Many readers do not like Anne of Geierstein (1829). Schoolchildren who were obliged to read it are said to have been turned many readers off Walter Scott’s novels altogether. I […]
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Author: Fr Yuhanna Azize
Jacob of Sarug and the Work
When Orage said that “Jesus Christ” used this method (Gurdjieff’s Emissary in New York, 13), he was not defining or limiting Jesus: rather, he was drawing a connection between Gurdjieff’s […]
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Prejudices (St Ephrem)
I have spent some time enjoying the great stock of new volumes on the shelves of the much beloved Fisher Library: it is one of the great innocent delights of […]
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Jasper Dryfesdale (“The Abbot”)
Walter Scott’s 1820 novel, The Abbot, has fared rather better with critics than with the reading public. I am one amateur critic who also likes it, although I would not […]
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The Prayer of the Heart
Gurdjieff taught that techniques such as fasting, confession and prayer were not only valuable but essential for any seeker. Gurdjieff gave few indications about prayer, but he knew of and […]
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The Odes of Solomon: Ode 4
The Fourth Ode of Solomon is enigmatic, and has been studied more than most of the others. I will not go into the history of the study of this Ode, […]
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A Calling, by Abbot William Driscoll (Part Three)
We are still in chapter 6 of Abbot William’s autobiography. It is 1951, and he is a Trappist monk in the USA. We have been speaking of the wisdom inherent […]
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A Legend of the Wars of Montrose by Walter Scott
Why do most commentators undervalue Sir Walter Scott’s short novel, A Legend of the Wars of Montrose (1819)? I wonder if it is not because of the Catholic sympathy he […]
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The Black Dwarf (second and final part)
Having said something about the purpose and possibilities of literature, and introduced Walter Scott’s 1816 novel The Black Dwarf, I shall now discuss its contents. 3. The Issues As stated, […]
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Christmas: An Island in the River of Time
The Season of Christmas is precious, and it grows more precious for us, as each year imperceptibly but surely ages us. We sense that our time on earth is limited, […]
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