Essential reading
If you have an inquiring mind, please feel free to read some of these great books! We have provided some suggestions if you want to purchase them (no links provided). Please note: we make no money by referring any books at all, these are just our recommendations. If you have any questions or recommend any books especially for the new Christian; please feel free to contact us.
good read
Essential reading
If you have an inquiring mind, please feel free to read some of these great books! We have provided some suggestions if you want to purchase them (no links provided). Please note: we make no money by referring any books at all, these are just our recommendations. If you have any questions or recommend any books especially for the new Christian; please feel free to contact us.
Getting started
New Christian
These are just some books that could be beneficial for a new Christian and enquiriing souls.
Becoming Orthodox
A quick introduction to Orthodoxy by Peter Gillquist, an Orthodox convert himself. We recommend that you get through this to get a general understanding of the faith.
The Orthodox Way
A quick introduction to Orthodoxy by Kalistos Ware, an Orthodox convert himself and now a Bishop.
Orthodox Prayer Life: The Interior Way
Saints who experience the power of prayer say it gives them wings to fly: wings of elation from being in proximity with Jesus Christ and relief from the burden of a sinful conscience. Once engulfed in the grace of the Holy Spirit, the person in prayer experiences death to sin, resurrection in the Spirit, and mystical ascension to the Father. The visible touches the Invisible, and joy wells up in the human heart. (bibliography)
Christ the Conqueror of Hell
This in-depth study on the realm of death presents a message of hope held by the first generation of Christians and the early church. Using Scripture, patristic tradition, early Christian poetry, and liturgical texts, Archbishop Hilarion explores the mysterious and enigmatic event of Christ's descent into Hades and its consequences for the human race. (Bibliography)
our services
Bibles & Liturgy books
Some books including the Bible and liturgical books that detail our services.
The Orthodox Bible
The whole Bible with Orthodox commentry and explanations. Really clean and easy to read, especially through the New Testament. We personally use this Bible ourselves for years and never had a problem with it.
Divine Liturgy of St. Basil, St. Cyril, St. Gergory
The actual Coptic liturgy that we use to pray. It is in three languages - English, Arabic and Coptic.
The Agpia (Prayer Book)
The Agpia is an Orthodox prayer book that is used to pray during the day. You can use this a guide for a quick prayer when you need/want to. It's not a hard must to use but it is just a compass for prayer.
Introduction to Liturgical Theology
This books gets into the nitty-gritty of the liturgy to understand what and why we do what we do.
Orthodox Daily
Meditations
Sometimes you need a quick pick me up or little books for daily positivity & spirituality.
Practical Spirituality According to the Desert Fathers Kindle Edition
BORN AGAIN IN BAPTISM, we receive the Holy Spirit which dwells in us, and works in us so that we may reach spiritual perfection, although the Bible tells us what we need to do to reach such perfection and earn Eternal life, it does not tell us how. The Egyptian Desert became a university of this quest for perfection. The Desert Fathers made a science out of this quest, that we now call spirituality. In this university, research was done and experiments were published by many who came to seek the wisdom of those Desert Fathers. Fr Athanasius Iskander borrowed methods and techniques from these Holy Fathers and provided wise instructions on how to practically apply them to the struggles faced by young Orthodox people living in the Twenty First century. (Bibliography)
The Ascetical Homilies of Saint Isaac the Syrian
St. Isaac the Syrian was a wise monk whos sayings have been treasured and loved by Orthodox faithful. We definately love this book though.
A Beginner's Guide to Spirituality
A book about how to start your spiritual journey, with advice from the monks included - and what better way to start to learn about spirituality?
The Jesus Prayer
The Jesus Prayer is the most popular devotional prayer in the Orthodox Church and increasingly popular in the West. A simple and direct method of invoking the mercy of Jesus Christ by repeating his Holy Name, it is a way of obeying St Paul's instruction to "pray always". In an increasingly noisy and frenetic world, the Jesus Prayer offers us an oasis of inner peace and a lifeline back to God.
A silent Patriarch: Kyrillos VI, Life & Legacy
This book is the first scholarly biography of the desert hermit who became a most unlikely patriarch, Kyrillos VI. Until now the details of his life have remained hidden.
a history lesson
History of our faith
A few books that discusses the struggles of the early church.
The Making of the New Testament
An amzing book about the real trials and tribulations of the disciples and the apostles, and how they suffered for Christ. Honestly, they put us to shame.
Primacy in the Church: The Office of Primate and the Authority of Councils (Volume 1)
Speaks about the heiracy of the church, why it is established the way it is and a defence of priesthood/bishops. (Also, there is a volume II)
The Paul Debate: Critical Questions for Understanding the Apostle
St. Paul (Yes, he is a saint), has always been a contrivertial figure and similar to St. John the Baptist, not one to shy away from anything. This book is a good book to read if you're on either side of the aisle.
if you want to go further
Hardmode: advanced Orthodox theology
If you like to get into the Orthodox theology then we recommend you start with these books. These are some of our favourites.
The Christian Old Testament
A small and concise books that shows Christ in the Old Testament.
Orthodox Christian perspective on war
A book that discusses just that: war. A series of articles that discusses conflict from the Old Testament to the attitude of the early Christians to modern day wars (it mentions the Serbian war in 99 and Iraq/Afghanistan). This is a good book for people who are in the armed forces or the police force, or just want to know the Orthodox point of view on conflict. Note: I am actually reading this right now and I am loving it, but it can sometimes be a bit dry. I wouldn't get into this until you have a general undestanding of the faith. As of purchasing this, the hardcover is a little pricey.
videos
Check out some of these amazing Youtube channels
We love some of these Youtube channels, we’re sure that you will too! We are not associated with any of these great content makers (they don’t even know we exist) but we enjoy watching their videos.
If you get a chance to listen to this podcast by His Grace Bishop Suriel, it is amazing, relaxing and super informative!