The cover is striking. On the right, Jesus (cross in hand), grasps Adam by his right wrist, Eve in tow, as they exit Hades. Lying bound at the feet of Hades, bound, with the butt of the cross in his mouth, is the Devil. Jesus leads Adam and Eve “again to paradise” (93).

I purchased this volume of the Popular Patristics series to read during the mornings of Lent (2023). The book contains seven Lenten poems written by Saint Romanos (c. 490–560), a Byzantine hymn writer.

The poems are striking. Containing 15–24 stanzas, each poems ends with a repeated leitmotif. “On the Victory of the Cross” (93–109) ends each stanza with the repeated, “again to paradise” mentioned in the introduction. “On Fasting” (47–67) ends with the repeated refrain of “eternal life.” “On the Rich Man and Lazarus” (139–157) ends with the prayer, “Have mercy, O Lord.” These repeated lines drive the theme of each poem home in liturgical manner. They’re worth reading aloud.

Saint Romanos’ poems are imaginative and passionate. They go beyond the biblical texts they draw from, reimagining the events, inviting the reader (the pray-er) to imaginatively inhabit the narrative.

It seems fitting to end with an excerpt from “On the Victory of the Cross” that launched this review:

A fiery sword no longer guards the gate of Eden,
for a strange bond came upon it: the wood of the Cross.
The sting of Death and the victory of Hades were nailed to it.
But you appeared, my Savior, crying to those in hell:
“Be brought back again to paradise.”

Having been nailed to the form of the Cross as truly a ransom for many,
you redeemed us, Christ our God,
for by your precious blood in love for humankind
you snatched our souls from death,
you brought us back with you again to paradise. (93)

Romanos. Hymns of Repentance. Translated by Andrew Mellas, St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2020. Popular Patristics Series 61.