The Book of Mystical Chapters

The early Christian monks of Egypt, Syria, and Palestine were the spiritual heroes of their age—fleeing the security of civilization for the desert, where they sought God in lives of prayer, contemplation, and radical simplicity. This book is a portable collection of their teachings, and those of their contemplative contemporaries, ranging from the fourth through the eleventh centuries. It is arranged to the traditional model of three ascending "books": Praktikos (practice), Theoretikos (theory), and Gnosis (knowledge). Each book consists of 100 "sentences"—aphorisms or thoughts. Each sentence is intended to be read and meditated upon for an entire day—just as the monks themselves might have done as they went about their work."A rare and well-conceived foray into Christian mysticism." —Publishers Weekly

"McGuckin has lit on the brilliant idea of rescuing the Desert Fathers' and Mothers' sayings in simple free-verse form, which emphasizes the compression and power of their wisdom. This book will make a welcome addition to the renewed interest in early Christian ascetics." —Library Journal John Anthony McGuckin is a Professor of Early Church History at Union Theological Seminary in New York City and a priest of the Orthodox Church. Born in Newcastle, England, he is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the author of nine books, including Standing in God's Holy Fire: The Byzantine Tradition and At the Lighting of the Lamps: Hymns of the Ancient Church.