Introduction To Spirituality: A Thematic Approach

Description

Introduction to Syria Spirituality: A Thematic Approach is an introduction to Syriac spirituality by presenting the themes and insights of a selection of major Syriac writers who lived from the fourth to the eighth centuries. Its approach is not to devote separate chapters to each writer, but to present a synthesis of the Syriac writers of this period according to the principal themes founding their body of work. Since many of the authors cited do not write in a systematic and analytical fashion, this work strives to give an orderly presentation of how Syriac spirituality progressed in those early centuries. To provide a context for better understanding the approach of these writers, the first chapter of this work presents a theological context within which Syriac spirituality developed. Besides Syriac writers, the teachings of Evagrius of Pontus have been included because they had a significant influence on many of the writers cited. Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite is also included because some of his ideas were incorporated by Issac of Nineveh and other later Syriac writers.