Saint George and the Dragon
16493-BKS
$22.00
This beautifully-illustrated children's book relates the often-told story of St George and the dragon, with an afterword that looks at the real meaning of the legend.
A Christian convert born late in the third century after Christ, George was one among many martyrs of the early Church.
What made George a saint among saints was the completely fearless manner in which he openly proclaimed his faith during a period of fierce persecution when many other Christians were hoping not to be noticed. According to one ancient account, George went to a public square and announced, "All the gentile gods are devils. My God made the heavens and is the true God." For this George was arrested, tortured and beheaded. The probable date of his martyrdom is April 23, 303, in the town of Diospolis in Asia Minor's Turkey. His witness led to the conversion of many and gave renewed courage to others already baptized.
True stories become streamlined into legends and legends become compressed via symbols into myths. The St. George of myth was a knight in armor who fought a dragon to save a princess, but the real George never saw a dragon nor did he rescue a princess in distress. We are not even sure he had a horse or possessed a sword.
In early icons, George was shown dressed as a soldier and holding the cross of martyrdom, but in the course of centuries the dragon legend emerged. It has been told in many variations, but in its most popular form it concerns a dragon living in a lake who was worshiped by the unbaptized local people, who in their fear sacrificed their children to appease the creature. Finally it was the turn of the king's daughter, Elizabeth, to be sacrificed. While going toward the dragon to meet her doom, Saint George appeared riding a white horse. He prayed to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, then transfixed the dragon with his lance. Afterward Elizabeth led the vanquished creature into the city. Refusing a reward of treasure, George called on the local people to be baptized. The king agreed, also promising to maintain churches,attend church services and show compassion to the poor.
From a journalistic point of view, the dragon story is a complete invention, yet what better way is there to symbolize the evil that George actually confronted and defeated than to portray it in the form of combat with a fire-breathing dragon? George fought and was victorious over an adversary which enslaved and terrified most of the people of his time. The white horse George rides in the icon, a graceful creature as light as air and as fearless as his rider, represents the courage God gave to George as he faced the power of death. It is the courage God gives to any Christian facing martyrdom or, for that matter, much smaller challenges.
Format: Hardcover
Page Length: 32 pages
You May Also Like...
Akathist to St. John Archbishop of Shangai and San Francisco
$5.50
We are pleased to offer this new edition of the Akathist to St. John the Wonderworker. He is a saint of our times, beloved by those around the world, who continues to work countless miracles. As His Grace Bishop James relates in his Foreword to the Akathist, the miracles and extraordinary accounts concerning St. John “assure us that we are not alone in facing the difficult challenges of earthly life. Indeed, the Lord Himself promised: Behold, I shall not leave you orphans (John 14:18). St. John fulfilled this promise, having cared for so many orphans during his lifetime; and as his constant miracles attest, he continues to care for us. Therefore, let us not allow ourselves to become spiritual orphans through worrying and being anxious: may we instead turn to him in prayer and ask for his bold intercessions before our Lord.” Full-color cover and inner pages, richly illustrated with several icons of St. John.
Full-color cover and inner pages.
Format: Softcover
Pages: 28
A Taste of Paradise: Stories of Saints and Animals
$24.00
by Katherine Bolger Hyde
Long ago in Paradise, animals and people walked side by side. When we return to Paradise, the wolf will lie down with the lamb, and a little child shall lead them. In the time in between, many holy men and women have befriended even the fiercest beasts through the power of God's love. Come and meet a few of these saints and their animal friends in this beautifully illustrated collection of inspiring stories!
About the Author: Katherine Bolger Hyde has devoted her life to books as a reader, editor, and writer. Her works include the picture books Lucia, Saint of Light and Everything Tells Us about God; the young adult fantasy The Dome-Singer of Falenda; and the adult mystery series Crime with the Classics. Katherine lives in the redwood country of the California central coast, where she shares a home with two domesticated humans and two wild and crazy cats.
About the Illustrator: Anastasia Sokolova is an artist, designer, illustrator, and teacher who lives and works in Moscow with her husband, four children, and a good-natured cat. Trained as an architect, Anastasia built a cozy wooden house with her own hands in the Russian outback, the interior of which she also designed and decorated with her own paintings. She began illustrating books in 2012. A Taste of Paradise is her first book in English.
Age Range: For children of all ages
Author: Katherine Bolger Hyde
Illustrator: Anastasiya Sokolova
Hardcover: 32 pages
Dimensions: 8.5 x 11 inches
Further Up and Further In: Orthodox Conversations with C. S. Lewis on Scripture and Theology
$28.00
Drawing on Lewis’s broad corpus, both his beloved classics and his less well-known writings, Humphrey brings Lewis into conversation with Orthodox thinkers from the ancient past down to the present day, on subjects as diverse and challenging as the nature of reality, miracles, the ascetic life, the atonement, the last things, and the mystery of male and female.
No 20th century Christian writer had as great an impact on the faithful of the West as C. S. Lewis. That’s why it is essential that a widely-read, deep-thinking Orthodox Christian hold a series of “conversations” with him, bringing forward both the brilliance of his work, and the corners where Orthodox faith would turn a different way. Edith Humphrey’s book is both invigorating and enjoyable, and sends me back to reread Lewis with a fresh perspective. —Kh. Frederica Mathewes-Green, author of Welcome to the Orthodox Church
C. S. Lewis is a thinker much treasured by many Orthodox. Edith Humphrey’s clear, joyful, and accessible book brings Lewis into conversation with Orthodox thinkers and reveals many consistently Orthodox strands in the thought of this immensely popular Christian apologist. —Very Rev. Dr Andrew Louth, Professor Emeritus, Durham University
For Christians of my generation to read this book is to begin to understand who we are. We are all children of C. S. Lewis. He wrote the stories that formed our imagination. He taught us how to be effective apologists in the age of technology. And he insisted that we take the Bible seriously. Thanks to Edith Humphrey for this keen, critical appreciation of a singular modern master.
—Scott Hahn, Ph.D., Franciscan University of Steubenville
With elegant writing, and perceptive literary and theological insight, Edith Humphrey is a sure and satisfying guide to the one she calls a guide to Reality. Both seasoned and new readers of Lewis—whatever their religious tradition—will be enlightened, enriched, and occasionally provoked by this delightful volume. —Michael J. Gorman, Ph.D., St Mary’s Seminary & University
Format: Paperback
Page Length: 301 pages
Father Arseny: A Cloud of Witnesses
$21.00
The stories of Fr Arseny and his work in the Soviet prison camps have captured the minds and hearts of readers all over the world. In this second volume readers will find additional narratives about Fr Arseny newly translated from the most recent Russian edition. These short stories about the life and impact of Fr Arseny during the cruel oppression of the Soviet years are vivid, stirring and ultimately inspiring. Readers who were moved by Volume 1 will be grateful that a Volume II about his remarkable life has been added.
Format: Paperback
Page Length: 244 pages