Patristic Nectar?

[~Anastasia~]

I was hoping for opinions from those who might have ordered some of these series.

I'm wondering if they provide a lot of teaching that maybe isn't found in related books? There are a couple of series I've long been interested in, and they are having a sale right now. I don't have the money to spare, but I could make arrangements later.

Opinions whether it's worth it? Of course there are thousands of hours of free material elsewhere.

There's a minimum purchase to get the sale price. Some of the ones I've been interested in are these -


The Three Stages of the Spiritual Life
Archimandrite Zacharias (Zacharou)

The Hidden Man of the Heart
Archimandrite Zacharias (Zacharou)

Personhood in the Life and Ministry of Elder Sophrony (Sakharov) by Archimandrite Zacharias (Zacharou)

The Ascetical and Pastoral Theology of St. Silouan the Athonite and Archimandrite Sophrony by Archimandrite Zacharias (Zacharou)

A Simple Heart: Cultivating Simplicity in the Spiritual Life
Bishop Irenei Steenberg

 

[ArmyMatt]

anything by Fr Zacharias is gold. from what I have heard from friends too, Fr Josiah's catechism is great as well.

 

[~Anastasia~]

anything by Fr Zacharias is gold. from what I have heard from friends too, Fr Josiah's catechism is great as well.

Ah thank you. Yes ... Fr. Zacharias has gotten my attention with his writings. Gold is an apt description, that's how I feel about them!

Maybe I should do as Scripture mentions - sell some of what I have so that I can afford to buy these.

Thank you!

 

[archer75]

Ah thank you. Yes ... Fr. Zacharias has gotten my attention with his writings. Gold is an apt description, that's how I feel about them!

Maybe I should do as Scripture mentions - sell some of what I have so that I can afford to buy these.

Thank you!

Maybe your library can get ahold of them?

 

[~Anastasia~]

Maybe your library can get ahold of them?

They are audio downloads.

If you mean the public library ... something has happened. I used to get Orthodox books through them. Suddenly they are "unable to locate copies willing to be shared". I want to give it a few more tries, but ... I can get books on outdoor crafts, sewing, what have you. But not spiritual counsels. Either all the various libraries suddenly are no longer sharing or ... someone doesn't want to look for certain types of books? I'm going to give it a few more tries before I consider addressing it but I'm disappointed.

And if you mean our parish library - I'm going to propose a small budget for paper copies when/if I can get more people interested in it. But downloaded audio wouldn't possibly be approved at this point.

Thanks for the suggestion though.

 

[gzt]

I think it's just that few libraries stock these particular books - they're from a small press, after all - and so they don't end up in the library system.

 

[~Anastasia~]

I think it's just that few libraries stock these particular books - they're from a small press, after all - and so they don't end up in the library system.

That's true. But we have a locator system we can access so I can see if they are in there and who has them. So if 5 libraries have a book and it's not a particularly valuable or rare one, it seems odd that not a single one of them is willing to share ...

I've also received books on ILL that could only be read inside the library (unfortunate as I had requested those to read while recovering from surgery) but at any rate, that's an option if the lending library is worried about it not being returned.

 

[gzt]

That is odd - I wonder if it's budget constraints - ILL isn't free for the institutions, after all.

 

[~Anastasia~]

That is odd - I wonder if it's budget constraints - ILL isn't free for the institutions, after all.

No, that's not the reason. There is a limit of how many you can request over a given time.

What I am beginning to find (like I said, I'm going to give it more tries before I consider approaching anyone about it) is that religious books are tending to be impossible to get for various reasons. Non-religious books are always smoothly supplied.

 

[archer75]

No, that's not the reason. There is a limit of how many you can request over a given time.

What I am beginning to find (like I said, I'm going to give it more tries before I consider approaching anyone about it) is that religious books are tending to be impossible to get for various reasons. Non-religious books are always smoothly supplied.

Extremely strange. Sorry for suggesting this as if you didn't know what a library was...

 

[Mary of Bethany]

anything by Fr Zacharias is gold. from what I have heard from friends too, Fr Josiah's catechism is great as well.

I second this! Fr Zacharias visited our parish a couple of times. He is wonderful!

 

[ArmyMatt]

I second this! Fr Zacharias visited our parish a couple of times. He is wonderful!

I met him earlier this year and got to serve with him. a real blessing.

 

[Mary of Bethany]

I met him earlier this year and got to serve with him. a real blessing.

Yes! Is he in good health? I thought he wasn't traveling much anymore.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Yes! Is he in good health? I thought he wasn't traveling much anymore.

no, but Fr Sergius talked him into coming one last time at least

 

[~Anastasia~]

Extremely strange. Sorry for suggesting this as if you didn't know what a library was...

No offense taken. I'm just about a professional library patron, lol.

 

[~Anastasia~]

I met him earlier this year and got to serve with him. a real blessing.

Wow, that is wonderful.

I second this! Fr Zacharias visited our parish a couple of times. He is wonderful!

I can only imagine what it might be like to learn from him in person.

What a blessing.



Thanks for the replies. Well, if they aren't available free anywhere (and I haven't found them) ... I'll try to order some. The price really isn't steep. Most are a few dollars, but they combine in series for a discount, and are further discounting for the holidays. I thought I got an email for one very cheaply - hope I haven't missed it. I thought I'd wait and see how finances looked after Christmas. They are no better, lol, but then again I don't have much else I'd rather spend money on.

 

[ArmyMatt]

Abp Michael of NY said of all modern writers, the one he thinks seminarians should read is Fr Zacharias.

 

[~Anastasia~]

Abp Michael of NY said of all modern writers, the one he thinks seminarians should read is Fr Zacharias.

That's really cool to hear.

I have to say he has really attracted my attention. Not so much for academic theology. I love Orthodox theology, and it makes beautiful sense as I encounter it and see how parts fit together.

But for making sense of my spiritual experiences and understanding better about God from a relational standpoint, I had "big-questions". Some things I have carried with me, trying to figure them out for a long time. Certainly since before I became Orthodox. And I happened across writings by Fr. Zacharias that answered those questions, as if he was talking to me personally and knew extactly what I had been trying to figure out. More than just once I have had this experience with his writings. So I have been focused on him since not long after discovering Orthodoxy.

I don't always know who teaches what, but I know that this particular spiritual legacy has proven incredibly valuable to me.

So yes ... I VERY much want to hear whatever he has to say.

 

[ArmyMatt]

yep, that is a good indication the author is very illumined

 

[~Anastasia~]

yep, that is a good indication the author is very illumined

Indeed. That makes a lot of sense.