I am knew to the idea of icons. I think it is very well done even though I have a lot to learn yet. Blessings on your ministry

Quality is not right for the price, going downhill.

As a recent convert I've been deeply aware of "not knowing what I don't know". Not only are there distinct ways of understanding theology, but also familiar terms are understood in a different mindset, or "phronema". I like that Dr. Eugenia Constantinou acknowledges that challenge, giving voice to the struggle of both converts and cradle orthodox to align our thoughts with what the Church has always taught and believed. At one point she references how difficult it is for those who practiced Tae Kwon Do to learn Kung Fu; that it would be easier for one who'd never learned a martial art to master Kung Fu, rather than the one who'd mastered another form thereof. As a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I fully appreciate this analogy. As with other formerly-protestant converts trying to "think Orthodox", I've been trained in western theology all my life; my neural pathways are entrenched with habits of understanding that clash with the altogether distinct Orthodox phronema. I know it will be a lifelong struggle to grow into my Orthodox faith, to acquire an Orthodox mindset, and I appreciate the reminders by Dr. Constantinou to be on guard against theologizing carelessly. This book is quite timely, and I highly recommend it to fellow converts who also feel that they "don't know what they don't know."

This book is an excellent resource for acquiring the Orthodox mindset or as the greek word is called, phronema. Being raised as an Evangelical my entire life and now a catechumen in The Church, I found this book extremely helpful. I believe acquiring this proper phronema early on will help me avoid the many pitfalls that a natural born western minded individual may often fall into. While this book was quite lengthy it was rich with tremendous insight and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to read it. I have highlighted so many sections that I am sure it will be a book I continually refer back to!

Excellent!

I was gifted the audiobook, and enjoyed listening to the story of "The Lion and the Saint." St. Gerasmios of the Jordan is one of my girls' favorite saints. (However it did bother me that the author uses the translation Gerasim instead of Gerasimos - personal preference). The story is told from the perspective of the lion, and his baboon friend, which is a fun and creative angle. The language is rich and descriptive, but the vocabulary was way to advanced for my children, word comprehension is probably upper elementary age and up. Also, although the author narrates very well and gives the characters a clear and distinct voice, the voices she gives to the characters isn't the way I would have done it in my head. I think for me personally, it is a story I would enjoy better reading myself rather than in audiobook format. But overall, an enjoyable listen!

As a recent convert I've been deeply aware of "not knowing what I don't know". Not only are there distinct ways of understanding theology, but also familiar terms are understood in a different mindset, or "phronema". I like that Dr. Eugenia Constantinou acknowledges that challenge, giving voice to the struggle of both converts and cradle orthodox to align our thoughts with what the Church has always taught and believed. At one point she references how difficult it is for those who practiced Tae Kwon Do to learn Kung Fu; that it would be easier for one who'd never learned a martial art to master Kung Fu, rather than the one who'd mastered another form. As a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I fully appreciate this analogy. As with other formerly-protestant converts trying to "think Orthodox", I've been trained in western theology all my life; my neural pathways are entrenched with habits of understanding that clash with the altogether distinct Orthodox phronema. I know it will be a lifelong struggle to grow into my Orthodox faith, to acquire an Orthodox mindset, and I appreciate the reminders by Dr. Constantinou to be on guard against theologizing carelessly. This book is quite timely, and I highly recommend it to fellow converts who also feel that they "don't know what they don't know."

Absolutely beautiful art and on very good cardstock. Well received by family and friends.

Very beautiful music box based on St Basil's Church. Very well made and colorful. Has a lovely Russian folk song. Wish I knew what it was...but very lovely and enjoyable.

Very beautiful and inspirational cards. I used them for my Christmas greetings this year.

In The Age of Divison, John Strickland continues his elaboration of the history of Christian life and practice that lead to a unique and dividing culture known know as Western Christianity. He does this job with the same balance, brilliance, and simplicity in this second volume as in his first, The Age Of Paradise.

With a reasonable recap of the first volume covering the first millennium of Christianity, Strickland continues with the same fundamental themes of Doctrinal Integrity, Divine Participation, Heavenly Immanence, and Spiritual Transformation. (He even covers monks from the same era as were in the first volume’s last chapter, illustrating similar themes, but they are different monks so as to compromise by recapping a theme and era but looking at it with a fresh character’s history.) These four themes, drawn from the book of Acts, help Strickland trace a profound and consistent lineage of Apostolic praxis through the centuries… and where the West departed from them.

Another of the qualities of his writing is that he does his best to elaborate fairly on the characters of history and their decisions. You see the flaws of some of the positively viewed actors, and the reasonable ideas behind the negative contributors to the West. I appreciate that this book did little to lead me to any anger towards the people it attributed broken tradition and novelty to. The West is not demonized by this book, simply mourned and, implicitly, given a proposed direction for recovery.

When some of the historicity is disputed in narratives Strickland refers to, he admits honestly that such things are not set in stone, but shows that even the preoccupation of a certain era with such themes makes his point just as well. Nothing about Strickland’s history feels white-washed, and I don’t feel a need to second guess that he might be offering nothing more than the best-possible-case for his own biased viewpoint.

I also appreciated that this volume used footnotes, rather than endnotes as in the last volume.

Beautiful book. Bought 3 for gifts and one for me! Beautiful prayers!

I was exited to hear about this book and eagerly awaited its release. When the book arrived, my first thought was that perhaps I had bitten off a bit more than I could chew. My fears were quickly put to ease. The book is beautifully written and I am still reading it. The text is easy to read but the material requires quiet time to think over. It emphasized to me that despite my many years as a member of the Orthodox Church, I all too often approach Orthodoxy from the lens of my prior faith perspectives. I need to become more vigilant in continually developing an Orthodox phronema. This will be a book that I will return to time and again for reminders of how to Think Orthodox.

Absolutely outstanding, inspiring, uplifting, clear and prevented in the Love of Christ.

This beautiful illustrated book is perfect for learning and sharing about St. Nicholas. I highly recommend it!

As a person who was raised Jewish and wanting to understand Eastern Orthodox theology, I found Surprised by Christ to be theologically fascinating and very helpful coming from a Jewish background. It helped me to gravitate even more towards a God he describes as loving and committed to our healing.

I was exited to hear about this book and eagerly awaited its release. When the book arrived, my first thought was that perhaps I had bitten off a bit more than I could chew. My fears were quickly put to ease. The book is beautifully written and I am still reading it. The text is easy to read but the material requires quiet time to think over. It emphasized to me that despite my many years as a member of the Orthodox Church, I all too often approach Orthodoxy from the lens of my prior faith perspectives. I need to become more vigilant in continually developing an Orthodox phronema. This will be a book that I will return to time and again for reminders of how to Think Orthodox.

I love Dr. Constantinou’s podcast, “Search the Scriptures” so I was confident that her book Thinking Orthodox would be a worthwhile read and I was not disappointed. She distills what the Orthodox phronema consists of and shines a light on how to attain it in an engaging and accessible way.

I have been a listener of Fr Even’s podcasts In Ancient Faith Radio for several years so was very interested to listen to his audiobook, “Toolkit of Spiritual Growth: a practical guide to prayer, fasting, and Almsgiving.” Even though I am quite familiar with the general principles presented in the book, I found it to be a good place to refine my efforts and to review some of the details where I can focus in my faith. He brought up some interesting aspects that I had not thought of before.

I believe this book would be an excellent resource for priests to use with their catechumens! Fr Even provides the basic details that we all need to know. Fr Even gives a general review of what the church teaches, both the details and the reasons why we do what we do.

I appreciate that Fr Even gives examples from Scripture to help us make connections and as a foundation for understanding. He also has a great awareness of American culture and has a good sense of what will help newcomers in their journey.

I especially hope that clergy will review this book so they can decide if it is useful for their ministry. It wouldn’t be the first book I would use for a person learning about Orthodoxy, but after they have committed to becoming Orthodox, it would be an excellent tool to begin to learn our foundational ascetic disciplines.

Great book, especially if you want to know the heart of the Orthodox Church.