The Mystery of the Wonderworker of Ostrog by Protopresbyter Radomir Nikchevich
Price: $24.00
Description
"The Mystery of the Wonderworker of Ostrog tells the story of the transformation of a modern-day Serbian youth, Mladjen, from the depths of despair to a life of faith and spiritual enlightenment. Mladjen is mystically called by St. Basil the Wonderworker of Ostrog (+1671) to the Ostrog monastery in Montenegro, where he is confronted by the presence of God, by monks who see into his soul, and by the weight of his sins. During the course of his visit to the Ostrog monastery, Mladjen himself becomes one of the new miracles of Ostrog. A summary of the Christian path to salvation, a chronicle of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the people of Montenegro, and a complete Life of St. Basil of Ostrog form integral chapters in the story of Mladjen’s rebirth. The entire text is overlaid with the evangelical teachings of the Church, the experience of the Holy Fathers, and contemporary stories of many witnesses to the miracles of Ostrog…. The main focus of this book is to paint a true portrait of St. Basil of Ostrog, a faithful likeness of his image, radiating the light of the knowledge of God and the healing power of faith, which soothes both body and soul." --Metropolitan Amfilohije of Montenegro, from the Preface With full-page color photographs interspersed throughout the book, the story of Mladjen and of St. Basil’s heavenly intercession is presented through pictures as well as words. The book is adorned by images of ancient Serbian icons, as well as by photographs of contemporary life in Serbian churches and monasteries. This beautiful, large-format book is a richly layered treasury of Orthodox spirituality, which, taken as a whole, has the power to change lives. 296 pages, 9 x 12 ½ inch format coated paper, profusely illustrated in full-color hardcover with dust jacket, $24 each. ISBN 86-7660-005-8 Published by Svetigora Publishing House, Montenegro. Distributed in the USA by St. Herman Press. All text in English. "As the sacred nest of our holy father St. Basil, Ostrog Monastery has to this day been the scene of an unfolding history of both heaven and earth. It is as if this scenic natural wonder has been biding the centuries, awaiting the moment to finally become the dwelling place for the uncontainable glory of God. Ostrog's natural beauty is transformed into a stage where the mysteries and wonders of God are made manifest in the dramatic unfolding life-stories of countless souls. Through the theanthropic life of St. Basil, the Ostrog cliffs have been transfigured into a new Mt. Sinai, where God again reveals His Name and Image, as He once did to Moses within the burning bush." -- His Grace, Metropolitan AMFILOHIJE of Montenegro and the Littoral "For Serbia, located in the eastern part of Christian Europe, the period after World War II was a time of spiritual devastation and impoverishment such as had never before been seen. With the rise of Communism began the Serbs' estrangement from God and a lengthy period of violence, as son rose against father and brother against brother – or, as one of our contemporary Fathers put it, a time of deicide, patricide and fratricide. Then, in the early 1990s, a spiritual reawakening among the younger generations of Serbs began to take place. Quite suddenly and unexpectedly, burning questions about the meaning and purpose of life began to form in their minds as their despair gave birth to a new life. This new life demanded a truthful answer and an equally truthful fulfillment. And as in the days of old, when our people struggled under the Turkish yoke, it was the Orthodox monastics who had the deepest knowledge of the human heart and infinite love and understanding for the suffering of their wayward flock. They were the only ones who could provide an answer to all their questions. And so it came to pass that those who searched for Love and those who preached Love recognized one another. It was during one such wondrous and, one might say, Biblical encounter between the authors of this book and their spiritual fathers, an encounter which in the following decades matured through spiritual experience and a painstaking rediscovery of our church traditions, that the book The Mystery of the Wonderworker of Ostrog was conceived." -- Hieromonk John (Purich), Abbot of the Ostrog Monastery, Montenegro