Dear Friends,

I am just curious how the rest of you read up on Byzantine theology and history.

I realize we all have different amounts of time, different interests, etc. I just wanted to be able to compare my own experiences to yours.

Let me share that with you. I read about 1-3 whole books a month, and surf through about 10-20 a month (either I don't finish, or I don't have the interest in reading the whole work.

I take notes when I read becuase I cannot remember what I read 20 minutes later sometimes! Do any of you have this happen? What do you do? Reread the work? How--one chapter then reread it the next day, or the whole book twice?

Do you find one type of work harder than another? I can usually surf through polemical apologetics books like Clark Carlton's at a rate of a book every two days. Pelikan's works I have been struggling to understand. I almost wanted to quit because I don't remember half of what he said (even with notes and review) so what was the point of reading it in the first place? grrrr!

Thanks in advance if anyone shares their experiences with learning.

anastasios

Hi Dustin --

"I read about 1-3 whole books a month, and surf through about 10-20 a month (either I don't finish, or I don't have the interest in reading the whole work."

That's a full schedule, ISTM. With my other responsibilities, I'm lucky if I get through a book a month, or every other month. With being more busy, I've gotten more choosy, and I tend also to surf through rather than reading through -- unless the work doesn't lend itself to that.

"Do any of you have this happen?"

Yes.

"What do you do? Reread the work?"

If it bothers me, yes. Sometimes I don't reread until much later -- like a year or so, and then I find I remembered more than I thought, and at the same time gain new insights from what I'm reading. But honestly there are only a few authors who are worth reading more than once -- Pelikan, as you note below, is certainly one, and Lossky is probably another. I generally only reread parts that interest me -- not the whole book.

"Do you find one type of work harder than another?"

Yes. It's easier to read a book like "The Orthodox Way" or "Church, World, Mission" than it is to get through Fr. Meyendorff's "Byzantine Theology" or anything by Pelikan or Lossky.

"Pelikan's works I have been struggling to understand. I almost wanted to quit because I don't remember half of what he said (even with notes and review) so what was the point of reading it in the first place? grrrr!"

Well, the doctrine series is incredible synthesis. He's a little on the, um, cynical side ... I guess that's where he was at when he wrote the volumes. Interesting thing about Pelikan is that we haven't heard much from him since he became Orthodox. I have sometimes wondered, reading some of his earlier works (like the doctrine series), whether things would be characterized differently there if they had been written by him today, as an Orthodox. In any case, yes, these works are dense, packed with information and hard concepts -- but they are richly satisfying as well. I find his work necessary, but not as enjoyable as that of many others -- even Fr. Meyendorff's work, which can also be somewhat dry, is probably easier reading than Pelikan.

Brendan

[ 01-02-2002: Message edited by: Brendan ]