Orthodox Spiritual Heritage Collection (4 vols.)

The desert fathers and mothers—ordinary Christians living in solitude in the deserts of Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Arabia—chose to renounce the world in order to deliberately and individually follow God’s call. They embraced lives of celibacy, labor, fasting, prayer and poverty, believing that by denouncing material goods and practicing stoic self-discipline, they would find unity with the Divine. Their spiritual practice formed the basis of Western monasticism and greatly influenced both Western and Eastern Christianity.

Their writings, first recorded in the fourth century, consist of spiritual advice, parables, and anecdotes emphasizing the primacy of love and the purity of heart. Focusing on key themes of charity, fortitude, lust, patience, prayer, and self-control, their works influenced the rule of St. Benedict and have inspired centuries of opera, poetry, and art.

This edition opens up their wisdom for readers with no previous knowledge of Western monasticism and early Christianity. It provides insightful yet unobtrusive commentary that describes historical background, explains the practice of asceticism, and illustrates how to apply their wisdom.

Philokalia, or “the love of the beautiful,” is a collection of writings by monks from the fourth century to the fifteenth century—emphasizing mystical and contemplative practices that engage all of our senses in the acts of worship and prayer.

This introduction to the wisdom of the Philokalia illuminates a text that until now has intimidated the general reader in its scholarly translations from Greek and Russian. Allyne Smith focuses his thoughtful selection on seven themes that recur throughout the five-volume work: repentance, the heart, prayer, the Jesus Prayer, the passions, stillness, and theosis. Smith’s enlightening, accessible facing-page commentary fills in the historical and spiritual context, clarifies core teachings (including the Eastern Orthodox understanding of salvation) and draws connections to modern-day practices such as contemplative prayer.

The Way of a Pilgrim is the timeless account of an anonymous wanderer who set out on a journey across nineteenth-century Russia with nothing but a backpack, some bread, a Bible, and a burning desire to learn the true meaning of St. Paul’s words: “Pray without ceasing.” In this completely accessible new abridgment, all the terms and references are explained for you—with intriguing insights into aspects of the text that are often not available to the general reader.

Twenty-five years ago, M. Basil Pennington, OCSO, was the first Western monk to live on Mt. Athos for more than the usually permitted overnight visit. The Monks of Mount Athos chronicles his extraordinary stay, his experiences of the East, and lively conversations with his hosts about theological differences and unfamiliar spiritual practices.

Listen in as Abbot Basil wrestles with historical differences between Christianity’s East and West, learns the Orthodox practice of “the prayer of the heart,” and explores the landscape, the monastic communities, and the food of Athos—a monastic republic like no other place on earth. New to this edition, Archimandrite Dionysios, a monk from “the Holy Mountain,” reflects on the ecumenical openness fostered as a result of, and since, Abbot Basil’s stay.