Review "Wortley has served up not only a translation but, as he calls it, a 'select edition' of the Anonymous Collection of the Apophthegmata Patrum for Cambridge University Press. It is a collection long awaited by scholars, and Wortley is certainly to be commended for, at last, making available both edition and translation of this important but heretofore understudied body of Greek monastic literature." Reviews in Religion and Theology"Beautifully produced with a concise introduction, select bibliography, and index, this volume inspires hope for comparable, even matching, text and translation editions of the other collections ... Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above." G. R. Thursby, Choice'Despite the 'Anonymous' of the title, many of the stories are attached to the names of great monastic saints, but the overall sense is of an almost folkloric world of nameless governors, farmers, ascetics, soldiers, husbands, and wives. There is plenty more research to be done on what this family of texts brings to light, both theological and historical, and this handsomely produced volume is a welcome invitation to further study.' Rowan Williams, Common Knowledge Read more Book Description The first full edition and English translation of the 'Anonymous' collection of The Tales and Sayings of the Desert Fathers. The tales and sayings provide insights into the practice of early Christian monasticism, as the mainly anonymous elders endeavour to explain why they abandoned 'the world' and what might be achieved in 'the desert'. Read more See all Editorial Reviews
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