Two recommendations: a new edition of The Philokalia (selections) and a podcast
Gratis post
I first discovered The Philokalia when I was in my early twenties. I was browsing in the university library, as I was wont to do, and came across the two volumes that were then available from Faber & Faber — Kadloubovsky and Palmer’s Early Fathers from the Philokalia and Writings from the Philokalia on Prayer of the Heart. To say that that discovery revolutionized my devotional life would be to shortchange the impact it made. Unlike many others, I didn’t come to it by first becoming acquainted with The Way of a Pilgrim, but tackled it without any formal or informal introduction. Since that time, of course, I have acquired the five full volumes, and — second only to the Bible — The Philokalia has been a mainstay for me for about half a century.
I was contacted earlier this week by Penguin Books and asked if I would like a gratis copy of their new volume of selected texts from The Philokalia, translated by Jonathan L. Zecher and the estimable Andrew Louth (with an introduction by the latter), and whether I would consider promoting it on my Substack. Never one to pass up the chance of getting a free book, I readily accepted their initiative, and here I am, very happy to promote this excellent translation. Fr. Andrew’s introduction manages to be both short and highly informative. The text, of course, speaks for itself. There is no richer anthology of spiritual wisdom than The Philokalia, and every page — which must be savored slowly and prayerfully to be absorbed — is a treasure trove.
I have plans for this abridged copy — it will be passed along to a dear young friend of mine, and I hope the introduction to this inimitable work will have similar lasting value for the receiver as my first introduction to it had on me. (I was struck by the fact that the cover illustration of St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain was the same that I chose for my previous Substack post — entirely coincidental.)
Description of the book:
The Philokalia is an anthology of thirty-six spiritual texts written between the fourth and fifteenth centuries by the masters of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Its authors include several of the major Hesychasts (hermits), such as Evagrius Ponticus and Gregory Palamas. Its revival is most famously associated with Nikodimos and Makarios, as part of their tireless efforts to restore Orthodoxy in Greece and achieve independence from the political and religious authority of the Ottoman Empire between the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. First published in Greek in 1782, the collection was later translated into Slavonic (1793) and Russian (1877), in a bid to expand its readership from monks to ordinary Christians. Aside from the Bible, The Philokalia is considered the most influential book on the Orthodox Church in recent history. Revered for offering a rich tapestry of wisdom on the path to union with God, the texts serve as a guide to contemplative prayer, ‘inner asceticism’ and the purification of the soul. The foundational essence and enduring relevance of its themes testify to the importance of its republication, in a timeless Penguin Classics edition.
Andrew Louth (translator) is Emeritus Professor of Patristic and Byzantine Studies in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.
Jonathan L. Zecher (translator) is Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry at the Australian Catholic University. He is the author of The Role of Death in the Ladder of Divine Ascent and the Greek Ascetic Tradition and Spiritual Direction as a Medical Art in Early Christian Monasticism.
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For those in search of an erudite but rather jolly series of lectures on Scripture as understood within Orthodoxy, I am recommending “The Lectures of Fr. Stephen De Young” on Ancient Faith Radio, which can also be found on other podcast venues, as well. I am aware of the tension that has existed between him and my brother, David, and although I think it is an unfortunate development, I nonetheless find Fr. Stephen’s material too good not to recommend. And so I do.
You can find this superb series of lectures here: https://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/the-scriptures-lecture-series-fr-stephen-de-young/ — and on Spotify and elsewhere.
