Book Reviews

The Refuge is a modern English translation of some of the writings of St Ignatius Brianchaninov. St Ignatius, who lived between 1807 and 1867, was a bishop and theologian of the Russian Orthodox Church. He was one of the most prolific and influential writers of the modern Church, and wrote extensively on the spiritual life, on prayer, and on how to progress in the spiritual world. Many readers would be familiar with another of his books, The Arena, which sets out a series of guidelines for the spiritual life. The Refuge contains 21 chapters, each seeking to inspire the reader...

Let us Attend: A Journey Through the Orthodox Divine LiturgyBy Fr. Lawrence Farley, Conciliar Press, 2007 BOOK REVIEW The Orthodox Divine Liturgy is the heart of Orthodox spiritual practice. While many books have been written on the Liturgy, this book is unique. In 98 pages, Fr Farley analyses the structure, content and historical context of the Orthodox Liturgy, all the while developing the spiritual mystery of the Liturgy. Each chapter deals step by step with a section of the Divine Liturgy, beginning with “Blessed is the Kingdom” and ending with the Final Rites. The role of the priest, worshipers and...

  “O Lord and Master of my life, takefrom me the spirit of sloth,despair, lust of power, and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience, and love to Thy servant. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own transgressions, and not to judge my brother, for blessed art Thou, unto ages of ages. Amen.” This prayer of Saint Ephraim which is repeated frequently in the period of Lent, is the framework upon which the author builds the structure of this beautiful and spiritually uplifting small book. After briefly touching on the biography of...

This book contains a collection of six letters written by Elder Paisois (now St Paisios) to the Sisters at the Monastery of St John the Evangelist in Souroti. The letters were written between 1971 and 1975 to assist the Sisters in their spiritual struggle. However, they also have a more universal relevance and application to our lives. The writing is in St Paisios’ classic simple and engagingly direct style, whose gems can be seen in these three extracts. Firstly, in speaking about the danger of being indifferent because we have not committed any ‘major’ sins, the Saint writes: ‘Those who...