Lucid writing and a strong grasp of Byzantine history, with an emphasis on the historical rather than spiritual.
Covering a period of nearly 20 years in the author’s life, Karakostas’ writing details his visits to various sites important to Greek Orthodox followers, including Hagia Sophia in modern-day Istanbul and the island of Patmos.
History can inform one’s faith in unexpected ways, although those ways may be more academic than spiritual, according to this slim collection of essays that often succeeds with the historical aspects more than the personal. Karakostas records his personal impressions of the sites covered and provides clear, succinct background on their importance to the Greek Orthodox faith and on how modern events have affected these sites. Using citations, photographs and his own perspective as an American who came to understand his faith later in life, Karakostas also discusses how politics and Western values have combined at times to put the people of Greece at a disadvantage, and he outlines certain nationalistic viewpoints as he perceives them. Although Karakostas doesn’t claim objectivity—his disdain for Turkey, primarily due to its long-standing enmity toward Greece, is thoroughly described—his academic tone does much to lower the temperature on his statements. In blending his personal experiences with thorough historical research, Karakostas reveals his fervor for his ancestry, his faith and the untold millions who came before him who shared his viewpoints and religious beliefs. While the holiness of these sites may not get as much emphasis as Karakostas’ stated thesis forecasts, these short essays capably contextualize their places in history.
Lucid writing and a strong grasp of Byzantine history, with an emphasis on the historical rather than spiritual.Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2013
ISBN: 978-1480179806
Page Count: 102
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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