The Journals of Father Alexander Schmemann, 1973-1983

by Alexander Schmemann

A number of years have passed since Fr Alexander Schmemann's untimely death on December 13, 1983 at the age of sixty-three. Fr Schmemann was known for his many-faceted and eloquent gifts as preacher, professor and priest. His insight into contemporary culture, church life and liturgical celebration left an indelible mark on generations of Christians. These journals offer insight into the quiet, intimate side of his life. They witness the magnitude of his heart, his absolute humanity. Translated and edited by his wife, the abridged journals reveal his recollections and experiences and record his formative creative thought on all manner of subjects. Fr Schmemann writes, 'The meaning of this journal is not so much a desire to record events, but a kind of visit into myself.' They record, often with brutal honesty, his impatience and frustration with himself and events, but above all, his liberation and freedom 'in Christ and His Church.' We see a life replete with the effort to call people to live 'higher and more openly,' to become restored human beings. His love of God, deep faith and reverent love of family serve as an endless wellspring shaping his person. Reading these journals we are inspired, enlivened and renewed.

Genres: Christianity, Theology, Religion, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Biography, Biography Memoir

353 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2000

About the author

Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann was a prominent Eastern Orthodox theologian and priest of the Orthodox Church in America.

Reviews

[Turkish · Rating 5 out of 5]

Так тяжело что-то написать про эту замечательную книгу. Нигде и никогда я не встречал человека столь тонко чувствующего мир, как отец Александр. На ум приходит только Чехов, которого так любил Александр Шмеман. Эти дневники стали для меня неотъемлемым дополнением к Евангелие. Какая тишина, какой свет в этом человеке. Невольно задаешься вопросом: жил ли ты хоть секунду с тем же переживанием момента, какое описывает отец Александр. Действительно замирание времени, всеблагость самой жизни. Не даром его называют апостолом радости. Я не самый показательный христианин, не мне судить Церковь, поэтому я не буду браться за доказательство "правильности" или "неправильности" какого-то ощущения Христа, но это именно то христианство, которое я хочу слышать. "Радуйтесь и паки реку радуйтесь..." - самая частая евангелическая цитата в дневниках отца Александра. Это радующееся христианство, пропитанное тихим счастьем за то, что бытие все таки есть, хотя его вполне могло не быть. Без бесконечного копания в своем и чужом грязном белье, самоуничижения, доходящего порой до самоотрицания, не религия страха, но религия бесконечной любви и счастья. Во всем отец Александр ищет Свет, а не тьму, хотя мы и возлюбили тьму больше.
Так много хочется сказать, но книга стала для меня стала такой ценностью, что я пребываю в смятении и не знаю как все эти чувства благодарности уложить в слова. Когда-то давно я задумывался: если меня спросят "почему я христианин", что я отвечу? И мне казалось, что ответ лежит где-то в области богословия. Сейчас мне кажется, что вопрошающему я ничего не отвечу. Скоро Рождество, пожалуй, мой любимый праздник - я люблю догмат о Воплощении: в этот день заканчивается богооставленность, одиночество человека, Рождество знаменует максимальное приближение Бога к человеку. Так вот мне кажется, что задай мне кто-то сейчас вопрос "почему ты христианин", я бы попросил такого человека встать пораньше и в Рождество отправиться со мной в храм. Атмосфера царящей радости в этот день в храме непередаваема, как будто стены сочатся весельем. Хотя нет не весельем, а именно вот радостью, какой-то вечной, непреходящей. Все улыбаются, во всем разлит свет и торжество. Ничто так не склоняет к христианству, как это насыщение чувств. Вот дневники отца Александра Шмемана - это такое маленькое Рождество в твердом переплете.

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fr. Alexander Schmemann's writings have been incredibly influential in forming my vision of life, ministry and the Church and so it was a complete and utter joy to read his journals. I loved getting to see the more personal dynamics of his life and work.

From the core of his person Fr. Schmemann was a theologian of joy and thanksgiving, that much is clear from his journals. Yes, he wrote primarily on liturgy, ecclesiology, history--but in and through it all the root of Schmemann's vision can be found in nothing other than joy and thanksgiving. A joy that can come only in the Holy Spirit, and a thanksgiving rooted in the eternal thanksgiving of God's people in the Eucharist. Joy and thanksgiving flow from an experience of the Church as the Kingdom of God.

[Tim]

I didn't think there could be such s thing as too much Schmemann but, no, this is entirely too much. For every wonderful insight, there's a buildup of his personal frustrations and negative tendencies that feel very much not-for-our-eyes. I'm sure someone, somewhere has benefitted from his testament of faith, but I personally found myself discouraged by this side of the man, a part divorced from a whole and therefore an incomplete portrait of the priest and his life.

[Marcas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enchantingly, simply Joyful!
Fr Schmemann is a Mystic of real life...captivated by the Light of the world and witness to the Triune God's prismatic, Pentecostal fullness; God's plan for a new heaven and a new earth.
Father Schmemann takes his cue from this mystic vision and from this perspective always looks to the end of all things, but the end as it transfigures the present and makes the presence of eternity present to us personally. The end, as in the end of a long journey home.
Fr Alexander has a profoundly deep, but simple awareness of 'the one thing needed' and 'the treasure of the heart'.

By his clear vision, this modern Church Father is able to speak with the authority of and for the Church. He is an apostle, from the ageless path of eternity and speaks beyond the crude categories of 'the world', as a friend of Christ on pilgrimage.

It is in this properly theandric context that Schmemann gains the right, nay, duty to scold the insane idolatry inside and outside the Church. Any criticism of grumpiness are a 'holier than thou' interpretation of Fr Schmemann should be assuaged by these personal journals because it is clear that this is a humble man, who knew dull well his own limitations, without focusing excessively on these same limitations as too many do. Moreover, he corrects a lot of his own crude generalisations from other work. This was particularly welcome in relation to the 'east' and 'West' because that dichotomy undermined his central insights. Today, we have a chance to correct this in different areas to see the Church in it's true character- particularly before the schism.

His meditations are on the Light of God as he reveals himself and Father S is consistently humble, receptive to this gift throughout his life.

Common targets of his Prophetic scorn are a 'fussiness' in Church and 'senselessness' outside the Church. Both of these are frightfully necessary and his analysis is justified, clear and charitable throughout, on these and other concerns.

Wise.

[Sister Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I snatched this book from a sale table at a Catholic bookstore, and even though I was very happy with my find, it wasn't until months later that I actually read it. Meaning that this treasure sat, unappreciated, on my bookshelf for close to a year. Silly me! Once I opened it, I could hardly bear to put it down.

I found Fr. Schmemann's reflections remarkably insightful. You know those little Post-It bookmarks? The skinny ones that come in packs of four colors? I used an entire "batch" of those markers in this one book: 200 especially noteworthy passages... I intend to take notes on all 200, and to incorporate Schmemann's thought into presentations that I am preparing for a retreat program.

One thing that struck me overall was Schmemann's attentiveness to the natural world: the weather, the sky, the autumn leaves, the new spring leaves. And his abiding spirit of joy. At first this reminded me of another journaling soul: Etty Hillesum. But on reflecting, it seemed that both of these beautiful spirits were kindred to St Francis of Assisi. Schmemann seems to have been a natural mystic, and the wonderful experiences in his upbringing and education combined with that mystic bent to produce a spiritual writer and liturgical theologian who can speak to the mystic heart of each person.

A great, great book.

[David Galloway · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of Fr. Alexander's Journals was published posthumously and gives you both snippets of the transcendental joy he experienced along with frustrations of people for whom Orthodoxy was just a set of empty rules to follow. Along the way you get to hear about his childhood as an exiled Russian living in Paris, his friendship with Alexander Solsenitsyn, and his take on a great variety of poetry, literature, and modern culture. Since Fr. Alexander was the mentor of the priest I consider my spiritual father, this book was very important to me.

[Mike_msc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Одна из любимых моих книг. Максимально трезвый взгляд на Православие в 20м веке.

[Steven Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome collection of Fr Alexander's thought and life. A must read. I can see myself coming back to this book many times.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best memoirs I have ever read - and coming from an Orthodox priest, no less!

[Aidan Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid book. I enjoyed it. My Uncle had me reading it because he's trying to get me to join a particular wing of Orthodoxy and he's worried I'll join a different wing. I love him, but like most people, he's retarded. Still, I did quite enjoy this. It's a series of journals from the protopresbyter Father Alexander Schmemann, which records some of the last things he thought about towards the end of his life, and the frustrations he felt about a specific sect coming in and trying to define a very rigid way of the Orthodox Life. I agree with a lot of the Father's critiques, though I haven't really seen any of this in my own churches like my Uncle has in his.

Good stuff. The Father was a surprisingly good writer, with solid prose. It's better than the rating I gave it.

[Βιβλιομανής · Rating 5 out of 5]

Τι να πει κανείς. Αληθινό ορθόδοξο πνεύμα, με προβληματισμούς, σκοτεινιές και χαρές, κανένας ευσεβισμός (αντίθετα πόλεμος στον ευσεβισμό και σε κάθε τι φορετό), καθαρή σκέψη, υπαρξιακή ειλικρίνεια.. Αυτός ήταν ο π. Αλέξανδρος Σμέμαν.

[Ivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fr. Schmemann’s famous formula for a modern-day monasticism is great—and almost worth the price of admission. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of uncomfortably intimate grumbling and grousing to slog through.

[Jacob Aitken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading another’s letters or journals, while sometimes ethically questionable, is almost always entertaining and more often than not, it provides illustrations of how literature and theology ought to be done. Fr Schmemann is no exception. These journals span ten years and reflect his thoughts on church, politics, and culture. What makes them refreshing is that he can offer America an outsider’s perspective on a range of topics. One can summarize the Journals in a few words: two No’s and a Yes—no to secularism, no to “spirituality” and yes to the Kingdom of God.



Fr Schmemann saw the problem in the 70s and 80s as the Church (mainly Orthodox but any denomination would be accurate) capitulating to the world’s values. But the two No’s cannot be understood apart from Schmemann’s goal: helping the (local) Church understand it’s role in the Kingdom of God and in participating in the Eucharist. The Eucharist reflects the light of the future Kingdom and reorients the Church’s values. Take away the Kingdom (and the Eucharist) and one is left with left-over secularism and vague spiritualities. Secularism is misplacing the Kingdom of God. Spirituality is simply trying to do “religion” apart from the historical reality of the Kingdom and the concrete reality of the Eucharist. If one is tied to history and receives the Sacrament, then one cannot fall prey to “spirituality.”



Conclusion:

The book is a gem. Some pages are beyond beautiful. Not only does Schmemann offer analyses of church and culture, but he gives penetrating insight into the human condition. There are moments, however, when Schmemann is not quite consistent, especially in his critique of Alexandr Solzhenitsyn. While A.S. definitely went overboard, one cannot help prefer A.S.’s vision of Soborpravnist over against the liberal democracy of Carter-Reagan America. That aside, almost every page is a feast.

[James Moes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating read that has been by my bedside for the past six months or so. Honest near-daily journal entries from the last ten years of Schmemann's life open up a struggling-questioning-yearning-yet-responsible Orthodox way of being.

A prolific & popular Eastern Orthodox liturgical theologian, Schmemann is more famous for his work For The Life of the World or his collected sermons, Celebration of Faith.

He confesses to not belonging, not understanding his call, and yet is continually turned to thanksgiving in the cultural, natural, and liturgical rhythm of his life.

[Nikola]

„Началото на „лъжовната религия“ е в неумението да се радваш и по точно - в отказа от радостта.“
...
“Бог е сътворил света, а дяволът го е превърнал - и него, и човека, и самия живот - в „проблем“. И милион (по добре е да се каже че „името им е легион“(виж. Марк 5:9)„специалисти“ решават този проблем. И само затова в света е така тъмно, така хладно, така „безрадостно“.„
...

“Самото богословие е подсъдно на изкуството, тъй като е длъжно да стане изкуство и да „изпълни“ себе си с изкуство, но то не прави това, предпочитайки да се представя за „наука“„

[Randy Elrod · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest intimate look at a revered Father's struggle with the church. Thought provoking, riveting and beautifully written. A timely book for this one who is disenchanted with the church of his past.

[Conor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly beautiful. A mensch.

[Grace Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could give a book 6 out of 5 stars.