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

For Lent, a turn from politics toward the history and theology of ten men who formed Christianity.

The written version of this review can be found here: https://theworthyhouse.com/2023/03/23/the-holy-fire-the-story-of-the-fathers-of-the-eastern-church-robert-payne/

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"It’s Lent, so let’s spend a little time away from politics. The Holy Fire, first published in 1957, when Eastern Orthodoxy had zero presence in the religious consciousness of most of America, is a beautifully-written popular history of ten towering eastern Fathers of the Church. Popular history in 1957 is not comparable to popular history in 2023, however, so this book reads like what might be an advanced college text today, if colleges studied anything worthwhile. Regardless, Payne’s book is an outstanding introduction to Orthodoxy in historical context, which is, no doubt, why St. Vladimir’s Press republished it." . . .