At seventeen years old, Timothy Ware was about to begin studies at Oxford when he wandered into a Russian Orthodox church in London. What he found there would change his life forever.
A Life-Changing Encounter with Orthodoxy
"I felt I had stepped into a different world," he later wrote. "The icons, the incense, the singing—it was as though I had been transported back to the early Church."
Ware had been raised Anglican, but something about the Orthodox liturgy captivated him. He returned again and again, drawn by a faith that seemed untouched by time. He began reading the Church Fathers—Athanasius, Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus—and found in them a Christianity that felt both ancient and alive.
Conversion to Orthodox Christianity
In 1958, Ware was received into the Orthodox Church. He took the name Kallistos at his monastic tonsure. Over the following decades, he became one of the most influential Orthodox Christian scholars in the Western world.
Becoming a Renowned Scholar
As a professor at Oxford, Kallistos Ware wrote books that introduced countless readers to Eastern Christianity. His work "The Orthodox Church" became the standard introduction to the faith for English speakers. His translation of "The Philokalia"—the great collection of Orthodox spiritual writings—made treasures of the Eastern tradition accessible to a new generation.
In 1982, he was consecrated as a bishop, becoming Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia.
A Legacy of Faith
Yet despite his scholarly achievements, Metropolitan Kallistos always emphasized that faith was not primarily about knowledge. "Christianity is not a philosophical system," he wrote, "but a personal relationship with Jesus Christ."
He spoke often of his first encounter with Orthodoxy: "That moment in the Russian church changed everything. I realized that what I was looking for had been there all along—the fullness of the apostolic faith, preserved unbroken through the centuries."
Metropolitan Kallistos continued teaching, writing, and serving until his death in 2022 at the age of eighty-seven. His journey—from curious teenager to beloved teacher of the ancient faith—inspired thousands to explore the riches of Orthodox Christianity.
