The Rudder (2 vols.

by D. Cummings; Agapios; Orthodox Eastern Church; Nicodemus

Publishers:

Orthodox Christian Educational Society; Vlastou Ch. Varvarrētou

, 1886–1957

Digital

$22.99

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Digital (Group)

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Overview

The Rudder (Greek: “Pedalion”) is a classic compilation of the holy canons or Orthodox
canon law. Originally assembled by Nicodemus the Hagiorite and Agapius the Monk on
Mount Athos in 1800, this work includes a dedication to Orthodox Christians from both
Nicodemus and Agapius, along with a letter and recommendation on this edition from the
Patriarch of Constantinople (ca. 1802) NEOPHYTOS VII. The present edition was translated
into English from the fifth edition by Denver Cummings in 1957, and re-published at that
time by the Orthodox Christian Educational Society of Chicago, Illinois. The Rudder is so
named because of the symbolism often employed in the Eastern Orthodox tradition of the
Catholic Church of Jesus Christ as a ship at sea. The master of the vessel is Jesus Christ, the
sailors the holy Apostles and their successors, and the passengers all Orthodox Christians.
The sea is symbolic of our present life, with the rudder of the ship representative of these
holy canons, keeping the Church on course and safe from temptation.

This work includes the 85 Canons of the Holy Apostles, the Canons of the first seven
Ecumenical Councils, the Canons of the Regional Synods, the Canons of the Holy Fathers
(e.g., of Sts. Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, and Cyril of Alexandria), and a number of
various instructions and forms for letters.

By adding this pivotal work to your Logos library, you can easily do searches throughout the
canons for shared themes or topics, cross-references with scriptural citations, and even
reference works by the Church Fathers that touch on the same topics as their canons (as
with Basil the Great and Athanasius of Alexandria, for example). Whether you are a scholar
interested in the finer issues (and interpretations) of canonical law in the Orthodox tradition,
or simply a layperson wanting to know more about how the early Church addressed various
issues of piety and worship, the Logos edition of the Rudder (in both Greek and English) is a
must-have collection.