Search results for: “Dostoevsky “
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Dostoevsky and the Sins of the Nation
Read more: Dostoevsky and the Sins of the NationFor many, the idea that we are somehow responsible for the sins of others, or can repent on their behalf is counter-intuitive and deeply troubling. It is distinctly non individualistic. However, it is a cornerstone of Orthodox devotion. Dostoevsky presented a very popular version of this teaching in the words of the fictitious character, the […]
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Dostoevsky on the Individual
Read more: Dostoevsky on the IndividualThe following passage from The Brothers Karamazov is taken from one of the “Talks and Homilies” of the Elder Zossima – one of the key characters in the novel. His thoughts echo earlier articles here that contrast man as “individual” (isolation) to man as Person (brotherhood and communion). I plan to offer a series of thoughts […]
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Dostoevsky on the Individual
Read more: Dostoevsky on the IndividualThe following passage from The Brothers Karamazov is taken from one of the “Talks and Homilies” of the Elder Zossima – one of the key characters in the novel. His thoughts echo earlier articles here that contrast man as “individual” (isolation) to man as Person (brotherhood and communion). Look at the worldly and at the […]
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Crises, Dostoevsky and the Gospel
Read more: Crises, Dostoevsky and the GospelThere is something of a common thread that runs throughout the novels of Dostoevsky, the 19th century Russian writer: personal crises. Dostoevsky has long been recognized as a genius of psychological perception, writing at a time before psychology was a formal academic discipline. Many of his novels carry a relgious theme, particularly Crime and Punishment […]
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Forgiveness and Paradise – Dostoevsky
Read more: Forgiveness and Paradise – DostoevskyThis small passage from Dostoevsky’s Brothers Karamazov, has always been among my favorites within literature. It is the story of the death of Markel, the brother of Zossima, who will later become a great monastic elder. The words of his brother Markel serve as something of a summary of the elder’s theology and among the […]
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The Pity of God in Dostoevsky
Read more: The Pity of God in DostoevskyThe following passage is scandalous in the extent of its mercy. It is not in the canons – but in Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. Perhaps I love it because many of the men I knew in my early life were more likeMarmaladov (the old drunk) than like others. But this passage has always been a favorite. Forgive […]
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From Dostoevsky – Miracles
Read more: From Dostoevsky – MiraclesFrom Chapter 5 Elders …but it seems to me that Alyosha was even more of a realist than the rest of us. Oh, of coure, in the monastery he believed absolutely in miracles, but in my opinion miracles will never confound a realist. It is not miracles that bring a realist to faith. A true […]
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Thoughts on Dostoevsky
Read more: Thoughts on DostoevskyI have begun re-reading The Brothers Karamazov, this time in the translation by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, which, I am told is a great improvement over earlier efforts. I readily confess to being a great fan of Dostoevsky and easily touched by his novels. I find an occasional brilliance in them that reveals the […]
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If You Love Dostoevsky
Read more: If You Love DostoevskyIf you love Dostoevsky as I do, then you must read this article (actually a lecture) by Donald Sheehan. That’s his picture (which made me want to read the article in the first place – sort of ZZ Tops and Dosteoevsky) Forgive me. But it is exquisite. His own story and Memory Eternal is worth […]
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The Madness of Democracy – A Spiritual Disease
Read more: The Madness of Democracy – A Spiritual DiseaseDostoevsky’s The Demons tells the story of a revolution within the context of a small village and a handful of personalities. The strange mix of philosophy and neurosis, crowd psychology and fashionable disdain for tradition all come together in the madness of a bloodbath. It is a 19th century Helter Skelter that presciently predicted the century to come. Our own […]
I give tours of our Sanctuary rack year during our Lebanese Dinner. It is a unique experience of silence, both…