Father Arseny, 1893-1973: Priest, Prisoner, Spiritual Father : Being the Narratives Compiled by the Servant of God Alexander Concerning His Spiritual Father [Paperback]

Alexander (Author, Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 1998

It is one of the great mysteries of life that in atmospheres of the harshest cruelty, a certain few not only survive but emerge as beacons of light and life. Father Arseny, former scholar of church art, became Prisoner No. 18736 in the brutal 'special sector' of the Soviet prison camp system. In the darkness of systematic degradation of body and soul, he shone with the light of Christ's peace and compassion. His sights set on God and his life grounded in the Church, Father Arseny lived by injunction to 'bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ' (Galatians 6:2). This narrative, compiled from accounts of Father Arseny's spiritual children and others whom he brought to God, gives stirring glimpses of his life in prison camp and after his release. It also tells the stories of people whose lives, often during times of almost unimaginable crisis, were touched and transfigured through their connection with Father Arseny. Emerging from the context of the particular tragedies of Soviet Russia, this book carries a universal impact certain to be felt by readers in the West today.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Russian

Product Details

• Paperback: 277 pages
• Publisher: St Vladimirs Seminary Pr (December 31, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881411809
• ISBN-13: 978-0881411805
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 8.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #216,083 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #75 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Orthodoxy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book of the Year (1999) December 29, 1999

By Volkert Volkersz

Format:Paperback

I read Father Arseny aloud to my 13 year old son, and we both agreed it was one of the best books we have ever read. He begged me to get him his own copy! While I am a recent convert to Eastern Orthodox Christianity, I would've recommended this book to anyone before I knew anything about Orthodoxy.

The chapters all have a ring of truth as they describe the horrible conditions of the prisoners in Stalin's Siberian camps. The stories of how Father Arseny, a former art historian turned Russian Orthodox priest, survived and shared the love of God with his fellow prisoners, including the Communist official who sent him there, are humbling and truly awe inspiring.

The middle section deals with Father Arseny's days following his release from prison, but still during the days of Communist opposition to any underground Christian activity.

The final section introduces the reader to individuals whose lives were incredibly touched by the ministry and faith of Father Arseny.

We in the West need to learn more about what went on behind the Iron Curtain during the Bolshevik years. This book puts a human face on the suffering.

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Spiritual classic of modern times February 21, 2003

By A Customer

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Orthodox Christians like to tell each other that their church is the "best kept secret" in America. That's one way to make sense of the puzzling fact that, though membership estimates range from three to six million (record-keeping is not the faith's strong suit), the church is mostly invisible. Other Americans might recall going to a Greek wedding once, or seeing Russians troop around their church with candles at midnight, but otherwise have little awareness of this non-Protestant, non-Catholic, Christian body.

Thus, when something big happens in the world of Orthodox publishing, it's mostly unknown outside church circles. Something big happened four years ago, with the publication of "Father Arseny: Priest, Prisoner, Spiritual Father."
This was a translation of a book that had already sold 400,000 copies in Russia, the first open publication of a battered manuscript which had previously circulated only in carbon copy, underground.

American Orthodox immediately recognized "Father Arseny" as a spiritual treasure. The book is a collection of memoirs assembled by someone who calls himself "the servant of God Alexander." The essays describe a Russian priest through the eyes of many who knew him, both during his years in a communist
concentration camp, and in the town where he lived till his death in 1975. Father Arseny's radical compassion and humility embody the distinctive flavor of Orthodox spirituality, and as such his story struck an immediate chord.

For example, the book opens with dawn in the sub-freezing gulag, as the feeble, aging priest struggles to light a fire for the barracks. Clergy were despised by everyone, even other prisoners; Christians were believed to be stupid. Yet in the course of this typical day Fr. Arseny endures beatings and
abuse with patience, while caring for two sick prisoners and sharing with them his rations. One invalid is a criminal, and the other a deposed official who had signed Fr. Arseny's own sentence. Through the course of succeeding chapters both become converts, and take the priest as their spiritual father.

The character of this kindly, long-suffering priest contrasts with the American expectation of what a successful Christian leader would be like: glib, brisk, upbeat, forceful. Fr. Arseny represents a different kind of Christian spirituality, one associated more with the Desert Fathers and early Christian spirituality.

Fr. Arseny differs in another way: he has contact with the supernatural. American Christian spokesmen live in an orderly, corporate sort of world, but Fr. Arseny is frequently shown at crux of miraculous events. In one incident, he and a young man are thrown into a punishment cell, a small metal cubicle
exposed to -22 degree temperatures. The guards expected to find both dead when they unlocked the door 48 hours later. Instead, they found the prisoners rested and radiant, with a thick coat of frost on their clothing. As the young man described it later, when he collapsed in despair he saw the dark cell flooded with light, and Fr. Arseny praying in priestly garments. The young man, like most others who knew Fr. Arseny, was transformed by his encounter.

These distinctively Orthodox elements, of humble compassion and spiritual power, are what made the first "Father Arseny" volume so beloved, and why the new volume has been eagerly awaited. "Father Arseny: A Cloud of Witnesses" continues the story with essays by people who knew him in the years after
prison, and like the first includes many tales of personal transformation and miracles.

When asked if other, similar samizdat works are waiting to be published, translator Vera Bouteneff says, "I wish, I wish. Everything I've found so far was much too sweet." Her own parents fled Russia soon after the Revolution;
her father had been sentenced to be shot, but the order was commuted to exile. Her practical turn of mind is evident in the straightforwardness of the translation. Many other holy women and men lived during the communist era, but Bouteneff has found those accounts to be overstated and saccharine. "Fr. Arseny," which was written by many different people of different
educational levels, preserves a winning directness. Those who would like to know more about Orthodox Christian spirituality can see it enacted in these books, worked out in human lives rather than in theory.

Soon after the publication of the first volume a story went around the internet: an Orthodox nun who had been reading the book one night turned out her light to go to sleep, looked back toward the book "and it was glowing. Though she hadn't heard the story, "I won't deny it," says Bouteneff. "I believe in miracles."

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The glory of Christ in a human face February 14, 2003

By matt

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Father Arseny's life and teachings are truly remarkable in their depth of love, humility and wisdom. Born out of deep physical and spiritual suffering, Father Arseny's life is presented to the reader in vivid accounts by some of those who knew him best (spiritual children and fellow prisoners in the "corrective" prisons). This book is one of the few books that I would say actually changed me deeply with each reading. It sounds ridiculous, but even now, if I only look at it there on my shelf I am edified. It as if Fr. Arseny is here with me, praying for me. Perhaps some of you understand what I mean. That just one person such as himself exists in a decade is enough to witness to the power of Christ in the world.

This books is highly recommended for spiritual edification and growth.