Three Byzantine Saints: Contemporary Biographies of St. Daniel the Stylite, St. Theodore of Sykeon, and St. John the Almsgiver

by Elizabeth Dawes (Editor), Norman Hepburn Baynes (Editor)

These Byzantine biographies of St Daniel the Stylite, of St Theodore of Sykeon, and of St John the Almsgiver help us to enter into the Byzantine ascetic thought world, with its miracles, its feeling of the nearness of saints and demons, its contempt for the body, its longing for the peace of the soul. They also give us a vivid picture of life in Asia Minor before the Arab invasions, and are in many ways documents concerning the social history of Byzantium. The introduction and bibliographical notes of Dr Norman Baynes are a mine of information and are matched by the excellence of the translations of the lives by Dr Elizabeth Dawes, who captures the widely divergent aspects of Byzantine piety. John the Almsgiver was Patriarch of Alexandria in a time of crisis during the early years of the seventh century; Theodore the Sykeote represents life among the peasantry of Anatolia at the end of the sixth century; while Daniel the pillar saint, who died in 493AD through his strange form of asceticism, challenged many to seek a more disciplined theological and spiritual life.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, History

275 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1997

About the author

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabe...

Academic Background
Alma mater: University of London
Thesis: The Pronunciation of Greek with Suggestions for a Reform in Teaching that Language

Academic Work
Discipline: Classics
Institutions: Bryn Mawr College

Elizabeth Anna Sophia Dawes was a 19th-century British classical scholar and the first woman to receive a DLitt degree from the University of London.

Reviews

[Alexander Rolfe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book confirmed my decision not to become a stylite.

[Willie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading the life of St John the Almsgiver (the Merciful), and his total dedication to helping those in need - those in captivity, slavery, poverty, and those wanting healing from sinful lives - inspires me to give more and continue to give even more. Everything belongs to God and we are His stewards.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know I'm hard pressed to find a book about any saint and not love it, but there was something spectacular about this one. Second best book of 2024. It was so full of life and stories...real life situations. I think the fact that it was written in contemporary times really made it something special. I can already say that this will be reread many times.

[Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories are interesting for their incidental details about daily life and the atmosphere of the time, but there will be much wading through miracle accounts along the way. The people of the time were reeling from wars, earthquakes, famines and the crumbling of the mighty Roman Empire that had seemed eternal. The old certainties were falling, it seemed that the end of the world was coming, and the afterlife hovered close and pressing. It is no surprise that the heroes of the day were the saints, and the most compelling subject was God's action in the world. All that seems so quaint and far away now, so reading these lives becomes a intriguing tour into an alien mental landscape.