Review
“This is an unparalleled introduction to the Orthodox Church. Comprehensive in its scope, surveying the history and present state of the Church, it is also bold and fresh in its presentation of Orthodox theology and yet, or rather thus, truly traditional. Fr. John McGuckin’s inspired and challenging vision of Orthodoxy reveals a Church entering upon a ‘new spring,’ ready to address the concerns of the modern world, intellectually, politically, and socially, grounded in God’s philanthropy for all his creation.” John Behr, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary
“Fr. John McGuckin has succeeded here in an almost impossible task: to offer us a concise, evocative, sympathetic, yet historically sophisticated portrait of the history, faith, and practice of the Orthodox Churches in one highly readable, constantly informative volume. Poet and scholar as he is, McGuckin writes gracefully and engagingly, yet with a theological and spiritual depth that invites all of us to reflect more deeply on what is most fundamental to the Christian faith. The book seems bound to become a classic.” Brian E. Daley, SJ, University of Notre Dame
“This volume will be the classical introduction to Orthodoxy at least for most of this century. McGuckin is, in an ascending and unifying order, scholar and poet, convert and Romanian Orthodox priest. The book’s content is clearly set in a twenty–first century context, while being deeply scriptural, patristic and byzantine. The aroma of Orthodoxy wafts through its pages. It serves as the gateway to this Christian community for outsiders and insiders alike, because it is faithful and insight–filled while also ancient and up to date.” Frederick W. Norris, Emmanuel School of Religion
From the Back Cover
A comprehensive study of Eastern Orthodoxy – its historical development and theology – The Orthodox Church is also an engaging assessment of Orthodoxy’s political role in today’s secularized Western world. By tracing Orthodoxy’s roots in Christian antiquity – and the formation of its biblical, doctrinal, and spiritual culture – the book explores and explains the riches of Eastern Christian traditions. Scholarly, timely, and always thought–provoking, The Orthodox Church provides Orthodoxy with the long–awaited voice to engage in a meaningful dialogue with contemporary Western culture.
By John Anthony ,Father McGuckinWesterners.
About the Author
Father John Anthony McGuckin is a Stavrofor Priest of the Romanian Orthodox Church. He is the Nielsen Professor of Early Christian and Byzantine Church History at Union Theological Seminary, and Professor of Byzantine Christianity at New York’s Columbia University. Professor McGuckin has published more than twenty books on religious and historical themes and is considered one of the most articulate spokespersons of the early Christian and Eastern Orthodox tradition writing in English today.
