Orthodox Book Recommendations
The following recommendations are introductory in nature. For readings about specific historical or theological topics, including notable writings from church fathers, please send inquiries using the contact link on the website.
The Orthodox Study Bible (Ancient Faith Edition)
This study Bible contains an English translation of the Septuagint Old Testament, the scriptures used by the Jews during the Second Temple Period, at the time of Christ and by Eastern Church to this day, as well as the NKJV of the New Testament. It also contains excellent Orthodox footnote commentaries and short and informative articles on topics with beautiful icons reproductions interspersed throughout the Bible. It comes in hardbound and leather editions.
The Crucifixion of the King of Glory: The Amazing History and Sublime Mystery of the Passion by Eugenia Constantinou
In this work, Dr. Jeannie provides a well-researched and very readable history and theological exploration of the arrest, passion and crucifixion of The Lord Jesus Christ, citing ancient Jewish, Roman and Christian sources. She taps into modern biblical scholarship (and correcting it at times), insights from Jewish, Roman and modern law, as well as modern medical insights, all through the lens of Eastern Christian patristic teaching. Ultimately, this work provides an excellent overview of why God became man, lived, taught, healed and ultimately died for the salvation of the world.
The Orthodox Church by Metropolitan Kallistos Ware (the author’s name is listed as Timothy Ware)
Written by one of the great teachers and popularizers of Orthodoxy in the 20th and early 21st centuries, Bishop Kallistos Ware’s The Orthodox Church is an excellent introductory work that describes the history of the church and its theology and practice.
The Orthodox Faith, Worship and Life by Hieromonk Gregorios
For Orthodox Christians who wish to learn more about their faith, its key beliefs and practices, The Orthodox Faith, Worship and Life is an excellent primer.
The Rock and the Sand: An Orthodox Appraisal of the Protestant Reformers and Their Teachings by Father Josiah Trenham
Orthodox and Christians of other confessions who wish to learn about the development and teachings of the various churches, ought to read this work, especially in light of the question of the oneness of the church and its apostolicity.
The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (multi-volumes) by Jaroslav Pelikan
Pelikan was one of the great church historians of the 20th and early 21st century. I recommend parts 1, 2 and 3 of the series entitled The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600), The Spirit of Eastern Christendom (600-1700) and The Growth of Medieval Theology (600-1300).
Byzantine Theology by John Meyendorff
For the more serious theological inquirer, Byzantine Theology, in just a couple hundred pages, offers a deeper look at historical and doctrinal themes in the Eastern Orthodox faith and illustrates key differences between Eastern and Western approaches to theology.
On Orthodox Spirituality
Regarding books on Orthodox spirituality and Orthopraxis, I hesitate to recommend titles, as my suggestions would be individualized to each person’s knowledge of the faith. Two short and introductory books that will give readers a taste of Orthodox teachings on living the Christian life are:
Indication of the Way into the Kingdom of Heaven by Saint Innocent of Alaska, and The Way of the Ascetics by Tito Colliander. Both are short but beautiful works. Both can be purchased online, or found for free in digital form on the web.
Another is The Mountain of Silence: A Search for Orthodox Spirituality by Kyriacos Markides. In this work, Markides, a Western trained academic, interviews an Athonite monk on practical questions for Christians, monastics and non-monastics alike. Eastern Christianity spirituality is often described as mystical and it is marked by the ascetic and sacramental life described in the Holy Scriptures and seen in the lives of the saints over the millennia. Much of this mystical, ascetic and sacramental life, which is rooted in the apostolic faith, has been lost in our modern culture.