al-jihād al-rūḥī ʿind al-qiddīs isḥāq al-siryānī - Paul Matar

The writings of St. Isaac the Syrian were highly influential on the development of monastic thought, both within the Syriac tradition and more broadly in other traditions as his writings were translated and made available to new audiences. In particular, Isaac's writings on the struggles of the spiritual life-which can be viewed in terms of spiritual warfare-were significant developments in monastic literature. The present work examines Isaac's views of the spiritual struggles facing monastic communities and the influence of these ideas more broadly within monastic culture.