5 stars!

Excellent !! Informative and well written.

Welcoming Gifts: Sacrifice in the Bible and Christian Life by Jeremy Davis is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand sacrifice in the Old Testament, New Testament and in the Church today. The author does a wonderful job of examining how we commonly perceive sacrifice and then dismantles that perception so thoroughly that by the end of the book you will have a hard time hearing people use the word sacrifice without wanting to give some kind of lecture. The term “sacrifice” in modern usage evokes ideas of loss, pain, blood, death, etc. However, Davis does an exceptional job explaining that sacrifice was a joyous act and more importantly one that fostered communion with God and others. Even for those that have prior understanding that sacrifice always contained some form of meal-sharing will find this book helpful in gaining a much deeper and fuller understanding of sacrifice. The author also helps to reveal how people at the time of Christ would have understood the purpose of their sacrifice. The book can be a bit of a slow read during the analysis of Mosaic Sacrifice (since Leviticus and Numbers were always page turners), however, his analysis of sacrifice in the New Testament and in the Church made it hard to put the book down.



Some may think “Does this matter in my everyday life as a Christian?”. The answer is yes. Davis does a wonderful job not only explaining how sacrifice should be understood, but also WHY it matters. He does this respectfully but unapologetically. In part 4 of this book, covering our sacrifices today, He provides an understanding that sacrifices are at the heart of our Christian faith and yet can be so easily neglected. This is convicting to say the least.



The author's style of writing is engaging and concise. I would recommend this book to any Christian, whether they are coming from a high or low church background. The author uses early church fathers and liturgical excerpts to highlight the understanding early Christians had. Overall, this book is in my top 5 books to recommend to any Christian. Coincidentally, the last book I read also made that list and both of these books were published by Ancient Faith Publishing. Kudos to the publisher on releasing another fabulous book.

It is one of the best books I've ever read for mothers who want to incorporate their faith with motherhood.. I especially enjoyed the "practice" sessions, where the writers encourage you to journal or to take a moment and put some things in practice that can inspire you and help you throughout your day as a mother.. highly recommended for orthodox mothers I wish I had read it earlier.

A beautiful book. One to read and then read again.

It’s not every day that you read a book that shows you the hidden truths of the daily lives of those around you. Secret Turning, a collection of short stories, by Fr. Stephen Siniari, does just that. Each story in this collection holds a secret. Sometimes the secret is made plain from the very first paragraphs; in others its hidden until the last sentence or even afterwards, needing to be puzzled out by the reader. In a handful the secret is widely known but kept quiet by those who are in the know. In one or two, the secret isn’t even known by those who should know. At turns moving and heart-breaking, the beauty and tragedy of the lives of those who attend or live near the parish of St. Alexander the Whirling Dervish parish is opened up to the reader. Be forewarned, these stories reflect the experiences of hard lives at times and involve the gritty realities of a blue-collar community and its residents.

Two stories in particular struck me as incredibly poignant in their own way. The first is “Savvy” wherein Fr. Sianari invites the reader to rediscover the wonder and beauty of the divine liturgy and iconography through the eyes of a little girl—a wonder and beauty that her father finds difficult to comprehend. This was an incredibly beautiful story that left me feeling lifted up and overwhelmed with the joy that the little girl experienced. The second story, which immediately follows, “Money—Sex—Power” takes you in the opposite direction when you are introduced to the horrendous impact one man has on his community and his family in pursuit of the title.

As another review noted, it can be difficult to feel a connection to the characters and to really get into the stories. It took me a few stories to really get into them and to connect with many of the characters. This is not, in my opinion, due to the writing style or content, but rather to the nature of short stories. It can be a bit jarring to jump in and find your footing until you familiarize yourself more with the style and the content.

I highly recommend that anyone picking up this book not rush from one story to the next. Rather read one deliberately and slowly, savor the beauty of the prose and the humanity of the characters. Let it sit with you a while before diving into the next story. Like all short story collections, there were stories that had a greater resonance with me than others. Nevertheless, there is a kernel of truth in each that can be gleaned. Furthermore, I gained a new appreciation for those around me having seen into the lives of the people in this volume. This is certainly a book I will be picking up again the future to re-read again and again.

Bought it as a gift. Arrived fast and was beautiful.

This beautiful book combines simple lyrics and holy message to uplift children into a re-enchanted vision of life lived in giving and thanksgiving in following Christ. The first several phrases are accompanied by lovely and colorful paintings of joyful children enjoying different seasons and types of weather, followed by scenes of children showing love for others, all leading to a moving and intimate concluding scene of Jesus with all the children, He who is the 'Love who came down and cares for us all." The ability to play (by QR code) and sing along with the song is more than just a bonus; rather it is at the heart of the book, and makes it all doubly memorable for youthful hearts of all ages!

Father Stephen has an uncanny knack for making one search their soul and contemplate their relationship with our Creator. If that's his goal he's achieved it. He and his stories are an inspiration to all who seek a closeness to the Creator and our hopeful redemption, so that our spirits will reside in the hereafter.

Never, ever, in my entire career of studying theology (which spans most of my life) have I read a book that describes the rationale and reasoning behind the Old Testament sacrifice system in such a clear, concise, and complete way. Things have clicked for me that never made sense before! The author's use of cultural context and supporting examples from the people groups surrounding Israel was fascinating and eye-opening. Not only that, he goes on to clearly link that same rationale to the New Testament sacrifice of Christ and beyond to our calling as the Church. From the beginning of time to today (literally), this book tells a complete story arguing that what we Westerners think we know about God and His reasoning is wrong. In fact, our modern day usage of the very word "sacrifice" is completely foreign to the people who lived in the day of regular animal sacrifices and offerings. They understood it in a way we have lost.

The writing in this book is fantastic. It's rare that a good theology book also be a page-turner, but I flew through this one. It's not overly technical or verbose, and it explains any quotations from authors who are harder to understand. This is truly an accessible book for the average Christian reader. The tone is respectful and understanding, and the argument is extremely well-thought out. As soon as I would think of a question or counter-argument, Fr. Jeremy was addressing it, oftentimes in the very next paragraph! The appendix on substitutionary atonement was especially helpful. Don't skip that part!

Above all, what makes this book stand apart to me isn't just the strength of the argument but that it takes its conclusions further and shows the reader how to apply the concepts to their lives. More theology books need to do this! It isn't enough to know what the ancients thought of sacrifice or what that does to Christian doctrine: I need to know what this means for how I live my ordinary, Christian life, and Fr. Jeremy spends a quarter of the book explaining just that! His Epilogue even describes three principles that he hopes the reader will take to heart and apply as they finish the book. This is everything I want from my theology books: a good concept explained precisely and simply with guidance on what I should do about what I just read. Fr. Jeremy knocked it out of the park!

I truly did not go into this book expecting to love it as much as I did. It's easily become one of my top 5 must-reads for Orthodox theology. HOWEVER, I do not think it should be limited to the Orthodox. Even though one chapter is devoted to explaining the Divine Liturgy (which will make the most sense to Orthodox Christians), it is written for every Christian everywhere, and every Christian SHOULD read it. My entire perception of God, the faith, and my role in life has changed from reading this, and I do not say that lightly! If you are a Christian, buy this book, tell your library to get it for you, or ask to borrow it from someone RIGHT NOW.

Great bible! the book is durable and the notes are spectacular

A very educational and inspirational book! St. John covers many topics on the Orthodox faith and gives wonderful spiritual advice. A great purchase for anyone who wants learn about Orthodoxy and who needs enlightenment.

Very beautiful and at times quite devastating. I don't want to be too specific about plot details, but I definitely didn't expect this book about a 12 year old girl to resonate so much with me, an adult man. The book feels like it could have been written in 2022: that's how incredibly surreal it feels to read, because the book is so accurate to reality even if our world isn't quite at the level of dystopia portrayed in it. But it has been before, within the last 100 years, and perhaps someday soon it will be once again.

Beyond that, the book hits very hard as a convert living in a mostly secular world. The author clearly has experience practicing Orthodoxy in places where it's seen as esoteric and weird at best and completely hated at worst. Motifs of isolation, the superficiality of society, and most especially death, are everywhere in the novel. These themes are explored in ways that can be quite unsettling due to just how accurate they are to reality. Highly recommended.

If you would like to know what life within a monastery is like (particularly one involving women), this book is outstanding.
If you are spiritual at all, this reading will leave you envious and inspired.

One of the stories in this book made me cry. Not from sadness, but from the joyful longing that C.S. Lewis theorizes comes from seeing a glimpse of heaven. Many of the other stories provided this same feeling: a glimpse of the smallest sliver of heaven. Others made tangible the challenges of our earthly journey. Sometimes I was frustrated by the lack of closure, or wanted more context about the event that was described.

I loved the way Father Stephen would sometimes break into poetry in the middle of a story. It reminded me of the weight carried by the everyday moments of our lives.

I’m not sure if the stories got better as the book went on or if I just appreciated them more as I got used to Father Stephen’s unusual style. I might have to read the book again to check!

Both of these books were well-liked by my family. We are looking forward to more in this series.

I like tbe prayer book. I am not as happy with this one as I was with the previous ones. This one has some things, including prayers, missing. I loved the old version better

I bought this bible for my daughter-in-law. I have enjoyed my Orthodox Study Bible for many years.

Excellent book.

As with Father Stephen Siniari's first collection of short stories, each one is a prayer. A beautiful picture of how our lives intertwine as we travel together towards the Kingdom.