Centuries Of Holiness: Ancient Spirituality For A Postmodern Age (Hardcover)

by Richard Valantasis (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This book is for those who yearn for a spiritual life that has depth and intellectual challenge. It is a thinking person's guide to the spiritual life written for the smart seeker who wants to be fully attuned to God, fully interactive with other believers, fully connected to the wider world in which humans live, fully engaged with the physical universe, fully committed to service to the poor and disenfranchised, and, finally, fully postmodern. Adopting a literary device first used in the fourth century by the Desert Father Evagrios Pontikos, Richard Valantasis offers a "century" of spiritual texts - a hundred short essays from 800 to 900 words - on a hundred spiritual themes. Believing that "tradition is the action of the Holy Spirit making available the wisdom of the past in a new idiom and a time," Valantasis moves from the pre-modern spiritual world of the Christian tradition to the postmodern realities of our current world, and back again.

About the Author
Richard Valantasis is uniquely equipped to write this book. Raised and immersed in the Greek Orthodox tradition, he's been an Episcopal priest for 30 years. In addition to his activities as parish priest and spiritual director, he is Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Iliff School of Theology. He is the author of Spiritual Guides of the Third Century and The Gospel of Thomas, and editor of Religions in Late Antiquity in Practice and Asceticism (with Vincent Wimbush).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 231 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (February 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826417051
• ISBN-13: 978-0826417053
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #271,454 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Demanding, but rewarding, March 9, 2006

By	May B. Daw (Watertown, MA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The "centuries" of the title are not chronological centuries but designate this collection of one hundred spiritual essays, based upon Eastern Orthodox teachings but "refracted" for modern Western Christians. Valantasis envisions his readers as those who "yearn for a spiritual life that has depth and intellectual challenge." He demands a high level of concentration and commitment from his readers-- his sentences are complex, and the ideas behind them are equally so. I found much wisdom within them! The density of the essays requires that they be digested over some considerable time. The author includes suggestions for focusing on certain chapters over the course of a retreat, or throughout a season of the church year.

5.0 out of 5 stars Pentecostal perspective, May 14, 2009

By	Josh "ILiveInHoth" (Anchorage, AK) - See all my reviews

Unbelievably insightful on over one hundred spritual questions. A thinking believer's resource. I heartily recommend this. I am purchasing several as gifts.

5.0 out of 5 stars Jewels of wisdom, March 30, 2009

By	Sara Shovar Byers "Sally" (Southwest Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This small rich book is Lenten reading for several of my church group.
The separate "essays" are stand alone focused thought filled jewels. The information is written in easy to understand language, the concepts are timeless and deeply complex. Scholarly with a human touch, Richard Valantasis is a fascinating erudite teacher and spiritually gifted priest. This elegantly shaped book is the finest bedside table reading, one essay at a time.