BOOK REVIEW: Protos. Dr. Benedict Vesa, "Personalităţi duhovniceşti contemporane" ["Contemporary spiritual personalities"], 1st volume (Cluj-Napoca: Renaşterea, 2016)

Abstract

The contemporary Orthodox Theological research needs works that provide an overview of the most important biographies and works in the Christian space, and that creates bridges among different faiths. Now, this need is partly fulfilled by the first volume from the series Contemporary spiritual personalities, written by Father Benedict Vesa. The author, well-known in the Romanian Theological research, provides a list of 24 biographies of contemporary personalities from the Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant space, highlighting the defining element of their lives. Thus, in an unusual presentation, the reader discovers, gathered together, Orthodox Saints: John of Kronstadt (p. 37-44), Nectarios of Aegina (p. 45-52), Nicholas Velimirović (p. 69-76), Maria Skobtsova (p. 77-84), Porphyrios the Kapsokalyvite (pp. 133-140), John Jacob of Neamţ (p. (149-156), Paisios of Mount Athos (p. 205-212), Catholic Saints: Thérèse of the Child Jesus (p. 61-69), Maximilian Kolbe (pp. 93-100), Teresa of Calcutta (p. 141-148), Pier Giorgio Frassati (p. 197-204), Faustina Kowalska (p. 125-132), or Chiara Lubich (p. 181-188) and Protestant spiritual personalities like Dag Hammarskjöld (p. 117-124). Each title contains the name of the spiritual character and one of his/her important qualities, which is then analysed in the presentation. Therefore, when the author speaks about Saint John of Kronstadt, he highlights the importance of the Liturgy in his spirituality (p. 37), when he speaks about Saint Maria Skobtsova, he highlights her mundane apostolate (p. 7), when he presents Maximilian Kolbe, he speaks about his apostolate of love manifested in martyrdom (p. 93), when he speaks about Dag Hammarskjöld, he emphasises the way in which, in his love, the political career and the mystique of faith interacted (p. 117), and s. o.