On Reading Spiritual and Secular Books

May the mercy of God be with you!

At your wish I am sending you Saint Anthony along with his writings. Read them and dwell deeply in them. And marvel. He was not a scholar and had not read learned books—he only chanted the Psalter and read the Gospels with the Epistles. The grace of God opened up contemplations in his mind, and now see what wise words he has. There is testimony from eyewitnesses that when he began to speak, his words flowed like a river and, issuing from his heart, filled the hearts of all who listened. Sometimes whole nights would pass in such conversations, and neither he nor those who listened to him knew fatigue or felt any urge toward sleep. And here among us, Father Seraphim of Sarov was also an unlearned man, but the experiences of spiritual life, the deep immersion in the word of God and the writings of the fathers made him the wisest of the wise. In the spiritual life books are only a guide. The knowledge itself is acquired by doing. Even that which has been understood from reading—which seems clear and thorough—when it has been tested in practice appears in a completely different light. The spiritual life is a distinct world into which human wisdom does not penetrate. You yourself will discover this, or perhaps are already discovering it. Labor over yourself and attend to yourself. Little by little—and you will reach the point where you begin to speak words of wisdom that one would want to sit down and write out. God bless you!

You write: “I read a great deal—is that not bad?” It can be both bad and good, depending on what you read and how you read it. Read with discernment, and test what you read against the unerring truth of our confession of faith. What agrees with it, accept; what does not agree with it, reject at once as a thought opposed to God, and throw away the book in which such thoughts are set forth. You have taken it upon yourself to study the spiritual life. That is a subject both wide-ranging and exalted and sweet to the heart that cannot help but see in it its own supreme good. You have taken it up—so study it, from books and still more by doing. What books to read you already know, and how to attune yourself to a corresponding way of life you are aware of. If you sincerely wish to enter upon this path, you will have no time to devote to the study of other subjects. You have received a general education and have a general understanding of everything—that is quite enough for you.

You will say: “But that way one will fall behind!” What harm is there in that! Falling behind in one thing, yet advancing in another—and in something far higher. If, falling behind in human intellectual pursuits, you were not advancing in the wisdom of God, there would be a loss. But since you will undoubtedly advance in the latter if you take the matter up as you should, you will not suffer a loss but gain a greater advantage. For human reasoning cannot compare to spiritual wisdom.

In saying this I do not mean that nothing else whatsoever may be read, but only that one can do without it without loss, whereas inclining toward it, one may suffer loss in what is most important. If you chase after two things at once, you will not succeed in either.

But the question still remains unanswered: so then, may one read something other than spiritual writings? I say it to you through gritted teeth, barely audibly: well, perhaps one may—but only a little and not without discrimination. Set this as your mark: when, being in a good spiritual frame of mind, you begin to read a book filled with human wisdom and that good frame of mind begins to depart, put the book down. That is the universal rule for you.

But books of human wisdom can also nourish the spirit—those that point us in nature and history to traces of the wisdom, goodness, righteousness, and manifold-watchful providence of God over us. Read books of that kind. God reveals Himself in nature and history just as He does in His word. And these too are books of God for those who know how to read them.

To say “read such books” is easy enough, but where to find them? That I cannot indicate to you. Nowadays more books appear on subjects in the natural sciences. But almost all of them have a bad tendency—specifically, they attempt to explain the origin of the world without God, and all moral-religious and other manifestations of our spiritual life without spirit or soul. Do not even pick them up. There are books on natural science without such speculations. Those you may read. It is good to clarify for yourself the structure of plants, animals, and especially of man, and the laws of life manifested in them. In all of this there is an immense wisdom of God—unfathomable! Which specific books of this kind exist, ask the one who speaks so compellingly about matters of faith.

And what about stories and novels?! There are some good ones among them. But in order to know whether they are good, one must read them, and having read them, you will fill yourself with such tales and images that—Lord preserve us! You will pollute your clean little head. Then go and clean it out. What sense is there in calling down upon yourself such labor?! Therefore, I think it is better not to read them. If some well-intentioned person who has read one recommends a particular story, you may read it.

There are good books of geography. Those too you may read a little. But everything in moderation and as if only for variety. Hold to your own work and do not let your attention be drawn away from it.

God bless you!