The Watchful Gate

Father Seraphim Rose: His Life and Works by Hieromonk Damascene

This epic biography of Hieromonk Seraphim Rose tells the unique story of a man who, having grown up in a typical American home in southern California, became one of the greatest teachers of Orthodox Christianity in our times, loved and revered throughout Russia and Eastern Europe.

Quoting at length from his letters, journals, manuscripts, recorded lectures and published writings, this book traces Fr. Seraphim’s intense search for truth and his philosophical development, setting forth his message and offering a glimpse into the soul of a man who lived, even while on this earth, in the otherworldly Kingdom of God.

(Read an Excerpt of this book)

NEW: God's Revelation To The Human Heart, A Lecture by Fr. Seraphim Rose, now streaming online.

Hear interviews with Hieromonk Damascene and Abbot Gerasim about the life of Fr. Seraphim on a special edition of "The Illumined Heart" on Ancient Faith Radio on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Fr. Seraphim's repose:

(These are MP3 files for download): 

• Part 1: Interview with Fr. Damascene
  
• Part 2: Interview with Fr. Damascene
  
• Part 3: Interview with Abbot Gerasim

 

"Christian Zen, Christian Yoga, and Other Borrowed Practices - Excerpts from "Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future."

 From the book "Orthodoxy and the Religion of the Future. 
Written during the crazier '70s, much of this still applies to our time.

Fr. Seraphim's writings are hard-hitting, but stand the test of Patristic discernment which is greatly lacking in our time.  Do not be merely put off by Fr. Seraphim's statements, but get the essence of what is being said.

 

Emptiness and Fullness in the Lao Tzu by Eugene Rose (large PDF)

Before he entered the Orthodox Church and became Fr. Seraphim Rose,  Eugene Rose went to San Francisco to study Zen at the Academy founded by Alan Watts.  After exposure to both the best known Zen masters and teachers in the country as well as Alan Watts' "hipster Zen" and the beats, Eugene, went on to study Taoism under Gi Ming Shien.  This document, his resulting thesis, shows his intellectual progress up to the point before he discovered Orthodox Christianity.

 

Tradition And Truth As A Person
A letter of Fr. Seraphim Rose to a like-minded spiritual seeker.

 

A Letter of Eugene Rose to Thomas Merton