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Thirty Steps to Heaven: The Ladder of Divine Ascent for All Walks of Life
Many laypeople have attempted to read the great spiritual classic, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, but have been frustrated in attempting to apply the lessons of this monastic text to their everyday lives in the world. In Thirty Steps, Archimandrite Vassilios interprets the Ladder for the ordinary Christian without sacrificing any of its beauty and power. Now you too can accept the challenge offered by St. John Climacus to ascend closer to God with each passing day.
256 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
August 3, 2014
Probably for most of us reading THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCENT really is spiritually a step over our heads. Besides it was written by a monk and for monks, not really for the average parishioner. Archimandrite Vassilios brings the book down from heaven to earth and makes its themes accessible to our daily lives in the 21st Century. Those who like the depth of THE LADDER will find it perhaps too much on a popular level, but for many parishioners it will be a good introduction to this literature and a challenge as to how to live the faith daily
April 26, 2014
This meditation on the Ladder of Ascent is marvelous. The title sounds as if it's some extended 12-step (30-step?) program or road to heaven, but it is not. Mystics plumb their own spiritual life in the context of liturgy, patristics, their own context as well as the guide from any psiritual guide. This provides the basic bedrock on which to review the truth of one's spiritual progress or context.
I believe that I will re-read the volume next Lent.
I believe that I will re-read the volume next Lent.
August 4, 2015
This is one of those books you can read again and again. It took forever to read, because I had to go back and re-read parts. Great spiritual reading.
April 17, 2022
VERY great accompaniment to Lent. I hope to read the original next year. It makes for a great examination of conscience.
April 13, 2025
Excellent! I think everyone could read this and be helped by it. The author includes lots of powerful selections from The Ladder, but also helps to explain them and apply them to the ordinary reader living in the world.
I hope to come back to this again in a few years. it is a book that deserves to be read more than once.
I hope to come back to this again in a few years. it is a book that deserves to be read more than once.
January 15, 2025
One of my favorite books that I’ve read. Excellent.
April 29, 2014
Before I review, Thirty Steps to Heaven, I think I should clarify what The Ladder of Divine Ascent is for those unfamiliar with it. The Ladder is an ascetical treatise, intended for monastics, on how to obtain salvation. It was written in the 7th Century by Fr. John of Sinai (also known as Climacus, meaning of the Ladder), and is traditionally read by monastics every Great Lent. There are currently two versions in print. I prefer the one from Holy Transfiguration Monastery as it is a nice hardcover, has verse numbers and has other useful texts inside. The other version is printed by Paulist Press and contains an introduction by Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, possibly worth buying just for the introduction. Fr. Papavassiliou, the author of Thirty Steps to Heaven, chose the Paulist Press edition for quoting in his book.
Knowing this about The Ladder of Divine Ascent, why would a non-monastic want to read this book? Better yet, how could he ever hope to understand it or apply it to his life? Enter Fr. Papavassiliou and his wonderful book, Thirty Steps to Heaven. Aimed at the non-monastic, this book takes excerpts from the thirty rungs of The Ladder and then applies them to one's daily life. The first thing I like about this book is how the author divides the rungs of The Ladder into seven sections:
The Break with the World
The Fundamental Virtues
The Spiritual Passions
The Physical Passions
The Spiritual Passions (continued)
The Higher Virtues
Union with God
Doing this not only provides logical breaks, but it also focuses the reader's mind on the goal of each section as they ascend The Ladder. I must admit that the first section alone, The Break with the World, was enough to knock me to my knees. These first three steps focus on detachment from the world, renunciation (or not longing from the world you just detached yourself from), and exile (or humility and not seeking glory in anything we do). After reading these steps, I experienced both a longing to climb these three steps and doubt on whether or not I was able to.
Another thing I appreciate about this book is that it can be read as a stand-alone book, not just in conjunction with The Ladder. With extensive quotes, an easily-read explanation of each rung, and a humble tone, Fr. Papavassiliou makes this difficult ascetical treatise available to the laity, like myself. I think the step that hit home the most for me dealt with talkativeness. "Talkativeness is the throne of vainglory on which it loves to preen itself and show off. Talkativeness is a sign of ignorance, a doorway to slander, a leader of jesting..." The quote goes on to further tell the evils of talkativeness, and all I keep thinking to myself is, Amen. Teach me intelligent silence, Lord.
I find myself picking up this book and re-reading the same step several times per day, letting more knowledge sink in each time. I will soon pick up The Ladder again, with this book by its side, and read with hopefully a little less frustration and a little more understanding. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to all, no matter if you are Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant. It is the perfect book for Lent, but can honestly be read at any time of the year. May we all ascend The Ladder which leads to Paradise. Also, be sure to purchase, Fr. Papavassiliou's next book, Meditations for Holy Week. There's a preview in the back of this book, and it looks just as awesome as Meditations for Advent and Meditations for Great Lent.
Knowing this about The Ladder of Divine Ascent, why would a non-monastic want to read this book? Better yet, how could he ever hope to understand it or apply it to his life? Enter Fr. Papavassiliou and his wonderful book, Thirty Steps to Heaven. Aimed at the non-monastic, this book takes excerpts from the thirty rungs of The Ladder and then applies them to one's daily life. The first thing I like about this book is how the author divides the rungs of The Ladder into seven sections:
The Break with the World
The Fundamental Virtues
The Spiritual Passions
The Physical Passions
The Spiritual Passions (continued)
The Higher Virtues
Union with God
Doing this not only provides logical breaks, but it also focuses the reader's mind on the goal of each section as they ascend The Ladder. I must admit that the first section alone, The Break with the World, was enough to knock me to my knees. These first three steps focus on detachment from the world, renunciation (or not longing from the world you just detached yourself from), and exile (or humility and not seeking glory in anything we do). After reading these steps, I experienced both a longing to climb these three steps and doubt on whether or not I was able to.
Another thing I appreciate about this book is that it can be read as a stand-alone book, not just in conjunction with The Ladder. With extensive quotes, an easily-read explanation of each rung, and a humble tone, Fr. Papavassiliou makes this difficult ascetical treatise available to the laity, like myself. I think the step that hit home the most for me dealt with talkativeness. "Talkativeness is the throne of vainglory on which it loves to preen itself and show off. Talkativeness is a sign of ignorance, a doorway to slander, a leader of jesting..." The quote goes on to further tell the evils of talkativeness, and all I keep thinking to myself is, Amen. Teach me intelligent silence, Lord.
I find myself picking up this book and re-reading the same step several times per day, letting more knowledge sink in each time. I will soon pick up The Ladder again, with this book by its side, and read with hopefully a little less frustration and a little more understanding. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to all, no matter if you are Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant. It is the perfect book for Lent, but can honestly be read at any time of the year. May we all ascend The Ladder which leads to Paradise. Also, be sure to purchase, Fr. Papavassiliou's next book, Meditations for Holy Week. There's a preview in the back of this book, and it looks just as awesome as Meditations for Advent and Meditations for Great Lent.
October 28, 2015
This book is a great way to get introduced to John Climacus' 'Ladder of Divine Ascent'. The book is about taking a personal inventory and letting go of unhealthy attitudes and attachments while simultaneously replacing them with healthy thought patterns and virtues. It does a great job analyzing both spiritual sickness and health. The only thing it lacks on a bit is the 'how'of transition/transformation, though it does touch on it in some areas more than others.
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February 26, 2018Holy Smokes! Since this is about making progress in our spiritual lives, and because I'm not sure that I will ever make it past step one, when will I finish this book? I keep re-reading chapters one and two, and have peeked at chapter three, but goodness, I have work to do.
Off to pray! :)
Off to pray! :)
June 2, 2017
This is an excellent book for lay people to understand how "The Ladder of Divine Ascent" by St John Climacus can apply to everyday Christian Spiritual Growth. Written in a very readable fashion. Highly Recimmended.
November 15, 2018
This is one of those books that I will actually hold on to- and I am a vague "minimalist." It's dog-eared and, if i'd had a highlighter, would be rather neon!
A good guide for any person - Christian or otherwise - on just how to be a good person. An easy read and worth your time.
A good guide for any person - Christian or otherwise - on just how to be a good person. An easy read and worth your time.
May 1, 2016
What a wonderful book. I found this interpretation of the ladder of divine ascent to be easy to approach while I was challenged and blessed at every step.
March 14, 2019
Every Lent, the Church challenges us to examine ourselves, repent, and make changes. On the fourth Sunday of Great Lent, the example set before us is that of St. John of the Ladder (John Climacus). His handbook on the spiritual struggle of monks, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, was written in the 7th century while John was abbot of the Monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai.
For the lay person, the Ladder can be an intense and even off-putting read. It is the result of St. John’s years of intense prayer and ascetic struggle against the false self, as well as the heights of insight he attained through God’s grace. However, the Church recommends him to us annually and St. John himself makes frequent reference to the life of those in the world. It is undeniable his struggle, the monk’s struggle, is in some very real way our struggle as well. Thirty Steps to Heaven breaks down Climacus’ work into a penetrating examination suitable for each of us, whatever our stage of life or state of spirit. It can be read on its own or, even better, as a first step before tackling the Ladder itself.
The thirty chapters of both books are characterized as rungs on a ladder through which we ascend towards our own divinization and the embrace of Christ. Many times, commentaries and sermons on the Ladder focus on the struggle to overcome worldly passions and free ourselves from self-delusion as to our spiritual attainments. While these “negative” reminders are necessary, what is the positive promise that the Ladder and Thirty Steps is leading us to? Why should I undertake the task? What is the goal of the struggle? It is nothing less than to become the beloved of God, entering into a relationship of divine eros, where love is joyfully and completely consuming.
Fr. Vassilios explains:
If God is infinite, and if ‘God is love,’ then love is infinite, which means we will never reach the end of it. Even in the eternal life to come, we shall be forever increasing in love, forever plunging the infinite depths of God. Thus St. John describes love as the progress of eternity: ‘Love has no boundary, and both in the present and in the future age we will never cease to progress in it, as we add light to light.’ Each step of the Ladder can be understood as a progression in divine love, and with each step we come a little closer to the Trinity. Love is not only the final step of the Ladder, but every step of our divine ascent into the Kingdom of heaven.
For the lay person, the Ladder can be an intense and even off-putting read. It is the result of St. John’s years of intense prayer and ascetic struggle against the false self, as well as the heights of insight he attained through God’s grace. However, the Church recommends him to us annually and St. John himself makes frequent reference to the life of those in the world. It is undeniable his struggle, the monk’s struggle, is in some very real way our struggle as well. Thirty Steps to Heaven breaks down Climacus’ work into a penetrating examination suitable for each of us, whatever our stage of life or state of spirit. It can be read on its own or, even better, as a first step before tackling the Ladder itself.
The thirty chapters of both books are characterized as rungs on a ladder through which we ascend towards our own divinization and the embrace of Christ. Many times, commentaries and sermons on the Ladder focus on the struggle to overcome worldly passions and free ourselves from self-delusion as to our spiritual attainments. While these “negative” reminders are necessary, what is the positive promise that the Ladder and Thirty Steps is leading us to? Why should I undertake the task? What is the goal of the struggle? It is nothing less than to become the beloved of God, entering into a relationship of divine eros, where love is joyfully and completely consuming.
Fr. Vassilios explains:
If God is infinite, and if ‘God is love,’ then love is infinite, which means we will never reach the end of it. Even in the eternal life to come, we shall be forever increasing in love, forever plunging the infinite depths of God. Thus St. John describes love as the progress of eternity: ‘Love has no boundary, and both in the present and in the future age we will never cease to progress in it, as we add light to light.’ Each step of the Ladder can be understood as a progression in divine love, and with each step we come a little closer to the Trinity. Love is not only the final step of the Ladder, but every step of our divine ascent into the Kingdom of heaven.
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May 13, 2021Every Lent, the Church challenges us to examine ourselves, repent, and make changes. On the fourth Sunday of Great Lent, the example set before us is that of St. John of the Ladder (John Climacus). His handbook on the spiritual struggle of monks, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, was
written in the 7th century while John was abbot of the Monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai.
For the lay person, the Ladder can be an intense and even off-putting read. It is the result of St.
John’s years of intense prayer and ascetic struggle against the false self, as well as the heights of insight he attained through God’s grace. However, the Church recommends him to us annually and
St. John himself makes frequent reference to the life of those in the world. It is undeniable
his struggle, the monk’s struggle, is in some very real way our struggle as well. Thirty Steps to Heaven breaks down Climacus’ work into a penetrating examination suitable for each of us, whatever our stage of life or state of spirit. It can be read on its own or, even better, as a first step before tackling the Ladder itself.
The thirty chapters of both books are characterized as rungs on a ladder through which we ascend towards our own divinization and the embrace of Christ. Many times, commentaries and sermons on the Ladder focus on the struggle to overcome worldly passions and free ourselves from self-delusion as to our spiritual attainments. While these “negative” reminders are necessary, what is the positive promise that the Ladder and Thirty Steps is leading us to? Why should I undertake the task? What is the goal of the struggle? It is nothing less than to become the beloved of God, entering into a relationship of divine eros, where love is joyfully and completely consuming.
Fr. Vassilios explains:
If God is infinite, and if “God is love,” then love is infinite, which means we will never reach the end of it. Even in the eternal life to come, we shall be forever increasing in love, forever plunging the infinite depths of God. Thus St. John describes love as the progress of eternity: ‘Love has no boundary, and both in the present and in the future age we will never cease to progress in it, as we add light to light.’ Each step of the Ladder can be understood as a progression in divine love, and with each step we come a little closer to the Trinity. Love is not only the final step of the Ladder, but every step of our divine ascent into the Kingdom of heaven.
written in the 7th century while John was abbot of the Monastery of St. Catherine in Sinai.
For the lay person, the Ladder can be an intense and even off-putting read. It is the result of St.
John’s years of intense prayer and ascetic struggle against the false self, as well as the heights of insight he attained through God’s grace. However, the Church recommends him to us annually and
St. John himself makes frequent reference to the life of those in the world. It is undeniable
his struggle, the monk’s struggle, is in some very real way our struggle as well. Thirty Steps to Heaven breaks down Climacus’ work into a penetrating examination suitable for each of us, whatever our stage of life or state of spirit. It can be read on its own or, even better, as a first step before tackling the Ladder itself.
The thirty chapters of both books are characterized as rungs on a ladder through which we ascend towards our own divinization and the embrace of Christ. Many times, commentaries and sermons on the Ladder focus on the struggle to overcome worldly passions and free ourselves from self-delusion as to our spiritual attainments. While these “negative” reminders are necessary, what is the positive promise that the Ladder and Thirty Steps is leading us to? Why should I undertake the task? What is the goal of the struggle? It is nothing less than to become the beloved of God, entering into a relationship of divine eros, where love is joyfully and completely consuming.
Fr. Vassilios explains:
If God is infinite, and if “God is love,” then love is infinite, which means we will never reach the end of it. Even in the eternal life to come, we shall be forever increasing in love, forever plunging the infinite depths of God. Thus St. John describes love as the progress of eternity: ‘Love has no boundary, and both in the present and in the future age we will never cease to progress in it, as we add light to light.’ Each step of the Ladder can be understood as a progression in divine love, and with each step we come a little closer to the Trinity. Love is not only the final step of the Ladder, but every step of our divine ascent into the Kingdom of heaven.
May 31, 2019
Wow. What a mind-blowing book! If I could, I’d give this book more than 5 stars. I really like that the author of this book was able to so clearly write on the depth of the Christian Way. This is truly in stark contrast to the simplicity of what some people think the Christian spiritual life is like. The Christian life is more than just the surface level understand of the Scriptures. There’s a richness and depth to it that the author of this book does a great job writing on. Using The Ladder of Divine Ascent as his guide, the author really breaths a breath of fresh air into it, especially when making its concepts understandable to those of us who still live in the world (as opposed to monastics, who were the original audience of The Ladder). I think this is a misunderstanding on my end, but I thought this book would be more practical, and I thought the author should have expounded more on some practical ways to implement each step. At some steps, he did provide more practical guidance, however, especially towards the last few chapters. I also thought it would have been nice if he had ended the book with some kind of encouraging note, because after reading this book, I felt a bit overwhelmed at my smallness, my distance from God, and at so many things I still need to do to get my spiritual life on the right track. Yet, I was not left in despair. In many areas of my spiritual life, actually, this book was very healing for me. Truly, an eye-opening book that I hope to not only read again, but to use the concepts in it throughout my life.
January 9, 2019
Thirty Steps To Heaven is Vassilios Papavasssiliou’s pragmatic commentary of an ancient work by St. John Climacus “The Ladder” where we are shown a ladder that reaches from our mundane way of being towards the light and life of God in heaven. Each rung focuses in on a particular kind of virtue and practice that brings us closer toward perfect communion with the divine.
Often times in Christianity, we sell ourselves short by believing a message of inadequacy; we believe that we will always be draped in a sinful behavior and that attaining a type of holy perfection is impossible. Perhaps we are forgetting the power of Christ in us. Vassilios understands this and holds us toward a very real and attainable way of being: “Repentance does not mean giving up our passions, but mastering them. The passions are absolutely essential to spiritual life”. This is a powerful way of thinking about ourselves, for it's not that we are intrinsically evil, but that we are pointed in the wrong direction. Our passions are true, but how we go about fulfilling those passions constantly leaves us wanting more. This is ultimately the hollow promise of sin.
I enjoyed Vassilios language surrounding repentance as a “Baptism of tears” because it puts forth the ideas that our tears are a type of flood washing away the dead parts of us, or perhaps even a “red sea” for us to cross to liberate us from our captivity to foreign and earthly powers. Repentance then should be a perpetual activity of the Christian, in fact Vassilios goes so far as to say that when we harbor anger in our heart toward a brother we are depriving the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
I commend Vassilios work and look forward to contemplating the ladder in my own life.
Often times in Christianity, we sell ourselves short by believing a message of inadequacy; we believe that we will always be draped in a sinful behavior and that attaining a type of holy perfection is impossible. Perhaps we are forgetting the power of Christ in us. Vassilios understands this and holds us toward a very real and attainable way of being: “Repentance does not mean giving up our passions, but mastering them. The passions are absolutely essential to spiritual life”. This is a powerful way of thinking about ourselves, for it's not that we are intrinsically evil, but that we are pointed in the wrong direction. Our passions are true, but how we go about fulfilling those passions constantly leaves us wanting more. This is ultimately the hollow promise of sin.
I enjoyed Vassilios language surrounding repentance as a “Baptism of tears” because it puts forth the ideas that our tears are a type of flood washing away the dead parts of us, or perhaps even a “red sea” for us to cross to liberate us from our captivity to foreign and earthly powers. Repentance then should be a perpetual activity of the Christian, in fact Vassilios goes so far as to say that when we harbor anger in our heart toward a brother we are depriving the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
I commend Vassilios work and look forward to contemplating the ladder in my own life.
August 19, 2021
I bought it because someone I know was reading it during Lent. I'm on my second time through. Richest outline of the task of spiritual formation I've seen -- although since I've spent most of my adult life as an evangelical Protestant, I haven't had access to much that represents such a deep well of communal thought. Highly recommend to anyone seeking to grow in their Christian life. Caveat: Orthodox spirituality does not hold the "once saved, always saved" posture of Western Protestant faiths, so if offended by the idea it is possible to lose God's favor, there will be moments when this book offends you. Winsomely written. And remarkably free of the gendered experience bias of books / sermons in the evangelical world. This is actually written to all of God's people. Amen. Thanks be to God.
June 29, 2024
This book expounds upon the spiritual classic, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, and each chapter explores a different virtue to be cultivated by the everyday Christian. Written by an Orthodox Christian, so there are some statements about icons, saints, angels, and Mary with which I disagree. But there’s also helpful reflections what spiritual maturity looks like. Reading it can help the believer identify areas of stuckness in which growth is needed.
April 4, 2019
Picked up this book as a Lenten read, I would not have dared on my own, it was a surprisingly easy read. I am a little fearful of eastern monastic asceticism but this book is relevant to any one in any walk of life. Lots of wisdom, good advice, helpful reflexions and quotes from the original book by St John of the ladder.
May 23, 2018
A must Read book for every Orthodox and Catholic alike!
I really enjoy this book. Read twice and might read it again during the Great Lent which is fitting to comtempate and grow spiritually and deepening.
I really enjoy this book. Read twice and might read it again during the Great Lent which is fitting to comtempate and grow spiritually and deepening.
July 1, 2019
An amazing read for Christian spirituality!
September 10, 2020
The kind of book that I will need to return to again and again. There is too much here to ever fully grasp it (or live it out).
July 9, 2021
Amazing book!!
February 24, 2023
You should probably read "The Ladder" first!
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March 21, 2023Great companion to the Ladder.
April 8, 2023
I read this for lent, even though I am not Eastern Orthodox (I am Roman Catholic), and found it uplifting and spiritually nourishing.
April 21, 2024
another must read for Orthodox, I really appreciated how easy this was to understand. brought up a lot of stuff for me. i look forward to rereading this one chapter at a time.
August 6, 2024
Fantastic, loved every part of it.
December 26, 2024
Accessible, practical, challenging.
June 18, 2025
A most helpful spiritual volume to applying The Ladder of Divine Ascent to people in all walks of life. Read John Climacus' work; then this one and ponder deeply. Pray fervently.
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