John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (349– 407) was the archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his eloquence in preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, and his ascetic sensibilities. After his death he was given the Greek surname chrysostomos, "golden mouthed", rendered in English as Chrysostom. The Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches honor him as a saint and count him among the Three Holy Hierarchs (feast day, January 30), together with Saints Basil the Great and Gregory the Theologian. He is recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as a saint and a Doctor of the Church.
Eloquent and uncompromising preaching was typical of John and earned him the name history would remember him by: Chrysostomos—"golden mouth." But his preaching, though considered the best in the early church, was what got him into trouble and led to his untimely death. After his education, like many devout men of his day, the spidery John (he was short, thin, and long-limbed) entered monastic seclusion. But his ascetic rigors were so strenuous, they damaged his health (the effects would last his whole life), and he was forced to return to public life. He quickly went from lector to deacon to priest at the church in Antioch. His large bald head, deeply set eyes, and sunken cheeks reminded people of Elisha the prophet. Though his sermons (which lasted between 30 minutes and two hours) were well attended, he sometimes became discouraged: "My work is like that of a man who is trying to clean a piece of ground into which a muddy stream is constantly flowing.” In early 398, John was seized by soldiers and transported to the capital, where he was forcibly consecrated as archbishop of Constantinople. His kidnapping was arranged by a government official who wanted to adorn the church in the capital city with the best orator in Christianity. Rather than rebelling against the injustice, John accepted it as God's providence. And rather than soften his words for his new and prestigious audience—which now included many from the imperial household—John continued themes he preached in Antioch. He railed against abuses of wealth and power. Even his lifestyle itself was a scandal: he lived an ascetic life, used his considerable household budget to care for the poor, and built hospitals. |
Quotes
“What on earth are you saying? It’s not your business to read the Bible, because you’ve got too many other things to bother about? But that’s the very reason why you need to read the Bible! The more worries you have, the more you need the Bible! The more worries you have, the more you need the Bible to keep you going! People like monks and nuns who have left the troubles of the world behind are quite safe; they are like ships sailing on a calm sea, or moored in a quiet harbor. But you are in the middle of this godless world’s stormy sea, and so you need spiritual help and sustenance far more urgently. They live far from the battlefield, out to the sound of gunfire; but you are in the front line, face to face with the enemy, and you are bound to suffer frequent blows and be severely wounded. So you need the medicine-chest close at hand."
-John Chrysostom “Haven’t you noticed how a smith-mason, carpenter, or any other craftsman, however much his back is against the wall, will never sell or pawn the tools of his trade? If he did, how could he earn his living? That is how we should think of the Bible; just as mallets, hammers, saws, chisels, axes and hatchets are the tools of the craftsman’s trade, so the books of the prophets and the apostles, and all scripture inspired by the Holy Spirit, are the tools of our salvation.” -John Chrysostom “When you see the Church scattered, suffering the most terrible trials, consider the rewards.” -John Chrysostom “Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect--We must busy ourselves with preparations for our departure from this world. Even if the day when the whole word ends never overtakes us, the end of each of us is right at the door.” -John Chrysostom "Let no one grieve at his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free. He has destroyed it by enduring it -John Chrysostom Indifference to the poor, therefore, reveals poor worship. "You honor the altar at church," John says, "because the body of Christ rests upon it. But those who are themselves the very body of Christ you treat with contempt and you remain indifferent when you see them perishing." No person can grow in godliness unless he serves his brethren. It is not enough to worship at the altars of the church. The true altars are the physical bodies of real men and women. -John Chrysostom "God has made for us two kinds of eyes: those of flesh and those of faith. When you come to the sacred initiation, the eyes of the flesh see water; the eyes of faith behold the Spirit. Those eyes see the body being baptized; these eyes see the old existence being buried. " John Chrysostom "You can set up an altar to God in your minds by means of prayer. And so it is fitting to pray at your trade, on a journey, standing at a counter or sitting at your handicraft." John Chrysostom "Almighty God, you have given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication to you; and you have promised through your well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen." -John Chrysostom “There is a twofold death; and so twofold must be our resurrection. In Christ here is but one death. For Christ did not sin; but for us he suffered this single death. For he was to subject to death, since he was never a debtor to sin, and so neither was he liable to death. And so from a single death he rose in a single resurrection from the dead. But we who have died a twofold death rise by a twofold resurrection. Until now we have risen in baptism, and we have risen with him through baptism. This resurrection is deliverance from our sins; the second is the resurrection of the body. He has given us the greater; we await the lesser. The first is greater than the second. For it is a greater thing to be delivered from our sins than for the body to see resurrection. Through this the body fell: because it sinned. If then this was the cause of its fall, to be freed from sin is the cause of its rising again.” -John Chrysostom "Preaching improves me. When I begin to speak, weariness disappears; when I begin to teach, fatigue too disappears.” -John Chrysostom "I do not know whether anyone has ever succeeded in not enjoying praise," he wrote in one passage. "And if he enjoys it, he naturally wants to receive it. And if he wants to receive it, he cannot help being pained and distraught at losing it. -John Chrysostom "My sermons are applauded merely from custom, then everyone runs off to [horse racing] again and gives much more applause to the jockeys, showing indeed unrestrained passion for them! There they put their heads together with great attention, and say with mutual rivalry, 'This horse did not run well, this one stumbled,' and one holds to this jockey and another to that. No one thinks any more of my sermons, nor of the holy and awesome mysteries that are accomplished here.” -John Chrysostom "Long after the theater is closed and everyone is gone away, those images [of "shameful women" actresses] still float before your soul, their words, their conduct, their glances, their walk, their positions, their excitation, their unchaste limbs … And there within you she kindles the Babylonian furnace in which the peace of your home, the purity of your heart, the happiness of your marriage will be burnt up!” -John Chrysostom |