John of Ephesus (d. 587)
John of Ephesus (d. 587) One of the famous dignitaries of his time and the author of interesting historical writings, he was an indefatigable and industrious man, and above all, a propagandist and active missionary of Christianity.246 John was most likely born at Agel in the province of Amid around the year 507. He came close to death when he was two years old, but was healed by the prayer of Mar Marun, the stylite ascetic in the Monastery of Ara Rabtha (The Great Land) at Agel. When he was four years old, his family sent him to Marun’s monastery in compliance with the ascetic’s...
Read MoreHieromonk Alexander Golitzin: ‘The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian’ / Hilarion Alfeyev
Hilarion Alfeyev, The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian. Cistercian Studies Series, Number 175. Kalamazoo MI and Spencer MA: Cistercian Publications, 2000. Pp. 321 . “At last,” writes Bishop Kallistos Ware in his foreword to this second book by Fr. Hilarion Alfeyev, “we have at our disposal a single book in English, offering us a balanced and comprehensive overview of St. Isaac’s life, background, and teaching” (11). The bishop’s exclamation is well taken. One of the extraordinary lacunae in the study of Eastern Christianity is the lack, up to now, of any major study of Isaac...
Read MoreROLE OF THE NESTORIANS AS THE CONNECTING LINK BETWEEN GREEK AND ARABIC MEDICINE* / ALMEN 0. WHIPPLE
This paper deals with a period of history which is rather difficult to define, for its study includes the last part of the ancient period and the early centuries of the Middle Ages. Even from the point of view of Mediterranean culture it is difficult to say when ancient thought ended and medieval thought began. If the Fathers of the Church ushered in the medieval period and ended pagan civilization, their chief accomplishment, considered from the standpoint of science and world culture, lay in the fact that they created a new contact between Greek and Oriental thought. It is important to...
Read MoreMar Philoxenus of Mabug (d. 523) (History of Syriac Literature and Sciences) by Patriarch Ignatius Aphram Barsoum Translated By Dr. Matti Moosa
Mar Philoxenus of Mabug (d. 523) Philoxenus was a master of eloquence and a distinguished philologist. An outstanding person in intelligence, knowledge and deeds, he was also abstinent and God-fearing. His style was stately, lucid. He masterfully portrayed good manners and sublime Christian virtues, producing a book on the perfect life which contains much and is written in an infinitely beautiful style. Philoxenus thoroughly studied the origin of religion. Read his book on The Trinity and the Incarnation, and you will find this master well-versed in theological matters and fathoming their...
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