The word “piety” is now seldom used outside the Church. What precisely is piety, let alone biblical piety?
In the new book Biblical Piety and Prayer from St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVS) Press, author Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon explores figures from the Old and New Testaments to examine the concepts of piety and prayer from a biblical perspective. He delves deeply into the Scriptures, consulting both the Hebrew and the Septuagint texts, constantly making reference to the readings and interpretations of a wide range of Church Fathers from both East and West.
“Above all, when it comes time for prayer, ‘Pray to your Father in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you,’” Fr. Patrick writes in the book. “Biblical piety begins with the Christian’s conscience under the gaze of his Father who sees. He enters the secrecy of his heart and, closing the door as best he can, begins to pray, ‘Our Father, who art in heaven.’”
“Fr. Reardon effectively applies the Scriptures to our practical, moral, and devotional lives, and he does so with his characteristic erudition (the footnotes alone … constitute a course in biblical and patristic knowledge all by themselves),” writes fellow author Addison Hodges Hart, who reviewed Biblical Piety and Prayer for his blog The Pragmatic Mystic. “Although his knowledge of philosophy is plainly visible (a subject he taught for some years), his primary objective is to provide spiritual guidance.”
Biblical Piety and Prayer is available in paperback (5.5×8.5) and as an eBook at SVSPress.com.
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About the Author
The Very Reverend Patrick Henry Reardon is a senior editor at Touchstone magazine, the author of many books—including Romans: An Orthodox Commentary and Revelation: A Liturgical Prophecy (SVS Press)—and of hundreds of articles and essays, a popular podcaster, and the retired pastor of All Saints Orthodox Church in Chicago.
