Translated by Thomas Allan Smith -- the first component of his "minor theological trilogy" -- the great Russian Orthodox theologian Sergius Bulgakov explores the place of Mary the
Translated by Thomas Allan Smith In
The Burning Bush -- the first component of his "minor theological trilogy" -- the great Russian Orthodox theologian Sergius Bulgakov explores the place of Mary the Mother of God in Orthodox theology and devotional practice, in the process critiquing certain aspects of Roman Catholic Mariology. Drawing heavily on the Orthodox Church's liturgical texts and iconography and on his own developing Sophiology, Bulgakov offers a rich explanation of the unique, mysterious role played by the Mother of God as the realization of the human capacity for divinization.
Boris Jakim
"In this book, unique in the Russian Orthodox literature, the great theologian Sergius Bulgakov illuminates various aspects of the Church's veneration of the Mother of God. Like all of Bulgakov's devotional books, this is not a work of abstract theologizing, but a work of prayer, opening up a vision of the mystical reality that forms the foundation of our relations to the Ever-Virgin and her relation to us. Thomas Allan Smith's translation is superb, and in his first-rate introduction he does an excellent job of elucidating Bulgakov's sophiological approach."
Myroslaw Tataryn
"Thomas Allan Smith and Eerdmans deserve an immense debt of gratitude for providing a long-awaited English translation of this pivotal work of the leading Russian Orthodox theologian of the twentieth century. Even more, Smith's translation is careful, nuanced, and yet preeminently readable. . . Western Christians and non-Christians alike often see Orthodoxy as a fascinating, exotic, and mysterious form of Christianity. The Burning Bush, in Smith's translation, helps the reader recognize both Orthodoxy's inner coherence and rationality and its rootedness in a profoundly sublime appreciation of creation's beauty and magnificence. . . Smith's list of Bulgakov's sources is a simple yet indispensable tool for the scholarly reader. This translation will serve us all well for decades to come."
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