Selected Letters

In 1967, on the centenary of the blessed death of Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov) (April 30, 1867), the Moscow Theological Academy for the first time compiled the “Complete Collection of Letters...” of the famous archpastor and ascetic of the Russian Church, St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov). This collection consists of three voluminous typewritten volumes totaling 1,425 pages and contains 835 letters. The “Complete Collection...” includes all previously published letters from the deceased hierarch, as well as newly found ones (200 letters) in various archives. “The Complete Collection of Letters...” contains many valuable instructions and advice in the spiritual life of a Christian, perfectly reflects the spiritual image of the great ascetic of the Russian land - His Eminence Ignatius, and contains some previously unknown biographical information, but with all these advantages it is very cumbersome and cannot be accessible to admirers of the Vladyka’s memory. The collection - “Selected Letters of Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov)” was compiled on the basis of the “Complete Collection...” with the exclusion from it of all those letters and individual passages that do not have moral and edifying significance. The sequence of letters from the “Complete Collection...” is also preserved in this collection - letters to monastics, laity, relatives and friends. In total, the collection of “Selected Letters” included 555 letters (in this edition the number of letters has been increased to 619, some of the omissions have been restored). In conclusion, I humbly ask for forgiveness from the readers and prayers, so that the Lord does not consider it a sin to the compiler of this collection that he omitted some letters and abbreviated some to the utmost, having one goal: to present in the shortest possible form the invaluable treasure of St. Ignatius - his teaching on the spiritual life of a Christian for those seeking spiritual food. You might be interested in: