Mount Athos: Microcosm of the Christian East

by Graham Speake (Editor), Kallistos Ware (Editor)

Mount Athos is the spiritual heart of the Orthodox world. From its beginnings in the ninth century it attracted monks from all corners of the Byzantine empire and beyond to experience its seclusion, its sanctity, and its great natural beauty. The first monastery, founded in 963, was an international institution from the start; by the end of the twelfth century separate monasteries had been founded not only for Greeks but also for Georgians, Amalfitans, Russians, Serbs, and Bulgarians. Nationality, however, has rarely counted for much on Athos, and though the Romanians have never secured a monastery for themselves, today they form, after the Greeks, the largest ethnic group. This book tells the story of how these many traditions came to be represented on the Mountain and how their communities have fared over the centuries. Most of the papers were originally delivered at a conference convened by the Friends of Mount Athos at Madingley Hall, Cambridge, in 2009. As far as possible, the authors were chosen to write about the traditions that they themselves represent.

216 pages, Paperback

First published December 4, 2011

Reviews

[Patrick Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of essays (all in English) by a fairly diverse selection of people with some interest in Mount Athos. The first essay, by Dame Averil Cameron, is scholarly and intellectually stimulating (as one would expect). The last essay, by Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, is brilliant, tinged with humour and pathos. The essays in between are of varying quality and often of pretty niche interest. I'm not entirely sure the decision to structure the book based on the different ethnic groups present on the Holy Mountain was entirely fortuitous.