In the Heart of the Desert: The Spiritualilty of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (Treasures of the World's Religions) [Paperback]

John Chryssavgis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 28, 2003

Words of spiritual counsel from the heart of early Christian monasticism.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A beautiful and sensitive account of the lives and spirituality of the early Christian desert monastics." -- Douglas Burton-Christie, Loyola Marymount University, and author of The Word in the Desert

"An invaluable guide to the teachings of the Desert Fathers and Mothers...The love of God radiates from every page." -- Philip Zaleski, editor of The Best Spiritual Writing series, author of The Recollected Heart and Gifts of the Spirit, and senior editor of Parabola magazine

"Here is a secret to living a rich spiritual life...If you don’t know how...read this excellent book." -- Thomas Moore, author of Care of the Soul : A Guide for Cultivating Depth and Sacredness in Everyday Life

"If I were to recommend a single book to introduce the spiritual riches of the desert...this would be [it]." -- Robert Fastiggi, Sacred Heart Major Seminary

"John Chryssavgis is a wise guide in spiritual theology. He writes with...clarity, penetrating wisdom and a mischievously light touch." -- Graeme Ferguson, Senior Minister (retired) of St. David’s Presbyterian Church, Auckland, New Zealand

...the scope and content of Chryssavgis's book are readily understandable. This is a topical survey of an English translation (with consultation of the Greek text) of the fifth-century Sayings of the Desert Fathers (Benedicta Ward, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers: The Alphabetical Collection [London: Mowbray, 1975)). It aims to present the sayings as a spirituality that was "revolutionary" for its time. -- The Journal of Religion January 2007

About the Author

The Rev. Dr. John Chryssavgis was born in Australia (1958), where he matriculated from The Scotts College (1975). He received his degree in theology from the University of Athens (1980), a diploma in Byzantine Music from the Greek Conservatory of Music (1979), and completed his doctoral studies in Patristics at the University of Oxford (1983).

After several months in silent retreat on Mt. Athos, he served the Orthodox Church in Australia (1984-1994), co-founding St. Andrews Theological College in Sydney (1985), where he was sub-dean and taught patristics and church history (1986-1995). He was also a lecturer in the Divinity School (1986-1990) and the School of Studies in Religion (1990-1995) at the University of Sydney. Since 1995, he has taught as professor of theology at Holy Cross School of Theology, where he also directed the religious studies program at Hellenic College.

He is the author of many books and numerous articles on the early Church Fathers and orthodox spirituality.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: World Wisdom (October 28, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0941532518
• ISBN-13: 978-0941532518
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,099,837 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reader-friendly Scholarship, December 4, 2003

By 

Marilynn Hughes (Southwest Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In the Heart of the Desert: The Spiritualilty of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (Treasures of the World's Religions) (Paperback)

'In the Heart of the Desert' is a very thoroughly researched book on the writings of the Desert Fathers and Mothers of Christian tradition going back to the time of St. Antony.

What makes it really special is how well it is written for lay-reader or scholar alike. This is a book that you will enjoy whether you know a little or a lot about the subject, and it is easy to understand, follow and benefit from irregardless of your prior knowledge of the subject.

Chryssavgis captures the peace of the desert fathers and makes it accessible to those of us living in the modern day world, who would like to bring a bit of the 'desert' tradition into our every day lives.

Thank you, Father Chryssavgis, this book has been a wonderful read, and an inspiring journey into the desert.

42 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An especially welcome contribution to Christian studies, July 15, 2003

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In the Heart of the Desert: The Spiritualilty of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (Treasures of the World's Religions) (Paperback)

In the Heart of the Desert: The Spirituality Of The Desert Fathers And Mothers by Fr. John Chryssavigis (Professor of Theology at Hellenic College & Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology) surveys a treasury of ancient texts regarding Christianity, particularly those written by earliest Christian peoples who lived and survived in the desert as an act of Christian faith. Their exhortations, spiritual guidances, prayers, encounters with God, internal struggles, and testimonies have survived down the centuries, and here they are presented in an informative overview enhanced with extensive thought, wisdom, and meditation concerning the lives that have worshiped God throughout the centuries. An especially welcome contribution to Christian studies and reference shelves, In The Heart Of The Desert is a work of considerable scholarship and easily accessible by non-specialist general readers.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars reliable guide to desert monasticism, January 17, 2007

By 

Daniel B. Clendenin (www.journeywithjesus.net) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In the Heart of the Desert: The Spiritualilty of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (Treasures of the World's Religions) (Paperback)

I like the two aphorisms that Chryssavgis uses to introduce the overall message of the fourth century desert monastics. From W.H. Auden's In Memory of W.B. Yeats, "In the deserts of the heart, let the healing fountain start." Then, from Isaiah 35:8 (LXX), "The road of cleansing goes through that desert. It shall be named the way of holiness." The desert was the laboratory of Christian discipleship for these saints, and we have much to learn from their experiment. Chryssavgis, Professor of Theology and former Dean at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, has not only studied the desert fathers as a scholar, he has spent time with them as a fellow Christian pilgrim. The result is a wonderful introduction to these early ascetics, similar to Where God Happens (2005) by Rowan Williams. His 18 chapters are brief and to the point. They cover all the pertinent themes you would expect--patience, silence, tears, guidance, detachment, and so on, and then three that are pleasant surprises--the body, the environment, and gender. He quotes copiously from the desert "sayings." The book is complimented by color plates of icons, a simple map of the area, a timeline of people, bibliography, and then the Reflections of Abba Zosimas (6th century) that are translated here for the first time.

The monastics commend themselves for a number of reasons. John the Baptist announced the coming kingdom in the desert. Jesus fled to Egypt as a baby (Matthew 2:12-23), and in Luke's Gospel our first glimpse of him as an adult was when the Holy Spirit drove him into the desert to be tempted by Satan (Luke 4:1). Second, these desert dwellers were practitioners of healing, not abstract theoreticians. They sought personal transformation, not theological information. They believed the wisdom of Diadochos of Photiki (5th century) that "nothing is so destitute as a mind philosophizing about God when it is without him." Third, the desert monastics might strike us as anachronistic oddballs today, and certainly no one would accuse them of being well-adjusted to society, then or now. But we misunderstand them if we construe their bizarre lifestyles as a spirituality of superficial techniques. What they modeled, and what we should emulate, is a transformation of the interior geography of the heart whatever one's exterior circumstances. For them the desert was a specific place, but for us today it can also be a spiritual way. Fourth, I honor the desert mothers and fathers because I want to place myself in the mix of saints who have gone before me. Tradition, said Chesterton, "means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes, our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking about. All democrats object to men being disqualified by the accident of birth; tradition objects to their being disqualified by the accident of death." Finally, I love the desert monastics most of all for their profound humanity. These saints modeled what Chryssavgis calls a "spirituality of imperfection" in which one is not ashamed or embarrassed to embrace and affirm one's brokenness, wounds, darkness, and inner demons. They comfortably acknowledged intense struggle as a necessary virtue, praying with Sarapion of Thmuis (4th century), "Lord! We entreat you, make us truly alive."