Book recommendations on western vs. eastern views of hell?

[Patrick Lee]

Besides "The River of Fire," are there any other good books in English that discuss this difference? We have a friend who is an Anglican priest that insists that Orthodoxy and traditional Anglicanism is the same. IMO, the difference in views of hell speak to the differences in views of God, and thus there are huge differences between West and East.

[Paul Cowan]

If he has to differentiate between Orthodoxy and "traditional" anglicanism, there is already a problem.

I remember something about pearls, pigs and being trampled.

[Jonathan Hayward]

We have a friend who is an Anglican priest that insists that Orthodoxy and traditional Anglicanism is the same.

May I mention something I wrote, Archdruid of Canterbury Visits Orthodox Patriarch (http://jonathanscorner.com/druid/)?

Orthodoxy may have some slight issues with the present Archbishop of Canterbury having been initiated as a druid and not repenting... even if the story is not what it seems on first blush.

Christos Jonathan

[Seraphim H.]

Besides "The River of Fire," are there any other good books in English that discuss this difference? We have a friend who is an Anglican priest that insists that Orthodoxy and traditional Anglicanism is the same. IMO, the difference in views of hell speak to the differences in views of God, and thus there are huge differences between West and East.

As far as books, I haven't found many that discuss this subject in detail besides River of Fire. There are podcasts, however, that discuss this. An excellent one is located on this site http://ancientfaith.com/podcasts/pilgrims. Go there, find the episodes labeled Sola Scriptura and Philosophical Christianity and listen to them. It's a 25 part series but each episode only lasts 15 mins. The differences in hell are on the last 10 or so episodes. It's an excellent exposition of our Orthodox faith and understanding in the nature of God. Downloading it on iTunes would be far easier and convenient than listening to it online by the way.

Hope this helps. Enjoy!

Seraphim

[Matthew]

Besides "The River of Fire," are there any other good books in English that discuss this difference? We have a friend who is an Anglican priest that insists that Orthodoxy and traditional Anglicanism is the same. IMO, the difference in views of hell speak to the differences in views of God, and thus there are huge differences between West and East.

In many ways I think they are indeed similar.

Forgive me for saying so, but you might be artificially limiting your otherwise natural conversation with a friend to the specific topic of hell, and making it a little more awkward by searching for a specific book that addresses that specific topic.

You and your Anglican friend are better off simply talking. Find out what the differences are, not between East and West, but between you and him.

[Jonathan Hayward]

As far as books, I haven't found many that discuss this subject in detail besides River of Fire.I'm not completely sure what you mean by "this subject" and this remark may not be on-topic if you're talking about the afterlife, but...

May I put in a plug for Archimandrite Vasileos, Hymn of Entry (Crestwood: SVS 1989)? It talks about ecumenism, does not specifically focus on Heaven vs. Hell so far as I remember, but carries the beauty of liturgy and mystical theology. My godfather introduced the author to me as a 20th century Church Father.

Christos Jonathan

[Father David Moser]

There are a multitude of books, other than the essay called "The River of Fire" that discuss the experience of the soul after death. Fr Seraphim (Rose)'s book, The Soul After Death, Monk Mitrophan's How our Departed One's Live; Archim. Pateleleimon's Eternal Mysteries Beyond the Grave; Metr. Hierotheos {Vlachos)' Life after death are but a few (which happen to be in front of me on my bookshelf the moment). There is no real way to adequately discuss or describe the nature of heaven or hell since the next life is beyond our ability to imagine or describe, thus we can only talk about it in images (icons). The "river of fire" is only one such icon as is "the tollhouses". There are a number of other verbal "images" that are used, however, it is vital to remember that none of these are literal descriptions, they are all metaphors that we use to describe the indescribable and to talk about that for which we have no words.

Fr David Moser

[Christophoros]

If you can find a copy, "How Our Departed Ones Live" by Monk Mitrophan and translated by Fr. John Shaw (now Bishop Jerome of Manhattan), is the most informative book on the afterlife I have seen. I believe it's currently out-of-print, but a second printing is being prepared.

In Christ,
Chris