John Chrysostom, Homilies on Philippians

Writings from the Greco-Roman World #36

by Pauline Allen, John Chrysostom

This volume offers a translation of sixteen homilies by the most famous preacher in Christian antiquity, John Chrysostom. These homilies on Paul’s letter to the Philippians constitute the most comprehensive ancient surviving commentary on the letter in any language. The homilies have a direct and conversational style in which examples from daily life abound: children, the elderly, food, agriculture, seafaring, money, commerce, building, furniture, weather, illness, good health, animals, and slavery. Friendship themes, based on Paul’s relationship with the church at Philippi, and Christology also figure largely in these homilies. This volume, with Greek text on facing pages, situates Chrysostom’s homilies on Paul’s letter to the Philippians in their historical, homiletical, rhetorical, and liturgical contexts.

Genres: Theology

380 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2013

Reviews

[Tyler Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read through Chrysostom's sermons as I preached through Philippians. This was my first time reading a full work from Chrysostom. It wasn't very helpful toward sermon preparation, but it was enjoyable! He is really close to the text, which makes him beneficial. He can also make any text be about wealth and the deceitfulness of riches. I hope it was appropriate in his context, but it felt very forced most of the time.

[Connor Longaphie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chrysostom is always worth coming back to