Sparkling in the ancient texts of the Fathers of the Church—the bishops, monks, and theologians who wrote during the first, formative six Christian centuries—is a fountain of wisdom over-flowing with spiritual nourishment for the world today. Second only to Holy Scripture as the staple reading of monastic
lectio divina
, the works of the Fathers draws Christians to the essentials of the fail as it affects daily life, worship, and prayer. By presenting a passage for meditation each day through the year, the volume offers an introduction both to the Fathers and to monastic
lectio
—the reflective reading which gives rise to prayer. It speaks not only to the individual seeker, but also to those who guide others along the paths of the spirit.  Above all, it provides an entry into the profound and spiritually stimulating experience of the Fathers of the Church, East and West. It shows the unanimity of faith and constancy of practice common to Christians in an undivided Church.