Synopsis of Burton, Essay Example

Synopsis of Burton-Christie’s The Word in the Desert

In recent times there have being a remarkable surge in interest for Christian Church history spanning the days of primitive Christian monastery activities. The interest has been experienced by church historians, theologians, the general academia and a host of others, all with the consented goal of bringing to the fore what appears to be an increasing progression towards a forgotten fragment of early church history. As a consequence of this quest for knowledge, there has emerged relevant information that seeks to account for this. Burton-Christie has carved a niche in this part of Christian church history by revealing the other side of the relatively unknown Christian monks who are otherwise referred to as the desert fathers.

Burton-Christie, tells his readers through his book The Word in the Desert about the distinguishing elements of these early Christian desert monks vis-à-vis their commitment to the cause of Christ expressed in diligence to the word of God contained in the Bible as a practical guide to how they shaped their spiritual lives. Typical of monks, the desert fathers were not very different in the reverence of solitude which became their hallmark as reported by Burton-Christie. In doing this, Burton-Christie provides an excellent historical trace of how it all begun with emphasis on what that has impacted what has become known about them.

Much of the thrust of The Word in the Desert represents a lucid chronology of hermeneutic antiquity and related emerging questions that are of prime concern to scholars and other stakeholders. Reading through, it one cannot help but agree that the contents are a classical demonstration of well researched piece of work. Without any doubt that the content are justifiably an authoritative complement to the wealth of scholarly information about church history.

Once again, besides the fact that Burton-Christie’s work is a complementary backup to church history, it also provides adequate resources for any body that has an interest in looking at the question of monasticism as an exclusive area of study. Because the book is rich in its discussion of the subject though very much inclined to the Christian faith within a particular historical setting. Nevertheless, the relevance of the facts are still very timeless.

Another fact that cannot be denied is that, the book captures the salient elements of old asceticism; especially highlighting the role of scripture in the formation of piety as evidenced in the lives of the early monks. By all intends and purposes, the Book is credited for scholarly showmanship by bringing together all that defines an important facet of the Christian faith as it happened in medieval Egypt forcefully into our contemporary setting without any apologies.