December 5, 2011

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About the prayer: sermon of Saint John

Crisostom
We publish this beautiful homily of Saint John Chrysostom, translated by a friend from Montfort,
to strengthen us in the spirit of prayer during this time of the Lord's Advent.

Homily on prayer

First Homily

Two reasons invite me to admire and even more to esteem the blessed.
servants of God: first, because they placed all their hopes of salvation
in the holiness of prayer: secondly, because they preserved the hymns in writing and
the prayers that offered to God with joy and fear, and that transmitted to us their treasure
in order to inspire the same care to all posterity. It is therefore appropriate that
the customs of the masters pass to the disciples, it is convenient that the listeners of the prophets
let us become imitators of His justice so that we dedicate our lives to prayer,
to honor and serve God; turning to Him with an innocent and pure soul, for our life,
our health, our riches, and for the increase of grace.

What sunlight is to the body, prayer is to the soul: if it is an unhappiness for the blind
not seeing the sun, what unhappiness it will be for the Christian not to pray incessantly, and not to attract the light
of Christ for the soul? And yet, who would not consider with surprise and admiration the
the charity that God shows us and the honor that he grants to men for it
will return through prayer and converse with Him? For it is truly with God that we
we speak during prayer, which, in addition, brings us together with the angels and elevates us high above the
our brutal condition.

Prayer is the act of Angels; it surpasses even its dignity, for angelic dignity is
inferior to the dignity of the encounter with God. This inferiority, consequently, the angels
they teach us through the deep fear with which they offer their prayers to God; teaching a
we ourselves, when we draw near to God, to stand before Him with fear and joy;
with fear, for we may be unworthy of the prayer; with joy, for we must be
filled with this incomparable honor granted to us: a mortal race being admitted
a favor as high as conversing with God, and to elevate oneself through this means above the
corruption and death. Mortal by our nature, by our familiarity with God we...
we will approach an immortal condition. Thus, anyone who speaks frequently
with God becomes certainly stronger than death and corruption. Just as
we have nothing in common with darkness when we are illuminated by the rays of the sun, thus
he who enjoys the intimacy of God must necessarily be superior to death. A
dazzling honor with which we are rewarded leads us to immortality.

If the people who have the emperor's favor cannot fall into indigence;
even more so it is impossible that the souls that converse with God are
submitted to death. Death for the soul is impiety and a life of transgressions: for
As a consequence, life for the soul will consist of serving God and a related conduct.
to this service. Now, prayer sanctifies our life, makes it worthy of the worship of God, and
accumulate admirable riches in our soul. You who are enchanted by virginity,
you who would prefer a chaste and honorable union, if you lack the ability to tame resentment, practice
sweetness, to expel envy, or to practice another virtue, if prayer guides you and smooths your path
path, you will begin with ease and readiness, a career of piety. And it will
it will be done, only if one asks God, through prayer, for chastity, justice, sweetness,
kindness, which has not yet been attained. "Ask, said Our Lord, and it will be given to you,
seek and you shall find, knock and the door will be opened; for everyone who asks receives, he who
seek and you will find, and the door will open to the one who knocks - Who among you will give a stone to his
Son, if he asks you for bread? And if he asks you for a fish, will you give him a serpent? If you, therefore
If you who are evil know how to give good things to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give
Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.

It is for these words, it is for these hopes that the Lord of the Universe invites us to pray.
It is then our part, to obey God, to spend our life saying prayers and
praises, and to connect more closely to the worship of God than to our own lives.
He who does not pray, and who does not wish to always enjoy these gatherings, is a corpse, which
it has neither soul nor feeling. One of the clearest signs of stupidity is, in fact,
not understanding the greatness of this dignity, of not loving and of not considering it as the death of
the soul is the indifference of offering God the due honors.
Just as the body separated from the soul is only a corpse and decay, so is our heart.
When one does not surrender to prayer, they are nothing more than a miserable and corrupt corpse. That the
the deprivation of prayer should be considered more bitter than death, the great prophet Daniel
He taught us quite clearly, he who would rather die than go three days without praying. And
it was not for impiety that the Persian king imposed this order on him, but solely to have
three full days for your own worship. Without divine assistance, no good would enter into
our souls. God, through His assistance, shares our sorrows and makes them lighter,
when He sees that we love prayer, that we implore Him constantly, and that
we hope to obtain all kinds of goods through this means.

When I see a soul that does not love prayer and does not have a lively affection for it
ardent, it is a proof to me that there is nothing great in this soul. When I see, at
opposite, who is never satisfied with honoring God, and who places among the number of his
great unhappiness of not being able to pray constantly, I discover in this soul the worship
solid of all virtues and the very temple of God. If, according to the wise Solomon,
the coat of a man, his conduct, his smile, publish what he is, all the more reason the
prayers and piety will be an index of perfect justice: spiritual and divine garments, they
They spread grace and beauty in us. They order the life of each one of us, not
allowing no feeling of malice or madness to reign in our hearts; they
they fill us with fear of God and the honors He grants us, they teach us to be astonished
all the illusions of the wicked spirit, driving away unworthy and shameful thoughts, and
They inspire us to all the contempt of pleasures. It is the only pride that suits the servants of
Christ to refuse to serve ignominy, and to keep his soul pure and free.

Finally, I believe everyone easily understands the absolute impossibility of practicing

virtue without prayer is to practice it throughout life. And how to practice virtue if not
Will you often prostrate yourself at the feet of the One who gives and donates? How to desire
Honestly, being chaste and just is meaningless if one is not happy to be with Him who grants us these.
virtues and perhaps others? I want to briefly show you that, if we were covered with
sins, the prayer would soon purify us of them. After this, what could be more noble,
But more divine than prayer, for it is a sovereign remedy for the spiritually sick?
First of all, it is the Ninevites who appear to us as those who were freed by the
prayer of the countless crimes against God. Since prayer has entered their hearts,
she brought with her justice snatched in a moment from the city the impurity, the iniquity, and
the prevarications in which she was immersed; stronger than the entrenched customs,
she established the kingdom of celestial laws, and implanted with her chastity, humanity, the
gentleness, and the care for the poor.

It is the procession without which prayer would not dwell in a soul: in all the souls where it
establishes its dwelling, it brings with it all justice, it shapes them for virtue banishing the
vice. If someone entered the City of Nineveh, knowing what it was like in other times,
certainly would not recognize her, it is clear how the transition from a life of crimes to piety was
quick. Nor would he recognize a poor woman covered in rags, if the
met again soon covered in rich garments; then someone who saw ancient Nineveh
in its indigence and poverty of spiritual treasures, had ignored what this city was,
where prayer renewed morals and all customs, and through it was introduced to virtue.
Also a woman, after spending her whole life in impurity and immorality, only for
by throwing himself at the feet of Christ, he obtained salvation.

But prayer is not limited to erasing sins; it conjures dangers and evils.
presents. David, king and equally admirable prophet, obtained through prayer many and difficult
victories; giving to his soldiers this only weapon, prayer, and allowing them to win
in safety and calm. The other kings placed their hopes for victory in skill and
the experience of the generals and the archers, their infantry and their knights; more the
great king David gave as a shield to his army, the holy prayers: he did not turn his
look at the pride of his generals and the chiefs of his infantry and cavalry, he
he did not accumulate wealth and did not worry about weapons; it was from Heaven that he expected
all divine weapons. For prayer is in truth a divine and heavenly arsenal, and there is no
need for other means to effectively protect those who abandon themselves to conduct of
God. Constantly, the skill and courage of the infantry, the experience and the cunning
two archers are unsettled by the enemy's vigilance, by the strength of the opponents, by
several other means. As for prayer, it is an irresistible weapon, an impenetrable shield, that
repels a soldier and thousands of legions with the same ease. This David triumphed over
Goliath, and he hurled himself upon him like a terrible demon, not by the sword or by means of
weapons, but through prayer.

Thus, prayer is a formidable weapon against demons for kings. Thus King Hezekiah
he triumphed in the war against the Persians without even having deployed the army in the campaign, only
using prayer against the multitude of his enemies. Thus, he escaped death if
prostrating with a touching piety before the Lord, so that only prayer
called this prince to life. The example of the tax collector proves to us that prayer purifies.
easily the sinful soul; for having sought God's forgiveness for its sins, he
he obtained soon; we learned it also from the example of the leper, who presenting himself before
from God, was healed immediately. If God gives healing immediately to the sick body, with
greater reason he will mercifully give to the suffering soul: so much the soul excels in
excellence over the body that God attends to with more solicitude. It would be easy to cite one
infinity of ancient and recent traits, if one wanted to enumerate all the men who
They owed their salvation to prayer.

One of these negligent people, who have no care or fervor in prayer, will put
perhaps objections to these words of the Savior: 'Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord,'
will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
(MAT VII, 21) If I intended that prayer was enough for our salvation, with much
reason these words would oppose me: as I recognize in prayer the source of all goods, the
the foundation and the root of all virtuous life, that these words are not to be used to
to justify negligence. Neither chastity alone, deprived of other goods, would know how to...
save, not even the care for the poor, nor kindness, nor any other virtue; it is
I need all of them to remain in our souls. Well, it is prayer that serves them.
foundation and principle. Just as the solidity of a vase and a building depends on the
the solidity of the lower parts, thus our life receives its consistency from prayer: without it
prayer nothing good, nothing useful to salvation would be granted to us.

It is for this reason that Paul does not cease to urge us insistently. "Be persevering and
vigilantes in prayer, accompanied by thanksgiving. Pray without ceasing in all
in all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus
Christ. Pray constantly for the Spirit, multiplying invocations and supplications. Persevere.
in your watch, pleading for the Christians" (Col IV 2 IThess V 17 18 Eph VI 18). For these
presents and divine words, the great apostle invites us to prayer. For we are
your disciples, let us not cease, during our lives, to pray and to continuously water
our souls with their freshness.

For prayer is no less essential to us humans than water is to trees.

Even trees cannot bear fruit if they do not drink through their roots, thus
We ourselves cannot produce the precious fruit of piety outside the waters of prayer.

It is also necessary that, upon rising from the bed, we offer God our tributes, and that
let us offer in the same way at mealtime or at bedtime:
preferably, at all times we should offer God a prayer and observe
this rule during the whole day. In winter, we dedicate most of the night to prayer,
let us bend our knees with fear and deep reverence, and let us seek joy in
divine worship. How, I ask you, will you look at the sun, without first having worshipped Him who
send to your eyes this sweet light? How can you eat without having worshipped the author and
distributor of so many goods? With what hope will you approach the night time, and to which
you will wait for dreams if, instead of putting on the armor of prayer, you throw yourselves without
no care in sleep? You will easily become the toy and victim of demons
perverse ones, who prowl continuously and wait for the moment when they can surprise us, and
quickly remove from our midst the one who does not possess the weapons of prayer. When they
They see us protected by prayer, then they flee, as if they were bandits and wrongdoers.
noticing the soldier's sword suspended over their heads. When they encounter someone
stripped of prayer, they grab him, carry him away, and hurl him into sin, into disasters and
in all evils.

May the fear of these dangers determine us to always arm ourselves with defensive weapons.
of praises and prayers, so that God, having mercy on all of us, may make us
worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven, through your only Son to whom be the glory and power for
centuries of centuries. Amen.

Saint John Chrysostom, “Commentary on the Letters of Saint Paul”, vol. 2, Homilies on
the First Letter to the Corinthians, Ed. Paulus, 2010, pp. 223-226

But, oh money! Or rather, oh disordered love of money, which subverts everything and casts it aside.
land! And for many, because of money, everything becomes trifles and fairy tales. It is not from
to admire that those who are engaged in secular business get involved in litigation before
the courts; but many of those who renounced the century should do the same entirely
no excuse. For if you want to see how much the Scripture prescribes you to abstain from such habits,
to know, from the courts, and to know which laws have been enacted, listen to what Paul affirms: "The law is not
destined for the righteous, but for the wicked and rebellious" (1 Tim 1:9). If he is referring to the Mosaic law,
much more applies to pagan laws. If, therefore, you practice injustice, it is evident that you are not
just; if you suffer injustice and endure it (which is especially peculiar to the just),
You do not need the pagan laws in any way. And how, you ask, will I be able to endure.
Injustice? Well, Christ commanded something greater. He not only ordered to endure injustice,
but still to increase liberality towards the enemy, and to overcome with prompt readiness
to the suffering the wicked will. Indeed, he did not say only: And he who
to litigate with you, to take your tunic, leave him the tunic, but also deliver it with her
manta. Overcome it by tolerating evil, and not by practicing it. It would be an illustrious and splendid victory. In view
Therefore, Paulo continues: "In any case, it is already a fault for you the existence of litigations between
you. Why do you not prefer, rather, to suffer an injustice?” (1 Cor 6:7). I will prove to you
what is defeated first is the one who suffers injustice than the one who cannot bear it. Those who cannot endure
injustice, even if it takes the matter to court, even if it overcomes, is then truly
what is defeated. Suffered what he did not want: the opponent forced him to be bored and to plead in
judgment. In what did you succeed? Why did you receive all the money? Nevertheless, you were subject to
that you did not want: you were forced to litigate in court. In fact, if you endure the injustice,
you win even though deprived of money, but this victory is not above great wisdom:
the opponent could not force you to do what you did not want to. To verify that it is true,
Tell me: Who won? The envious one or he who lay in the dung? Who overcame? Job, whose
were all taken from him, or was it the devil who took everything? It is evident that it was the devil, who
he stole everything. Who we admire in light of victory, the devil who attacked, or Job who was
hurt? Of course it is Job. After all, he could not keep the perishable riches, nor preserve the
safety of the children. And why do I speak of wealth and children? Could not maintain the health of the
body. However, he who lost all his possessions was the winner. He could not, in fact, retain the
wealth, but carefully preserved piety. To the children who died, he could not
to help. And then? However, the event made them more illustrious; and also him, reached
through the tribulation, it brought benefit. If I had not indeed suffered and endured harm from the
devil, would not have obtained that splendid victory. If enduring insult were a bad thing, God would not
He would not have ordered it; for God does not command evil. Do you not know that he is the God of glory?
He would not want to involve us in shame, mockery, and prejudice, but he would arrange us.
the opposite. Therefore, he asks us to tolerate the injury, and does everything to separate us from things.
secular, and convince us about what constitutes glory, what is reproach, what is harm,
What is profit.
But is it hard to suffer injuries and harm? It is not hard, is it, oh man! How long do you long for the
his gifts? God would not have commanded it if it were wrong. Consider, however: who
committed injustice, seized the riches, but also having a burdened conscience;
who suffered the injustice, was deprived of money, but gained trust from God, more
precious as the possession of a thousand treasures. Being aware of this, let us reflect willingly, and that we do not
Let us be two fools who do not consider the distress caused by a court as harmful.
Meanwhile, it is a maximum and total loss not to think like this of one ’s own free will, but
coerced. Those who suffer, defeated in court, do not obtain any profit, because, after all, the
The result necessarily comes. What, then, is the splendid victory? To disregard, not
I went bankrupt in court. What? - you retort. All my belongings were stolen from me, and you order that
Do I shut up? I suffer loss and you urge me to endure with gentleness? And is it possible? It is very easy if
look to the sky, if you see its beauty, and where God promised to welcome you if
generously endure injustice. Do this and, having looked at the sky, think that you
you turned into someone who is sitting there upon the cherubim. In fact, he also
suffered opprobrium and bore it; was insulted and did not retaliate; offended with spittle and did not
came, instead, rewarded, granted numerous benefits to those who in this way
they proceeded and ordered that we be their imitators. Do you think you came out of the womb naked,
you will not return to the land, you and the one who inflicted injustice on you; or rather, he with countless
wounds, where the worms thrive. Reflects that the present realities are temporary, thinks
In the tomb of the ancestors. Take clear notice of the events, and you will see.
that he who caused you injustice strengthened you. While in him the passion, that is, the love of
money, it became more serious, yours weakened when he took the food source from that beast.
Moreover, it freed you from worries, from anguish, from the envy of detractors, from the tumult,
agitation, from the continuous fear and accumulated a burden of evils upon his head. But, what
I will do it, you say, if I have to fight against hunger? You will suffer in the company of Paulo, who said: 'Even
In the present moment we still suffer from hunger, thirst, and nakedness” (1 Cor 4:11). However, he suffered,
you say, because of God. And you too because of God, for when you do not take revenge, you
I age this way because of God. But the one who wronged me revels in riches.
On the contrary, it is along with the devil, while you will be crowned with Paul. Do not fear the
hunger: 'The Lord does not leave the righteous hungry' (Proverbs 10:3). And another passage says: 'Cast your
"Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you" (Ps 55:23). If he feeds the birds of the field, how will he not take care of you?
Will nourish? Let us not, therefore, be of small faith, nor be faint-hearted, dearest ones. Who
he promised the kingdom of heaven and such great goods, how will he not provide for the necessities of the present?
Let us not desire the superfluous, but be content with the enough, and we will always be rich.
Let us seek clothing and sustenance, and we will receive everything, this and much more. However, if you still...
you lament and look down, I would like to show you the soul of the one who did you injustice like
it was reduced to ashes after the victory. For such is sin: while it is committed, it causes a certain
pleasure; accomplished, that small taste slips away, and is succeeded by the sadness of the spirit. From
Fact, this is what we feel when we insult others; then we accuse ourselves.
Similarly, when we steal, we rejoice; then our conscience torments us.

(Saint John Chrysostom, "Commentary on the Letters of Saint Paul", vol. 2, Homilies on the First
Letter to the Corinthians, Ed. Paulus, 2010, pp. 223-226