St. John Chrysostom

Today the Orthodox, along with many Anglican and some Lutheran churches, celebrate the Feast Day of Saint John Chrysostom (the remaining Western Churches, including the Roman Catholic Church, commemorate him on 13 September).

A brief bio...
Chrysostom (Χρυσόστομος) literally means "golden mouth," a surname attributed to the saint because of his eloquence in the pulpit. St. Chrysostom (c. 347-407) is a Doctor of the Church, which designates him as a teacher of the highest trust and significance in contribution to Christian doctrine and theology. The Orthodox go so far as to include him in their Three Holy Hierarchs, alongside Cappadocian Fathers Gregory Nazianzus (the father of Trinitarian theology) and St. Basil the Great (the great Nicene opponent of Arianism). Known as an Early Church Father of great asceticism, St. Chrysostom was Archbishop of Constantinople, an office now translated as the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Orthodox Church.

One of the great legacies St. Chrysostom left was his writing on the priesthood, which is still studied and meditated upon. In Mass today, it was through the example of this great saint that we prayed for priests and bishops worldwide, for he, in fact, is quite a prototype for the Christian priest. All this to say, he is a founding rock upon which our Christian Church is built, and today is the day we remember him in gratitude and especially pray for the priests of whom God has entrusted us.

There are two of his prayers I would like to share.

First, over the past year or so, I have daily concluded my meditations with a prayer that has become a constant for me. The words are simple yet maintain a subtle wisdom and faithful confidence.

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.

Secondly, there is a prayer of St. Chrysostom of which each line corresponds to an hour upon which it is prayed. This practice has yet to find great consistency in my life (especially during hours of the night), but it is a practice worth being aware of, if not sharing in...though I encourage you to indeed partake with the many within the Church who do pray upon the hour.

1. O Lord, deprive me not of Thy heavenly blessings;

2. O Lord, deliver me from eternal torment;

3. O Lord, if I have sinned in my mind or thought, in word deed, forgive me.

4. O Lord, deliver me from every ignorance and heedlessness, from pettiness of the soul and stony hardness of heart;

5. O Lord, deliver me from every temptation;

6. O Lord, enlighten my heart darkened by evil desires;

7. O Lord, I, being a human being, have sinned; do Thou, being God, forgive me in Thy lovingkindness, for Thou knowest the weakness of my soul.

8. O Lord, send down Thy grace to help me, that I may glorify Thy holy Name;

9. O Lord Jesus Christ, inscribe me, Thy servant, in the Book of Life, and grant me a blessed end;

10. O Lord my God, even if I have done nothing good in Thy sight, yet grant me, according to Thy grace, that I may make a start in doing good.

11. O Lord, sprinkle on my heart the dew of Thy grace;

12. O Lord of heaven and earth, remember me, Thy sinful servant, cold of heart and impure, in Thy Kingdom.

13. O Lord, receive me in repentance;

14. O Lord, leave me not;

15. O Lord, save me from temptation;

16. O Lord, grant me pure thoughts;

17. O Lord, grant me tears of repentance, remembrance of death, and the sense of peace;

18. O Lord, grant me mindfulness to confess my sins;

19. O Lord, grant me humility, charity, and obedience;

20. O Lord, grant me tolerance, magnanimity, and gentleness;

21. O Lord, implant in me the root of all blessings: the fear of Thee in my heart;

22. O Lord, vouchsafe that I may love Thee with all my heart and soul, and that I may obey in all things Thy will;

23. O Lord, shield me from evil persons and devils and passions and all other lawless matters;

24. O Lord, Who knowest Thy creation and that which Thou hast willed for it; may Thy will also be fulfilled in me, a sinner, for Thou art blessed forevermore. Amen.

The Feast of the Epiphany

Today is the Feast Day of the Epiphany, marking the start of the season within the Christian calendar that bears the same name (Christmas came to an end yesterday with Twelfth Night). A Holy Day celebrated continuously by the Church since at least the mid-fourth century, Epiphany holds great significance to the people of God. Originating in the East, this Feast Day there commemorates the Incarnation of Christ and is historically often celebrated with greater vigor than Christmas. Within the West, such cause for celebration becomes clear, for Westerners celebrate Epiphany specifically as Christ's manifestation to the Magi, who of course hailed from the East. Epiphany, then, is the day the Church celebrates Christ's coming extended to the Gentile, recognizing and praising God for salvation and redemption coming into all the world. What Christmas is for the Jew, Epiphany is for the Gentile.

As we meditate of God's working through and communing with the distinctively Jewish nation and then of His marvelous (and at the time quite risque) action of grafting us as Gentiles into His family through the Jewish Messiah, we especially today glorify God for such expansive grace. Praise Him heartily this day, all Gentiles who call upon His name for breath and salvation.

The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ

Yes, yes - Happy New Year. While this is the day that the world celebrates the turning of their calendars (that which Christians did at Advent), today is a day also not insignificant to Christ's Holy Church. January 1 has historically marked for Christians the feast in which we celebrate the circumcision and naming of Jesus. (Some Christians now separate the celebrations of Christ's circumcision and His naming, but I'll spare the details.) For those unfamiliar with this Feast Day, allow me to simply argue that when I say "historically," I refer to my own limited research pointing to this Holy Day being honored as early as the mid 6th century through today. Such is impressive in the scope of faithful believers whom we celebrate with.

Truly, this is a magnificent day. As was Jewish custom, it was during circumcision that a boy received his name. Note the significance that looms in the first shedding of blood of the Christ who is at that time proclaimed with the name Jesus, Savior. First, there is indeed much to explore regarding the soteriological implications of this first shedding of the Lamb. Additionally, we could support at least a pint or two relating our discussion to Christian baptism and God's working through covenants. Thirdly, our conversation would necessitate the inclusion of language regarding the Incarnation and Christ's humiliation. However, I will fight the temptation to do so here and will merely speak a note to the first, that traditionally it has been viewed that redemption through Christ began at His circumcision. A constant within Patristic writings is the belief that this shedding of blood was, in a sense, a downpayment or a first installment upon the redemption of mankind.

Glory be to God. Praise Him this day who became Incarnate and shed His divine blood for the remission of our sin.