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A Bulgakov anthology

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Zernov and Pain (the editors) have excelled in culling these excerpts from Sergius Bulgakov's writings. Anyone who has the least interest in Russian intellectual history, Eastern Orthodoxy, or in ecumenism should become familiar with his thought.

Bulgakov offers thoughtful insights in the realms of philosophy, Christian doctrine, humanitarian ideals, and even economics. In light of the current (Spring 2000) re-evaluations of the roles of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), his economic idealism offers suggestions which remain fresh -- even 56 years after his death.

For those interested in Christian ecumenism or even world peace, Bulgakov's essay "The Orthodox Church" should be considered. In it he develops the principle of conciliarity, or _sobornost_. Although conciliarity is offered as a solution to Christian disunity between East and West, it has serious implications for inter-national relations as well.

The anthology includes five autobiographical essays, eight reflective essays which interact with the cultural and philosophical mileau (and often turmoil) of Bulgakov's day, ten excerpts related to Russian Orthodox Christian doctrine (including an excellent offering entitled "The Orthodox Church"), a sermon delivered to an American audience on "Social Teaching in Modern Russian Orthodox Theology" (in 1938), and five "Festival Sermons" centered on themes of joy.

The nine page Introduction by James Pain is informative and fair while Lev Zander's seven page Memoir is a fitting tribute to Father Bulgakov. This collection deserves to come back in print.

Fr. Sergius Bulgakov (1871-1944), is largely forgotten today. Controversial in his time, and sometimes considered "way out in the weeds" by more conventional Orthodox Christians, today he is regarded as a tertiary figure, sometimes an heretical one at that, in Orthodox Theology. In the earlier part of the Twentieth Century, his impact was considerable.

This nice collection of essays, sermons, and extracts will go far towards introducing readers to this exponent of a school of theological teachings that is, at least in part, rejected by the Orthodox Church, but still of interest to some people in academic circles on and off the seminary campus. This volume contains some sermons on major feast days, the thoughts of Fr. Sergius upon a then recent work by Picasso, extracts from his major work on Karl Marx as a religious type, and his complex thoughts on ecumenical relations between Orthodox Christians and the Christian confessions of the West.