Chrysostom Quotes & Sayings

Nothing is more fallacious than wealth. It is a hostile comrade, a domestic enemy. — John Chrysostom

Mary was made Mother of God to obtain salvation for many who, on account of their wicked lives, could not be saved according to the rigor of Divine justice, but might be saved with the help of her sweet mercy and powerful intercession. — Saint John Chrysostom

The Holy Scriptures do not know any distinctions. They enjoin that all lead the life of monks. — Saint John Chrysostom

It is possible to offer fervent prayer even while walking in public or strolling alone or seated in your shop ... while buying or selling ... or even while cooking. — Saint John Chrysostom

Prayer should be the means by which I, at all times, receive all that I need, and, for this reason, be my daily refuge, my daily consolation, my daily joy, my source of rich and inexhaustible joy in life. — Saint John Chrysostom

Imagine your anger to be a kind of wild beast, because it has ferocious teeth and claws, and if you don't tame it, it will devastate all things even corrupting the soul. — Saint John Chrysostom

The Holy Scriptures were not given
to us that we should enclose
them in books, but that we should
engrave them upon our hearts. — John Chrysostom

We are commanded to have only one enemy, the devil. With him never be reconciled! But with a brother, never be at enmity in thy heart. — Saint John Chrysostom

Let us return from that Table like lions breathing out fire, terrifying to the devil! — Saint John Chrysostom

When the Mass is being celebrated, the sanctuary is filled with countless angels, who adore the Divine Victim immolated on the altar. — Saint John Chrysostom

Is it not excessively ridiculous to seek the good opinion of those whom you would never wish to be like? — Saint John Chrysostom

The pastoral labours of the archbishop of Constantinople provoked and gradually united against him two sorts of enemies; the aspiring clergy, who envied his success, and the obstinate sinners, who were offended by his reproofs. When Chrysostom thundered from the pulpit of St. Sophia against the degeneracy of the Christians, his shafts were spent among the crowd, without wounding or even marking the character of any individual. — Edward Gibbon

Henceforth we find woman no longer a slave of man and tool of lust, but the pride and joy of her husband, the fond mother training her children to virtue and godliness, the ornament and treasure of the family, the faithful sister, the zealous servant of the congregation in every work of Christian charity, the sister of mercy, the martyr with superhuman courage, the guardian angel of peace, the example of purity, humility, gentleness, patience, love, and fidelity unto death. Such women were unknown before. The heathen Libanius, the enthusiastic eulogist of old Grecian culture, pronounced an involuntary eulogy on Christianity when he exclaimed, as he looked at the mother of Chrysostom: "What women the Christians have! — Philip Schaff

This is the rule of most perfect Christianity, its most exact definition, its highest point, namely, the seeking of the common good ... for nothing can so make a person an imitator of Christ as caring for neighbors. — Saint John Chrysostom

Please listen to me - you are not paying attention. I am talking to you about the Holy Scriptures, and you are looking at the lamps and the people lighting them. It is very frivolous to be more interested in what the lamplighters are doing ... After all, I am lighting a lamp too - the lamp of God's Word. — Saint John Chrysostom

Intemperance is a hydra with a hundred heads. She never stalks abroad unaccompanied with impurity, anger, and the most infamous profligacies. — Saint John Chrysostom

No matter how just your words may be, you ruin everything when you speak with anger. — Saint John Chrysostom

What shall I say! And how shall I describe this Birth to you? For this wonder fills me with astonishment. The Ancient of Days has become an infant. He Who sits upon the sublime and heavenly Throne, now lies in a manger. And He Who cannot be touched, Who is simple, without complexity, and incorporeal, now lies subject to the hands of men. He Who has broken the bonds of sinners, is now bound by an infant's bands. But He has decreed that ignominy shall become honor, infamy be clothed with glory, and total humiliation the measure of His Goodness. — Saint John Chrysostom

Him who is dead and gone honor with remembrance, not with tears. — Saint John Chrysostom

Words cannot express the joy which a friend imparts. — Saint John Chrysostom

Slander is worse than cannibalism. — John Chrysostom

For nothing so much disturbs the mind, though it be done for some beneficial purpose, as to innovate and introduce strange things, and most of all when this is done in matters relating to divine worship and the glory of God. — Saint John Chrysostom

What good is it if the Eucharistic table is overloaded with golden chalices when your brother is dying of hunger. Start by satisfying his hunger and then with what is left you may adorn the altar as well. — Saint John Chrysostom

The Eucharist is a fire that inflames us, that, like lions breathing fire, we may retire from the altar being made terrible to the devil. — Saint John Chrysostom

What gnats are compared with humans, so is the whole creation compared with God. — Saint John Chrysostom

We follow the ways of wolves, the habits of tigers: or, rather we are worse than they. To them nature has assigned that they should be thus fed, while God has honoured us with rational speech and a sense of equity. And yet we are become worse than the wild beast. — John Chrysostom

The test of sincerity of one's prayer is the willingness to labor on its behalf. — Saint John Chrysostom

Almsgiving above all else requires money, but even this shines with a brighter luster when the alms are given from our poverty. The widow who paid in the two mites was poorer than any human, but she outdid them all. — Saint John Chrysostom

It is not the man who is responsible for the offerings as they become Christ's Body and Blood; it is Christ Himself who was crucified for us. The standing figure belongs to the priest who speaks these words. The power and the grace belong to God. 'This is My Body,' he says. And these words transform the offerings. — Saint John Chrysostom

Since it is likely that, being men, they would sin every day, St. Paul consoles his hearers by saying 'renew yourselves' from day to day. This is what we do with houses: we keep constantly repairing them as they wear old. You should do the same thing to yourself. Have you sinned today? Have you made your soul old? Do not despair, do not despond, but renew your soul by repentance, and tears, and Confession, and by doing good things. And never cease doing this. — John Chrysostom

Charity is indeed, a great thing, and a gift of God, and when it is rightly ordered likens us unto God himself, as far as that is possible; for it is charity which makes the man. — Saint John Chrysostom

When an archer desires to shoot his arrows successfully, he first takes great pains over his posture and aligns himself accurately with his mark. It should be the same for you who are about to shoot the head of the wicked devil. Let us be concerned first for the good order of sensations and then for the good posture of inner thoughts.' — Saint John Chrysostom

For it cannot, it cannot be, that a man should enjoy the benefit of grace except he watch. — John Chrysostom

I do not think there are many among Bishops that will be saved, but many more that perish. — Saint John Chrysostom

What prayer could be more true before God the Father than that which the Son, who is Truth, uttered with His own lips? — Saint John Chrysostom

A man's readiness and commitment are not enough if he does not enjoy help from above as well; equally help from above is no benefit to us unless there is also commitment and readiness on our part. — Saint John Chrysostom

That is true plenty, not to have, but not to want riches. — Saint John Chrysostom

The desire to rule is the mother of heresies. — Saint John Chrysostom

No one has ever been accused for not providing ornaments, but for those who neglect their neighbour a hell awaits with an inextinguishable fire and torment in the company of the demons. Do not, therefore, adorn the church and ignore your afflicted brother, for he is the most precious temple of all. — Saint John Chrysostom

The drunken man is a living corpse. — Saint John Chrysostom

When we teach our children to be good, to be gentle, to be forgiving (all these are attributes of God), to be generous, to love their follow men, to regard this present age as nothing, we instill virtue in their souls, and reveal the image of God within them. — Saint John Chrysostom

Saturday 13 September 2014 Saint John Chrysostom, — Anonymous

Only those who do not fight are never wounded. — Saint John Chrysostom

For those who have little are not equally held in subjection by their possessions as those who overflow with affluence, for then the love of it becomes more tyrannical. The increase of acquisitions kindles the flame more, and renders those who possess them poorer. — John Chrysostom

Laughter does not seem to be a sin, but it leads to sin. — Saint John Chrysostom

When you are before the altar where Christ reposes, you ought no longer to think that you are amongst men; but believe that there are troops of angels and archangels standing by you, and trembling with respect before the sovereign Master of Heaven and earth. Therefore, when you are in church, be there in silence, fear, and veneration. — Saint John Chrysostom

You cannot pray at home, like you can at church, where there is a great multitude; where exclamations are cried out to God as from one great heart, and where there is something more: the unions of minds, the accord of souls, the bond of charity, the prayers of priests. — Saint John Chrysostom

Fasting of the body is food for the soul. — Saint John Chrysostom

We will live eternally with Peter, Paul, Austin, Chrysostom, Jerome, Wickliffe, Luther, Zuinglius, Calvin, Beza, Bullinger ... Latimer(69) [.] — Richard Baxter

A mother experiences more than one death, even though she herself will only die once. She fears for her husband; she fears for her children; again she fears for the women and children who belong to her children ... For each of these-whether for loss of possessions, bodily illness, or undesired misfortune-she mourns and grieves no less than those who suffer. — Saint John Chrysostom

God loves us more than a father, mother, friend, or any else could love, and even more than we are able to love ourselves. — Saint John Chrysostom

If repentance is neglected for an instant, one can lose the power of the Resurrection as he lives with the weakness of tepidity and the potential of his fall. — Saint John Chrysostom

The rich man is not one who is in possession of much, but one who gives much. — Saint John Chrysostom

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave. — Saint John Chrysostom

There is harm not only in trying to gain wealth but also in excessive concern with even the most necessary things. It is not enough to despise wealth, but you must also feed the poor and, more importantly, you must follow Christ. — Saint John Chrysostom

When we once begin to form good resolutions, God gives us every opportunity of carrying them out. — Saint John Chrysostom

Things themselves do not remain, but their effects do. Therefore we should not be mean and calculating with what we have but give with a generous hand. Look at how much people give to players and dancers-why not give just as much to Christ? — Saint John Chrysostom

Memory of our good works makes us negligent and leads to arrogance. Do not think of your good deeds, so that God may remember them. — Saint John Chrysostom

Feeding the hungry is a greater work than raising the dead — Saint John Chrysostom

It is folly to abstain all day long from food, but fail to abstain from sin and selfishness. — Saint John Chrysostom

Prayer is the root, the fountain, the mother of a thousand blessings. — Saint John Chrysostom

It brings comfort to have companions in whatever happens. — Saint John Chrysostom

Whether, therefore, we receive what we ask for, or do not receive it, let us still continue steadfast in prayer. For to fail in obtaining the desires of our heart, when God so wills it, is not worse than to receive it; for we know not as He does, what is profitable to us. — Saint John Chrysostom

And all men are ready to pass judgement on the priest as if he was not a being clothed with flesh, or one who inherited a human nature. — John Chrysostom

What is it to be a fool for Christ? It is to control one's thoughts when they stray out of line. It is to make the mind empty and free ... — Saint John Chrysostom

A man does not possess all the gifts, lest he think that grace is nature. — Saint John Chrysostom

If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice. — Saint John Chrysostom

You carry your snare everywhere and spread your nets in all places. You allege that you never invited others to sin. You did not indeed, by your words, but you have done so by your dress and your deportment. — Saint John Chrysostom

Nothing will divide the church so much as the love of power. — Saint John Chrysostom

St. Chrysostom, suffering under the Empress Eudoxia, tells his friend Cyriacus how he armed himself beforehand...."I thought, will she banish me? 'The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.' Take away my goods? 'Naked came I into the world, and naked must I return.' Will she stone me? I remembered Stephen. Behead me? John Baptist came into my mind," etc. Thus it should be with every one that intends to live and die comfortably: they must, as we say, lay up something for a rainy day; they must stock themselves with graces, store up promises, and furnish themselves with experiences of God's lovingkindness to others and themselves too, that so, when the evil day comes, they may have much good coming thereby. — John Spencer

Whether or not our prayer is heard depends not on the number of our words, but on the fervor of our souls. — Saint John Chrysostom

For what St. Augustine said is true, that one can sing nothing worthy of God save what one has received from Him. Wherefore though we look far and wide we will find no better songs nor songs more suitable to that purpose than the Psalms of David, which the Holy Spirit made and imparted to him. Thus, singing them we may be sure that our words come from God just as if He were to sing in us for His own exaltation. Wherefore, Chrysostom exhorts men, women, and children alike to get used to singing them, so as through this act of meditation to become as one with the choir of angels. — William Romaine

Such is friendship, that through it we love places and seasons; for as bright bodies emit rays to a distance, and flowers drop their sweet leaves on the ground around them, so friends impart favor even to the places where they dwell. With friends even poverty is pleasant. Words cannot express the joy which a friend imparts; they only can know who have experienced. A friend is dearer than the light of heaven, for it would be better for us that the sun were exhausted than that we should be without friends. — Saint John Chrysostom

We ought not, as soon as we leave church, to plunge into business unsuited to church, but as soon as we get home, we should take the Scriptures into our hands, and call our wife and children to join us in putting together what we have heard in church. — Saint John Chrysostom

You say you don't mistrust me, yet you quote Chrysostom - Hell is paved with priests' skulls ... — John Geddes

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. — Saint John Chrysostom

Poor human reason, when it trusts in itself, substitutes the strangest absurdities for the highest divine concepts. — John Chrysostom

Dost thou wish to receive mercy? Show mercy to thy neighbor. — Saint John Chrysostom

Surely we ought to show them (animals) great kindness and gentleness for many reasons, but, above all, because they are of the same origin as ourselves. — Saint John Chrysostom

Even if we stand at the very summit of virtue, it is by mercy that we shall be saved. — Saint John Chrysostom

Let us always guard our tongue; not that it should always be silent, but that it should speak at the proper time. — Saint John Chrysostom

You see how many are the benefits of baptism, and some think its heavenly grace consists only in the remission of sins, but we have enumerated ten honors [it bestows]! For this reason we baptize even infants, though they are not defiled by [personal] sins, so that there may be given to them holiness, righteousness, adoption, inheritance, brotherhood with Christ, and that they may be his [Christ's] members — Saint John Chrysostom

He that enjoys naught without thanksgiving is as though he robbed God. — Saint John Chrysostom

A comprehended god is no god. — John Chrysostom

"He passed over his fall, and appointed him first of the Apostles; wherefore He said: ' 'Simon, Simon,' etc. (in Ps. cxxix. 2). God allowed him to fall, because He meant to make him ruler over the whole world, that, remembering his own fall, he might forgive those who should slip in the future. And that what I have said is no guess, listen to Christ Himself saying: 'Simon, Simon, etc.'" — Saint John Chrysostom

Let the mouth also fast from disgraceful speeches and railings. For what does it profit if we abstain from fish and fowl and yet bite and devour our brothers and sisters? The evil speaker eats the flesh of his brother and bites the body of his neighbor. — John Chrysostom

The potency of prayer hath subdued the strength of fire; it hath bridled the rage of lions, hushed anarchy to rest, extinguished wars, appeased the elements, expelled demons, burst the chains of death, expanded the gates of heaven, assuaged diseases, repelled frauds, rescued cities from destruction, stayed the sun in its course, and arrested the progress of the thunderbolt. — John Chrysostom

Wine was given us by God, not that we might be drunken, but that we might be sober. It is the best medicine when it has the best moderation to direct it. Wine was given to restore the body's weakness, not to overturn the soul's strength. — Saint John Chrysostom

Do not the angels differs from us in this respect, that they do not want so many things as we do? Therefore the less we need, the more we are on our way to them; the more we need, the more we sink down to this perishable life. — Saint John Chrysostom

Before they committed the crime of crimes, before they killed their Master, before the cross, before the slaying of Christ, [Jewish sacrifices were] an abomination. — Saint John Chrysostom

What shepherd feeds his sheep with his own blood? But Christ feeds us with His own Blood and in all things unites us to Himself. — Saint John Chrysostom

From the creation learn to admire thy Lord! And if any of the things thou see exceed thy comprehension, and thou are not able to find the reason thereof, yet for this glorify the Creator, that the wisdom of these works surpass thine understanding. — Saint John Chrysostom

Chrysostom, I remember, mentions a twofold book of God: the book of the creatures, and the book of the scriptures. God, having taught us first of all by his works, did it afterwards, by his Words. We will now for a while read the former of these books; 'twill help us in reading the latter. They will admirably assist one another. — Cotton Mather

To destroy the fetus 'is something worse than murder.' The one who does this 'does not take away life that has already been born, but prevents it from being born.' — Saint John Chrysostom

If you say, "Would there were no wine" because of the drunkards, then you must say, going on by degrees, "Would there were no steel," because of the murderers, "Would there were no night," because of the thieves, "Would there were no light," because of the informers, and "Would there were no women," because of adultery. — Saint John Chrysostom

It is this that ruins churches, that you do not seek to hear sermons that touch the heart, but sermons that will delight your ears with their intonation and the structure of their phrases, just as if you were listening to singers and lute-players. And we preachers humor your fancies, instead of trying to crush them. We act like a father who gives a sick child a cake or an ice, or something else that is merely nice to eat
just because he asks for it; and takes no pains to give him what is good for him; and then when the doctors blame him says, 'I could not bear to hear my child cry.' ... That is what we do when we elaborate beautiful sentences, fine combinations and harmonies, to please and not to profit, to be admired and not to instruct, to delight and not to touch you, to go away with your applause in our ears, and not to better your conduct. — John Chrysostom

This is the highest point of philosophy, to be simple & wise; this is the angelic life. — Saint John Chrysostom

In the Christian combat, not the striker, as in the Olympic contests, but he who is struck, wins the crown. This is the law in the celestial theatre, where the Angels are the spectators. — Saint John Chrysostom

Paul commands: 'Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the Traditions which you have been taught, whether by word or by our letter.' From this it is clear that they did not hand down everything by letter, but there is much also that was not written. Like that which was written, the unwritten too is worthy of belief. So let us regard the Tradition of the Church also as worthy of belief. Is it a Tradition? Seek no further. — Saint John Chrysostom

Of all the afflictions that burden the human race, there is not one, whether spiritual or bodily, that cannot be healed by the Holy Scriptures. — Saint John Chrysostom