
```

Open the full passage with GET https://earlychurchfathers.ai/api/passages/anf01-v.vi.iv-1. For other authors, first GET https://earlychurchfathers.ai/api/authors and use the returned ID. Full route and input schemas: [OpenAPI](https://earlychurchfathers.ai/openapi.json).

## Tools and source rules

- search_passages: Search words or a quoted phrase. Use author, era, or work IDs to narrow results; discover author IDs with list_authors. Returns 20 cited passages per page, up to 1000; use page 1–50 and refine capped searches.
- get_passage: Read a passage by an ID returned by search_passages, find_scripture, or get_work. Returns full source text, citation, source_type, notes, Bible references, neighboring IDs, and printed-page scan evidence.
- list_authors: List authors and editorial collections with IDs, dates, eras, and work counts. Use these IDs in the author filter of search_passages.
- get_work: Read a work by work_id returned by a passage. Returns the author and ordered table of contents with passage IDs; use get_passage to read each section.
- find_scripture: Find cited passages with an indexed single Bible verse, such as John 1:1 or John.1.1. Returns 20 matches per page, up to 1000, with reference source_type distinguishing source text from notes. Use page 1–50.

Quote only returned source text and include its full citation. These are 19th-century English translations. Keep note attribution separate from passage attribution. source_type labels mean father: Father's text; editor: Editor's text; translator: Translator's note; unclassified: Attribution unconfirmed. Never relabel unclassified material as an editor's, translator's, or father's words. Preserve that uncertainty when discussing notes. A scan link alone is not verification. This service retrieves sources, without generated answers. Some work titles name both shorter and longer versions. A combined title, block ID, or paragraph order does not identify a quoted block's recension. Do not assign 'shorter' or 'longer' from those clues or from prior knowledge; report the recension as unconfirmed unless the returned text explicitly labels that block.

[Agent entry point](https://earlychurchfathers.ai/llms.txt) · [Verification coverage](https://earlychurchfathers.ai/verification.md)