and The Paradise of the Heart
by John Amos Comenius
This book is a dystopian, semi-biographical allegory. It is cynical, but not unnecessarily. It is witty and uses colloquialism and metaphor with great creativity. The biographical aspect will not be evident to most readers. However, a section about the author, his times, and his legacy notes passages that reflect from the author’s life.
Comenius, the author, suffered a great deal in human terms. Yet, through his life and his allegory, he depicts two kingdoms, a construct that Anabaptist teach: the kingdom of God amongst the kingdoms of men. This fact is strange since Comenius existed apart from the Anabaptists and arose from a tradition that pre-dated Anabaptist. Comenius’ training also precluded him from a natural connection to Anabaptist thinking.
This book is epically contemporary. Comenius lost his entire family to the plague. He lived in exile because his country was torn apart by religious and political factions fighting each other for control of the society. Comenius lost his manuscripts twice to have them burned. Even so, Comenius rose above all these setbacks to formulate a revolutionary approach to education that overtook the entire world.
Thus, in life and allegory, Comenius shows us how we can rise above the circumstances and situations of life to do dynamic things the world order cannot deny nor avoid.
About the Author:
John Amos Comenius – A 17th Century Czech educator, philosopher, theologian and bishop who authored more than 140 published works and 40+ unfinished/unpublished volumes even after his manuscripts had been burned twice. Labyrinth of the World was one of his first works (1623).
Timothy Price published since 2005. In 2020, he lost regular employment because of complications of medical situations. Price always wanted to adapt Labyrinth to make it more readable, as it had been so impactful in his life. After losing work, the opportunity of the project became possible. During an 18 month period, Price has project managed all aspects of publishing in order to re-issue Labyrinth of the World in a 400th-anniversary collector’s edition.
266 pages, hardcover
