Landscape Matters Issue 4 FINAL - Flipbook - Page 24
Book reviews
7.1
Peter Howarth and Christopher Thomas, Encounters on the
holy mountain, Brepols, 2020.
The book is a splendid edition to celebrate 30 years of the
Friends of Mount Athos society. Not only a beautifully produced, written and illustrated book on Mount Athos but also
one that shows a rarely seen balance in books on Athos, between information and personal experiences, between actual documentation or history and cases of personal spiritual
pursuit.
It is a book on Athos, as such books should be written, presented through the experiences of pilgrims, visitors or lovers
of the Holy Mountain without lacking 'scientific' credits.
Much of Mt. Athos has to do with landscape and much of the
book focuses on it. Not only because it is one of the few inhabited places that landscape forms part of its deeper meaning, but also because gardens, vineyards olive groves etc. are
centuries old and although sometimes neglected during the
past few decades, they have now undergone substantial revival. They form excellent examples of nature being taken care of
in a respectful yet systematic way. Groves providing food are
cultivated in an eco-friendly way. After all, ecology is of paramount importance to the Christian Orthodox faith.
Athonite landscape is best appreciated when wondering
through the centuries old foot paths. Members of FOMA are
voluntarily taking care of them every year by systematic cleaning and sign posting. The third part of the book is all about this
initiative and is very well and vividly attested. But paths may
have a deeper meaning, and this is also evident in the articles.
The path is the true road to seeking God: it is a narrow alley
