Then and Now
“Brothers, do not be afraid of men’s sin, love man also in his sin, for this likeness of God’s love is the height of love on earth. Love all of God’s creation, both the whole…
Tag: Fyodor Dostoevsky
Dostoevsky
Dostoevsky’s art is literally prophetic. He is not prophetic in the sense of predicting the future, but in a truly biblical sense, for he untiringly denounces the fall of the people of God back into…
And What If No One Is Looking on and Applauding?
William D Miller, A Harsh and Dreadful Love: Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement After reading and discussing The Brothers Karamazov with 12 friends in 2021, I finally read William Miller’s 1973 history of…
Zosima’s Two Tweets Today Aren’t Trending
Above all, avoid lies, all lies, especially the lie to yourself. Keep watch on your own lie and examine it every hour, every minute. And avoid contempt, both of others and of yourself: what seems…
Another Long Classic
In 2021 thirteen of us spent seven months to read and discuss the long novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov. I’m interested to see if anyone would be up for reading The Gospel of…
A Basic Seventeen
November 1999 “And so, first of all, let us remember him, gentlemen, all our lives. And even though we may be involved with the most important affairs, achieve distinction or fall into some great misfortune…
Recent Reading
Sunday 11 April 2021 Dear Sarah, Thanks for your question about what I’ve been reading. Sometimes I make a plan, then other times I act entirely on instinct. So what follows are examples of each….
A Paradise for Perusers
I have given away four copies of James Mustich’s chef d’oeuvre, 1,000 Books to Read before You Die: A Life-Changing List, before I bought and kept one for myself. I became acquainted with Mr. Mustich…
Zosima-isms/2
Which of the two is more capable of upholding and serving a great idea—the isolated rich man or one who is liberated from the tyranny of things and habits? Let us preserve the image of…
Zosima-isms/1
This is the lot that befalls you, mothers, on earth. And do not be comforted, you should not be comforted, do not be comforted, but weep. And there is more joy in heaven over one…