{Lenten Books} ...Thirty Steps to Heaven: The Ladder of Divine Ascent for All Walks of Life

Books, I have found, have the power to open new worlds to the reader,
and even to provide the catalyst to transform one’s life.
Time and time again,
I have been given a book at just the right time
 and have been deeply helped.
Lent is a beautiful but often very challenging time for us,
as we seek to grow in our faith,
to pray a little more, to give of ourselves to God
and others and to grow in virtue to
become more like our beloved Lord Jesus Christ.
*
I am going to blog about a few of the Lenten books
that can help open our lives and hearts
to what Lent can give us.
The first book is newly published by
Ancient Faith Publishing.
*

Thirty Steps to Heaven: The Ladder of Divine Ascent for All Walks of Life

*

Thirty Steps to Heaven: The Ladder of Divine Ascent for All Walks of Life
gives us ways to apply St. John Climacus’ 
Ladder of Divine Ascent in our life.  
The Ladder of Divine Ascent is a 
sixth century classic text in Orthodox spirituality.  
It was written by St. John of the Ladder 
for monastics and gives us a ladder of explaining 
both virtue and sinful passions.   
St. John's Ladder can at times seem either intimidating 
or discouraging to us who live in the world;
 indeed we can get overwhelmed by how far we 
are from ascending to the highest of these virtues: love.  
My spiritual father in Ottawa told me once that
just to be on the ladder is a blessing.  
Archimandrite Vassilios’ book is for all of us 
who need some hearty encouragement and 
encouraging instruction on how we too can apply
 St. John’s words to our lives.  
I personally am finding this book, 
having read most of St. John of Climacus’ Ladder of Divine Ascent, 
greatly encouraging!  
There are ways that we too can 
not only stay on the Ladder to Christ 
but be encouraged towards a step higher.