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The Way of the Seven Fold Secret
A famous 20th-century booklet, circulated especially in North Africa.
Translated from the original Arabic, originally published in both languages in 1926.
Translated from the original Arabic, originally published in both languages in 1926.
Unknown Binding
First published July 1, 1926
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About the author
I. Lilias Trotter
23 books39 followersIsabella Lilias Trotter was an artist, author, and a Christian missionary for over 38 years to the Muslims of Algeria.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 3, 2025
Before Rhonda Byre published her bestselling novel/blockbuster movie, The Way of the Sevenfold Secret was born. Author “Miss Lilias Trotter has long been known as one who, to a most unusual degree, has been gifted with the power to express in simple, clear and moving words the truths of God as revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” In this hidden theological gem, Trotter identifies seven “secrets” of the Christian life, and “His is the Name that gives access.”
“First we saw Him in His Incarnation, as the Bread that came down from heaven. And in the Light of the World we saw Him as revealing the knowledge of God brought down to our understanding. In the image of the Door we saw how ‘He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself,’ and in the similitude of the Good Shepherd we learn how those who enter by the Door become His sheep: and in that of the Resurrection and the Life, He tells us how by His rising from the dead He has brought us inward deliverance.”
The sevenfold secret is reflected in the fruit of the Spirit: “Truly these are as a cluster of beautiful grapes, and they are fruit that ripens in the busy life of the world, not in the cell of the hermit, just as in the vineyard, fruit needs the free air wherein to grow, with its sunshine and storms, not a closed up room.” As believers, we are called to be rays “like the sun that is one in the heavens but which multiplies itself into a thousand little suns in the ripples of the water below, if the day is cloudless.”
"Our dream is of a future where the Christian mystic shall go after the Muslim mystic, and that thus these Brotherhood men, when their thirst has been quenched by the living water, may be drawn into their own development on Christian lines, and bring into the compacting of the Church an element that no others can offer."
“First we saw Him in His Incarnation, as the Bread that came down from heaven. And in the Light of the World we saw Him as revealing the knowledge of God brought down to our understanding. In the image of the Door we saw how ‘He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself,’ and in the similitude of the Good Shepherd we learn how those who enter by the Door become His sheep: and in that of the Resurrection and the Life, He tells us how by His rising from the dead He has brought us inward deliverance.”
The sevenfold secret is reflected in the fruit of the Spirit: “Truly these are as a cluster of beautiful grapes, and they are fruit that ripens in the busy life of the world, not in the cell of the hermit, just as in the vineyard, fruit needs the free air wherein to grow, with its sunshine and storms, not a closed up room.” As believers, we are called to be rays “like the sun that is one in the heavens but which multiplies itself into a thousand little suns in the ripples of the water below, if the day is cloudless.”
"Our dream is of a future where the Christian mystic shall go after the Muslim mystic, and that thus these Brotherhood men, when their thirst has been quenched by the living water, may be drawn into their own development on Christian lines, and bring into the compacting of the Church an element that no others can offer."
April 29, 2021
This is a wonderful and delightful book about our Union with God.
Isabella Lilias Trotter (14 July 1853 – 27 August 1928) was an artist and a Protestant missionary to Algeria. In May 1887 Lilias felt that God was calling her to be a missionary in North Africa and she moved to Algeria in 1888, at the age of 35.
This little gem was written specifically for Sufi Muslims, that is Muslims influenced by mysticism and who are longing for Union with God. Lilias based “The Way of the Sevenfold Secret” on Christ's seven 'I Am' sayings in John's gospel. Satisfaction (Bread), Illumination (Light), access (Door), Leadership (Shepherd), life (Resurrection and Life), progress (Way), and the ultimate union (Vine).
I don’t know a lot about Sufi mysticism other than there are many orders, but I have read that Lilias links the seven ‘I Am’ statements to the traditional seven steps taken by members of Sufi orders in their quest for Union with God.
All I can say is that this little book is beautiful in so many ways and well worth a read. It could easily be used as a devotional for a week taking one saying per day.
The book is available here: https://liliastrotter.com/wp-content/...
There is also a documentary about her life here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g0VX...
Isabella Lilias Trotter (14 July 1853 – 27 August 1928) was an artist and a Protestant missionary to Algeria. In May 1887 Lilias felt that God was calling her to be a missionary in North Africa and she moved to Algeria in 1888, at the age of 35.
This little gem was written specifically for Sufi Muslims, that is Muslims influenced by mysticism and who are longing for Union with God. Lilias based “The Way of the Sevenfold Secret” on Christ's seven 'I Am' sayings in John's gospel. Satisfaction (Bread), Illumination (Light), access (Door), Leadership (Shepherd), life (Resurrection and Life), progress (Way), and the ultimate union (Vine).
I don’t know a lot about Sufi mysticism other than there are many orders, but I have read that Lilias links the seven ‘I Am’ statements to the traditional seven steps taken by members of Sufi orders in their quest for Union with God.
All I can say is that this little book is beautiful in so many ways and well worth a read. It could easily be used as a devotional for a week taking one saying per day.
The book is available here: https://liliastrotter.com/wp-content/...
There is also a documentary about her life here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g0VX...
October 28, 2021
This book is absolutely lovely. I was encouraged to rely on Christ's sufficiency even more myself, and you can tell how much Lilias loves the Sufis, understands their religion, and sees how through the gospel Jesus meets the longings of their hearts.
The Way of the Sevenfold Secret is also more straightforwardly Scriptural than much of Lilias's other writing that relies more on metaphors drawn from nature. It is rich and beautiful.
The Way of the Sevenfold Secret is also more straightforwardly Scriptural than much of Lilias's other writing that relies more on metaphors drawn from nature. It is rich and beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews