Book Review: The Way of a Pilgrim

I’ve been getting through lots of books recently. I’ve been intending to write reviews for each of them, but have been procrastinating. Therefore, over the next few days I will be publishing a review for each of the books I have recently read.

Today I’d like to begin by talking about “The Way of a Pilgrim”. This review is also published on Amazon.com.

This book is well-known in eastern Christian circles and had been recommended to me by Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic friends for several years, but I somehow never never quite managed to find the time to read it.

However, soon after returning to San Diego last month, it was announced that my parish would be beginning a study of this book during the Advent season. This gave me the extra bit of motivation I needed to buy this book and was subsequently very quickly hooked, finishing it in just a few days. Here’s how the book begins:

“By the grace of God I am a Christian, by my deeds a great sinner, and by my calling a homeless wanderer of humblest origin, roaming from place to place”

– The Way of the Pilgrim

I’m sure you can understand why this Restless Pilgrim loved these opening words!

The story is written by an anonymous 19th Century Russian peasant who recounts his life and wanderings around the country. When we first meet our protagonist, he is desiring to understand what St. Paul means when he says to “pray constantly” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). He prays for insight and also visits different churches to hear sermons on prayer. Unsatisfied, he seeks out holy men to ask them about the spiritual life.

Eventually, the pilgrim meets a hermit who invites him to his cell and teaches him a prayer known as the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me!”. This is an ancient prayer of the Church and is prayed with an eastern prayer rope, which looks like a rosary made out of wool. The elder also introduces him to the Philokalia, a book of spiritual teaching, a compilation of the writings of twenty-five holy Fathers, with which he instructs the pilgrim:

Sit alone and in silence; bow your head and close your eyes; relax your breathing and with your imagination look into your heart; direct your thoughts from your head into your heart. And while inhaling say “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me”

– St. Simeon the New Theologian, The Philokalia

In the latter part of the book we begin to find out a little more about the pilgrim’s early life and about the events which led up to his life on the road. I don’t want to give away too much of the story, but armed with the Jesus Prayer and the Philokalia, the pilgrim receives instruction from the elder. Eventually, the pilgrim returns to the road, learning about prayer from those he meets along the way. Much like the Desert Fathers before him, our pilgrim often seeks out quiet and solitude, yet constantly has people placed in his path to whom he ministers.

There is a sequel to this book, “The Pilgrim Who Continues His Way”, which I will read shortly, but the pilgrim has already made quite an impression upon me. His writing reminds me of Brother Lawrence’s classic, The Practice of the Presence of God. Much like Brother Lawrence, our pilgrim learns the importance of being constantly aware of the presence of God, even during the busyness of the day. Reading this book motivates me to seek out spiritual nourishment, and especially peace and quiet.

“Good speech is silver but silence is pure gold”

– St Ephraim of Syria

Despite the book’s relatively young age, it is an eastern classic and well worth reading. It is also extremely accessible to western readers who may be unfamiliar with eastern spirituality and it is a wonderful introduction to the treasures of the East, the Philokalia and the Jesus Prayer.

UPDATE: I was catching up on my podcast listening this morning and serendipitously, Brandon Vogt and Bishop Barron from Word On Fire were talking about this same book: