How to Read the Holy Fathers: A Guide for Orthodox Christians

by Fr. Joseph Lucas

If you've always wanted to read the Holy Fathers but don't know how to do it or where to start, How to Read the Holy Fathers: A Guide for Orthodox Christians is the perfect book for you! In this book, Fr. Joseph Lucas introduces readers to the beauty and complexity of the Church Fathers' writings, and he provides guidelines and tools for reading them with wisdom and discernment. He also offers advice on how to apply their works to your own spiritual life. The book includes an examination of the various genres of patristic writings, using concrete examples to illustrate a proper approach to reading these texts.

About the Author: Archpriest Joseph Lucas is the rector of Christ the Saviour Orthodox Cathedral in Miami Lakes, Florida. He received his PhD in theology at Radboud University (Netherlands) and his MDiv with Distinction in Patristics at St. Tikhon's Orthodox Theological Seminary (Pennsylvania). He is the founder and co-editor-in-chief of Rule of Faith Journal, published by Basilian Media, and is an adjunct professor of theology at St. Thomas University (Miami Gardens).

Prasie for How to Read the Holy Fathers

"In this book, Fr. Joseph Lucas gives us a balanced approach to seeing the Church Fathers through an array of personalities, styles, and historical contexts, which nonetheless comprise the one single choir of Holy Tradition. He presents an ideal to aim for in approaching these holy figures, an ideal most of us often fall short of. The framework presented therefore traces a clear and reasonable path to follow as we progress toward Christ in the footsteps of these holy examples." -Jonathan Pageau, host of The Symbolic World

"Father Joseph Lucas’s engaging treatment of what our Orthodox Fathers valued reads not as a distant and removed tome for scholars but rather as a primer for those seeking to understand the foundations of our Orthodox Faith. Yet this is no trite read, but one built on the breadth of the Fathers’ own vision, one that asks its lectors to move beyond a mere 'Sunday School' level knowledge of the Faith and to the depths and riches that await the serious student. Giving first a necessary introduction on who the Fathers are (not just ecumenical teachers), when they lived (not just in the distant past), how they should be used (not for quote mining), and what one must endure to grasp them (no cursory or breezy reading of the internet), Fr. Lucas’s wonderful text takes its readers through the genres of writing and the categories of study that the Fathers themselves devoted their lives to, and thus opens the gate to a world that a lifetime cannot exhaust, and one ever-new, no matter how ancient. Organized around the matters of chief importance to the Fathers—subservience to Scripture and the Rule of Faith, the life of prayer, the defense and teaching of the Faith, the devotion to the Liturgy—the text pulls one in from its very first pages. This text gives to those involved in catechesis (whether receiving or teaching) an excellent tool as an introduction to our Faith." -Dr. Cyril Gary Jenkins, Director, St. Basil Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture, Eastern University

"In this accessible volume, Fr. Joseph Lucas has done a great service for the Holy Orthodox Church. The contemporary reappropriation of the patristic corpus, even at our parish level, is marked by great zeal. All too often, unfortunately, this has been a zeal not according to knowledge. In How to Read the Holy Fathers, Fr. Joseph outlines an approach to reading and applying the writings of the Fathers that will help the reader avoid the all-too-common pitfalls and fallacies that distort, rather than elucidate, the light of patristic wisdom—an approach that can allow this light to shine more brilliantly in the lives of today’s Christians." -V. Rev. Dr. Stephen De Young, author of The Religion of the Apostles

"If you are just beginning to read the Fathers, this is the book for you. It offers a road map to the rich variety of authors, genres, and historical periods within patristic literature. It also provides a concise introduction to the theological and philosophical background, as well as practical advice for how to read the Fathers in an Orthodox spirit. If you want to learn to drink from the deep well of patristic wisdom, this is an excellent place to start." -Dr. David Bradshaw, Professor of Philosophy, University of Kentucky, and author of Aristotle East and West

"Orthodox Christianity intimately knows that God was, is, and forever shall remain 'the God of our Fathers.' Father Joseph Lucas introduces the Orthodox reader to the beauty and significance of this fact with care and lucidity. Moreover, he goes a step further and acquaints us with the Fathers themselves, and encourages us both to read their works and, more importantly, to imitate their lives. As you read this book, may you be inspired to exclaim, again and again, and with an ever-greater depth of understanding, the petition that closes every Orthodox service: 'Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God have mercy upon us, and save us. Amen!'" -V. Rev. Dr. Alexis Torrance, Archbishop Demetrios Associate Professor of Byzantine Theology at Notre Dame University

Author: Fr. Joseph Lucas

Publisher: Ancient Faith Publishing

Additional Formats:

Paperback
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