Eastern Orthodoxy Through Western Eyes

Rating:
Summary: good reading for Orthodox and non-Orthodox
Review: Donald Fairbairn has done a good job of presenting the Eastern Orthodox religion in a dialogical and understandable way. This book is very helpful for understanding Eastern Orthodoxy, especially because Fairbairn accurately displays the fact that there are differences among those of the Orthodox Church. Fairbairn is helpful by showing us Christians what we can learn from Orthodoxy, and what Orthodoxy can learn from Christians. If you are not afraid to have your own views critiqued, whether you be a Christian or whether you be an Orthodox person, then this book is for you.

Rating:
Summary: Sheesh! The Orthodox ARE Christians.
Review: Like the reviewer below, I found Prof. Fairbairn's dialogical approach to be both sympathetic and enlightening. He may miss a minor point or two (e.g., Mt. Athos is the site of 20 monasteries, not a single monastery), but the heart of the matter--the heart of Orthodoxy--is well expressed. Unlike the reviewer below, the idea of juxtaposing "the Orthodox" with "Christians" strikes me as painfully ignorant; fortunately, such a division does not figure in Prof. Fairbairn's important book.