John Chrysostom, On Pentecost Sermon 1

Jew, let the Greek be present. If the words are a boast, let him refute them; but if what was said is truth, let him worship the power. Christ said: Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. And what are his words? Let us bring them forth, let us see if they have fallen through. I do not speak doubting, but silencing the heretic. For this reason, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. What words? You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. On this rock. He did not say, On Peter; for he did not build his Church on the man, but on the faith. And what was the faith? You are the Chri 52.807 st, the Son of the living God. He called the Church a rock, receiving waves, and not being shaken. For the Church receives temptations, but is not conquered. What then is, On the rock? A confession based on the words. Do you not cast stones? not wood? not iron? No, he says; for it is not such a building that, whatever it may be, is destroyed by time; but a confession not even demons can conquer. And the martyrs bear witness, whose sides are scraped, and yet do not lose their faith. O new and strange things. The wall is dug through, and the treasure is not plundered; the flesh is consumed, and the faith is not expended; such is the power of the martyrs. For on this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. Pay attention to the precision of the word. The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

For why, he says, does he not prevent temptations from coming upon the Church? Is it not that I might show my power? If no one wars against it, they are able to say: If it were warred against, it would have been conquered. For this reason he allows it to be warred against, so that the victory may not be credited to the absence of enemies. And the gates of Hades, he did not say, Shall not attack it, but, Shall not prevail against it; it will be warred against, but it will not be conquered. The Church is stormed by winter, but not submerged; it is tossed by waves, but does not go under; it receives darts, but does not receive wounds; it receives siege engines, but the tower is not shaken. And why do I say the Church? The fisherman uttered one word, and it has stood as an unshaken tower. How many tyrants have striven to destroy this word, but were not able? For it was founded upon the rock. Consi 52.808 der: tyrants, kings, diadems, sharpened swords, teeth of beasts, threatened deaths, frying pans, furnaces. And indeed the devil emptied his quiver, but did not harm the Church. Why? The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. How many from the beginning have warred against the Church? where are those who warred against it? They are silenced, and are given over to oblivion; the Church flourishes. Where is Claudius? where is Augustus? where is Nero? where is Tiberius? They are but names; and no one remembers them. Because they warred against the Church, they also lost their memory; but the Church shines brighter than the sun. And wherever you may go, to the Indians, to the Moors, to the Britons, to the whole world, you will find, In the beginning was the Word, and a virtuous life. For before this, cities were also filled with impiety; but now even the desert is filled with piety. Before this, queens also danced; and at Herod's birthday feast the daughter of Herodias danced; but today a handmaiden does not deign to do this. Before this, Persians married their mothers; today they practice virginity.

Before this, Goths killed their fathers; today they are eager to pour out their blood for the sake of piety. Before this, even private citizens were impious; today even kings are pious, and peoples. The present emperor, having put aside his diadem, and taken up a cross, at an unripe age, but showing a wisdom grown gray, does not recognize his kingship in church; outside are spears, and here are mysteries; outside are shields, and here are initiations into the mysteries; son of Theodosius, and the father Theodosius. And concerning these things

Ἰουδαῖος, παρέστω ὁ Ἕλλην. Εἰ κόμπος τὰ ῥήματα, ἐλεγχέτω· εἰ δὲ ἀλήθεια τὰ εἰρημένα, προσκυνείτω τὴν δύναμιν. Εἶπεν ὁ Χριστός· Ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ παρελεύσονται, οἱ δὲ λόγοι μου οὐ μὴ παρέλθωσι. Τί δέ ἐστιν, οἱ λόγοι αὐτοῦ; Προχειρίσωμεν ἐν μέσῳ, ἴδωμεν μὴ διέπεσαν. Οὐκ ἀμφιβάλλων λέγω, ἀλλὰ τὸν αἱρετικὸν ἐπιστομίζων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, Ὁ οὐρανὸς καὶ ἡ γῆ παρελεύσονται, οἱ δὲ λόγοι μου οὐ μὴ παρέλθωσι. Ποῖοι λόγοι; Σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς. Ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ. Οὐκ εἶπεν, Ἐπὶ τῷ Πέτρῳ· οὔτε γὰρ ἐπὶ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τὴν πίστιν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ Ἐκκλησίαν ᾠκοδόμησε. Τί δὲ ἦν ἡ πίστις; Σὺ εἶ ὁ Χρι 52.807 στὸς, ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος. Πέτραν τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν ἐκάλεσε, δεχομένην κύματα, καὶ μὴ σαλευομένην. Καὶ γὰρ ἡ Ἐκκλησία δέχεται πειρασμοὺς, ἀλλ' οὐ νικᾶται. Τί οὖν ἐστιν, Ἐπὶ τῇ πέτρᾳ; Ὁμολογία ἐπὶ τοῖς ῥήμασιν. Οὐ λίθους βάλλεις; οὐ ξύλα; οὐ σίδηρον; Οὐχὶ, φησίν· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν οἰκοδομὴ τοιαύτη, ἣ, οἵα ἂν ᾖ, τῷ χρόνῳ λύεται· ὁμολογίαν δὲ οὔτε δαίμονες νικῆσαι δύνανται. Καὶ μαρτυροῦσιν οἱ μάρτυρες, οἱ τὰς πλευρὰς ξεόμενοι, καὶ τὴν πίστιν οὐκ ἀπολλύντες. Ὢ καινῶν καὶ παραδόξων πραγμάτων. Ὁ τοῖχος διορύττεται, καὶ ὁ θησαυρὸς οὐ συλᾶται· ἡ σὰρξ δαπανᾶται, καὶ ἡ πίστις οὐκ ἀναλίσκεται· τοιαύτη τῶν μαρτύρων ἡ δύναμις. Ἐπὶ γὰρ τῇ πέτρᾳ ταύτῃ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν· καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς. Προσέχετε τῇ ἀκριβεία τοῦ ῥήματος. Πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.

∆ιὰ τί γὰρ, φησὶ, μὴ κωλύει τοὺς πειρασμοὺς τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ προσέρχεσθαι; Οὐχ ἵνα δείξω μου τὴν δύναμιν; Ἂν μή τις αὐτὴν πολεμήσῃ, ἔχουσιν εἰπεῖν· Εἰ ἐπολεμήθη, ἐνικᾶτο. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἀφίησιν αὐτὴν πολεμηθῆναι, ἵνα μὴ τῇ ἐρημίᾳ τῶν πολεμούντων τὰ τῆς νίκης ἐπιγράφηται. Καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου, οὐκ εἶπεν, Οὐ προσβάλωσιν αὐτῇ, ἀλλ', Οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς· πολεμηθήσεται μὲν, οὐ νικηθήσεται δέ. Χειμάζεται ἡ Ἐκκλησία, ἀλλ' οὐ καταποντίζεται· κλυδωνίζεται, ἀλλ' οὐ γίνεται ὑποβρύχιος· δέχεται βέλη, ἀλλ' οὐ δέχεται τραύματα· δέχεται μηχανήματα, ἀλλ' ὁ πύργος οὐ σαλεύεται. Καὶ τί λέγω ἡ Ἐκκλησία; Ἕνα λόγον ἐφθέγξατο ὁ ἁλιεὺς, καὶ ἕστηκεν ὡς πύργος ἄσειστος. Πόσοι τύραννοι ἐφιλονείκησαν ἀφανίσαι τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἴσχυσαν; Ἐπὶ γὰρ τῇ πέτρᾳ τεθεμελίωτο. Ἐννόη 52.808 σον· τύραννοι, βασιλεῖς, διαδήματα, ξίφη ἠκονημένα, θηρίων ὀδόντες, θάνατοι ἀπειλούμενοι, τήγανα, κάμινοι. Καὶ μὴν τὴν βελοθήκην αὐτοῦ ἐξεκένωσεν ὁ διάβολος, τὴν δὲ Ἐκκλησίαν οὐκ ἔβλαψε. ∆ιὰ τί; Πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς. Πόσοι ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐπολέμησαν τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν; ποῦ οἱ πολεμήσαντες; Σεσίγηνται, καὶ λήθῃ παραδίδονται· ἡ Ἐκκλησία ἀνθεῖ. Ποῦ Κλαύδιος; ποῦ Αὔγουστος; ποῦ Νέρων; ποῦ Τιβέριος; Ὀνόματά εἰσι ψιλά· τούτων δὲ οὐδεὶς μέμνηται. Ἐπειδὴ τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν ἐπολέμησαν, καὶ τὴν μνήμην ἀπώλεσαν· ἡ δὲ Ἐκκλησία ὑπὲρ τὸν ἥλιον λάμπει. Ὅπου δ' ἂν ἀπέλθῃς, εἰς Ἰνδοὺς, εἰς Μαυροὺς, εἰς Βρετανοὺς, εἰς τὴν οἰκουμένην, εὑρήσεις, Ἐν ἀρχῇ ἦν ὁ Λόγος, καὶ βίον ἐνάρετον. Πρὸ γὰρ τούτου καὶ πόλεις ἐν ἀσεβείᾳ πεπληρωμέναι· νῦν δὲ καὶ ἡ ἔρημος εὐσεβείας ἐμπέπλησται. Πρὸ τούτου καὶ βασιλίδες ὠρχοῦντο· γενεσίων δὲ γενομένων Ἡρώδου ὠρχήσατο ἡ θυγάτηρ Ἡρωδιάδος· σήμερον δὲ θεράπαινα οὐ καταξιοῖ τοῦτο ποιῆσαι. Πρὸ τούτου Πέρσαι μητέρας ἐγάμουν· σήμερον παρθενίαν ἀσκοῦσι.

Πρὸ τούτου Γότθοι πατέρας ἀπέκτειναν· σήμερον τὸ αἷμα αὐτῶν ὑπὲρ εὐσεβείας ἐκχύειν σπουδάζουσι. Πρὸ τούτου καὶ ἰδιῶται ἀσεβεῖς· σήμερον καὶ βασιλεῖς εὐσεβεῖς, καὶ δῆμοι. Ὁ παρὼν βασιλεὺς διάδημα ἀποθέμενος, καὶ λαβὼν σταυρὸν, ἐν ἀώρῳ ἡλικίᾳ, πεπολιωμένην δὲ σοφίαν ἐνδεικνύμενος, ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ βασιλείαν οὐκ ἐπιγινώσκων· ἔξω δόρατα, καὶ ἐνταῦθα μυστήρια· ἔξω ἀσπίδες, καὶ ἐνταῦθα μυσταγωγίαι· Θεοδοσίου υἱὸς, καὶ ὁ πατὴρ Θεοδοσίου. Ὑπὲρ δὲ τούτων