The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, 2 Volume Set - by John Anthony McGuckin (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

With a combination of essay-length and short entries written by a team of leading religious experts, the two-volume Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodoxy offers the most comprehensive guide to the cultural and intellectual world of Eastern Orthodox Christianity available in English today.

• An outstanding reference work providing the first English language multi-volume account of the key historical, liturgical, doctrinal features of Eastern Orthodoxy, including the Non-Chalcedonian churches
• Explores of the major traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy in detail, including the Armenian, Byzantine, Coptic, Ethiopic, Slavic, Romanian, Syriac churches
• Uniquely comprehensive, it is edited by one of the leading scholars in the field and provides authoritative but accessible articles by a range of top international academics and Orthodox figures
• Spans the period from Late Antiquity to the present, encompassing subjects including history, theology, liturgy, monasticism, sacramentology, canon law, philosophy, folk culture, architecture, archaeology, martyrology, hagiography, all alongside a large and generously detailed prosopography
• Structured alphabetically and topically cross-indexed, with entries ranging from 100 to 6,000 words

From the Back Cover

The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity is an outstanding reference work providing the first English-language multi-volume account of the key historical, liturgical, and doctrinal features of Eastern Orthodoxy, including the Non-Chalcedonian churches.

The Orthodox churches are extensive families of ancient Christianity that derive from apostolic times and took much of their external shape in the Byzantine era. Today they are reemerging after generations of suppression and state persecution in eastern Europe, and now have a growing presence in western Europe. Their voice is that of the largest single block of world Christians after contemporary Roman Catholics, but it is a voice, so far, largely unheard in the West.

Uniquely comprehensive, this two-volume reference work is compiled and edited by one of the leading scholars in the field, and brings together a large panel of internationally respected writers. It explores the major traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy in detail, including the Armenian, Byzantine, Coptic, Ethiopic, Slavic, Romanian, and Syriac churches. Spanning the period from late antiquity to the present, it encompasses key subjects such as history, theology, liturgy, monasticism, sacramentology, canon law, philosophy, folk culture, architecture, archaeology, martyrology, and hagiography. With helpful illustrations, it also includes a valuable Appendix outlining the foundational documents of Orthodox theology.

The Encyclopedia is structured alphabetically and is topically cross-indexed, combining essay-length articles and brief, informative notations on hundreds of topics central to the history and theology of Eastern Orthodoxy. This invaluable new work will appeal to both academic and ecclesiastical groups, and represents a major resource for anyone interested in exploring the full breadth of topics surrounding the Eastern Christian world.

Review Quotes

"The paperback edition is a valuable and affordable resource, which I recommend as a compendium for historians, religionists, and theologians alike." (Religious Studies Review, 4 June 2015)

"In short, this Encyclopedia, is a useful tool that offers valuable basic information on many aspects of the Orthodox world." (Journal of Eastern Christian Studies, 1 March 2014)

"The encyclopaedia as a whole is a remarkable achievement: not, perhaps, completely reliable, but nothing is. The preface by the editor, Fr John McGuckin, is a masterpiece." (Theology, 1 September 2012)

"His monumental work and Leustean's indispensable reference book provide a wealth of knowledge about global Orthodoxy during historical cycles of growth, repression and renewal." (European History Quarterly, 2012)

"By this token, then, the encyclopaedia is a timely value for money product, for those with deep pockets and deep minds." (Reference Reviews, 2012)

"The stated intention of producing an authoritative, scholarly reference work has been realized in a work that will have the greatest utility for researchers at every level. In 30 years of studying Orthodox Christianity, this reviewer has been no comparable work. Summing Up: Essential. Reference collections supporting lower-level undergraduates through researchers/faculty, and general readers. " (Choice, 1July 2011)

"In the preface editor McGuckin expresses his joy in bringing together this two-volume reference - a resource that breaks ground by making accessible comprehensive coverage of a religion that is rising once again after enduring some of the greatest challenges of its history - the 20th-century repressive regimes of eastern Europe." (Booknews, 1 April 2011).

"The stated intention of producing an authoritative, scholarly reference work has been realized in a work that will have the greatest utility for researchers at every level. In 30 years of studying Orthodox Christianity, this reviewer has seen no comparable work. Summing Up: Essential. Reference collections supporting lower-level undergraduates through researchers/faculty, and general readers"(CHOICE, July 2011)

About the Author

John Anthony McGuckin is Nielsen Professor of Early Church History at Union Theological Seminary, and Professor of Byzantine Christian Studies at Columbia University in New York. A Stavrofor priest of the Romanian Orthodox Church in America, Professor McGuckin is the author of more than twenty books on religious and historical themes, including The Orthodox Church (Wiley-Blackwell, 2008), and is widely considered one of the leading experts on Early Christian and Eastern Orthodox traditions writing today.