Golden Mouth - January 27

Today’s Readings:  AM Psalm 119:49-72; PM Psalm 49, [53]; Isa. 49:1-12; Gal. 2:11-21; Mark 6:13-29

When asked to name the top four quarterbacks of all time, who is on your list? Tom Brady, Joe Namath…who else? Upon comparing notes with a co-worker or neighbor, would you make a few edits? Maybe music – rather than football – gets your engine humming…who would you name as the top four musicians of the last century?

While I cannot guess who exactly is on your list of elite quarterbacks or musicians, there is a list of top-notch influencers in the Ancient Church. Among those in the West, categorized as the Great Latin Doctors of the Ancient Church, we have Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory the Great. And in the East, the Great Greek Doctors include Athanasius of Alexandria, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazianzus, and John Chrysostom. It is today that we remember John Chrysostom, Bishop of Antioch and Constantinople.

Chrysostom means “golden-mouthed” – and it was a surname given to him posthumously. John (347-407 AD) is known by history as a prolific writer and a gifted preacher. He presented straightforward expositions of Holy Scripture, spoke against a abuses of authority, and kept people engaged for long public sermons. One brief history of John’s life included this bit of flavor: “Audiences were warned not to carry large sums of money when they went to hear him speak, since pickpockets found it very easy to rob his hearers -- they were too intent on his words to notice what was happening.” (James Kiefer)

In one of his homilies, John preached, “The bee is more honored than other animals, not because it labors, but because it labors for others.” What lovely words that ring true to our Christian call to serve those in need! His words remind me of Saint Stephen’s commitment to the care of God’s creation – and the thousands of bees we have on site here. Bees are actually one of the symbols associated with John Chrysostom, but John was not a bi-vocational priest and beekeeper; he’s associated with bees because of the “sweetness of his preaching.” Historian Hans von Campenhausen wrote that his sermons “are probably the only ones from the whole of Greek antiquity which … are still readable today as Christian sermons. They reflect something of the authentic life of the New Testament, just because they are so ethical, so simple, and so clear-headed.”

John Chrysostom reflects on the reading from Galatians 2:11-21 in a brief 4,568 words. If I were to preach verbatim, it would take nearly 45 minutes. For this reflection today, I hold up one piece for us to chew on. John was bishop of Antioch – and he writes about this excerpt in which the Apostle Paul details a conversation with the Apostle Peter (Cephas), in Antioch. Paul’s preaching about this exchange is not to embarrass or demean Peter, rather John Chrysostom says it serves as a teaching to refine and reform the beginnings of Christian life, living into the Law and by faith in Jesus the Son of God. (You may read the entirety of his commentary of the Letter to the Galatians here.)

As I close, I offer you this prayer of John Chrysostom that we sometimes read during Morning Prayer. May these words open you to the hope and consolation of God this day:

A Prayer of St. 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.

-- Katherine+

Questions for Reflection

Who is someone you can listen to, and as they speak, time stops and you are swept away?

 What messages of hope and consolation, what sweet words, do you need to hear today? With whom might you share these same words?

Daily Challenge

Take ten minutes to learn more about the Great Doctors of the Ancient Church by clicking this link: https://www.ccel.org/fathers.html