All Publishers - History

Greek East and Latin West: The Church AD 681 – 1071 — Andrew Louth

This volume gives an account of the Church in the period from the end of the Sixth Ecumenical Synod in 681 to the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. Although “Greek East” and “Latin West” are becoming distinct entities during this expanse of time, the author treats them in parallel, observing the points at which their destinies...   [More...]

Formation And Struggles: The Church Ad 33-450: the Birth of the Church Ad 33-200 — Veselin Kesich

Part I: The Birth of the Church AD 33 — 200 This study of the formation of the Church begins with the earliest Christian community in Jerusalem, led by Jesus’ disciples, and ends with the expansion of Christianity into various regions of the Roman Empire. Tracing the growing pains of the Church from its birth through its separation from...   [More...]

The Byzantine Saint — Sergei Hackel

The Byzantine Saint is one of the most important contributions to the field of Byzantine hagiography in recent years. St Vladimir’s Seminary Press is please to present the collection, based on papers presented by a preeminent group of scholars at a Byzantine studies conference at the University of Birmingham. Contributors: Henry Chadwick, Susan...   [More...]

Russian Piety — Nicholas Arseniev

Russian Piety is a history of Orthodox spirituality in its Russian forms. Many texts unknown in the West are translated here, and the chapters on the saintly life are a valuable and reliable anthology. The book is a gallery of intimate scenes, portraits and memoirs, and is indispensable for an understanding of the complex history of Russian and the...   [More...]

Cyril and Methodius of Thessalonica: The Acculturation of the Slavs — Anthony-Emil N. Tachiaos

At the height of the tumultuous developments taking place in Central and Eastern Europe in the ninth century, two Greek missionaries from Thessalonica came to the fore. Their work of acculturation among the Slavs had far-reaching and lasting changes upon European life. This book looks back over the life and work of these two outstanding figures and...   [More...]

The Byzantine Legacy in the Orthodox Church — John Meyendorff

For more than a millennium the Byzantine Empire and its capital, Constantinople guided the spiritual destinies of the Christian East. Even after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the influence of its culture, thought and institutions remained powerful, above all in the Orthodox Church. In this collection of essays, Fr John Meyendorff, one of the...   [More...]

The Journals of Father Alexander Schmemann, 1973-1983 — Juliana Schmemann

A number of years have passed since Fr Alexander Schmemann’s untimely death on December 13, 1983 at the age of sixty-three. Fr Schmemann was known for his many-faceted and eloquent gifts as preacher, professor and priest. His insight into contemporary culture, church life and liturgical celebration left an indelible mark on generations of Christians. These...   [More...]

The Church of the Ancient Councils: The Disciplinary Work of the First Four Ecumenical Councils — Peter L’Huillier

“Just as the four books of the holy gospel, so also I confess to receive and venerate four councils.” With these words Pope St Gregory the Great of Rome (Ep. 1.24) expressed his respect for the authority of the four most ancient ecumenical councils: Nicaea (325AD), Constantinople (381), Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451). These councils...   [More...]

The Orthodox Church in the History of Russia — Dimitry Pospielovsky

A panoramic view of one of the largest, most controversial, spiritually profound and deeply suffering of all Christian Churches. The Russian Orthodox inherited their apostolic faith from the Greek Fathers, a faith which grew and flourishes to this day. This book is replete with events, personalities and tragedies of unprecedented scale. The history...   [More...]

Crisis in Byzantium: The Filioque Controversy in the Patriarchate of Gregory II of Cyprus (1283-1289) — Aristeides Papadakis

Of the early attempts to heal the schism between the Byzantine and Western churches none is as famous as the Council of Lyons, 1274. Less familiar is the Byzantine reaction that followed in the patriarchate of Gregory of Cyprus, when the settlement of 1274 was formally repudiated by imperial decree and the solemn decision of the Byzantine Church at...   [More...]

The Orthodox Church — Sergius Bulgakov

With a foreword by Thomas Hopko Father Thomas Hopko states in his Foreword: …Those who are serious in their seekings, whether their theological and spiritual convictions, are obligated at some point to come to terms with Fr Sergius Bulgakov. The results for the courageous cannot fail to be enlightening and inspiring: perhaps not in the ways...   [More...]

Georges Florovsky: Russian Intellectual & Orthodox Churchman (hardcover) — Andrew Blane

This book is devoted to the life and thought of Georges Florovsky. As a Russian intellectual, he was a major figure in that remarkable generation of Russians who after the Russian revolution in emigration in Europe preserved and extended the lively cultural heritage of their native land. As an Orthodox churchman, he was a pioneer leader in the modern...   [More...]

Risen Indeed: Lessons in Faith from the USSR —

“Suffering deepens and redefines faith.” When this suffering goes on across the population of a whole vast modern conglomerate of nations it can lead to a faith with a totally unexpected power and freshness. That is what Michael Bourdeaux believes is happening in Russia and he believes the rest of the world can learn much from it. He writes:...   [More...]

The Religion of the Russian People — Pierre Pascal

Russia has long exercised a special fascination for people in the West, which has been increased recently by the publicity given to the dissent of its leading intellectuals. Western Christians, tortured by self-doubt and an agonizing revaluation of all their values, are now hearing new and strange voices from Russian that bear testimony to the strength...   [More...]

The Millennium: Christianity and Russia A.D. 988-1988 — Albert Leong

In 988 AD, according to the Povest’ vremennykh let (Russian Primary Chronicle), Grand Prince Vladimir I of Kiev replaced paganism with Eastern Orthodox Christianity as the official religious orientation of Kievan Russia. Joining the worldwide observance of the millennium of Christianity in Russia, the University of Oregon presented a public humanities...   [More...]

Many Worlds: A Russian Life — Sophie Koulomzin

In her autobiography, Sophie Koulomzin, long honored as a pioneer in Orthodox religious education in America, tells of the many worlds in which she has lived and worked: childhood on family estates in Old Russia; the hardships of revolutionary Moscow; life in the Russian emigration in Western Europe and as a foreign student in America; the challenge...   [More...]

Light in the Darkness — Sergei Fudel and Sophie Koulomzin

We can always come to a better understanding of historical periods and their meaning through that quality of individual Christian life which we call holiness. It is precisely this quality of spiritual life of “holiness” that has proved so indestructible in the Russian Orthodox Church, continuing to bear fruit after seventy years of suppression....   [More...]

Byzantium and the Rise of Russia: A Study of Byzantino-Russian Relations in the Fourteenth Century — John Meyendorff

The history of Russia is often considered as it that immense country had always been an isolated continent. However, at the time of its rise as a nation, it was politically a province of the Mongol Empire, whose capital was in Central Asia; and ecclesiastically, it was a dependency of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople, of Byzantium. This...   [More...]

St. Seraphim of Sarov — Valentine Zander

Orthodox spirituality has produced many holy and famous men, but none in recent centuries to compare with Seraphim, staretz of the monastery of Sarov. After an initial period as a monk, working with the community, he was led to become a hermit, living deep in the forest in a world of solitude which was only destroyed when he was attacked by brigands....   [More...]

The Russians and Their Church — Nicholas Zernou

For most people, the Russian Church, past and present, is one of the most enigmatic features of that paradoxical country. Yet a knowledge of the part played by the Orthodox Church in the lives of Russians before and after the Revolution is a key to any understanding of their history and culture. This readable introduction to Russian Church History...   [More...]

The Historical Road of Eastern Orthodoxy — Alexander Schmemann

A stimulating interpretation of the history of Eastern Christianity, this book serves as a general introduction to the Orthodox Church and is widely read by Orthodox and non-Orthodox alike. As Schmemann himself said, This book is not a scholarly investigation into the history of the Orthodox Church nor a mere manual. It is a reflection on the long...   [More...]

The Quest for Unity: Orthodox and Catholics in Dialogue : Documents of the Joint International Commission and Official Dialogues in the United States, 1965-1995 — John Borelli and John H. Erickson

Since 1965 Catholics and Orthodox in North America have been engaged in official theological dialogue. Since 1980 such dialogue has also proceeded at the highest international level. What has been accomplished during these decades of dialogue? What issues have been addressed? What obstacles to full communion remain? In addition to gathering together...   [More...]

Orthodox Church: Its Past and Its Role in the World Today — John Meyendorff

With the fall of Communism and the newfound freedom of Eastern Europe, the Orthodox Church was met with new challenges and opportunities. It has become apparent that its history and its current reality are either unknown, extremely unfamiliar, or laden with cliches. The Orthodox Church, presented here in a newly revised edition, has become an indispensable...   [More...]

The Orthodox Way — Timothy Ware

This book is a general account of the doctrine, worship and life of Orthodox Christians by the author of the now classic The Orthodox Church. It raises the basic issues of theology: God is hidden yet revealed; the problem with evil; the nature of salvation; the meaning of faith; prayer; death and what lies beyond. In so doing, it helps to fill the...   [More...]

Alexander Men: A Witness for Contemporary Russia a Man for Our Times — Yves Hamant

The definitive biography of a Russian priest, murdered with an axe in a forest on the way to church. In photo album format, with great narrative detail about the life and works of this amazing man. Depicts major events in this martyr’s life, with over 100 pictures. His influence on contemporary Russia is unmistakeable. A friend of Solshenitsyn...   [More...]

The Christian East and the Rise of the Papacy: The Church 1071-1453 A.D — Aristeides Papadakis

Intended not only for students but also for a wider general readership, The Christian East and the Rise of the Papacy: The Church 1071-1453 describes developments in the Churches of East and West in the High Middle Ages. It examines major western movements, such as the revolutionary Reform Papacy, the crusades, scholasticism and concilarism, and discusses...   [More...]

Byzantium & the Slavs — Dimitri Obolensky

Among the events that have shaped the history of Europe a notable one is the influence exerted by Byzantium on the cultural life of Eastern Europe. At different times in their history the peoples who lived in that region “Bulgarians, Albanians, Serbs, Romanians, Ukrainians, and Russians” experienced the lasting impact of Byzantine culture....   [More...]

Orthodox Alaska: A Theology of Mission — Michael J. Oleksa

Includes index and appendices. In 1794, the first Orthodox missionary monks arrived at Kodiak to fond what they believed would be an indigenous Orthodox Church in the New World. They recognized as integral to their mission the defense of Native people who were being abused, exploited and enslaved by an unjust regime. The mission understood its function...   [More...]

Russia, Ritual, and Reform: The Liturgical Reforms of Nikon in the 17th Century — Paul Meyendorff

Historians have generally accepted the ‘official’ interpretation of the reform of the liturgical books conducted in Muscovite Russia in the mid-seventeenth century as a “correction” made on the basis of the ancient Greek and Slavic sources. In fact, the reform was based exclusively on contemporary sources, chiefly the 1602 Venice...   [More...]

Imperial Unity And Christian Divisions: The Church from 450-680 A.D. — John Meyendorff

This systematic account of church history describes the expansion of Christianity in the fifth, sixth, and seventh centuries–from Ireland to the Indian Ocean and from Germany to Nubia. Throughout, the author pinpoints the seeds that produced eventual schisms between the churches of the eastern and western parts of the Christian Roman Empire and...   [More...]

Millennium of Faith: Christianity in Russia Ad 988-1988 — Francis House

In 1988, Russian Christians are publicly celebrating the Baptism of Rus a thousand years ago. Many visitors to Russia report that the churches are overcrowded. Some Western experts estimate that there are at least some thirty million regular Christian worshippers in the USSR. Soviet officials and Russian churchmen frequently affirm that “religion...   [More...]

The Russian Church Under the Soviet Regime 1917-1982 [Two Volume Set] — Dimitry Pospielovsky

The first complete modern history of the Russian Orthodox Church from the revolution to the present day, this unique two-volume work is thoroughly researched original study based on published sources, official Soviet writings, samizdat materials, unpublished biographies, and extensive personal interviews with Russian church leaders and recent émigrés....   [More...]

Pearl of Great Price: The Life of Mother Maria Skobtsova, 1891-1945 — Sergei Hackel

Pearl of Great Price is the moving story of Mother Maria Skobtsova, a nun of the Orthodox Church, who was born into a Russian aristocratic home but who died a martyr’s death in one of Hitler’s concentration camps. In the intervening years, the vicissitudes of life led her through two marriages, childbirth and childrearing, and exile from...   [More...]

The Holy Fire: The Story of the Fathers of the Eastern Church — Robert Payne

“[Payne reveals] the awesome cost of Christian discipleship and [inspires readers] to plunge head-long, with faith and love, into God’s all-consuming fire.” -Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko, Dean Emeritus, St Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary This powerful overview of the theological and spiritual development of the Eastern...   [More...]

The Faith We Hold — Archbisop Paul of Finland

This unpretentious little book was written “to describe Orthodoxy from the inside to those outside.” At the same time, as its author suggests, it may serve as “an Episcopal pastoral letter” for the Orthodox themselves, for it deals with Orthodox faith in its most basic elements, revealing with remarkable simplicity and directness...   [More...]

St. Innocent: Apostle to America —

Back in print! This eminently readable biography traces the course of North America’s beloved Orthodox saint, Innocent of Alaska: his boyhood in Siberia, his call to mission in America, his labors first as a priest and then as a bishop in America and Asia, and his last years as Metropolitan of Moscow. Revealing the many facets of his warm personality...   [More...]