This book really helped my wife understand the Orthodox Church and become more open to it. It was recommended by our priest and it has been a great way to talk about the Church. It is very thorough and may take some time to plow through it, but it is worth it. The writing style is approachable and easy to absorb. If you are a catechumen, this is a must read.

This is a pivotal book for catechumens. It helps to clear the scales away of many preconceived notions from other Christian sects about theology and the Church. The pacing of the book feels slow, but if you power through it, you can finish it in a few sittings.

Great little read. Very easy and quick. It is great to get parental advice directly from a saint. This was my first brush with St. Theophan, but I am looking forward to reading more from him and about him.

Great book. The author has a calm and warm writing style that is very accessible. This book really helped me, as a former Evangelical, to start conforming our living space into a "little church."

My first introduction to, not only St. Ignatius, but the lives of the Saints all together. Very well written, concise and clear. It is a fairly quick read with accessible language for anyone looking to dig into the life of an important saint.

This books have been very useful for understanding the why behind the aesthetic disciplines that the Orthodox Church practices. It's nice to have a couple quick reads that can be done in one sitting and still walk away with a lot on the subject. I am looking forward to the third book.

ROTA is one of the most important books on my theology shelf. It fits in a category like systematic theology, without following the general pattern of that type. Helps clear up some misconceptions that my Evangelical background established in my head. I have read it twice in the last year and intend on reading it again, probably this winter. Would like to see this book in a hardcover for longevity.

101 Saints is very descriptive of the lives of the Saints. My wife and I read this to our 3 yo son almost every night. Coming from a former Evangelical background I knew very little about the Saints and this book has been great to learn about our spiritual ancestors in the faith and learn from their lives on how to continue to work out our salvation.

This is a great book and should be on every Christian's bookshelf. Fr. Jeremy does a fantastic job not only talking about the OT sacrifice, but how that relates to our lives today. The writing style is accessible and and descriptive so it makes picking up and reading large chunks of the book easy to do. I will probably be rereading this book in the fall to absorb even more of the exceptional content.

Don't let the title and the size of the book scare you. This book is succinct and easy to read, like a SparkNotes overview of the history of Christianity (plus a few other world religions). Highly recommend!

My only complaint is that I wish this book had existed years ago! Not only does Fr. De Young bridge the cultural and historical gap between the days of the Old Testament and now, he also demonstrates how "the God of the Old Testament" and "the God of the New Testament" are, indeed, the same God. It's a dense read for such a short book, but worth every minute.

Clear, concise, easy to read and comprehend, and a pivotal read in my own journey to the Orthodox Church. Highly recommend, 10/10.

I approached this book anxiously as the problem of violence in the Old Testament has long been something I've struggled with in my walk with Christ. How can the Christ I know, Who has shown me His super-abundant loving-kindness in the midst of my sinfulness time and time again, do what seems like the opposite to so many other sinners (as often recorded in the Old Testament)? Fr. Stephen De Young's book helped answer that question for me in ways I had never heard before (and I've been to Protestant seminary). Using the cultural and spiritual context of the ancient Near East and Orthodox patristic tradition, he opens the Scriptures, especially those hard to stomach passages, in ways that elucidate the nature of God and His love for mankind--even when He has used death and destruction. My patron saint is Thomas the Apostle and, like him, I like to ask the tough questions. Fr. De Young asks many tough questions in this book, though I wish he would asked more and pressed into them more deeply. However, overall, it was a blessing to read this book, understand my faith better, and alleviate some of the tension I felt when faced with the violence in the Scriptures. I highly recommend it!

My daughter really enjoys this book and has asked for it at bedtime on multiple occasions. I can’t say that about any other Orthodox kids book we own! She really enjoys the graphic novel format, and I really enjoyed learning about a saint I’d not heard of before. In fact, I recognized an icon of St Eustathius at a monastery I was visiting thanks to having read this book! Reading it with my daughter has opened up conversations about what martyrdom is and how to handle troubles in our life.

More graphic novels, please, AFP!

Father Thomas Hopko navigates this delicate topic with love, empathy, and thoughtfulness.

Outstanding book. I consider it a must-read for every parent. So beautifully frames the behavior struggles children have as part of their growth toward the Kingdom of God and gives parents practical advice for how to respond in a way that will help both the children and parents grow toward the Kingdom. I loved the examples he shared from how own family life. Enjoyable, helpful, easy to read and encouraging!

Fr Jeremy Davis does an incredible job of highlighting the connection between Old Testament sacrifices and worship as thanksgiving. Coming from a Protestant upbringing, I was often faced with a view of sacrifice as an emblem of necessary death; this book in many ways shows the opposite: sacrifice as an emblem of restoration and love between God and mankind. The chapters outlining Christ’s own sacrifice and how this restores not only relationship but our own conscientiousness personally brought alot of clarity to the nature of atonement. I highly recommend this book to both Orthodox and non-Orthodox readers!

We are young parents with four children. I wish we had this book years ago but praise God for it being in our lives now.

I found this book to be a nice journey.

I will probably re-read because you always miss something on the first read.

Recommended

Exactly what was expected. I’m satisfied with the product.