Books by Frederica Mathewes-Green

There are other introductory books about Orthodoxy. This one comprehensively covers the history, theology, and practice without talking over your head. Mathewes- Green takes the original approach of bringing you into a typical church for a series of visits. That is how Christians learned the faith for most of history, by coming into a community and keeping their eyes and ears open. Designed primarily for newcomers to come to understand Orthodoxy and Orthodox Christians, this guide to the faith is also a non-threatening and accessible introduction to people already "e;in the pews."e; Inviting rather than argumentative, this is a book Orthodox Christians will be giving to their friends. "e;Plenty of books deal with Christian theology in weighty and abstruse ways, but few apply the theology so wholly to the everyday lived realities of life, and in such easily accessible prose, as does Welcome to the Orthodox Church. Take warning, though: if you do read this thoughtful, passionate book, you run the risk of having to take the claims of Orthodox Christianity very seriously indeed."e; -Philip Jenkins, Baylor University"e;How do you introduce (Eastern) Orthodoxy? Frederica suggests we treat it as a large, and muchloved, family house. She takes us round it, showing us all the rooms and what goes on in them. . . . There is lots of information, and she deals directly with problems to be encountered. This is a wonderful book."e; -The Very Revd Archpriest Andrew Louth, Durham University, author of Introducing Eastern Orthodox Theology"e;With exhilarating clarity, Frederica Mathewes-Green introduces the profound mystery at the heart of the Orthodox Christian faith, which is also our common inheritance: it is a way of life to be encountered and performed; it is not reducible to a range of propositions to be considered. With great charm and with characteristic wit and humor, she prepares the way for those who arrive at an Orthodox church for services, letting them know what to expect, what to watch for, how to lean in-letting them know how best to open their hearts to this worship that is both ancient and ever new."e; -Scott Cairns"e;In her own warm and engaging way, Frederica takes you on a journey into a strange and exotic world for those unfamiliar with it but a spiritual refuge and oasis for those who have embraced it. This just may be the Church you have been looking for and didn't even know it existed."e; -John Maddex, CEO Ancient Faith Ministries"e;Beautifully written and carefully explained with a heart for the non- Orthodox. As an evangelical, who grew up in the Greek Orthodox Church, until being shipped off to boarding school in England, I found myself longing to revisit the liturgy and traditions of my youth!"e; -Emmanuel Kampouris, Former Chairman & CEO of American Standard Companies, Founder of www.biblemesh.com"e;This excellent book is most valuable because it is more like a friend than a book. It's the voice you hope to hear beside you in church, murmuring explanations and encouragement as you make your journey. I highly recommend it."e; - Rev. Dr. Christopher Metropulos, Executive Director, Orthodox Christian Network, MyOCN.net

Learn to pray the Liturgy of the Hours in the Benedictine monastic tradition.

An invitation to pray as the early Christians once did

RThe Mary that Frederica Mathewes-Green gives us in these winsome texts--a palpably real woman at once humble and exhalted--transcends the differences that persist even today among the main streams of the Christian tradition, not least because this Mary points beyond herself to the ultimate source of our hope and our joy.S--John Wilson, editor "Books & Culture."

Why are modern Christians so indistinguishable from everyone else?How come Christians who lived in times of bloody persecution were so heroic, while we who live in safety are not?How could the first Christians fast valiantly, but we feel deprived without dessert?How did New Testament believers pray without ceasing?How could the early Christian martyrs actually forgive their torturers?What did the Christians of the first centuries know that we don''t?That''s what this book is about.From the author:When I look back at the process of writing The Illumined Heart, I''m amazed all over again at how God directed it. I wrote the whole thing in a week, the week before Christmas, in fact, which is so typically congested with last-minute errands, unpredicatable weather, aches and sniffles. For Orthodox Christians, it''s also a week that we fast from meat and dairy, adding another ball to the juggling act. Yet somehow I started writing the book on Monday morning and completed it Sunday night, just fourteen minutes after the Christmas Eve service began. (I kept wondering where in the week I''d dawdled and lost that fourteen minutes.)It''s no wonder that I look at The Illumined Heart as the one out of all of my books that felt the most God-directed. Mostly, he told me when to shut up. For a cup-runneth-over writer like me, starting a book is like moving into mid-pregnancy and putting on those stretch-front trousers for the first time; they''re like a license to eat. And knowing that I have room to write on and on, whatever comes to mind, makes for abundant, wandering prose. Yet The Illumined Heart is quiet, proportional, just-enough; it''s like a jewel. It''s no wonder that this is a personal favorite among my own books, and the one I must urge people to read. I''m pleased by the amount of good work it''s done so far, and hope that it will continue to do much more.

Frederica Mathewes-Green became an unexpected companion on her husband's pilgrimage into a faith that is as novel to us in the West as it is ancient in the East. Like many Americans seeking a deeper faith, Mathewes-Green and her family found in Eastern Orthodoxy a faith both demanding and offering more in true devotion and spirituality. In this luminous, affectionate, and deeply personal account of her pilgrimage, Mathewes-Green reveals a church strongly rooted in the teachings of its early fathers and a tradition of principle and great beauty that has endured throughout the centuries. Following the framework of the Orthodox calendar - from Lent to Pascha to Nativity, from Vespers to feasts to fasts - Mathewes-Green chronicles a year in the life of her small Orthodox mission church. Discovering the splendor and solemnity of Orthodox ritual, exploring the daunting majesty of Orthodox services and customs, and sharing their daily anxieties, disappointments, and delights, the Mathewes-Green family and the members of the Holy Cross Mission Church reveal both the intricacies of Orthodox belief and the deep joy they have found in their new faith. At once entertaining, hilarious, and reverent, Facing East is an unforgettable portrait of the human vitality and divine essence of Eastern Orthodoxy.