Orthodox theology is intimately linked to spiritual experience:it has a very different meaning to the present usage of this word coming from academia. The scientific methods developed in the West since the seventeenth century can of of benefit in many regards, but without strong roots in the Orthodox tradition  theology risks  being "eaten up" by the human sciences.These roots are in the mystical tradition of the Church as passed down from the the beginning and expressed in the lives of saints, iconography etc. Thus this work has both a theoretical and a practical scope, of relevance to  all Christians.