Thoughts for the Day

Jesus says, ‘Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfil. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Today we remember St John Chrysostom, born in 347 CE in Antioch in Syria. He was an amazing preacher and teacher, and it's said that the zeal and clarity of his preaching appealed especially to ordinary men and women, which earned him the Greek surname 'Chrysostom' meaning "golden-mouthed". The son of a high-ranking military officer he was raised as a Christian, although he studied law under a distinguished pagan teacher. In the end he gave up his profession to study theology, before becoming a hermit-monk, and eventually a Deacon and then a Priest. He became Archbishop of Constantinople (against his wish), and did much to support the poor. However, the powerful Archbishop of Alexander and the wife of the Roman Emperor, colluded to have him removed for his accusations that the rich were abusing their power.

Chrysostom was a superb preacher. He seldom used allegory but spoke plainly about his meaning. Each of his sermons had moral or social lessons to learn, and they still resonate today. In his lifetime his enemies depose him as Archbishop, and finally imprisoned him. After three brutal years he was sent to a more remote place on the eastern shores of the Black Sea under armed guard, but weakened by the experience, he died en route on 14 December 407 CE.

800 of his letters and sermons exist today, but this quote sums up this great Teacher of the Faith: "Preaching improves me. When I begin to speak, weariness disappears; when I begin to teach, fatigue, too, disappears.” Thirty-one years after his death, his remains were transported back to Constantinople and buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles. During the Fourth Crusade, in 1204, his tomb was looted and the remains taken to Rome. In 2004, Pope John Paul II returned Chrysostom’s bones to the Orthodox Church where they now lie in the Church of St. George in Istanbul, Turkey.

Collect for John Chrysostom:

God of truth and love,
who gave to your servant John Chrysostom
eloquence to declare your righteousness
in the great congregation,
and courage to bear reproach for the honour of your name:
mercifully grant to those who minister your word
such excellent in preaching,
that all people may share with them
in the glory that shall be revealed;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.