Possessing the patristic writings as perhaps no other ecclesiastical figure of his time, endowed with rich spiritual experiences of ascetic life, knowledgeable in all branches of worldly science, discerning the true causes and simultaneously foreseeing the inevitable consequences of the social problems of his time - a time not very distant from our own but also a time of general confusion like ours - and, in addition to all this, being gifted with a rare literary talent, Saint Ignatius serves as one of the main connecting links between modern man and patristic wisdom.

A God-inspired teacher of orthodox piety who guides every Christian in the sober adaptation of the teachings of the ancient holy Fathers to today's spiritual and social circumstances. This volume contains the first part of the work "Offer to Contemporary Monasticism," known internationally from its English translation by the title "The Arena." It is the first complete Greek translation.